14 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

So they can use the subs to recover the bodies -- next time??? 

 

Actually in February 2018 the military launched at Marsun’s facilities in Samut Prakan province five new M21-class patrol boats generally meant for missions that include law enforcement at sea, preventing infiltration in sea or on shore, protecting commercial and fishing boats, protecting natural resources and coastal areas in gulf and open sea, and ensuring the security of VIPs. https://thediplomat.com/2018/02/thailands-navy-gets-a-boost-with-five-new-patrol-vessels/

Picture from https://thaimilitaryandasianregion.wordpress.com/2016/12/03/thailands-marsun-shipyard-delivers-six-m21-patrol-craft-to-royal-thai-navy/

These boats would be perfect for collecting tourist bodies from offshore.

22 hours ago, steelepulse said:

Fantastic.  Keep the cancellations coming!

I agree maybe then and only then will Thais learn SAFETY is more important than the Baht

20 minutes ago, a977 said:

I agree maybe then and only then will Thais learn SAFETY is more important than the Baht

Not in a thousand lifetimes!

More concerned about losing money that fixing the problem of lax laws and regulations.  here's a thought, make Thailand a safer place to travel and maybe, just maybe, people will not cancel bookings.

1 hour ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

So they can use the subs to recover the bodies -- next time??? 

 

Ha ha! Cue Life of Brian Lyrics: Always look on the bright side of life..

Who said there's no such thing as bad publicity.

 

1 hour ago, dinsdale said:

Great news. Hope this continues through to October when I'm taking my family there.

Wouldn't take my dog there.........She doesn't like me calling her a dog??????

TAT never saw this in the future but now there is a chink in the armour ........so to speak.

4 minutes ago, toofarnorth said:

TAT never saw this in the future but now there is a chink in the armour ........so to speak.

So the chink is a weak link (or quite often, a two-week link).

 

Welcome to Thailand ! 

How wonders? Did they wait for more Chinese Tourist after this?

another boat accident should seal the deal for China-less Thailand this year

4 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Phuket hotel bookings cancellation causes concern

 

 

Phuket hotel bookings cancellation by Chinese tourists have unnerved Thai authorities and tourism-related business

 

The Transport Ministry and governmental agencies concerned have been working frantically to plug public safety loopholes to restore the confidence of Chinese tourists in wake of the cancellation of hotel bookings in Phuket by Chinese tourists following the July 5 sinking of Phoenix boat which left 47 Chinese dead and 46 survived the accident.

Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisit ordered a revamp of safety traveling measures with tougher penalties against tour operators and boat skippers that defy safety measures.

 

Full story: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/phuket-hotel-bookings-cancellation-causes-concern/

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2018-07-14

Tougher penalties.... that's the solution? How about enforcement..... there's a novel idea. 

1 minute ago, Curmudgeon1 said:

Tougher penalties.... that's the solution? How about enforcement..... there's a novel idea. 

Novel - yes. It will never catch on here though.

I'll bet my fifty unpaid speeding fines against it.

 

4 hours ago, rooster59 said:

The Transport Ministry and governmental agencies concerned have been working frantically to plug public safety loopholes to restore the confidence of Chinese tourists

 

Too late. You are supposed to do it before, not after, dozens are killed.

It's storm season right now.  The waves are very large both at sea and on the shorelines. If safety precautions don't get a total overhaul now, more will die. If those in charge are serious about saving lives, they will shut down the ports for 2 weeks to 2 months, consult with foreign neighbors such as China and Japan about advance weather warning systems and either make the Thai Navy responsible for policing the seas or start their own Coast Guard. 

Although it's unlikely to happen, this would help return confidence in Thais ocean safety.  The lost income now would eventually be returned in tourists returning to Thailand, Phuket and other ocean resort areas.

26 minutes ago, Telly said:

another boat accident should seal the deal for China-less Thailand this year

.....and you just know it's not a matter of if, but when.

It is as inevitable as the rains that another "accident" is just around the corner.

Great news ? Better still cancel them permanently 

The Chinese and many Asian ethnic groups are more risk and price averse than westerners.

The precident in China was set in their various food taint scandals,  particularly the baby formula panic,  which led to a CEO being executed by the state (one time I agree to Capital punishment -we should have more of this worldwide, given their salaries and Teflon treatment elsewhere).

But back to the point. So intense was the backlash, customs at the HK border had to place limits on baby formula imports by individuals which exist to this day. 

As Thailand's famed "Mai pen rai" approach to safety becomes entrenched in the Chinese psyche, the loss will really bite. 

Unless they can find yet another source of suckers in vast China-like numbers, they may have to finally invest in 1st world safety standards, the costs of which cannot all be borne by tourists,  lest they price themselves out of the market. 

Thailand can only have it both ways for so long,  eventually external safety backlashes and fear boycotts, expressed in opportunity costs, may force changes. 

My guess is that there would be a hundred million Chinese that are  potential future tourists to Thailand in the future who havent even heard about this fiasco.

Chinese tourism is unstoppable , and they will keep coming , as sure as the next High Season.

 

If a world event like a  tsunami  ( that killed thousands ) didnt stop tourism to the southern  Thailand islands , nothing will.

It's not gonna last

3 hours ago, steveyinasia said:

More concerned about losing money that fixing the problem of lax laws and regulations.  here's a thought, make Thailand a safer place to travel and maybe, just maybe, people will not cancel bookings.

and a better deal for longer staying tourists under 50.

"Phuket deputy governor Thavornrat Kongkaew, meanwhile, displayed a QR code wristband equipped with GPS system to be introduced among tourists which would enable officials to track them down in case they are caught in a boat or car accident."

New mystery..... Do the governor have a brain ?
...We give you this nice wristband, so we can track your every move and find you in case you ket killed.... Wellcome to Thailand ???

15%, 20%..

Just the water receding before the tsunami of Chinese visitors.

 

While not yet claiming Thailand as a historical province of China, bribes and corruption at highest levels, nominee companies, Eastern corridor waste reclaiming factories, high speed rail links, ect., yada yada will effectively result in Thailand becoming essentially a true vassal state.

 

I'm too old to give a crap, but maybe I'll be able to get some good Chinese sweet and sour pork and moo shu pork delivery.

2 minutes ago, BEngBKK said:

"Phuket deputy governor Thavornrat Kongkaew, meanwhile, displayed a QR code wristband equipped with GPS system to be introduced among tourists which would enable officials to track them down in case they are caught in a boat or car accident."

New mystery..... Do the governor have a brain ?
...We give you this nice wristband, so we can track your every move and find you in case you ket killed.... Wellcome to Thailand ???

Oh don't! You've now made me think of Spitting Image from the UK in the 90s. That sketch: The President's Governor's Brain Is Missing.

 

Seems the story about killing the goose that lays the golden egg has not got a Thai translation. 

Here's the thing to understand about China and its media. There are literally hundreds of Chinese State television stations. While the West has been gripped by 13 kids in a cave. This tragedy has been major news in China. The Communist Party even skew regular overseas news to make China look good and the West look dysfunctional. So they will be having a field day with Thailand, because so long as the dysfunction is not internal, they benefit from pointing the finger.

They will be milking this for all it's worth, and the Chinese have become more sophisticated than one might otherwise give them credit for, they will not entirely disappear, but if Thailand continue to allow safety issues to chill large groups of Chinese tourists, millions will choose other destinations with similar climates and beaches, such as Malaysia and Cambodia. For what it's worth investment by China in Cambodia is pervasive and you can bet there are custom Chinese owned,  Chinese only resorts being planned as we speak.

Cast your mind back to the chaotic scenes in KL when MH370 was lost the Chinese care about stuff like this, they have a strong group ethos, we don't, we tend to think it can't happen to us, as endless bike tragedies here show, far fewer Chinese die on scooters. They're generally risk averse and most deaths like drownings are out of beach water safety ignorance

 

 

15 hours ago, tryasimight said:

 Oh the irony!! 

I personally think that they are a lot better than the farang trash that one encounters now. I prefer the Chinese any day, they dress properly, they are not "sexpats" and they don't get into fights and trouble.

On 7/13/2018 at 10:17 AM, theguyfromanotherforum said:

I was taught in school that 15% of nothing is nothing

 

At least you grasp the meaning of percentage.

 

4 minutes ago, gamini said:

I personally think that they are a lot better than the farang trash that one encounters now. I prefer the Chinese any day, they dress prope rly, they are not "sexpats" and they don't get into fights and trouble.

1

When i read your post i thought you were having a laugh, you prefer people who s++t in taxis,  shove others out of the way, devour all the food at buffets, spit everywhere, yuk.

1 minute ago, colinneil said:

When i read your post i thought you were having a laugh, you prefer people who s++t in taxis,  shove others out of the way, devour all the food at buffets, spit everywhere, yuk.

 

No colinneil.

 

He's just a sad  miserable git venting about perceived injustices.