What High Season? Same old Debate

[Pilotman]

So here we are are, nearly, at this hypothetical 'High Season' that like Father Christmas, is something someone dreamed up a while ago and that the authorities still believe  in.   Apart from Christmas and New year (and even then its marginal), I never do see any appreciable difference in visitor numbers, people in bars/clubs/super markets/visitor attractions.  The roads are still clogged, as they are all year, the caches still screw up everything, as they do all year. BKK is still a nightmare to get through, as it is all year, the Chinese are everywhere, as they are all year.  So where is this High Season then? 

[aircooledflat4]

Correct me if I’m wrong,  but it isn’t the alleged high season when all the scandinavians roll up in droves? To escape their winter?

[Pilotman]

2 minutes ago, aircooledflat4 said:

Correct me if I’m wrong,  but it isn’t the alleged high season when all the scandinavians roll up in droves? To escape their winter?

Maybe, but it doesn't seem to make any real difference in my neck of the woods.  

[sanemax]

High season used to last for six months , these days its just the Christmas fortnight , stretched for a month 

[aircooledflat4]

^ I think there used to be a longer shoulder season and a slow tailing off, but these days there seems to be a markedly high period, then a sudden drop off... like <deleted> did everyone go?

 

 

[Esso49]

Think you need to go to Canada now,  it will soon become "High" season all of the time ????????????

[lanista]

Last week of Nov through to end of Feb is the high season.  They'll come. They always do.

Cheap airfares, hotels and sex on tap. There is a Thai toy boy living near me who makes over 100K a month sleeping with old gay farangs.  Huge business here.

The gays pour into Thailand  for sex and  of course marriage now that its legal in some of our sad countries.

Chinese, Indians  and Russians will probably dominate as farangs find better quality destinations.

[Pilotman]

Just now, lanista said:

Last week of Nov through to end of Feb is the high season.  They'll come. They always do.

Cheap airfares, hotels and sex on tap. There is a Thai toy boy living near me who makes over 100K a month sleeping with old gay farangs.  Huge business here.

The gays pour into Thailand  for sex and  of course marriage now that its legal in some of our sad countries.

Chinese, Indians  and Russians will probably dominate as farangs find better quality destinations.

You must live in an entirely different part of LOS to me.  I notice no appreciable difference at all.   

[HooHaa]

Always though of peak season as mid Dec to mid January with a steady high season through April. 

 

And as usual, my place on the islands is booked solid until mid April. 

 

We will have about 60 percent occupancy may June, July be booked solid for August September. It doesn't vary much, unless a coup or political strife cocks it all up. 

[Jonathan Fairfield]

In the 8 years i've lived here there is always talk of this being 'the worst ever low season' or the 'worst ever high season' in terms of declining visitor numbers.

 

Yet when I go outside i've never actually seen any evidence of that.

 

For me at least, I always think there is  noticeably more foreigners around from about mid-Nov right through to Songkran, with peak high season being about 2 weeks before Christmas to around the end of Jan.

 

 

[FritsSikkink]

22 minutes ago, Pilotman said:

You must live in an entirely different part of LOS to me.  I notice no appreciable difference at all.   

Maybe tell us where that is then.

[BestB]

Last year was very good. It got busy in September and stayed busy till June . This year is dead but expected when the only news you see is 300-500 police roaming the streets raiding all they can.

[Peterw42]

Not sure where you actually live OP but its not hard to notice more people around, and it mostly starts next month (Nov). Even my condo block in jomtien, this month the car park is now full, the deck chairs are all gone by 11am, local 7/11, laundry etc is busier. I also find myself saying hello to returning neighbours who turn up every year about now and stay for 3-6 months. I went out to usual lunch place yesterday and for the first time in 6 months, had to wait for a table.

Thanks for the first "what happend to high season" thread, as it wouldn't be high season without one.

Edited October 18, 2018 by Peterw42

[Esso49]

1 minute ago, Peterw42 said:

Not sure where you actually live OP but its not hard to notice more people around, and it mostly starts next month (Nov). Even my condo block in jomtien, this month the car park is now full, the deck chairs are all gone by 11am, local 7/11, laundry etc is busier. I also find myself saying hello to returning neighbours who turn up every year about now and stay for 3-6 months.

Thanks for the first "what happend to high season" thread, as it wouldn't be high season without one.

Deck chairs all gone,  that can mean only one thing - The Germans are on holiday ???? but the French have gone home if the laundry is busy ????

[Peterw42]

Interested in anyone's observations of high season (or not) but I take it with a grain of salt if the observations are empty seats in a bar in soi sexpat.

[Pilotman]

40 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

Maybe tell us where that is then.

This post is on the Pattaya Forum, that's the clue?  ????

[sanemax]

4 minutes ago, Peterw42 said:

Interested in anyone's observations of high season (or not) but I take it with a grain of salt if the observations are empty seats in a bar in soi sexpat.

All the sex-pats from CM have migrated to Pattaya , so that doesnt give an indication of the number of tourists who are in Thailand , also White sex-pats are in a minority in Pattaya these days 

[Pilotman]

24 minutes ago, Peterw42 said:

Not sure where you actually live OP but its not hard to notice more people around, and it mostly starts next month (Nov). Even my condo block in jomtien, this month the car park is now full, the deck chairs are all gone by 11am, local 7/11, laundry etc is busier. I also find myself saying hello to returning neighbours who turn up every year about now and stay for 3-6 months. I went out to usual lunch place yesterday and for the first time in 6 months, had to wait for a table.

Thanks for the first "what happend to high season" thread, as it wouldn't be high season without one.

This is on the Pattaya Forum??

I don't spend that much time in the City, thank goodness.  I live about 25kls outside, maybe that's part of why I see little difference.  The beaches around us are mostly occupied by Thais and permanent expats and there is no real influx in the winter months, just the usual weekend families.  The area/restaurants/bars/hotels/ supermarkets are maybe not so Western tourist oriented.  

[Peterw42]

22 minutes ago, Pilotman said:

This is on the Pattaya Forum??

I don't spend that much time in the City, thank goodness.  I live about 25kls outside, maybe that's part of why I see little difference.  The beaches around us are mostly occupied by Thais and permanent expats and there is no real influx in the winter months, just the usual weekend families.  The area/restaurants/bars/hotels/ supermarkets are maybe not so Western tourist oriented.  

Thats fair enough as its not noticeable everywhere, Im not in the middle of pattaya either but I suppose I notice it because it gives me the shits, lol. I go from having lots of parking, the gym and pool to myself, local restaurant not busy etc, to the opposite for the next 3-6 months. I was considering a swim 10 mins ago, checked from the balcony and gave up on that idea as to many people, put some sheets into the laundry yesterday and instead of come back later today, its come back in 2 days..Dont get me started on queuing behind some Russian/Chinese trying to buy a sim card in 7/11.

Edited October 18, 2018 by Peterw42

[Pilotman]

53 minutes ago, hyku1147 said:

Ahhh yes, high season........????

 

 

If only !  

[dotpoom]

Always strikes me that most people who bring this subject up are people who are not affected by it one way or another (financially) ...now if a business person were to share their views maybe that would be of some interest.

[mamypoko]

It began today in Canada

[how241]

4 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

Interested in anyone's observations of high season (or not) but I take it with a grain of salt if the observations are empty seats in a bar in soi sexpat.

Can you put a google map link to soi sexpat ?  Thanks

[Pilotman]

47 minutes ago, dotpoom said:

Always strikes me that most people who bring this subject up are people who are not affected by it one way or another (financially) ...now if a business person were to share their views maybe that would be of some interest.

I bring it up because it interests me that the Thai Tourism Authority always make such a big deal about it when it doesn't actually appear to be a big deal at all.  Checking hotel prices for all of Thailand on Booking.com, Expedia Hotels.com etc, the prices don't change and the deals are as numerous as ever.  No issues about available capacity either, bar perhaps Christmas and  New Year The air tickets prices don't seem to change much either, outside of western school holidays.  It appears to be more marketing tool, or wishful thinking,  than an actual measurable phenomena. Opinion is always split, among expats,  but I will stick with my own experience, that its not at all a big impact, month to month, throughout the year.   

[balo]

Pattaya is a busy town , high season or not, too many cars, too many bikes on the road, too many drunk idiots , December or July, I don't notice any difference. Basically it's the same year round.

[smotherb]

6 hours ago, lanista said:

Last week of Nov through to end of Feb is the high season.  They'll come. They always do.

Cheap airfares, hotels and sex on tap. There is a Thai toy boy living near me who makes over 100K a month sleeping with old gay farangs.  Huge business here.

The gays pour into Thailand  for sex and  of course marriage now that its legal in some of our sad countries.

Chinese, Indians  and Russians will probably dominate as farangs find better quality destinations.

Sex and marriage eh? What makes that any different than what the straight farangs do?  

 

 

[DrTuner]

Hasn't been a proper low/high season since the BKK weekend hordes started coming, around -08/09? Low season used to be bliss.

[smotherb]

1 hour ago, dotpoom said:

Always strikes me that most people who bring this subject up are people who are not affected by it one way or another (financially) ...now if a business person were to share their views maybe that would be of some interest.

Maybe that is why few business people are saying anything; there are too few left. Many of the farang business people I know are supplementing their businesses with outside income or are merely getting by.

[Thian]

7 hours ago, Pilotman said:

Maybe, but it doesn't seem to make any real difference in my neck of the woods.  

I guess farang tourists don't like your neck of the woods...They prefer Phuket, Samui and so...

[blackhorse]

Go to Pattaya /jomtien in June and then December and compare. Gridlock traffic and a sausage fest high season and best avoided. I'm in Pattaya now for my break from Bangkok and it's perfect [emoji108] not to crowded and certainly not dead.