TAT chief blames high baht and lack of Europeans for drop in Thai tourism

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

3 hours ago, marcusarelus said:

I believe the Chinese make up 25% of Thai tourism.  Last I read.  Maybe a little more this year.  

 

The last month or so, everywhere I go around central BKK, the place is overrun with Chinese tourists... And a fair number of Koreans too. 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

3 minutes ago, the guest said:

 

If you going on holiday you want a good time, and sadly Thailand doesn't offer this anymore.

 

Interestingly, there was a time not many years back when "sanuk" (fun) was a common word in the Thai and tourist vocabulary.

 

But then the "sanuk" killers came along, and everything has pretty much been downhill ever since in the "sanuk" department.

 

I almost never hear Thais themselves using that term anymore.

 

[from the home of CC]

8 minutes ago, Chelseafan said:

Rather ironic as the US was once a UK colony ????

but you bit off more than you could chew..

[spidermike007]

Yes. Correct. But why the lack of Europeans? The high baht is only a part of this. It is Prayuth and fabulously ignorant men like Biggest Joke, and their racist and nationalistic diatribes that are at least partly to blame. Racist governments are not popular. With anybody. Too many alternatives. Western tourism is lost forever. The big spenders have written Thailand and it's racist monster leaders off. The big spending Chinese tourists refuse to come. Not enough here for them and they cannot buy luxury goods at competitive prices. And no decent wine service. Poor concierge service. Etc etc. Only low end Chinese tourists. The entire approach to tourism here the past five years or so, can be referred to as "self sabotage". Dumb and dumber. 

[Fex Bluse]

38 minutes ago, potless said:

The man in charge of that opened up an atlas and concluded that the world is indeed flat.

The world to many (most?) Thais

What else is there, right? 

[NanLaew]

3 hours ago, BestB said:

Well that’s in total contradiction to our Thai visa experts who claim Chinese outspend Europeans. 

 

Would appear Chinese spending does not make up for loss of European money . 

Especially since more and more Chinese are choosing to spend their money in Vietnam and elsewhere.

[Nice Boyd]

NO S... SHERLOCK....

[Orton Rd]

Also the prostitutes have become far too expensive ???? Now you are lucky to get a bj for a 1000k, in days of yor it was all night for 500-1000k and they would put yer toothpaste on the brush! Beer prices in bars, laughably expensive, outrageous double sometimes triple charging of foreigners for attractions, if you can call them that. Music scene went down the pan long ago IMO, Issan cafes replaced by loud raucous beer hall type places, karaoke bars mostly rip off joints. Many get done as soon as they land or get in a taxi. The only good deals are still the hotels and local food eateries, that's it the rest is not much of a pull. Chinese seem keen though, still millions of them ruining the place as well.

[Cobby]

At last someone has woken up that the western world is no longer coming to Thailand 

becaus of the high bht and the obsession of the government with Chinese tourism 

who do not contribute to the real Thai people who make there living from tourists I hope more in the government will wake up 

sadly its to late for many western tourists we are now visiting Cambodia.vietnam. And the Philippines 

 

[Tatsujin]

Have the morons at TAT finally realized it’s the “Europeans” that actually contribute most to the economy, and not the Chinese? And that “tourist numbers” mean nothing if the “tourists” aren’t spending locally? It’s not rocket science, and they have actual stats to work from, but seems they still have zero clue about what kind of people they actually want coming here.

[Chelseafan]

25 minutes ago, Assurancetourix said:

I'm waiting for a Frenchxit ;

but we have no French politician with enough balls to start it;
Europe as it exists is an aberration

 

it was already a wobbly thing when there were only six countries in it, now it's very big no matter what.

Let's not make this into another Brexit thread..there's enough of those already ????

 

[Golden Triangle]

37 minutes ago, Hoppyone said:

Currency was tumbling down long before Brexit

Not true, Aug 23 2015 the £ was 55.86 the best it had been since I moved here in 2011.

[RBOP]

Yes, baht is too strong. Had visiting family who kept converting to $ in the stores when out shopping. They kept saying that's really expensive compared to home.

[Geoffggi]

Easy, make your country more safe to walk about, and make the exchange rate for the Baht more attractive otherwise you will price yourselves out of the tourist market.

[Chelseafan]

2 minutes ago, Golden Triangle said:

Not true, Aug 23 2015 the £ was 55.86 the best it had been since I moved here in 2011.

Absolutely true. Go back to 2002 and it was 75-80+ to the pound. The baht has steadily strengthened over the past 15 years or so.

 

[Traubert]

1 hour ago, Fex Bluse said:

Don't forget that many westerners will shun the idea of visiting a low quality destination known for attracting Chinese tour groups. 

 

And, Thailand now has that reputation. 

Like Paris?

[ThomasThBKK]

1 hour ago, Chelseafan said:

That may be true but what they aren't factoring in is the casual expenditure, drinking, eating out, accommodation, girls, etc. This money trickles down into the Thai economy.

 

I'm by no means an average spender in Thailand and travel 3-4 times a year spending around £8000 per two week trip (including flying with Thai) giving an average daily spend of circa $725. Plenty of 'farangs' of similar ilk. Can the same be said for the Chinese?

 

I would love to know what factors make up the TAT's average daily spend.

 

 

 

This is also a statistic made by credit card companies. Europeans don't use credit cards like other nationalities. 

 

We bring cash and exchange it or we go to an atm to get cash, we are not much into this card paying thing. With the german EC card for example you can't pay here but you can get cash at an atm. 

 

All of these cash payments are missing from their statistics. 

[Mavideol]

3 hours ago, Jonathan Fairfield said:

It was the first time that anyone at the TAT had mentioned the Thai baht was having such a big effect on the tourism industry. 

we have to be patient, things here take time to sink in... finally they start to admit their troubles

[Mavideol]

so finally they admitted it.... now the question is, what are they going to do about it, looking for India,  China and Bangladesh as alternatives 555

[ianezy0]

10 minutes ago, Chelseafan said:

Let's not make this into another Brexit thread..there's enough of those already ????

 

Brexit...what's all this about then? ????

[Golden Triangle]

2 minutes ago, Chelseafan said:

Absolutely true. Go back to 2002 and it was 80+ to the pound. The baht has steadily strengthened over the past 15 years or so.

 

I am aware of that I started coming here about 2005, after the big crash it dropped slowly to the 50ish mark and stayed there for quite a while - Sort of found it's stable level, a couple of days prior to the referendum I had some friends do some transfers and got 52ish, as soon as the result was announced the £ fell like a stone and has never recovered, Brexit has had a big impact, if we get out with a deal I think it will slowly climb back to it's more comfortable level of about 50 ???? 

[racket]

Someone has been sleeping for too long...

[Emdog]

Rather than addressing the problem of what makes Thailand unattractive to Europeans etc, they choose to entice people from countries that often are more polluted, corrupt, shoddy than here. Makes Thailand look good by comparison.

[MartinKal]

Thailand is looking towards India to make up the numbers, but what is the spend? Thailand needs to work on its infrastructure to support moves upmarket.

 

Is the TAT saying that Indian people find this level of provision satisfactory, where as Europeans find it inferior for the money being paid?

 

Everyone these days is very acutely aware of erosion of the natural and built environment from over tourism. It is not sensible to play a numbers game with the damage this causes to the infrastructure. Better to go for ecological-tourism, quality, higher spends, longer days.

[MartinKal]

Great news. Numbers are moving up in favour of the Big 5 and Big 12 secondary cities. 5%!

 

But not to the islands as far as I can see. And the North is dead. 

[SteveB2]

After many years in Thailand, I have noticed that much like the tails of woe spoken about 'global warming' being loudest in the middle of summer, news of 'last nail in the tourism coffin' seam most prevalent in low season...

 

That being understood, my recent walks around Pattaya's entertainment areas have been sobering. Many areas previous ok-busy with western tourists in low season are now 'like the grave'

 

It's true enough that hoards of flag following Chinese tour groups march up and down Walking street every night making it look busy. Sadly they don't enter most of the bars and gogos - many of which are struggling to keep up with their monthly expenses and daily THB10-20K rent payments.

 

Away from Pattaya's Walking Street in areas more cost-friendly to the old fashioned Western 'Mongerer' tourist, such as Soi Buakhao, Lengee, Pot-hole, etc it is difficult to understand how many joints can still stay in business. A evening walk around these areas last saturday evening at peak times revealed many bars and resturarants with no one sitting in them at all. That's not good.

 

There will surely soon be a cull of all businesses that focus on predominantly western tourists. This is apparently already in progres. There many 'For Sale' signs up, with many well established businesses already closed.

 

For the businesses that remain, all will need to adapt to the new tourist model and overcome the changes affecting everyone - or go bust. 

 

This is going to be one long low season. 

[British Bulldog]

Huh ? Europeans, Chinese and others all decide not to come to Thailand because of a sway of 1 or 2 baht difference to their respected currency .... come on ... try pulling the other one. (International exchange rates at 30.80 to the USD this morning) the Aussie dollar dropped heaps this year, but it doesn't stop them coming !

[CNXexpat]

2 hours ago, Chelseafan said:

giving an average daily spend of circa $725. Plenty of 'farangs' of similar ilk

Then you spend a lot. Perhaps Chinese don´t spend so much, but more than an average western tourist. Here in Chiang Mai the Chinese stay in minimum 3 star hotels, never in super cheap guest houses or dormitories. A friend of mine has a restaurant near Thapae Gate. He loves the Chinese guests. They order 4 dishes for 2 people,  western travellers often one dish to share. 

In Chiang Mai you see rarely group tours. The most Chinese came with friends or family. They spend a lot of money at restaurants, markets, massages, shopping center and so on. Nearly nobody in Chiang Mai complain about them. 

[Isaanbiker]

And he admitted that those who are coming to Thailand are being more careful about their spending as they are receiving less baht for their money. 

 

Does he not know that Vietnam and other SEA countries offer a lot more for their hard earned Euros? In addition, almost all has gotten more expensive, the beaches are at some places so dirty that you can't even swim there.

 

  The times of Thailand being THE holiday destination are over. Other countries at least "value" their guests.

 

  Here it's pretty easy to understand, they want people who spend a lot of money then leave to make place for the new arrivals.

 

  The Chinese will never replace Europeans, perhaps only by the number of visitors. 

 

  No smoking at beaches, no smoking near government offices, etc... and no this, and no that. Who wants to go to such a place? 

   

 

[varun]

Typical Thai knee-jerk reaction to blame everything on everybody else, but themselves.

 

Listen up Somchai:

Stop the Grand Palace scams

Stop the taxi meter & tuktuk mafia scams

Stop the gem shop scams

Stop the jet-ski mafia scams

Stop the dual-pricing scams

Stop the police stop-and-search scams

Stop the gogo bar overpricing scams

Stop the seafood market scams

Do all of the above, and you will find tourists coming back.

It's that simple.