Phuket tourism going down the pan just like Pattaya: Few tourists and much worse than last year

[marcusarelus]

3 minutes ago, nobodysfriend said:

My thai wife and me have been living for 20 yrs in southern France . After arriving there she got her " carte de sejour " what is like an identity card . It is good for a five yrs stay without having to report anything in these five yrs . she had exactly the same rights as a french citizen . She could buy land , work , whatever , she felt welcomed .

In 2015 We moved back to Thailand because we are getting older and need to employ somebody helping us with the house and garden etc ... Too expensive in France .

But here I am an " alien " with basically no rights , but duties to report every move I make to the government , I do not feel welcome here .

 

If the Thais think that they can attract people to invest in their country ( even for a holiday ) with politics like this , they will need to damn wake up soon , because Thailands reputation has gone down too much .

 

What is needed here is a complete change of politics regarding foreigners , especially those who come here to live and invest . 

 

I can only hope that some Thai government members read this thread . There is a lot of infos here that explain correctly the decreasing numbers of foreigners wanting to stay here .

But probably they will not be able to understand ( english ) ...?

 

Pity you have learned so little about Thais after being married to one for so long.  If this thread was translated into Thai/Issan the government would get angry and say, "you don't understand Thai people." And propose more anti Farang legislation.  

[mike787]

5 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Yep, I stopped having holidays in Thailand a few years back. I spend the minimum possible money living here now, but so far this year I've had holidays in Saigon (x2), Phnom Penh and Da Nang. That was money I would have previously spent in Thai beach resorts.

 

As for prices, return flight CNX to Da Nang 2,300bht, bus from the airport to the town 25c, hotel 100m from the beach $15/night, the beach was clean, nobody selling, and the water was clear. Way cheaper than Phuket.

 

Me2...I totally agree!  And much safer on Vietnam roads.

[reargunnerph3]

Strong baht, unfriendly & aggressive immigration, corrupt officials, filthy beaches, dangerous drivers.

[varun]

1 hour ago, spidermike007 said:

As I posted in a similar post about Pattaya, all of the details remain pertinent and real.

 

It is easy to blame the strong baht. And it is definitely a factor. But, there are so many other factors. The army, Prayuth, and the biggest joke spent five years sabotaging Western tourism. Now, the damage can be felt, and people are worried. Millions of jobs are at stake. Same applies to ex-pats. Many are leaving, or have left. Not feeling welcome?

 

Also, the unwillingness to tackle the scams, the traffic and public safety issues, the environmental issues, and so many other causes, are all having an impact on tourism. The decision to turn away from Western tourism, and focus almost exclusively on Chinese and Indian tourism was a mistake of historically monumental proportions. The TAT is barely making any effort to lure Westerners. And in my opinion they are the big spenders. I read surveys about the average Chinese tourists, being at the top of the list of big spenders. But, this is average. And the big spending Chinese do not come to Thailand for a dozen different reasons. The wife wants to buy a luxury handbag. The same Gucci bag that she likes is $3,500 in Singapore, London, New York, Paris, Hong Kong, or Dubai. In Bangkok that bag sells for $9,000. At a five star hotel, this same wealthy Chinese couple want a great bottle of wine. They see a good vintage of Domaine Coche-Dury Monthelie, which would sell for about $500 retail, at a five star in any of the above cities for $1,000 on the list. Same bottle, if it was available (highly unlikely) in Bangkok, would be 95,000 baht, or more. Wealthy people tend to be smart with their money. They simply will not pay stupid money for stuff. The luxury taxes have been discouraging high end tourism here for decades. It is policy that is so dumb, so shortsighted, so non-visionary, and it hurts the economy. If wine duty was 100%, you would have a thriving wine industry here, five to ten times the size of the current industry. So the state income would be made up on volume, and hundreds of thousands of jobs would be generated. This is simply another example of brain dead leaders, who have no vision, and are NOT leading the nation forward, are not helping the nation to progress, and are not benefitting the people of Thailand.

 

I was recently with a group of friends, and we wanted to order a bottle of wine, at of one of those high end restaurants in the EmQuartier complex. It was Bella Rocca Restaurant. I asked about a 2011 Chianti they had on the list. I was told they were out of stock. No have. I asked about a Barbaresco, at 2,600 baht. Again, out of stock. No have. How about this Nebbiolo? Do you have the 2010, as stated on the list? No have. We do have the 2016. OK, what is that wine like? Is it drinking well now? I do not know. Is there anyone here that is familiar with this wine list? No. Sorry sir. Hold on. Wait a minute. You have 100s of bottles on this list, ranging from 1200 baht to 10,000 baht per bottle, and NOBODY who works here knows anything about the wine? How about the manager? Oh, he does not know either. Are you serious? We all just looked at each other, and got up and walked out. We realized the restaurant was a pretender. And more than likely the food was marginal at best. It was all dressed up to look like a very nice Italian restaurant. But, it appeared to be only window dressing. High end tourists have little patience for that lack of quality and lack of service. They can get far better service in many other nations, without the onerous taxes on luxury goods like foreign wine!

 

Hopefully, we will eventually see a correction in the Thai baht. Although I feel for those in the hotel industry, lower rates over the long haul sure works for me! It may be the one area where we do not see inflation rearing it's ugly head!

 

Completely agree with everything you say.

High-end tourism can be found at much better value elsewhere - and this is where the "Rich Indians and Chinese" and many Europeans gravitate towards these days.

 

Dubai/Rome/London/Paris/Berlin/Munich/Madrid/Barcelona/Zurich.... and let's not forget New Zealand, Australia and the US too.

 

Due to the idiotic policies fueled by Thai Logic, courtesy of the monkey-brained Somchai's in charge,

they've managed to alienate the big spenders and attract the bottom feeders.

 

Som nam na.

[sambum]

"Manager said that it was obvious to anyone that tourism had been in decline for years with less tourists and less revenue"

 

Not to TAT it hasn't been! Year after year they have been trumpeting their "increased tourist rates", and now that leading voices from Pattaya and Phuket have pitched in with their version of the situation, TAT are conspicuous by their silence! 

[sahibji]

when greed and lawlessness sets in tourism is sure to be impacted because visitors begin to look for alternative sources, much to the peril of the country.

 

it is a  long process to rebuild confidence and depends on the genuine will of the hosts to restore  such confidence for people to return. we should never forget that there are numerous alternatives vying for this business.

[sahibji]

14 minutes ago, dave moir said:

It's not just Phuket and Pattaya Chiang Mai is like a ghost town and has progressively gone down hill over the past 5 years very sad to see lots of people's livelihood disappearing.

there is a reason for everything.

[geoffrobbo]

6 hours ago, Just1Voice said:

My feeling, and I admit I have no proof, is that the baht is being artificially propped up, but have no idea why. If it is, eventually it will crash, and the economic shockwave will have the power of a tsunami throughout Thailand. 

The high baht doesn't make sense. Poor balance trade usually sends a currency down. So I guess you have to ask "who benefits from a strong Baht?". Well if you are in the market to buy submarines, tanks and other military hardware a strong Baht would be handy.

 

[sahibji]

7 hours ago, Snuller21 said:

And a way to strong Baht. Thailand used to be an affordable country for holidays. Not anymore as the Baht is way too strong. And that is also for the Export. Just look at the price for rice, and the declining of that as export as well. And Toyota making an assembly factory for HiLux in Myanmar, as they lose money on every assembled car in Thailand. Just saying.

thai baht is but one small component of the whole zigsaw puzzle. violence, cheating and indiscriminate price hikes are some of the other factors.

 

[legendcat]

I think people are just tired of going to Thailand. I have been going back and forth there for over 30 years and seen the places going downhill. The beaches are dirty and seem to be more rats around. Garbage everywhere and too much traffic. I would rarer go to a place where I am not pester every time I sat down to have a drink and eat as I do not want to buy their crap. 

[ThomasThBKK]

12 minutes ago, marcusarelus said:

Can't you read your own chart?  You said household debt was higher than it's ever been.  Take a look at your chart.????

Yeah i can read it, last year it was 12 trillion this year it's already 13 trillion, a near 10 percent gain.

So yes, it's at an all time high.

 

You have some serious issues.

[ChipButty]

6 hours ago, BestB said:

I am a long term expat and I take frequent holidays to Jakarta to have fun instead of locally . 

 

Why?

 

Because I am tired of having to pay top money for crap service, put up with crap English and bad attitude.

 

In Jakarta , I pay less, female company speaks good enough English, no sisters or brothers calling for her to go fast, no mobile phone that she must play with , I do not hear sad stories about sick mother or father and I get exactly what we agreed.

 

Taxi, grab, dirt cheap. Food just as cheap, and no one annoying you to buy some crap while you out , no hassles with police and friendly immigration 

No mention of the sick Buffalo's or her sister's sowing machine kaput

[visacrack]

Now wouldn't this be a great opportunity for the editors to take up again (and keep on doing it) the issue of expats wishing to import their car(s - fx 2, one driven, the other stored) into Thailand? You know, this: 

 

'The best way to import (permanently) a car (or a bike or any type of vehicle) into Thailand is… to forget about it. Put it simply, it’s close to impossible, especially for a used car and even for a new one. If you’re not convinced, use Google and try to find success stories. You probably won’t find any, but plenty of horror stories instead. The taxes are as high as 300%, and that’s only for starters. Basically no car is worth the hassle and if you think it’s worth it, it will only make matters worse for you.' from http://driving-in-thailand.com/importing-a-vehicle-into-thailand/

 

I copied/pasted this to hopefully discourage you from adding more such comments: I have really heard them all, plus I have already died laughing. D'accord?

 

If tourism goes down, so will revenue, and this may inspire second thoughts in people who seemed to have it all under control. Of course I can't predict that after letting expats have their car(s) duty-free into the country, tourism will go up again. But the present car import situation sure is one of these bits of nuisance that contribute to making people ask themselves if this really is the right place. If someone in a function had the nerve to dare some 'innovative' thought and calculate it through (I haven't/couldn't, just guessing), he might find that letting expats have their car(s) could actually be a win-win siituation... 

  

 

 

[marcusarelus]

6 minutes ago, sambum said:

"Manager said that it was obvious to anyone that tourism had been in decline for years with less tourists and less revenue"

 

Not to TAT it hasn't been! Year after year they have been trumpeting their "increased tourist rates", and now that leading voices from Pattaya and Phuket have pitched in with their version of the situation, TAT are conspicuous by their silence! 

 

[bert bloggs]

I have friends who spend months at a time here ,because of the strong baht ,one is here for 2 weeks ,one not coming and the other just one month this year . losst to the Thai economy Thousands of pounds , multiply that by?

also as the baht is so strong we dont spend anything like we normally do ,and we live here ,

[Millcx]

6 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

no they are not. ????

DOW 27,000

you think?

NOT ONCE IS THERE A MENTION OF THE OVERLY PROPPED UP THAI baht .... It’s destroying the country along with the constant draconian red tape against Europeans .... Wake up and smell the coffee ... You are on self destruct

[natway09]

I never heard one word from any Brit complaining when they got 70 Bht for the quid.

Sure the Baht is strong but the economy is actually performing well.

If exports fall as much as 5% the economy will have done better than OZ or the UK.

One of the biggest reasons is that apart from the hotels (which are still some of the cheapest in the world for what they offer) everything else is a rip off & the locals just cannot help themselves

The taxi "service" from the airport says nothing but Welcome sucker. Mafia even the police are scared to tackle. Never again they say

[marcusarelus]

1 minute ago, ChipButty said:

No mention of the sick Buffalo's or her sister's sowing machine kaput

Sick buffalo was 20 years ago. You must have been gone for a long time.  

[ChipButty]

And, the double pricing continues not just in restaurants any business if they think they can <deleted> a Farang over

[marcusarelus]

1 minute ago, Millcx said:

NOT ONCE IS THERE A MENTION OF THE OVERLY PROPPED UP THAI baht .... It’s destroying the country along with the constant draconian red tape against Europeans .... Wake up and smell the coffee ... You are on self destruct

Because the baht is not propped up.  If anything the government and rich people would like to see it go down but it is not the baht alone it is the baht in relationship to the dollar and pound and Thailand can't control Brexit and/or Trump. 

[marcusarelus]

Just now, ChipButty said:

And, the double pricing continues not just in restaurants any business if they think they can <deleted> a Farang over

Nonsense.  I shop at Lotus and eat out at Fuji and there is no double pricing.  I buy my computer and mobile phone stuff from Lazada and there is no double pricing.  

 

Have you ever lived in Thailand because seems you get your information from Thai visa and not reality.  

[Joe Mcseismic]

5 minutes ago, legendcat said:

(snip) I would rarer go to a place where I am not pester every time I sat down to have a drink and eat as I do not want to buy their crap. 

Well, don't go to Bali. They have the most annoying and tenacious street sellers in the world.

[marcusarelus]

11 minutes ago, sahibji said:

when greed and lawlessness sets in tourism is sure to be impacted because visitors begin to look for alternative sources, much to the peril of the country.

 

it is a  long process to rebuild confidence and depends on the genuine will of the hosts to restore  such confidence for people to return. we should never forget that there are numerous alternatives vying for this business.

The greed and lawlessness is in the pound and dollar.  And I'll agree it will impact the spending ability of people from the USA and UK and other countries effect by them.

[sambum]

"Manager said that it was obvious to anyone that tourism had been in decline for years with less tourists and less revenue"

 

Obvious to everyone except TAT with their monthly lists of constant increases in tourist figures!

 

 

[Joe Mcseismic]

6 minutes ago, Millcx said:

NOT ONCE IS THERE A MENTION OF THE OVERLY PROPPED UP THAI baht .... It’s destroying the country along with the constant draconian red tape against Europeans .... Wake up and smell the coffee ... You are on self destruct

You obviously haven't been paying attention......

[marcusarelus]

16 minutes ago, reargunnerph3 said:

Strong baht, unfriendly & aggressive immigration, corrupt officials, filthy beaches, dangerous drivers.

I guess you are asking which effects tourism.  Of those five the only one that has changed in 10 years is strong baht/weak pound.  So that is the answer, number one.  

[marcusarelus]

2 minutes ago, sambum said:

"Manager said that it was obvious to anyone that tourism had been in decline for years with less tourists and less revenue"

 

Obvious to everyone except TAT with their monthly lists of constant increases in tourist figures!

 

 

 

[bbbbooboo]

Hmmm..... in thai parlance.... som nom na?

[ian007]

6 hours ago, PatOngo said:

First it was Europeans, then Chinese, now Indians. Wait till they discover the potential of tourists from the north and south pole!

You missed out the Russians

[Chazar]

Anything but mention the new strict  immigration rules which keep long stayers/spenders  away...........ostriches.