Survey: Is Thailand’s appeal declining for Western Tourists?

[garyk]

As an expat, Thailand is a joke.  Hard but true.

[Perhaps2more]

3 hours ago, Ulic said:

the the minimum wage is increased to 425 a day (election promise)

How do you expect a country to develop when a local person in work has about £10 a day to cover all his living expenses with perhaps few people in his family?

[gk10002000]

10 hours ago, SteveK said:

When I first visited Bangkok, I could get by on 1000 baht which was about £15 a day. Now I find that I need 2000 baht a day, and now that is £52, that's a massive, massive difference. Had it been this expensive when I was younger, I definitely would have gone elsewhere, maybe the Philippines or Vietnam. I'm sure I would have just as good a time in those places.

yeah, my buddy married a filipino and he loves the PI now.  He had been to Thailand over a dozen times.  The exchange rate, the english language, makes the PI very attractive to many people.  I still like Thailand because of the buddhism, the temples, the food (both foreign and Thai), and to me, it is a fairly easy country to get around in by bus, domestic air, heck the baht bus always made Pattaya attractive to me.  I love being able to hop on and off the darn things.  So convenient.  Never rented a scooter in all my trips.

[wisperone]

30 minutes ago, Perhaps2more said:

The overall experience you can get in Thailand at such competitive price is not easy to surpass.

Sexpats agree!

[daveAustin]

10 hours ago, marcusarelus said:

The pound and Aussie dollar are too low to make Thailand a low cost vacation.  Simple really.  

Nothing to do with dubious local currency coupled with mini hyper inflation of goods 'n services coupled with increasingly invasive junta-government, of course. What about the Greenback, Loonie, Euro, Krone, etc etc, are they also too low to make the place viable for their citizens? Try having a break from the place and look from the outside in. 

[madmen]

5 minutes ago, Perhaps2more said:

How do you expect a country to develop when a local person in work has about £10 a day to cover all his living expenses with perhaps few people in his family?

step out of your village and come to towns. The whole of Thailand are not all construction workers or farmers

On sukhumvit bangkok you won't see a car older than 5 years unlike the west where rust buckets are everywhere

[Perhaps2more]

8 hours ago, 4MyEgo said:

I noticed later on that I got ripped off 20 baht,

It is sad that people worry about 20 bahts (50 pence at the present exchange rates). Is that enough a reason for anyone to find Thailand terrible? It is not worth mentioning even in Thai bahts with Thai people. In Singapore, Japan or Hong Kong, people wouldn't pick it up if they see one on the ground.

[Ireland32]

11 hours ago, Destiny1990 said:

Yes its declining same as the traffic to this website is declining.

Over-moderated, Unfortunately 

[Perhaps2more]

11 minutes ago, madmen said:

step out of your village and come to towns. The whole of Thailand are not all construction workers or farmers

On sukhumvit bangkok you won't see a car older than 5 years unlike the west where rust buckets are everywhere

You don't know Thailand then! The rich are very rich and the poor are very poor. Sukhumvit is a very expensive area and the cars you mentioned belong to the few. Ordinary workers in Bangkok earn very little unless they sell something for themselves. Selling their bodies is one easy solution but not easy to do. Still many of them are doing it and tourists are enjoying what is sadly on show obviously. 

£10 a day is a promise which is not what they are getting.

[Odysseus123]

17 minutes ago, daveAustin said:

Nothing to do with dubious local currency coupled with mini hyper inflation of goods 'n services coupled with increasingly invasive junta-government, of course. What about the Greenback, Loonie, Euro, Krone, etc etc, are they also too low to make the place viable for their citizens? Try having a break from the place and look from the outside in. 

A very good post.

I am in agreement with the those posters who state "one and done"

When I returned to Australia I was surprised by the complete lack of interest shown about Thailand compared to 20 or even 10 years ago..the general philosophy being "Been there,done that and have the Tee shirt to prove it!"

 

Of course the dynamic that involves Sexpatria is completely different but ,even so,the level of interest seems to be declining.

[madmen]

12 minutes ago, Perhaps2more said:

You don't know Thailand then! The rich are very rich and the poor are very poor. Sukhumvit is a very expensive area and the cars you mentioned belong to the few. Ordinary workers in Bangkok earn very little unless they sell something for themselves. Selling their bodies is one easy solution but not easy to do. Still many of them are doing it and tourists are enjoying what is sadly on show obviously. 

£10 a day is a promise which is not what they are getting.

The hookers are all from villages that come to Bangkok and very few are natives. My Gf makes 87k per month and her sales team are all on 50k, a lot more than most big white pensioners on 20 k !

 

Big bwana with his tiny pension no longer gets to call the shots unless its some remote village surrounded by chickens and buffalo

Edited July 15, 2019 by madmen

[Perhaps2more]

1 hour ago, Number 6 said:

Something else...if I had to wait an hour in an immigration queue in a developing country only to be met by questions and negativity I wouldn't return.

Would you return if it were a developed country?

Immigration in Europe are no better especially when they see a non European person.

Now you know what it is like when they go to yours.

I am not surprised that you mentioned the status of Thailand as a low grade beneath your kind of a country.

This is quite common from visitors to Thailand. But I am surprised when these visitors are complaining about how badly they are sometimes treated.

Would you be kind to someone who looks down on you?

You don't have to say it. It always shows up one way or another with that thought in your head. They will know it.

Edited July 15, 2019 by Perhaps2more

[RoadWarrior371]

4 hours ago, lespaulTV said:

I like less tourists.

Ding ding ding... we have a winner. ????

[ericnoodeeka]

10 hours ago, Scutty said:

Just get clued up before hand and buy your bottles in advance as I used to do when I was a daily alcoholic .

that's rubbish for tourists who arrive on the day of the ban, if thais want to refrain from drinking that's fine, don't force your guests who want to spend money in your country to do the same. it makes no sense.

[Perhaps2more]

10 minutes ago, madmen said:

The hookers are all from villages that come to Bangkok and very few are natives. My Gf makes 87k per month and her sales team are all on 50k, a lot more than most big white pensioners on 20 k !

 

Big bwana with his tiny pension no longer gets to call the shots unless its some remote village surrounded by chickens and buffalo

Your girlfriend is not the norm. A job in sales especially properties or medicines are usually very good. In general, a person with a university degree on average earns about 20k/mo or less. They all come to Bangkok to find jobs. Bangkok is not Thailand, most long stay visitors stay outside Bangkok in a village with chickens and buffalo. You would be the only person who think Thai people are high earners. Most people do anything they can and more than one job to survive. 

Many rich Thais live their lives in a bubble like you too.

"Qu'ils mangent de la brioche"

 

[aspenbkk]

I used to go there 5 times a year in between work and spend my money then go home . Now i am made to feel unwelcome at immigration more interrogated about why i am here  ! to spend my earned money  i say and if they dont want my money Vietnam or philippines or other asian countries will welcome me . Im sure many other white guys feel the same way and Thai logic seems to be if Less tourists Put the Price Up So Now They all are feeling the pinch i saw it in my last few trips there pattaya is Empty And Sinking So im Sure Phuket is Too.

Edited July 15, 2019 by aspenbkk

[Perhaps2more]

26 minutes ago, ericnoodeeka said:

that's rubbish for tourists who arrive on the day of the ban, if thais want to refrain from drinking that's fine, don't force your guests who want to spend money in your country to do the same. it makes no sense.

You can buy one at the airport when you arrive. No ban at the airport.

[Aj Mick]

9 hours ago, SOUTHERNSTAR said:

In actual fact you are wrong. It was the Brits that came first and it was mostly elder married couples. Thats why Thais still have a certain amount of respect for Brits. The backpackers came afterwards. The war also played its part on the sex tourism development.

 

Sent from my SM-A730F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

 

Some "Brits" might not like it, but they are European from my point of view.

[Scott]

Posts removed.   Please stay on topic.

 

[4MyEgo]

9 hours ago, ivor bigun said:

To all expats who seem to get ripped off,whats wrong with me ,nobody ever overcharges me ,what have i done wrong? In fact the other day i bought a t shirt in mikes shopping mall and the girl charged me less because i am local,its not fair .

Sent from my SM-A720F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

You must be special or look poor....

[4MyEgo]

12 hours ago, sunnyboy2018 said:

Only idiots get scammed and ripped off here. Usualy gullible people with little or no travel experience often with a superiority complex.

Only idiots get scammed, well Thailand must be full of us them then, Mr Elite.

 

As for gullible and with little or no travel experience, you better go back to school because you are not a good psychoanalyst, as I am more streetwise than most, hence the reason I know when someone is attempting to rip me off, which was the bases of a reply to this post, that and I have travelled to more places than you sunshine.

 

So to end this tit for tat in the hope that you will just move on, best you go back to enjoying what you get to you most, i.e. get ripped off, oh and don't forget to smile back to those that rip you off.

[4MyEgo]

4 hours ago, Perhaps2more said:

It is sad that people worry about 20 bahts (50 pence at the present exchange rates). Is that enough a reason for anyone to find Thailand terrible? It is not worth mentioning even in Thai bahts with Thai people. In Singapore, Japan or Hong Kong, people wouldn't pick it up if they see one on the ground.

It's not about the 20 baht, but I am not going to try to explain that to you, as you just don't get it and I have better things to do then waste my typing skills, adding to this.

[superal]

13 hours ago, barry553 said:

The beaches are dirty, the towns are dirty, it is like going on holiday to a rubbish dump. Why would you?

not to mention the dodgy pavements , high kerbs , motor  bikes that ride on walkways and in the markets 

[CPH]

Thai Central Bank Bank should lower the interest rate and indicate they will lower further in the coming period. All other countries are on a lowering spree, so Thailand needs to follow them to keep the Baht steady.

[UKresonant]

15 hours ago, SteveK said:

When I first visited Bangkok, I could get by on 1000 baht which was about £15 a day. Now I find that I need 2000 baht a day, and now that is £52, that's a massive, massive difference. Had it been this expensive when I was younger, I definitely would have gone elsewhere, maybe the Philippines or Vietnam. I'm sure I would have just as good a time in those places.

Certainly the exchange rate is getting painful now...

About 20 years ago I looked a those two destinations you mention, Vietnam seemed still a bit shaky on the security front. I had a number of conversations with a guy who's wife was from the Philippines, he highlighted frequently that there was a lot of corruption there at that time, so I did not think I would like it there. 

I think Vietnam & the Philippines, likely get equal consideration now by tourists, where as Thailand was perhaps favourite before. (as well as looking at the other countries in the region)

[superal]

12 hours ago, SteveK said:

No chance of them doing anything. The ultra-rich elite in Thailand are getting even richer with the massively inflated baht, and as you know, they rule the roost. I doubt they give a flying feline faeces about the tourism industry.

 

It's a shame because Thailand was the first country I explored on my own, and it was a very special experience and great memories for me, but I suppose nothing lasts for ever.

 

Could not agree more and I think that is the crux of the matter . Once upon a time the big boys did rely on tourism but now they are making big bucks in the financial world and a drop in tourism is of little or no concern to them . However if their is a continued decline in the tourist industry there will be a lot of angry Thais whose livings depend on it and that is the only work they know . 

[superal]

12 hours ago, wisperone said:

I think it is becoming more of a 1 and done destination for the normal tourist. Excluding sexpats who can get cheap sex in Thailand and no sex at home.

Cheap sex ? please tell us where that is and how much . Used to be cheap but not any more , so I am told .

[Sametboy2019]

With the rising Baht and more Thais having a better standing of living the lure of Western money is less appealing. The issue Thailand has is the infrastructure, service, and cleanliness is still way behind making Thailand not great value for money.

 

There are better options especially for Europeans to find nice beaches and good food closer to home. 

[BobBKK]

15 hours ago, seasia said:

Yes

 

I voted 1 but had it been an option to make 2 votes, Q4 would have been made also

Yes I dont think the questions are well laid out. Number 4 and 1 go together and so the final fig is reduced by a split vote (this happens a lot).

[BritManToo]

43 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

You must be special or look poor....

...... or too stupid to notice he's being scammed.