Thai tourism: 40 million tourists won't happen this year - strong baht, trade war to blame

[Suradit69]

1 hour ago, Chelseafan said:

Who knew?

 

Oh wait, Everyone except the ToT.

 

TOT the phone company didn't know?

 

Many of the potential tourists may have booked on Thomas Cook which just folded stranding 600,000 tourists, allegedly around the world.

I suppose the phone company didn't know that either.

 

 

Edited September 23, 2019 by Suradit69

[Pilotman]

3 minutes ago, Saint Nick said:

What about his other points?

Here, I give you some more: brainless smoking (on the beach) and beach chair/ umbrella laws, air pollution in Bangkok in CHiang Mai, sudden restriction on alcohol sales EVEN INSIDE HOTELS on whatever- some- zealot- has- on- his- mind- day (Buddhist holidays, election days, pre-election days etc)...all these things happen to you on one holiday (maybe you had a run in with the RTP or the Tourist- police or got scammed by taxi- drivers or night market- vendors) and you really think very hard of coming back.

And of course, you share your experiences with your friends or your facebook- group....

 

You need more?  

Not many of that list bother me too much and would not stop me coming to Thailand on holiday, or recommending it to anyone else.  What would stop me as a tourist is the cleanliness, or lack of, of the beaches and seas, yes, the scams, and above all else, the exchange rate £ to Baht. Many more cleaner and cheaper places in the World to holiday. 

[Mitkof Island]

Best news i have heard this year. About 35 million too many here already. Ruined the place

[Mel Bourne]

Its very hard to take the TAT seriously considering a recent president was the wife of an army general under investigation for murder.

I assume it was all a misunderstanding.

Edited September 23, 2019 by Mel Bourne

[Emdog]

Must have slipped his mind, not mentioning government's role in this blame game....

[stevemac]

Foreigners that live in Thailand go through the airports and evidently are counted as tourists so the numbers are flaud 

So long as they use the same criteria year on year they'll get a reasonable comparison. The numbers show an overall drop as expected. Likely to continue.
For western tourists there are so many options opening the Thai formula may seem a little tired and unfashionable now, combined with higher cost due to the strength of the baht.

Sent from my SM-G965F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Suradit69]

2 minutes ago, Pilotman said:

above all else, the exchange rate £ to Baht. 

So the pound is a hot currency in some countries. Yemen, Hong Kong, Syria  ...?? You could ring up Thomas Cook to check. Assuming they're still answering the phone.

[spidermike007]

Wrong again. Just more deflection, and unwillingness to accept blame, for shooting the golden goose in the foot. Thailand has made so many mistakes when it comes to both tourism, and how they have treated the valuable ex-pat community. They are too many to even count, or recite, and I get accused of repeating myself when I do! These incompetent goons will not take responsibility for the problems they have caused, the millions of jobs that they are losing, and the incredibly bad job they have done. It is all about maintaining face for them.

 

There is something about this society that does not allow most people to grow up with an understanding of themselves. I think face has something to do with it. The utter refusal to take responsibility for one's actions and the unwillingness to "own" a situation, and man up when you screw up. That and the inability to question people, and situations. And the subsequent lack of curiosity. It is all a perfect storm, when it comes to preventing alot of people from becoming well developed human beings, with communication skills, and the tools needed to conduct meaningful relationships, beyond the surface. 

 

 

 

[RBOP]

Can also blame TM30 requirements. 

[upena]

TAT never claimed 40 million tourists for 2019. Their claim was for 40 million arrivals. Big difference and TATs way to inflate the numbers.

 

Note that everyone else is to blame. There is no blaming TAT and MOTS for being clueless when it comes to marketing to foreigners

[GinBoy2]

1 hour ago, ExpatOilWorker said:

Thai travel agents seem to agree:

 

http://www.atta.or.th/?p=4019

Lot of data in there.

 

But the one thing that struck me, was again this question of what constitutes a 'tourist'

 

If those 'tourist' numbers are to be believed, a quarter of a million Vietnamese showed up in Thailand on vacation.

 

I have a hard time believing that.

 

Other than that, there was it seems that most segments have seen a decline from about 2017, and guess the Iranians don't travel at all anymore! 

[gazmo]

As an expat of over 14years enough is enough... last out pls turn off the light on the way out!

[ZAKY]

The truth about the number of incoming and outgoing tourists can be seen at the airport. During my last visit to Thailand i had to fly 3 times international and each time i left and come back at Suvarnabhumi, i can say the situation was the same not crowded like before. For my part, i dont think its only the Thai baht or trade war etc... The recent hunt of overstayers by immigration police in groups in public in the streets in order to verify the travel documents of foreigners has discouraged many of them thinking that they are no more welcome in the country!

[legend49]

2 hours ago, overherebc said:

Not only me but a couple of friends would really like to know how the figure are decided.

What factors are used to determine a tourist arrival.

Total count of non Thai passports going through airports and border posts?

Total number of hotel registrations of non Thai passports or just all passports.?

Total of passports in airports plus total of hotel registrations?

Your strategy too complicated. They take the number of seats in an A380 then spin a chocolate wheel. What number comes up on the wheel is multiplyed by the number of seats, easy peasey. LOL

[legend49]

Blame partly on the high Baht and poor exchange rates. No blame on the so called trade war that is BS. Other blames on overpricing, dearer than neighboring countries ie Vietnam; Xenophobic attitudes of people who believe they are good Buddhists and TM 30.

[kevin612]

What goes up must come down

[Cadbury]

1 hour ago, sitanonchai said:

Guess the strong baht and the trade war are of influence, but there are more factors esp. for repeat visitors.

 

- Dangers on the roads

- Scams every place you visit (even Thai people get scammed everywhere)

- Pollution of streets and beaches, etc......

- Over inflated prices and taxation products foreigners use

- Higher prices for foreigners for instance national parks

- Grudge against foreigners

- Political climate

- Justice only for the rich

 

I can list a lot more and I know that other countries will also have problems, but Thailand has reached the top now.

I feel sorry for all the expats because for them it's even worse because of the TM hassle. 

 

I used to work in Bangkok for ten years and was a regular visitor in the last couple of years, now it's time to go visit other places until Thailand will make some drastic changes. But that won't happen.

But they are making drastic changers. 4 am closing of bars and clubs and the Tourism Minister's promo of massage and ganja to get back Western tourists. They will soon come flocking back.

And we haven't had a TAT hub for a long time. The last one was in July last year when they promoted Thailand as the HUB of Gays, Lesbians, transsexuals and any other denomination one might care to include. 

https://www.ttgasia.com/2018/07/02/finally-thailand-comes-out-of-closet-and-rolls-out-carpet-for-lgbt-travellers/

[Chicken George]

For many its just too expensive to travel this far to Thailand. Plus for a family holiday safety etc is a consideration. Thailand has become a destination for the sun not the mystique anymore. You can go to many other places in the Winter months far cheaper closer and safer..

[PatOngo]

2 hours ago, ExpatOilWorker said:

TOT will inform us that next year there will be 80 million visitors to make up the deficit !

That's phone numbers from page 607 to page 993 of the telephone directory added together!

[Bantex]

I flew out of Thailand last month & returned last week. There was absolutely no one in front of me at the Immigration desk & they were closing some Immigration desks. There was hardly anyone at the security check scanners & free airline desks when I was checking in. When I stayed a couple of days in Bangkok (before & after flights) there were noticeably fewer people in the hotels, restaurants & bars I went to. I have friends who were planning to come to Thailand this year but went elsewhere.

[DrTuner]

No ploplem, since "tourists" are immigration entries for certain visa/voa/exemption categories, all you need to do is increase connecting flights to Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, Laos and Myanmar. Since every one of those that goes through immigration and checks in at Don Muang to be on their merry way counts as a "tourist". 

[DrTuner]

6 minutes ago, Bantex said:

I flew out of Thailand last month & returned last week. There was absolutely no one in front of me at the Immigration desk & they were closing some Immigration desks. There was hardly anyone at the security check scanners & free airline desks when I was checking in. When I stayed a couple of days in Bangkok (before & after flights) there were noticeably fewer people in the hotels, restaurants & bars I went to. I have friends who were planning to come to Thailand this year but went elsewhere.

The Chinese come at a certain time of the day and that's when immigration gets swamped. They are then bussed to their illegal short time condo "hotels". With luck, you'll never even notice they were there.

Edited September 23, 2019 by DrTuner

[natway09]

One day they will wake up realize that vast  numbers only clog up the non existent or non working sewerage & fat trap plants & waste disposal.

If they concentrated on looking after 20 million quality tourists well they will actually make more money.

Case in point,,,,,a good friend of mine (multi multi) used to go to Phuket 4 times a year & spend very good money got sick of the hassle, hassle & rip offs  so went & stayed in Bali in a beautiful 

resort ,,,,loved the good service & layback attitude so much he bought the resort,

I doubt we will ever see him in Thailand again,,,,,as he said ,,,"they had their chance"

 

[DrTuner]

1 hour ago, Suradit69 said:

TOT the phone company didn't know?

ToT, Tat, Tit, same same but different.

[PatOngo]

2 hours ago, PatOngo said:

 

Don't try this at home....it's ILLEGAL!

[outsider]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

He said that foreign tourists were going to other countries where they might get more for their money.

 

No sh|te Sherlock. And it's NOT about getting more for their money in terms of exchange rates and trade wars. It is about getting reasonable amounts of proper services and goods in exchange of money paid. It is about NOT getting scammed, herded, jeered at, illegally shaken down, potentially killed and made to feel generally unwelcome, after having paid money. It is about looking for good and sincere hosts. Not black holes.

 

Edited September 23, 2019 by outsider

[Ketyo]

But tourist numbers are just a driver of tourist receipts... the main thing they are interested in.

 

I wonder how tourist receipts doing? My guess is down a lot.

 

Indians with low spend capacity and Chinese who buy a lot of their trip with Chinese companies before and after arriving likely don't contribute nearly as much in the way of receipts as Europeans, Americans, Aussies and richer Asians.

 

And all tourist categories will be spending less because of the high baht.

Edited September 23, 2019 by Ketyo
change

[DrTuner]

6 minutes ago, Ketyo said:

I wonder how tourist receipts doing? My guess is down a lot.

What I wonder about is how and who does the receipt stats in a country that's cash based and most one-man-bands don't pay any tax.

[LetsCleanUpTHAILAND]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

foreign tourists were going to other countries

And what's happening in Thailand? Well, advantageous tuk-tuk drivers are hustling Thai shops and asking for a premium to bring customers. So what does that do to the travel experience of foreigners? I'd imagine Thailand turning into a hostile Bali-like environment of taxi's harassing travelers for their business. Once hired, the tuk-tuk will try to take you to his carefully curated selection of restaurants and Thai massage shops. It's like a real life version of Pirates of the Caribbean here - everyone using everyone for their own benefit. What happened to the people-helping-people culture of Thailand? 

[Jane Dough]

2 hours ago, madmen said:

Way to many lower suk I'n my soi which has quiet a few hotels and to many Indian resteraunts

A lot of Sukhumvit is owned by Indians. Including Nana.

 

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