Tourism: Thailand set to introduce "Double Tourist Visa", govt secretary

[orchis]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

One media outlet even mentioned that a "multiple entry" visa was being considered. 

 

METV exists already

Edited November 28, 2019 by orchis

[heybuz]

1 hour ago, colinneil said:

Introduce whatever kind of tourist visa you want, wont make any difference.

The way immigration clowns are acting will only deter tourists.

With the baht being kept artificially high is just another way of sending tourists to other countries.

This so-called government have absolutely no idea how to run a country, tourists are put off by that as well.

I had trouble entering by Suvarnabhumi for the first time ,three months in between visits was accused of working after thirty minutes of back and forth he asked did I have girlfriend I said yes he said ok away you go.who can tell what's in their minds.

[heybuz]

7 minutes ago, orchis said:

METV exists

Yes and they have uppped the price.

[StayinThailand2much]

1 hour ago, DrTuner said:

Ah, the newest ploy by TAT, now they'll be able to count one arrival that comes (and flies straight to Vietnam) as two. Gott get 'em numbers up.

Expect official tourist arrivals to reach 60 or 70 million soon, but hotel occupancy falling further...

[marqus12]

"I fear the Greeks, even those bearing gifts "
555

[Misterwhisper]

Considering that TAT and other government agencies are constantly flogging how uber-healthy the tourism sector is and how arrival numbers keep increasing and increasing, I cannot help noticing that this article somehow omits the stench of desperation. 

[ChipButty]

11 minutes ago, heybuz said:

I had trouble entering by Suvarnabhumi for the first time ,three months in between visits was accused of working after thirty minutes of back and forth he asked did I have girlfriend I said yes he said ok away you go.who can tell what's in their minds.

Money

[sapson]

introduce double entry visas, but if you wish to use it along with the METV and have the money to come and go and spend a lot of time in Thailand...........you have  a very real chance of being denied entry, imprisoned against your will and incurring costs of flight etc etc etc, why because you have too long in Thailand spending money., apparently detrimental to the interests of Thailand.

 

They really are a bunch of clueless numb nuts and should get their act together and produce a concise, coherent, consistent immigration and tourism policy that truly offers a warm welcome to the kingdom.

Edited November 28, 2019 by sapson

[BuckBee]

was silly to of removed the double entry tourist . just needed sensible financial proof for issue .

trouble is thailand don't do sensible well and current halfwit army government even less sensible than all before it ...
tourism never be what it was and expat community also fall short of what it should be ...

veitnam laughing though ....

[Mahseer]

I'll throw this out for comparative purposes.

Whilst fully realising India isn't for everyone but I just picked up a 5 year multi entry e visa that allows maximum stay per entry of 180 days. Crossing a border and coming back in after a couple of days for another 180 is allowed. Cost was 2,400baht.
 

Something along those lines just may go down a treat here not to mention keeping 800,000 in the pocket of some.

 

Dream on.

[DannyCarlton]

48 minutes ago, LomSak27 said:

Is that the old 60 day multi entry Tourist Visa?! The one they eliminated.

 

Where is my coffee?

The way I read it it refers to the visa exempt entry. Effectively, leaving after 20 days and returning to Thailand a week later won't restart your 30 days. Great move for tourists.

[ChipButty]

While your at it I think it would be a good idea to let all Farang buy 1 rai of land 

[spiekerjozef]

" double entry tourist visa "

 

at your second entry you will be denied entry because you stay too long

[spiekerjozef]

" The Deputy Secretary General's comments come just a day after reports that room occupancy and tourism was 20% down in Pattaya. "

 

20% down from what? from the 50% down from last month?

[ChipButty]

12 minutes ago, spiekerjozef said:

" double entry tourist visa "

 

at your second entry you will be denied entry because you stay too long

Or a donation

[shadowofacloud]

20 minutes ago, Mahseer said:

Whilst fully realising India isn't for everyone but I just picked up a 5 year multi entry e visa that allows maximum stay per entry of 180 days. Crossing a border and coming back in after a couple of days for another 180 is allowed. Cost was 2,400baht.

Nice! Thanks for the tip. At this price I'll get one just in case.

[BoBoTheClown]

Guys, what's the point of complaining about every decision Thai authorities make?  We should wish nothing but the best for the country that has allowed us to live. 

[Just Weird]

1 hour ago, colinneil said:

Introduce whatever kind of tourist visa you want, wont make any difference.

The way immigration clowns are acting will only deter tourists.

With the baht being kept artificially high is just another way of sending tourists to other countries.

This so-called government have absolutely no idea how to run a country, tourists are put off by that as well.

"The way immigration clowns are acting will only deter tourists".

What does that mean?  How are IOs "acting" that invokes so much ire in you?

 

"This so-called government have absolutely no idea how to run a country, tourists are put off by that as well".

I doubt many tourists give a damn about how well you think the government does it's job!

[BobbyL]

2 minutes ago, BoBoTheClown said:

Guys, what's the point of complaining about every decision Thai authorities make?  We should wish nothing but the best for the country that has allowed us to live. 

I am not sure a military dictatorship that rigged an election to continue undemocratic rule deserve best wishes from anyone, whether we live here or not. 

[sunnyboy2018]

Tourism thrived and grew before the the dead hand if the tourist board and the military got involved.

[vacajan]

I don't understand all those negative and government-unfriendly reactions at all !? I have been living here for more than five years and I am happy to support my wife and her son! In addition, I also take care of my wife's needy and sick parents! For this I receive a quarterly invitation to report to the immigration police. This is only a 160 km drive to say hello. I even get a souvenir for it in my passport!
Once a year I only have to submit ten documents. I can prove that I am still rich enough to support my Thai family! Nice how the government is concerned for the well-being of its people!
Stop all of your negativism now and be thankful !!!

 

Yes I am a psychiatric patient.

[The Farang]

The problem is not the high baht.  If you come from a western country its still way cheaper then where you live.  It's a few main reasons why  (I have lived in Thailand and come back and forth since 2016):

1.)  They don't do enough to get big businesses to come to Thailand.   If you bring businesses that brings jobs and more farangs will come thus spend money. 

2.) The way foreigner's are treated here is not that great.  Starting from the moment you come to the border and deal with immigration, to when you get to your hotel,  drive down the street and get stopped by police daily being extorted for money.  They are aways gaming you when the conversation starts off with "where you from?  How long you on holiday?  What hotel you stay?"  Thats them qualifying you.  They want to know what country you come from to see if you have money, how long you stay so I know how much time i have to get money out of you, what hotel you stay will also tell me how much money you have

3.) Taxis overcharging and businesses overcharging foreigner's trying to get as much money out of us quickly before we leave from our holiday.  Short term thinking.

4.) It's just not safe there.  So many people die either on the road in a accident because the roads are lawless, or the tourist activities like jet skies.  Every week someone dies.  I remember the group of Chinese tourists about 40 people died not too long ago because of poor safety.  I get it if people get drunk and dont follow the rules but they have to do a better job at enhancing safety.

I travel frequently and this is one of the only countries in southeast Asia that I have seen this level of greed.  If I am a tourist and come there and those 4 things happen to me, I wouldn't come back and tell everyone about my bad experience and then they won't come.

Edited November 28, 2019 by The Farang

[sunnyboy2018]

3 minutes ago, Just Weird said:

"The way immigration clowns are acting will only deter tourists".

What does that mean?  How are IOs "acting" that invokes so much ire in you?

 

"This so-called government have absolutely no idea how to run a country, tourists are put off by that as well".

I doubt many tourists give a damn about how well you think the government does it's job!

Potential tourists do research on the Internet.  Currently Thailand is in the news for all the wrong reasons and putting people off. Mass police actions against overstayers, deaths of foreigners,  armed police and army thugs marching around entertainment areas intimidating foreigners,  over crowding of roads and streets and heritage areas caused by Chinese mass tourism, the lack of rule of law, military junta is just scary for some potential visitors, insane drug laws,  and the expense due to the currency.

[sunnyboy2018]

14 minutes ago, BoBoTheClown said:

Guys, what's the point of complaining about every decision Thai authorities make?  We should wish nothing but the best for the country that has allowed us to live. 

The people yes. The junta no.

[Just Weird]

11 minutes ago, BobbyL said:

I am not sure a military dictatorship that rigged an election to continue undemocratic rule deserve best wishes from anyone, whether we live here or not. 

Don't you know the difference between wishing a country well and wishing it's present government well?

[sunnyboy2018]

3 minutes ago, The Farang said:

The problem is not the high baht.  If you come from a western country its still way cheaper then where you live.  It's a few main reasons why  (I have lived in Thailand and come back and forth since 2016):

1.)  They don't do enough to get big businesses to come to Thailand.   If you bring businesses that brings jobs and more farangs will come thus spend money. 

2.) The way foreigner's are treated here is not that great.  Starting from the moment you come to the border and deal with immigration, to when you get to your hotel,  drive down the street and get stopped by police daily being extorted for money.

3.) Taxis overcharging and businesses overcharging foreigner's trying to get as much money out of us quickly before we leave from our holiday.  Short term thinking.

4.) It's just not safe there.  So many people die either on the road in a accident because the roads are lawless, or the tourist activities like jet skies.  Every week someone dies.  I remember the group of Chinese tourists about 40 people diednot to long ago because of poor safety.  I get it if people get drunk and dont follow the rules but they have to do a better job at enhancing safety.

I travel frequently and this is one of the only countries in southeast Asia that I have seen this level of greed.  If I am a tourist and come here and those 4 things happen to me, I wouldn't come back and tell everyone about my bad experience and then they won't come.

None of the above is as worrying as the corrupt police and army 'swooping ' on foreigners to imprison them in third world hell holes for petty overstay or drug violations. 

[spiekerjozef]

4 minutes ago, The Farang said:

The problem is not the high baht.  If you come from a western country its still way cheaper then where you live.  It's a few main reasons why  (I have lived in Thailand and come back and forth since 2016):

1.)  They don't do enough to get big businesses to come to Thailand.   If you bring businesses that brings jobs and more farangs will come thus spend money. 

2.) The way foreigner's are treated here is not that great.  Starting from the moment you come to the border and deal with immigration, to when you get to your hotel,  drive down the street and get stopped by police daily being extorted for money.  They are aways gaming you when the conversation starts off with "where you from?  How long you on holiday?  What hotel you stay?"  Thats them qualifying you.  They want to know what country you come from to see if you have money, how long you stay so I know how much time i have to get money out of you, what hotel you stay will also tell me how much money you have

3.) Taxis overcharging and businesses overcharging foreigner's trying to get as much money out of us quickly before we leave from our holiday.  Short term thinking.

4.) It's just not safe there.  So many people die either on the road in a accident because the roads are lawless, or the tourist activities like jet skies.  Every week someone dies.  I remember the group of Chinese tourists about 40 people diednot to long ago because of poor safety.  I get it if people get drunk and dont follow the rules but they have to do a better job at enhancing safety.

I travel frequently and this is one of the only countries in southeast Asia that I have seen this level of greed.  If I am a tourist and come here and those 4 things happen to me, I wouldn't come back and tell everyone about my bad experience and then they won't come.

try the US and the risk of being shot by a trigger happy nation

[madmitch]

1 hour ago, ChipButty said:

Im afraid Thailand couldnt run a pi## up in a brewery then guys need to get out more take a look at Jamaica for instance I have stayed in this hotel and some others in their group talk about organised from the minute you arrive it's an all inclusive resort and "No Tipping"   https://www.beaches.com/resorts/ocho-rios/

My daughter was younger we hardly saw her they had their own restaurant and disco games and completions almost everyday

The all-inclusive resort hasn't really hit Thailand yet but perhaps you've hit upon something. Surely it's the next step up from the zero-baht tours and it would appeal to tourists from all over the world. Of course it would be signing the death warrant for many small businesses that rely on tourists if this area were to grow.

 

With food and especially drink prices becoming more expensive it would be an attractive option these days. I'd previously believed that the concept wouldn't work in Thailand as everything was cheap outside but my view has changed.

 

Free booze.....they might even get away with serving on Buddha Days!

 

 

[ChipButty]

9 minutes ago, The Farang said:

The problem is not the high baht.  If you come from a western country its still way cheaper then where you live.  It's a few main reasons why  (I have lived in Thailand and come back and forth since 2016):

1.)  They don't do enough to get big businesses to come to Thailand.   If you bring businesses that brings jobs and more farangs will come thus spend money. 

2.) The way foreigner's are treated here is not that great.  Starting from the moment you come to the border and deal with immigration, to when you get to your hotel,  drive down the street and get stopped by police daily being extorted for money.  They are aways gaming you when the conversation starts off with "where you from?  How long you on holiday?  What hotel you stay?"  Thats them qualifying you.  They want to know what country you come from to see if you have money, how long you stay so I know how much time i have to get money out of you, what hotel you stay will also tell me how much money you have

3.) Taxis overcharging and businesses overcharging foreigner's trying to get as much money out of us quickly before we leave from our holiday.  Short term thinking.

4.) It's just not safe there.  So many people die either on the road in a accident because the roads are lawless, or the tourist activities like jet skies.  Every week someone dies.  I remember the group of Chinese tourists about 40 people diednot to long ago because of poor safety.  I get it if people get drunk and dont follow the rules but they have to do a better job at enhancing safety.

I travel frequently and this is one of the only countries in southeast Asia that I have seen this level of greed.  If I am a tourist and come here and those 4 things happen to me, I wouldn't come back and tell everyone about my bad experience and then they won't come.

Mind the door doesn't bang your ass on the way out

[BoBoTheClown]

10 minutes ago, vacajan said:

I don't understand all those negative and government-unfriendly reactions at all !? I have been living here for more than five years and I am happy to support my wife and her son! In addition, I also take care of my wife's needy and sick parents! For this I receive a quarterly invitation to report to the immigration police. This is only a 160 km drive to say hello. I even get a souvenir for it in my passport!
Once a year I only have to submit ten documents. I can prove that I am still rich enough to support my Thai family! Nice how the government is concerned for the well-being of its people!
Stop all of your negativism now and be thankful !!!

 

Yes I am a psychiatric patient.

Well, aren't you a knight in shining armor.  I'm sorry that you don't get enough credit for all that you do. ???? Happy Thanksgiving

Edited November 28, 2019 by BoBoTheClown