Koh Samui: German visitors still outdoing Chinese on holiday island, Brits in 5th

 

Picture: Siam Rath

 

Siam Rath reported that tourism in the south of Thailand was not meeting expectations of growth.

 

Targets of 10% that were usually seen each year were falling well short at about 2-3%. 

 

Amid the relative gloom of tourism and sports minister Pipat Ratchakitprakran's visit came news about who is visiting Koh Samui the most. 

 

Thais remain tops at about 1.7 million up to October this year.

 

But figures were given for foreign visitors as follows:

 

1. Germans 392,095

2. Chinese 334,099

3. Eastern Europeans 245,987

4. Australians 197,772

5. British 155,359. 

 

These were the top five apart from Thais. 

 

Source: Siam Rath

 

 

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Those numbers mean an average of 10,084 visitors every day , I've never been there but it seems a huge number to me .

18 minutes ago, keith101 said:

Those numbers mean an average of 10,084 visitors every day , I've never been there but it seems a huge number to me .

Given the number of boats & planes arriving locally in a 24hr period the figure would seem about right.

A lot of planes ‚canceled‘ or empty and the ferries empty to.....

Due to the exchange rate the Brits cannot afford towels

and before that they were to small anyway

55 minutes ago, canopus1969 said:

Due to the exchange rate the Brits cannot afford towels

Aussies can?

Aussies have no need for towels a few beers will do

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Siam Rath reported that tourism in the south of Thailand was not meeting expectations of growth.

Growth.... yesterday the headline was Samui in dire straights!

4 hours ago, webfact said:

But figures were given for foreign visitors as follows:

 

1. Germans 392,095

2. Chinese 334,099

3. Eastern Europeans 245,987

4. Australians 197,772

5. British 155,359.

No Indian millionaires?

Samui certainly has a big problem or 2 or 3...

4 hours ago, webfact said:

Targets of 10% that were usually seen each year were falling well short at about 2-3%. 

Absolutely a lot of BS!!!

the usual BS as we all know

 

Well I have lived on Samui permanently for over 10 years and been visiting since 2006.

 

I have never seen it so dead! Businesses are closing and shops for rent everywhere.

 

I know many bar and restaurant owners who are about to close.

 

They cannot even sell their businesses because anyone "In the Know" will not be buying!

 

My girlfriend has 3 Salons and will just give 2 of them up when the leases expire!

 

She is only just about breaking even or making a loss each month on those 2 but keeps them open as she has already commited to the rent!

 

Times are dire here. Walking Street Sunday Night Market in Lamai used to be packed.

 

Take a look at the webcam this Sunday after 5:00pm and you will see what I mean:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17Deeq8N2e4

 

The press are full of Sh*te!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

15 minutes ago, Mario666 said:

Well I have lived on Samui permanently for over 10 years and been visiting since 2006.

 

I have never seen it so dead! Businesses are closing and shops for rent everywhere.

 

I know many bar and restaurant owners who are about to close.

 

They cannot even sell their businesses because anyone "In the Know" will not be buying!

 

My girlfriend has 3 Salons and will just give 2 of them up when the leases expire!

 

She is only just about breaking even or making a loss each month on those 2 but keeps them open as she has already commited to the rent!

 

Times are dire here. Walking Street Sunday Night Market in Lamai used to be packed.

 

Take a look at the webcam this Sunday after 5:00pm and you will see what I mean:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17Deeq8N2e4

 

The press are full of Sh*te!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If they are about to close  entering "high season" things must be bad

Hotels like Anantara and W have their bookings for the season, but I have heard the Hansar (nice 4 Star at Bophut Beach) is currently laying off staff....I can confirm what Mario says...but construction still ongoing even on larger scale as those ppl did not make their homework or left brain at the airport I assume. Sales of homes and land dropped to nearly zero.

 

After this season (end Jan/mid Feb) it certainly will show proof how bad it is and the pressure on the government will grow further...actually the Samui ppl had some plan a few years ago but those ppl stepping in did sort of kill all of that initiatives

6 hours ago, OKF said:

A lot of planes ‚canceled‘ or empty and the ferries empty to.....

My Niece works for Bangkok Airways and came back to Samui for a break herself and confirmed that passengers to the Island are down so far that they are cancelling flights.  So much for TAT's glorious figures!

The Thai article says that Samui has 30,000 rooms, which seems like too much compared to the arriving number of tourists. The article states that the occupancy rate is 65.19%, an increase of 0.46% (probably since the year before).

 

The are coming 1.7 million tourists to Samui, an increase of 4.97% (again, probably compared to the year before). The revenue from tourism is 11.1 billion baht, an increase of 8.67%.

 

However, Mr. Kitti Satiwantara Phutthiphi, general manager of the Lomprayah Speedboat Co., Ltd. (the Thai text don't mention if it's the catamaran ferries, listed as Lomprayah High Speed Ferries Co. Ltd. or it's the the actual speed boat tour-service that operates under the trademark Lomlahk with company name Lomlahkkhirin High Speed Ferries Co., Ltd.) said that since 2018 the company's performance continued to decrease. In the past year, revenue dropped by 4-5%, but this year dropped 10-11%, because the number of main tourists like Europeans, including Germans, decreased due to the overall economic situation, combined with the strengthening of the baht.

 

Mr. Wiratchaphong Issuenapa, executive director of Pavilion Samui Villa & Resort (in Lamai) said, that the problem with the tourism of Koh Samui is that the number of tourists is continuously decreasing.

 

The last two statements don't fit with the statistic number of increasing number of turists, and increased revenue.

 

However, the tourists are changing, and changing behavior, even Caucasians seems to still to be in majority. It's statistic facts that Western tourists in average stay about two weeks in Thailand, whilst Asian tourists only stay 4-5 days, so even an increasing number of tourists can result in fewer nites in a hotel. So if the lacking number of Western tourists is taken over by Asians, it could result in that less rooms are occupied. However the article talked about a tiny increase in room occupancy.

Furthermore the demand from tourists are changing – we have discussed and posted about that in another thread in the dedicated Samui-forum – where pool villas and luxury villas are of increasing demand, together with more high end accommodation, whilst the old type bungalows and like hotels are of less interest. In an earlier news article the manager of Centara Hotel in Chaweng said, that they closed down for reconstruction due to change in demand from the guests.

 

Pros in villa rentals – and they state relative high prices, and one said to manage about 100 villas – have posted that their business is increasing, and there are long fully booked periods.

 

I've noticed similar change from my friends over the past decade, they ask for good accommodation, they don't talk about a budget, or mention a price. Some chose 5-star, others a serviced penthouse apartment, and a luxury villa, for privacy. And those in the more affordable end don't mind paying several thousand bath a night, just it's good – even my old backpacker friends, that 10-years ago still looked for 300-400 baht possibilities, now wants nice aircon bungalows and gladly pay over 1,000 baht.

 

I've also noticed "Bar for Sale" signs, which might also indicate a change clients. And there are way more signs now, than when I first came to the island almost two decades ago, and much less number of bars; and I'm thinking of bars where the lady that is serving you a beer, or whatever, might also be available for a lease out for a shorter og longer period. On the other hand, the more party-like night life has increased together with trendy pubs; Ark Bar and Henry Africa's are examples of the change.

 

In general more families and couples are coming, and probably less middle-aged single gentlemen.

 

This November I noticed many more people in the night clubs than last year's November, and the first week of December was crazy, with what seemed like a huge group of high school kids or uni youngsters of mixed race with Caucasians in majority, on top of not too dead period; I was told that the young folks all came from Singapore.

 

So when hearing about decreasing tourist oriented business – restaurant, bar, butique resort (defined as hotel with 10-100 rooms), or... – my first thought is: Have they upgraded or changed the business to comply with the changed demand from the change in clients?

 

And please remember that October is low season on Samui, and November and December, until around the 20th, is "no season" – in older time many resorts simply closed until 15th December due to the monsoon rainy season – so any complains from this period don't really count as proof of declining tourism. However, there was a few years, some years ago, where there were many guests during the monsoon-period, mainly Eastern Europeans or Russians, probably due to lower prices, including airfares, and weaker baht.

The Thai text also mention that a bridge – must be the 4-lane motorway bridge mentioned in another news article – would solve the tourists problem. I'm not so sure that it will, what do you think?

????

55 minutes ago, robertson468 said:

My Niece works for Bangkok Airways and came back to Samui for a break herself and confirmed that passengers to the Island are down so far that they are cancelling flights.  So much for TAT's glorious figures!

Bangkok airways is one of the first responsible in the drop of tourists with his greed.

The Samui airport is a private airport, owned by Bangkok airways, which has a 

casi monopole on the destination, and can ask the most ridiculous fare for the plane tickets.

Well, well, well, there is tooo many villas on Samui now and the occupancy overall dropped and did NOT increase. Villas and Hotles have the same problem, the junta took care of it.... Many Villas have no booking for christmas and new year which both were somehow farang seasons. It compares somehow with in the past were '100' villas and '60' groups booked it, now it is '200' villas and '40' groups that book it, if that makes sense. Villas live from the amount of ppl they can take up. Chinese like 10 ppl villas so that brings the price down per person and they get the benefit you were describing

 

The bridge is a 'story' coming up avery 5 years. It will not happen. Like many things will not happen anymore. All this was foreseeable here in Samui

 

Yes Bangkokair is part of the problem. If the stae would buy up the airport that would maybe ease the problem. However they took the big investment and want the payback. They will post the second quater loss soon.

 

33 minutes ago, khunPer said:

I've noticed similar change from my friends over the past decade, they ask for good accommodation, they don't talk about a budget, or mention a price. Some chose 5-star, others a serviced penthouse apartment, and a luxury villa, for privacy.

I think your point is valid

However the problem is even with a ''5 stars label''

the thai service is rarely at the level.

Again the greed and short view are active,

Most of the personal are burmese and Cambodgians

with a poor efficiency and a bad english, hired by the Thai owners just because they

are cheap, and don't really care if the customer is happy or not with the service.

And when the personnal is Thai, you have the problem of the ''save the face'' where

it's pretty impossible for a manager to correct an employee acting in a bad way.

In fact from the ''5 stars'' level you are expecting. in Thailand you often only have the price

PS: is more the Thais that are not speaking good english and some Thais do not like to work in Service as it maybe to much work

16 minutes ago, kingofthemountain said:

I think your point is valid

However the problem is even with a ''5 stars label''

the thai service is rarely at the level.

Again the greed and short view are active,

Most of the personal are burmese and Cambodgians

with a poor efficiency and a bad english, hired by the Thai owners just because they

are cheap, and don't really care if the customer is happy or not with the service.

And when the personnal is Thai, you have the problem of the ''save the face'' where

it's pretty impossible for a manager to correct an employee acting in a bad way.

In fact from the ''5 stars'' level you are expecting. in Thailand you often only have the price

 

Stayed in the Anantara resorts there before, cannot agree to this. Service is fantastic and everyone working there either thai or farrang.

7 hours ago, canopus1969 said:

Due to the exchange rate the Brits cannot afford towels

Don't worry, in a few hours Corbyn will throw his in.

23 minutes ago, ThomasThBKK said:

 

Stayed in the Anantara resorts there before, cannot agree to this. Service is fantastic and everyone working there either thai or farrang.

It should be some exceptions as always

i wasn't talking about a place in particular, nor from first hand experience

it was more a general constat based on my friends experiences

(I don't stay in 5 stars hotels and resorts) everywhere in Thailand

I hope he can save u from hard brexit

 

1 hour ago, kingofthemountain said:

I think your point is valid

However the problem is even with a ''5 stars label''

the thai service is rarely at the level.

Again the greed and short view are active,

Most of the personal are burmese and Cambodgians

with a poor efficiency and a bad english, hired by the Thai owners just because they

are cheap, and don't really care if the customer is happy or not with the service.

And when the personnal is Thai, you have the problem of the ''save the face'' where

it's pretty impossible for a manager to correct an employee acting in a bad way.

In fact from the ''5 stars'' level you are expecting. in Thailand you often only have the price

Definitely not my friends experience, nor mine...????

You might speculate about what my point is, but I said it quite clear: Service and Quality, and the price is not the most important.

1 hour ago, kingofthemountain said:

Bangkok airways is one of the first responsible in the drop of tourists with his greed.

The Samui airport is a private airport, owned by Bangkok airways, which has a 

casi monopole on the destination, and can ask the most ridiculous fare for the plane tickets.

Bangkok Airways took a huge risk when nobody else did, and they created Samui as major tourist destination.

 

It there would be economy in a second airport with low fares – i.e. if there would be a big enough demand, and it would be profitable – it would probably have been there already.

48 minutes ago, khunPer said:

Definitely not my friends experience, nor mine...????

You might speculate about what my point is, but I said it quite clear: Service and Quality, and the price is not the most important.

Yes

everyone has their own experiences

and probably not the same requirments too

no problem

have a nice day

43 minutes ago, khunPer said:

Bangkok Airways took a huge risk when nobody else did, and they created Samui as major tourist destination.

 

It there would be economy in a second airport with low fares – i.e. if there would be a big enough demand, and it would be profitable – it would probably have been there already.

Yes we need to be full of gratitude for their courage and philanthropy

without Bangkok Airways Samui would be always a jungle with some semi deserted beaches

and a handfull of bungalows....

 

...Wait, but it would not be so bad finally ????