3 hours ago, Ron jeremy said:

I was watching YouTube ,  I could not beleive the negative videos on Thailand, all the popular bloggers etc saying stay the <deleted> away.

dont come here anymore.

this has got to be hurting tourism.

Thailand immigration used to be free and easy. Then they decided that Visa runners where abusing the system and not wanted. Then they doubled down with harsher rules regulations and pushed the Elite Card.

 

Sadly the residents of Monaco, didn't flock in droves to Thailand. 

 

The enlightened crackdown policies have resulted in tens of thousands of Thailands most enthusiastic admireres and unnoffcial promoters leaving. Many of them, bloggers and small business people, who now delight in slagging the place off in every social media forum. 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

   

Was in a beach restaurant a couple of days ago and at one point came back from going for a jimmy riddle. One the guys asked, where's the toilet?

Easy to find I said, a blind man could find it in the middle of a typhoon.

10 hours ago, GinBoy2 said:

But maybe the penny is beginning to drop that they maybe have, if not killed the Golden Goose, with the their scams, over charging, pollution, the list goes on, severely wounded that goose.

 

And perhaps they have figured out that there is actually competition for the Asian tourist market, and others may be winning!

Hurrah!! The golden goose briefly rears it's head before TV slays it again.

 

Only China has more incoming tourists than Thailand in Asia, and that is for obvious reasons.

18 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Kuala Lumpur is this year rolling out a “Visit Truly Asia Malaysia 2020” campaign and will unveil new tourist attractions 20th Century Fox World and Pangkor Island. Japan will be siphoning off tourism money with the Summer Olympics.

How is an island that's been in existence for millions of years a new tourist attraction?

 

20th Century Fox World is a new attraction, however, the likes of which just doesn't exist in Thailand. Why does Thailand fail to attract investment of the big theme park developers? Malaysia also has Legoland and a couple of other parks near JB as well as Sunway Lagoon which knocks spots off its Thai equivalents, Dreamworld and Siam Park. Disney are in Hong Kong and China, Universal in Singapore and Japan. They're real man-made tourist attractions.

 

As for Japan "siphoning off" money: it makes it sound as though they are doing something illegal. I detect a hint of jealousy but from what I gather many countries don't make money out of hosting the Olympics, though it can be a great advertisement for tourism to the country.

 

Other country's offerings really are starting to put Thailand to shame. It has beaches and temples, great food and generally friendly people, massages and a sex industry. But it's had this for years; it's tired and unimaginitive, just like the suggestions in the OP. It's like Spain had become in the 1990s; everyone was bored of the same old thing. Thailand's tourism and be summed up by paraphrasing the well known saying, same, same but no different.

 

Spain recovered and is booming again but they had to work bloody hard. Thailand needs the same type of regenerattion but do the powers that be have the desire and the nous to do it?

4 hours ago, legend49 said:

Agree with you so much BS on a daily basis, but you know the local government depts can NEVER lose face. Maybe each of us has to judge the situation. I can tell you in Chiang Mai currently its rare to see fleets of buses with Chinese, the Mecure hotel that caters mainly for Chinese is a ghost house. Around the CBD I never see the small groups of European type tourists anymore. Major shopping centres are also empty. I like it, not having to put up with bad behavior habits of these travelers.

Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival is just three weeks away. You were never going to see lots of Chinese tourists during Christmas and New Year. However watch them go at Spring Festival.

3 hours ago, simtemple said:

Thailand's loss, Philippines gain

Philippines welcomes its 8-millionth foreign tourist

Hardly, when Thailand welcomed it's 39-millionth tourist last week.......

18 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

People involved in the sector are predicting a 4-per-cent rise in Thai tourism, the same as in 2019...

Four percent increase – seems like the tourists are neither heading for Phuket, nor Walking Street in Pattaya, if the news reports are correct...????

18 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

 

18 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

Artificial intelligence (AI) will play a larger role in analysing tourism data so that services can be geared to individual and group needs.

Sure, this is how future tourist are greeted welcome to Land of Smiles...????

 

19 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

pushes for sports tourism, street-food promotions and homestays.

Plenty of room, with a nice water feature outside your bedroom window!

Price negotiable.

 

19 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

 

Thai tourism numbers are forecast to increase this year at the same rate as in 2019, with the sector’s lingering shortcomings offset by government pushes for sports tourism, street-food promotions and homestays.

Your false positivity isn't absolutely right, it's just totally boring!

Edited January 4, 20206 yr by 30la

I am sure the hoteliers (with their short supply of rooms) will be glad to hear that they want to promote homestays, and I am sure the potential homestays will be glad to have the TM30 explained to them by their local immogration officers. A MotoGP - in a location which has enough hotels - would be a good idea; but wait...we already have a MotoGP where you can't find a hotel room for 100 kms... Maybe their AI is already working. Any idea, just don't weaken the baht, make visas easier, make us give better services, or our bus and van drivers safe...  

Edited January 4, 20206 yr by Rama

5 hours ago, Ron jeremy said:

I was watching YouTube ,  I could not beleive the negative videos on Thailand, all the popular bloggers etc saying stay the <deleted> away.

dont come here anymore.

this has got to be hurting tourism.

Also seen a lot of this. Endless scam videos and overall negative videos. 100% certain this isn’t helping. Every negative video that’s getting views is an advertisement against Thailand and for some place else.

1 hour ago, Traubert said:

Hardly, when Thailand welcomed it's 39-millionth tourist last week.......

But the numbers are dwindling with all of the other countries rising. 
 

It will eventually balance out.

simple....improve immigration.

Until it is now longer about numbers and cash, the tourist industry is doomed for o failure.  The core issues are ignored 

Though I just read something yesterday from Phuket hotels saying it was the worst. All doom and glume

The cretins in charge simply makes the mind boggle....

Edited January 4, 20206 yr by Chivas

Artificial intelligence or TAT for short????

Nearly all Thai tourism data is artificial. 

19 hours ago, J Town said:

Firchrissake, how many shades of lipstick are they gonna try on this pig? Police - do your jobs so tourists feel safe. Gubmint - lower the strength of the baht. The really really rich will still be rich but the street level vendors and hotel operators will get some, too.

Correct, but if they target Chinese and indians only Chinese Thai will benefit, and when they have a street festival in Chiang Mai look out or you will get run down by the Chinese crowd.

This year should see 41.8 million foreigners visit Thailand, the government believes, bringing with them a combined Bt2.2 trillion to spend.

 

Medium for day 114.520 foreigner visit Thailand, hight season tourist every day ????

My daughter is holidaying in Japan come June.  I said "why don't you come to Thailand and visit me"  She said 'Japan is clean, Thailand is dirty and smelly.'  Hard to argue with that! 

1) stop killing them 

2) great them like humans and not ATM machines 

3) stop double pricing 

4) get your pollution under control 

5) relax on the visas

6) stop price gouging. This is thailand not los angles  

7) stop scamming them (police included)

11 hours ago, Destiny1990 said:

So street food is back? Thinking it was just banned recently !

no it's back again because to many Thais are staving.

5 hours ago, hotchilli said:

Plenty of room, with a nice water feature outside your bedroom window!

Price negotiable.

 

Yes and beautiful scenery

 

 

13 minutes ago, White Christmas13 said:

Yes and beautiful scenery

 

 

Truly the Venice of the east.

9 hours ago, overherebc said:

That's when it started going bad, after 1980.

What the hell did you do?????

I brought my wife back to the USA and we raised a family.  After my wife became a citizen, she sponsored 6 of her family members to come here.  They love it.  We do own a house in Loei in case we need it.

 

I enjoyed my 2 year stint in the Peace Corps and a year or so working with the refugee resettlement program.  I just couldn't see finding a career in Thailand at the time.

More Bigging it Up...

 

Land of fantasy 555

7 hours ago, Grumpy John said:

My daughter is holidaying in Japan come June.  I said "why don't you come to Thailand and visit me"  She said 'Japan is clean, Thailand is dirty and smelly.'  Hard to argue with that! 

As a well-healed and well-travelled business associate once said to me when I asked if he'd been to Thailand, he said, "yes, didn't stay long, that place is filthy, we moved on".

Sad!

1) pick up the litter

2) clear the sidewalks

3) stop the too numerous tourist scams

4) quit pipping poop into the beaches

5) lower ridiculous import taxes

6) stop looking to China for answers

7) get off your goddamn phones, while working.