How much quieter is Phuket for residents?

[AdamTheFarang]

Hi, for full time residents how much quieter has Phuket become? I read with the mandatory insurance and extra visa rules businesses are struggling and with the strong Baht many retirees are leaving. Is it that dead apart from Chinese and Indian tourists? Why only Chinese and Indian tourists. I thought the Chinese were staying away after the boat tragedy.

[ChipButty]

Maybe you need to get more

[AdamTheFarang]

2 minutes ago, ChipButty said:

Maybe you need to get more

? That's all you have to say.

[eisfeld]

I didn't notice an increase in Chinese, I did notice an increase in Indians though. A noticeable decrease in Westeners and quite a few "old timers" seem gone. A lot of businesses are not doing so well but some are doing really great.

 

The traffic is horrible and no end in sight. The main roads are full most of the day. But it's not really independent tourists, it's an increase in residents. No new roads or other modes of transportation that I know of. There's more quantity but less quality. I noticed more young guys at night in quite a few areas that seem to be either gang members or otherwise up to no good. Hearing also more about drug fueled crime.

 

Definitely getting worse overall.

[phuketrichard]

compared to last year, its a quiet high season.

as to numbers of those leaving, NONE of the people i know are departing.

Although with the strong thai baht, many on fixed incomes are tightening their belts.

 

PS: a LOT less Chinese now than 2 months ago and a lot more Russians

[ChasingTheSun]

Less chinese, more russians and indians , and maybe even more europeans/muricans.

 

overall a little busier in Kamala this year compared to last year.
 

still the best place(OVERALL) to live in Thailand.

[Felt 35]

IMO its not quiet at all. But I live near Samkong so have no relevant observation on a daily basis from the tourist and beach areas.

However it seems people are out in cars or motorbikes constantly because the traffic and driving habits are worse than ever☹️

[Old Croc]

6 hours ago, AdamTheFarang said:

for full time residents how much quieter has Phuket become

I note you're not asking about tourists and the tourist areas, so I will comment on my experiences as a full time resident. I think most expats don't live in the tourist towns unless they have business there.

I know of one family who sold up and returned to Britain a few years ago because they wanted better schooling for their kids. I don't know of anyone who has left because of visa or money reasons. In fact, I don't know any expats in Phuket who live day to day on scant pensions. Those of whom I'm aware seem to be organized enough to ride out the financial ups and downs of this current era..

However, my formerly quiet little area of Phuket, has become overwhelmed with business development, residential housing and commercial accommodation buildings in the last 5 years or so. At times It resembles a full time building site with a constant flow of heavy vehicles, pickups and motorbikes festooned with migrant workers coming and going from their many camps.

Happily, the nearby Tiger zoo seems to have finished the construction phase, is populated and no doubt about to open for business, so the back streets are now a little quieter .

[steelepulse]

Might be more quiet for businesses that rely on tourist spending, but roads are more crowded then ever.  I also just had some friends visit that haven't been here for 3 years.  They see a noticeable difference in how busy the roads are, how many more businesses have opened up and how much more developement there has been in the last 3 years.

[eisfeld]

It seems most people agree that traffic got a lot worse over the past years but tourism definitely hasn't gone up at the same pace.

 

That means that residents and businesses have increased a lot, outpacing tourism by a huge factor. That's why quite a few business are having a hard time: a lot more supply but less/stagnant/low growth demand.

 

For anyone living in Phuket who also gets around a bit on the island it should be obvious that there has been a tremendous amount of construction going on.

 

And of course there's zero city planning so you get a road that's not fit for the traffic it needs to support, then people immidiately build townhouses not leaving 1cm space and behind those... empty land. Can't widen roads and nobody seems to want to establish new roads through agricultural land. You can drive from the Airport down and see only buildings on the side of the road all the way to the southern tip of Rawai. yet when you look down from Big Buddha it all looks green.

[stevenl]

3 hours ago, steelepulse said:

Might be more quiet for businesses that rely on tourist spending, but roads are more crowded then ever.  I also just had some friends visit that haven't been here for 3 years.  They see a noticeable difference in how busy the roads are, how many more businesses have opened up and how much more developement there has been in the last 3 years.

Last few years, in this time of year at 18.00 hours coming from Rawai to Kata the roads were blocked, a few times even already at the viewpoint. This year far, far from that, not further than Photo Hotel.

[Kopitiam]

13 hours ago, Old Croc said:

I note you're not asking about tourists and the tourist areas, so I will comment on my experiences as a full time resident. I think most expats don't live in the tourist towns unless they have business there.

I know of one family who sold up and returned to Britain a few years ago because they wanted better schooling for their kids. I don't know of anyone who has left because of visa or money reasons. In fact, I don't know any expats in Phuket who live day to day on scant pensions. Those of whom I'm aware seem to be organized enough to ride out the financial ups and downs of this current era..

However, my formerly quiet little area of Phuket, has become overwhelmed with business development, residential housing and commercial accommodation buildings in the last 5 years or so. At times It resembles a full time building site with a constant flow of heavy vehicles, pickups and motorbikes festooned with migrant workers coming and going from their many camps.

Happily, the nearby Tiger zoo seems to have finished the construction phase, is populated and no doubt about to open for business, so the back streets are now a little quieter .

Enjoy the quiet while you can.  Once the Tiger Zoo is open for business, there will be a lot more minibuses and coaches going there.  This couple with those vehicles going up to the big Buddha.  The small sois in that area will not be able to cope.

[steelepulse]

2 hours ago, stevenl said:

Last few years, in this time of year at 18.00 hours coming from Rawai to Kata the roads were blocked, a few times even already at the viewpoint. This year far, far from that, not further than Photo Hotel.

Correct.  Amazing how getting the chalong circle open has helped traffic flow.  The past couple of years, people didn't want to wait an hour to get through the circle, so they went the view point way and saved a couple minutes.

[stevenl]

2 hours ago, steelepulse said:

Correct.  Amazing how getting the chalong circle open has helped traffic flow.  The past couple of years, people didn't want to wait an hour to get through the circle, so they went the view point way and saved a couple minutes.

I don't think that is the only reason. But yes, thanks, I had totally forgotten Chalong circle upgrade has taken effect.

[Old Croc]

9 hours ago, Kopitiam said:

Enjoy the quiet while you can.  Once the Tiger Zoo is open for business, there will be a lot more minibuses and coaches going there.  This couple with those vehicles going up to the big Buddha.  The small sois in that area will not be able to cope.

All the tourist traffic will be going in through the main entrance on the BB road. The heavy construction vehicles have been using a back entrance via the small sois behind the site. The coaches wont be going in that way.

[bearpolar]

On 1/11/2020 at 10:24 AM, steelepulse said:

Might be more quiet for businesses that rely on tourist spending, but roads are more crowded then ever.  I also just had some friends visit that haven't been here for 3 years.  They see a noticeable difference in how busy the roads are, how many more businesses have opened up and how much more developement there has been in the last 3 years.

 

The mania phase ended

 

now we are just before the crash, late comers spending their last dime  building  and buying.  

 

Soon, no more traffic and very cheap houses for a year or more.

[madmitch]

On 1/11/2020 at 7:03 PM, stevenl said:

I don't think that is the only reason. But yes, thanks, I had totally forgotten Chalong circle upgrade has taken effect.

It's eeffective for Rawai/Chaofa West but it's still a pain using any of the other routes at Chalong Circle, especially at the times when minibuses are leaving or going to Chalong Pier and/or when the police decide to take control.

 

Probably at the same level as it was before the underpass construction started, which in vieew of the increased traffic everywhere else probably means an improvement!!!

 

Agree with everyone who says that traffic is now the biggest issue for those living here. Like others have said, I'm not aware of a mass exodus from Phuket by expats, though it's very likely, not 100% however, that I will join that small exodus next year for a number of reasons.

[oldcpu]

My view in the far south of Phuket (Kao Khad beach / Ao Yon beach (both junior/senior)) is that November and December-2019, including the Christmas week up to New Years, it was very very quiet.  Many restaurants I visited were empty or only a few customers at meal time.  Almost like the low season. 

 

Then in January 2020 it picked up significantly, with more typical high season numbers.   The beaches had more people.  The restaurants while not 100% full, had a reasonable number of people. One difference thou, the number of Chinese tourists in January-2020 is significantly less than I remember from the past few years, and instead there are many "caucasian" tourists (many with East European accents).   There are still many Chinese tourists, but they don't outnumber the other nationalities here like they have in the past. 

 

So I think here in the far south, for January-2020 that there has been a demographic (?) shift, and also a very weak November/December-2019 for tourist revenue.

 

[phuketrichard]

had to drive Kamala to Malawan honda this morn ( 7:30)  via Surin. 1 hour 10 minutes 25 kms.

MY god the traffic, so many bus's, mini bus's, cars,

pretty much from Surin beach all the way, stop an go traffic and holdups.

Thanks god i dont need do that daily...

 

Coming back at noon via patong was backed up, both ways in an out

[eisfeld]

25 minutes ago, phuketrichard said:

had to drive Kamala to Malawan honda this morn ( 7:30)  via Surin. 1 hour 10 minutes 25 kms.

MY god the traffic, so many bus's, mini bus's, cars,

pretty much from Surin beach all the way, stop an go traffic and holdups.

Thanks god i dont need do that daily...

 

Coming back at noon via patong was backed up, both ways in an out

Both Surin and Patong ways have some nice choke points for the traffic that I don't see how they can resolve, especially the Patong ones. It'll only get worse. Good luck if someone needs to get to a decent hospital from Kamala.

[inThailand]

Yup, traffic is up, numbers in bars, restaurants, hotels down, 7 11 numbers up, ambulances up, police check points up, property sales and rentals down, villa market and day market prices up, incorrect inflated bins up, ugly and old girls up, cute ones down, bar fines the same, me more handsome up.

 

Not much positive is going on here.

[Max69xl]

On 1/10/2020 at 7:08 PM, AdamTheFarang said:

? That's all you have to say.

The boat accident was a while ago. I don't know if Phuket is the first choice for chinese tourists. It's quiet all over Thailand at the moment. Imo mainly because of the way to strong baht.

[steelepulse]

52 minutes ago, Max69xl said:

The boat accident was a while ago. I don't know if Phuket is the first choice for chinese tourists. It's quiet all over Thailand at the moment. Imo mainly because of the way to strong baht.

Tons of busses carting Chinese around yesterday.  Can't recall seeing so many.

[Mansell]

On 1/14/2020 at 4:48 PM, oldcpu said:

My view in the far south of Phuket (Kao Khad beach / Ao Yon beach (both junior/senior)) is that November and December-2019, including the Christmas week up to New Years, it was very very quiet.  Many restaurants I visited were empty or only a few customers at meal time.  Almost like the low season. 

 

Then in January 2020 it picked up significantly, with more typical high season numbers.   The beaches had more people.  The restaurants while not 100% full, had a reasonable number of people. One difference thou, the number of Chinese tourists in January-2020 is significantly less than I remember from the past few years, and instead there are many "caucasian" tourists (many with East European accents).   There are still many Chinese tourists, but they don't outnumber the other nationalities here like they have in the past. 

 

So I think here in the far south, for January-2020 that there has been a demographic (?) shift, and also a very weak November/December-2019 for tourist revenue.

 

I lived in Ao Yon for three years and been gone for two years. Could you update me on the construction of hotels and houses there, and how is the quality of the sea there? Thinking of returning for a vacation in April/May with the kids, and the sea is important.

I was there in Dec 2018 last. Thanks.

[Max69xl]

58 minutes ago, steelepulse said:

Tons of busses carting Chinese around yesterday.  Can't recall seeing so many.

Probably because of the Chinese New year. It's early this year = January 25. 

[Psimbo]

22 hours ago, phuketrichard said:

had to drive Kamala to Malawan honda this morn ( 7:30)  via Surin. 1 hour 10 minutes 25 kms.

MY god the traffic, so many bus's, mini bus's, cars,

pretty much from Surin beach all the way, stop an go traffic and holdups.

Thanks god i dont need do that daily...

 

Coming back at noon via patong was backed up, both ways in an out

I've noticed this over the past couple of weeks. Yesterday the traffic north was backed up south of the Bang Tao Tescos and headed west it was as far back as the Bang Jo traffic lights.  Its taking me on average 20 minutes to get through the police station junction on average. 

 

There seems to be no reason for it-I can't see that the opening of the new Central in Cherng Talay can affect things this much. Who in their right mind (cue an envelope to a certain local 'scion') would have allowed that complex to be built without adequate transport links. It was bound to tighten the neck of an already tight bottle.

 

There is only one viable solution for a bypass and time is rapidly running out. Headed north turn right into the wide soi across from Tescos, follow the existing  road up and then drive a link road across to the new airport runway (4 lane road to nowhere) opposite Cherng Talay Temple. Traffic light there and it considerably reduces traffic through the Cherng Talay choke point.

 

Unfortunately locals won't see this opportunity and it will be lost, just like the viability of driving a road across from Kathu to Kamala. It requires approx 500m of existing road to be widened (which is currently doable) and 600m of new road across a field and a swampy area (200m of the 600) to link with the runway.

[DaRoadrunner]

On 1/10/2020 at 6:44 PM, AdamTheFarang said:

I thought the Chinese were staying away after the boat tragedy.

Fear not, we now have submarines for the tourists.

[SiSePuede419]

I know you're much more likely to die in a motorcycle accident or stabbing from a Ladyboy, but I'd avoid the first floors of beachfront hotels in Phuket, if I were you. ????

[xylophone]

On 1/10/2020 at 7:11 PM, eisfeld said:

I didn't notice an increase in Chinese, I did notice an increase in Indians though. A noticeable decrease in Westeners and quite a few "old timers" seem gone. A lot of businesses are not doing so well but some are doing really great.

 

The traffic is horrible and no end in sight. The main roads are full most of the day. But it's not really independent tourists, it's an increase in residents. No new roads or other modes of transportation that I know of. There's more quantity but less quality. I noticed more young guys at night in quite a few areas that seem to be either gang members or otherwise up to no good. Hearing also more about drug fueled crime.

 

Definitely getting worse overall.

Many good points in your post eisfield, and I would like to add that there are more Russians here than I've ever seen, some living up to their cheap Charlie image, well most actually!

 

As for the "old-timers" I know one or two have left for various reasons, and a few say they may do so in the future, but unfortunately three older friends have died recently, and I would suppose there are quite a few others who are quietly slipping away, one way or another!!.

 

Agree with you that the traffic is terrible, but as others have said, it's very much because of taxis, minivans, and coaches, all going somewhere but certainly not to the area (Patong) where I live, because the foot traffic numbers or numbers in the shopping malls, are not as high as they have been/should be for this time of the year.

 

However most of the madness continues with queues of Chinese outside of a very cheap, small eating place (spending 90 baht towards their huge sum supposedly spent here?) And I noticed on my driving around a couple of days ago that a few shops/small buildings have been demolished to make way for something bigger – – a guesthouse for example?

 

The problem being is that within a stones throw there are small businesses that have closed because of poor/no business and I continue to see these places around here with increased regularity unfortunately.

 

You did mention that there is "more quantity but less quality" and a friend mentioned that this was definitely the case in the discos and nightclubs he was visiting; i.e. the girls were bigger and not so pretty, with the ugliest and largest ones parading around in Tiger Disco, which was also home to many Indians and Arabs, so once my friend looked in and saw what was going on, he quickly departed.

 

Several friends who own bars are scraping by, whereas two others I know have just opened bars – – go figure.

 

Finally, I agree with you that it's definitely getting worse overall, and I think where I am, is definitely on a downward spiral.

[stuarty]

@ Psimbo ( or anyone)

 

"There is only one viable solution for a bypass and time is rapidly running out. Headed north turn right into the wide soi across from Tescos, follow the existing  road up and then drive a link road across to the new airport runway (4 lane road to nowhere) opposite Cherng Talay Temple."

 

Yes I saw and drove up that 4 lane new road to nowhere recently (well when I say nowhere, I mean 2 Elephant Parks.). What is it for??