Pattaya tourism: If you think it's quiet now wait for the next six months - grim predictions from industry leader

[glennb6]

and you thought that 'bargirl cough' was from too much aircon... suppose soi6 and others is found to be a human petrie dish. will bargirls wear a mask? how good is that for business...

 

reality check: didn't happen with SARS, MERS, SWINE, AIDS, and a dozen other 'killer' (cough cough) viruses and until and unless entire villages start dropping dead, I don't expect it to happen here either.

[thaibeachlovers]

Best thing that could happen to Pattaya, and hopefully even less hordes soon.

I've said many times that Pattaya needs a crisis to sort itself out, but seems that this is the first real crisis in numbers to happen.

They've driven away the low end farangs by putting accommodation prices up too much, replacing low end hotels with "boutique" hotels ( same as low end hotel with a bit of paint and a fancy sign ), and building way too many hotels all over the place which is going to reduce the amount of water available. Also they've ruined the town with badly designed projects and the beach is a disaster.

If Pattaya is in trouble, the city authorities need only look in the mirror to see who is to blame.

[thaibeachlovers]

On 2/24/2020 at 12:24 AM, Gecko123 said:

Plenty of people can't afford to run out and buy a case of face masks and hand sanitizer.

LOL. Takes more than a paper mask and hand "sanitizer" to stop a virus.

[DannyCarlton]

On 2/23/2020 at 9:58 AM, adammike said:

The weather in India and the ME is fabulous Jan/Feb starts to hot up in march,it's cooler in Thailand when it hots up before the monsoon,and with climate change it get really hot.

Arabs usually visit in droves during Ramadan, often staying for the whole month as they don't have to observe Ramadan when in Thailand.

 

 

[Orton Rd]

6 minutes ago, DannyCarlton said:

Arabs usually visit in droves during Ramadan, often staying for the whole month as they don't have to observe Ramadan when in Thailand.

 

 

That's Amari on Bkk Suk soi 5 down then most of their guests are that lot. Actually nice because they don't roll in at 3am drunk with sluts in tow. Horrible at breakfast though with the women trying to eat with veils on, women being 'empowered' I think not.

[DannyCarlton]

20 minutes ago, Orton Rd said:

That's Amari on Bkk Suk soi 5 down then most of their guests are that lot. Actually nice because they don't roll in at 3am drunk with sluts in tow. Horrible at breakfast though with the women trying to eat with veils on, women being 'empowered' I think not.

Different in Pattaya Drinking Street. Tend to fly solo and do tend to roll in at 4am with slut in tow. You get a better class of Arab in Pattaya. 555

[oznomad]

On 2/23/2020 at 7:42 AM, ChipButty said:

I not sure if this applies to all airlines but some are doubling their prices which is not going to help tourism

True. Up to AUD $1000 return BKK to Denpasar on THAI.

[jacko45k]

2 minutes ago, oznomad said:

True. Up to AUD $1000 return BKK to Denpasar on THAI.

Usually about 13,000 baht.

[sambum]

On 2/22/2020 at 5:55 PM, adammike said:

All currency's are up against the Baht even the Euro is over 34,not really sure it's got anything to do with Brexit.

Any port in a storm I suppose.

My  post was made in reply to another "Brexit Basher" who said:-

 

"Drifted down to 40 since then due to high value of baht and continued negativity over Brexit."

[Jack100]

I wouldn't miss the annual Pattaya  buffalo festival for the world !

[kingdong]

things are going to get a lot worse before they get better,funny how all the e x pats in pattay a are in total denial of the current situation,still if the government says there's only 40 cases in thailand then 40 it jolly well is.

[kingdong]

7 hours ago, DannyCarlton said:

Arabs usually visit in droves during Ramadan, often staying for the whole month as they don't have to observe Ramadan when in Thailand.

 

 

They,'ll have a job getting here with the current ban by Arab airlines.

[kingdong]

1 hour ago, WillyPlatt said:

Correct.

The way western democracies are reacting is pathetic. 24hr media reporting on every case is now leading to a self fulfilling fear, collapsing global markets and making sure a generation of state pampered nancy boy c**ts don't leave mammy.

Pathetic.

?????????

[Senior Player]

Well, Ekkasit Ngampichet certainly has a valid outlook on "the next six months" as I for one will be holding off from booking my routine flights and accommodation until further details emerge. It's not just about catching the virus myself but spreading it to other elderly members of my family when I return, especially when you consider what could easily be picked-up in transit. 

 

It's also difficult to get an overall picture of the presently reduced tourist numbers in Thailand when there's always a significant downturn after the New Year period. Factor in the holidaymakers that pre-planned their flights long before the coronavirus outbreak took hold and decided to continue with their trip regardless, coupled with the ones that were already out there long before the news broke who have yet to complete their winter break, and I'm not entirely convinced Thailand has yet to experience any of the coronavirus fallout just yet.

 

We also don't know how long this coronavirus will play out and whether countries will reduce or cancel any of its future flights. So far the virus has hit 48 countries, but we still don't know what measures these countries will put in place to contain it. For now, movement hasn't been restricted by the majority of western countries and tourists are still free to travel at will. But how long that will continue, nobody has the real answer to. 

 

Also, one has to consider if their health insurance will be valid when they travel in future. For instance, if the UK Foreign Office decides to advise against traveling to certain Asian countries in future, it could invalidate their travel insurance and leave them covering out-of-pocket losses. I must stress that this hasn't happened yet, but who knows what could unfold a month or two down the road? 

 

So, is it wrong for Ekkasit Ngampichet to warn of a gloomy outlook for the next 6 months in Pattaya? No, I don't think it is. Personally, I think he's being quite pragmatic about it. Rather than shooting the messenger, maybe understand what's happening outside of Thailand and the global confusion and reaction to this virus first. Information is still very sketchy, plus the growing number of discharged patients being tested positive for the second time not just in China but in Japan as well is a worry!! Some might want to make excuses that perhaps China failed to test them properly to begin with, but could the same be said of Japan's first-class healthcare system? What I'm saying is: it's best to err on the side of caution before booking a flight until we know more about the global ramifications. I mean, they're still arguing over whether it's a pandemic or not.

[jacko45k]

11 hours ago, kingdong said:

They,'ll have a job getting here with the current ban by Arab airlines.

It's the gift that keeps on giving!

[Rimmer]

Profane post removed

[tropo]

I find this continual whining about the demise of the tourism business in Pattaya disingenuous. Whole 10 million population + cities in China are on lockdown. All businesses have ground to a halt. It's a worldwide problem with economies all over the globe suffering, and we hear continual whining about Pattaya's tourism, as though the universe revolves around it. Anyone with half a brain would know that tourism to Thailand is going to be dismal for quite some time, but it is affecting tourism around the globe.

 

Anyone long on gold would have taken a big hit last night. It dropped 5,600 points (about $66 an ounce) in 4 hours (starting at about 9pm Thai time), or 8,500 points ($85 per ounce) all day, and recovered slightly by close. People are selling their gold reserves to pay for losses in the stock market. This was the biggest single day slide in gold price since 2013.

 

Yes, in case we didn't know, everyone will suffer, everywhere. Who, under these circumstances would want to travel.

[DannyCarlton]

3 minutes ago, tropo said:

I find this continual whining about the demise of the tourism business in Pattaya disingenuous. Whole 10 million population + cities in China are on lockdown. All businesses have ground to a halt. It's a worldwide problem with economies all over the globe suffering, and we hear continual whining about Pattaya's tourism, as though the universe revolves around it. Anyone with half a brain would know that tourism to Thailand is going to be dismal for quite some time, but it is affecting tourism around the globe.

 

Anyone long on gold would have taken a big hit last night. It dropped 5,600 points (about $66 an ounce) in 4 hours (starting at about 9pm Thai time), or 8,500 points ($85 per ounce) all day, and recovered slightly by close. People are selling their gold reserves to pay for losses in the stock market. This was the biggest single day slide in gold price since 2013.

 

Yes, in case we didn't know, everyone will suffer, everywhere. Who, under these circumstances would want to travel.

Speaking personally, I live in pattaya, never even been to Wuhan.

[jacko45k]

27 minutes ago, DannyCarlton said:

Speaking personally, I live in pattaya, never even been to Wuhan.

Speaking personally, I too live in Pattaya and have been to Wuhan a few times.

Not sure why we are telling each other this. 

[tropo]

2 hours ago, DannyCarlton said:

Speaking personally, I live in pattaya, never even been to Wuhan.

Thanks for letting us know, but we do know you live in the world and this problem is worldwide.

[Rimmer]

A derogatory post has been removed

[bkk6060]

Certainly no shortage of folks at Terminal food court.

I went directly there to eat.

But, walking around it is dead for a Saturday night.

Lots of places empty.  Italy level very dead. 

I am writing this as I am walking around.

It is a ghost town pretty much.

Sad.

[sanemax]

6 hours ago, jacko45k said:

Speaking personally, I too live in Pattaya and have been to Wuhan a few times.

Not sure why we are telling each other this. 

I do not live in Pattaya and have never been to Wuhan 

[Rimmer]

Off topic post removed, topic is not about the price of gold.

 

Pattaya tourism: If you think it's quiet now wait for the next six months - grim predictions from industry leader

 

 

[champers]

2 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

Certainly no shortage of folks at Terminal food court.

I went directly there to eat.

But, walking around it is dead for a Saturday night.

Lots of places empty.  Italy level very dead. 

I am writing this as I am walking around.

It is a ghost town pretty much.

Sad.

There's Corona virus rampant in Italy. Keep up. ????

[Destiny1990]

8 hours ago, jacko45k said:

Speaking personally, I too live in Pattaya and have been to Wuhan a few times.

Not sure why we are telling each other this. 

Because maybe the contamination can go from one computer into the other? ????..

[Destiny1990]

2 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

Certainly no shortage of folks at Terminal food court.

I went directly there to eat.

But, walking around it is dead for a Saturday night.

Lots of places empty.  Italy level very dead. 

I am writing this as I am walking around.

It is a ghost town pretty much.

Sad.

 

Here we can see the effect of these smart cars.

[MRToMRT]

On 2/21/2020 at 11:03 AM, webfact said:

He indicated that businesses need to offer Thais incentives and promotions to come to Pattaya.

Thats OK, times are bad, so slash those prices. But they never do they just spend another few billion on an advertising campaign but no one comes as the prices are still not slashed.

Better to make 100 bucks than nothing, the 1000 bucks times have gone for now. 

[Rimmer]

off topic derogatory removed

[nemo38]

There is a downturn right now because of the absence of Chinese tourists. When the virus gets going it is going to have a huge world wide impact. So far few countries are locking down infected places in the way that China did to manage the outbreak.

 

The government/central bank have a good excuse to lower the value of the Thai currency to help with a recovery.

 

Once the virus takes off I guess the Pattaya *ahem* guest industry will be shut down. It will be too dangerous a vehicle of transmission.

 

Enjoy Pattaya while it is still open for business.