Pattaya: Tourism recovery may take TWO YEARS, says industry expert

[ThePearl]

10 minutes ago, Ron jeremy said:

And what planes will they be coming back on, ??? Air canada just announced no international flights till Christmas.

Yes he's dreaming....

Australia are not opening borders till a cure...

Australia compulsory 2 week government paid quarantine on entry...for citizens.

So his Oz mates will be parked on their <deleted> for a year or two yet. Fortress Oz.

Oh maybe allowing flights between NZ and OZ at a later stage. The 'downunder bubble'.

Thailand will not be receiving OZ/NZ tourists as Governments are not chancing it with dodgy testing from third world countries.

[tomauasia]

3 hours ago, Fex Bluse said:

It's true. It makes sense for them to focus on China. Logistically and culturally. And maybe even economically. 

 

They will have to accept though that almost no other nationalities will want to visit if Thailand develops a reputation as a "little China". 

 

Then, they will have to deal with the Chinese and that's not always pleasant. 

 

They will deserve how ever it ends up.

 

I suggest all farang get in their HJs ASAP before Thailand converts into a Chinese tourists-only destination and the brown bar girls disappear onto the farms. 

They will reinfect Thais 

[JensenZ]

31 minutes ago, Ron jeremy said:

And what planes will they be coming back on, ??? Air canada just announced no international flights till Christmas.

Australia made an initial assessment of no international flights for 6 months, until late October. They will be setting up a safety bubble with New Zealand, so that's another country out.

 

You'd wonder why they want tourists back so soon considering the possibility of being infected by dirty foreigners, as they labelled them recently. Surely Europe is out too for quite some time.

[spidermike007]

Tourism is not returning to Thailand anytime soon. If you think about it, the group that comprised perhaps 60% of all arrivals (lower to middle income Chinese and Indians) are the ones who have been hardest hit by this idiotic worldwide economic shutdown. Tourism in Thailand will never recover to even close to it's former levels, and that leaves millions out of work. Most countries will still be required to have Covid letters, as the virus is still raging in many countries. And some countries will not issue that letter (impossible to get in the US). Plus, will the mandatory health insurance still be required? Will it be even stricter than before? And just what are people coming to? How about the nightlife?

 

Will take some time to see how this all shakes out, but it is my opinion that the economic fallout from the inane economic shutdown, is going to be 200 times worse than Covid itself, and the recovery "ramp up" will be long and excruciating. Far longer than they say. It will not just bounce back. In the history of the world, as far as we know, there has never been a deliberate worldwide economic shutdown. It is light years beyond dumb. The "slowdown" will last well into 2021, for certain. And some industries may never come back, or will be a pale shadow of their former selves. No doubt homelessness will skyrocket in the US. Tourism in Thailand will never recover to even close to it's former levels, and that leaves millions out of work.

 

There are so many unanswered questions, it boggles the mind. One thing is for certain. Thailand will be feeling the effects of this for a very, very long time. So will the rest of the world. 

 

[Pattaya46]

26 minutes ago, tomauasia said:

They will reinfect Thais 

You can prove that they already infected them ?

In many countries infections arrived from their own businessmen, tourists or military.

 

And BTW probably less risky at short term to accept Chinese tourists than tourists from Europe or USA...

Edited May 1, 2020 by Pattaya46

[Leaver]

14 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

I am not following the argument, 'once the virus is over people wont be coming back', once the virus is over they will come the same as before the virus.

The virus has to be over, globally, not just for Thailand, for the tourists to start coming back here.

 

Boarders are closed, planes are not in the air, forced quarantine, travel insurance issues, affordability etc.  

 

There are many variables.  It goes beyond the Thai government making an announcement that Thailand is open for business.  

[balo]

15 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

I am not following the argument, 'once the virus is over people wont be coming back', once the virus is over they will come the same as before the virus.

If they can afford it , good for them.  If you are talking about retired people with a pension nothing changes of course, but families with kids will not return if the economy is bad.

[WillyPlatt]

I only realised in the last few days that Thailand has stopped UK visa on arrival until 30th September.

That's my July trip knocked on the head.

Until a stamped walk through at BKK is on the cards, i doubt I'll be making the long trip.

As the days and weeks roll on you realise how serious this is.

It's going to be very hard for anybody to keep going with the few visitors that can/will come to Pattaya.

[pattayadude]

9 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Tourism is not returning to Thailand anytime soon. If you think about it, the group that comprised perhaps 60% of all arrivals (lower to middle income Chinese and Indians) are the ones who have been hardest hit by this idiotic worldwide economic shutdown. Tourism in Thailand will never recover to even close to it's former levels, and that leaves millions out of work. Most countries will still be required to have Covid letters, as the virus is still raging in many countries. And some countries will not issue that letter (impossible to get in the US). Plus, will the mandatory health insurance still be required? Will it be even stricter than before? And just what are people coming to? How about the nightlife?

 

Will take some time to see how this all shakes out, but it is my opinion that the economic fallout from the inane economic shutdown, is going to be 200 times worse than Covid itself, and the recovery "ramp up" will be long and excruciating. Far longer than they say. It will not just bounce back. In the history of the world, as far as we know, there has never been a deliberate worldwide economic shutdown. It is light years beyond dumb. The "slowdown" will last well into 2021, for certain. And some industries may never come back, or will be a pale shadow of their former selves. No doubt homelessness will skyrocket in the US. Tourism in Thailand will never recover to even close to it's former levels, and that leaves millions out of work.

 

There are so many unanswered questions, it boggles the mind. One thing is for certain. Thailand will be feeling the effects of this for a very, very long time. So will the rest of the world. 

 

i bet pattaya also stayed in the rear view mirror now for many.

[SteveK]

A lot of people in the west have either lost their job, or have been forced to work fewer hours or take a pay cut. With a large number of small businesses shutting up shop entirely, as we move into the future there are going to be far fewer people who have the means or desire to endure a 2 week holiday in Pattaya.

Edited May 2, 2020 by SteveK

[jacko45k]

2 minutes ago, SteveK said:

there are going to be far fewer people who have the means or desire to endure a 2 week holiday in Pattaya

The means is one thing, the desire to escape a miserable winter in Northern Europe in 6+ months would be there. 

[tomauasia]

2 hours ago, pattayadude said:

i bet pattaya also stayed in the rear view mirror now for many.

All <deleted> will recover 

[mommysboy]

12 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Tourism is not returning to Thailand anytime soon. If you think about it, the group that comprised perhaps 60% of all arrivals (lower to middle income Chinese and Indians) are the ones who have been hardest hit by this idiotic worldwide economic shutdown. Tourism in Thailand will never recover to even close to it's former levels, and that leaves millions out of work. Most countries will still be required to have Covid letters, as the virus is still raging in many countries. And some countries will not issue that letter (impossible to get in the US). Plus, will the mandatory health insurance still be required? Will it be even stricter than before? And just what are people coming to? How about the nightlife?

 

Will take some time to see how this all shakes out, but it is my opinion that the economic fallout from the inane economic shutdown, is going to be 200 times worse than Covid itself, and the recovery "ramp up" will be long and excruciating. Far longer than they say. It will not just bounce back. In the history of the world, as far as we know, there has never been a deliberate worldwide economic shutdown. It is light years beyond dumb. The "slowdown" will last well into 2021, for certain. And some industries may never come back, or will be a pale shadow of their former selves. No doubt homelessness will skyrocket in the US. Tourism in Thailand will never recover to even close to it's former levels, and that leaves millions out of work.

 

There are so many unanswered questions, it boggles the mind. One thing is for certain. Thailand will be feeling the effects of this for a very, very long time. So will the rest of the world. 

 

'And just what are people coming to? '

 

A beefburger without the beef basically!

 

And likely twice the price!

 

 

Edited May 2, 2020 by mommysboy

[spidermike007]

6 hours ago, SteveK said:

A lot of people in the west have either lost their job, or have been forced to work fewer hours or take a pay cut. With a large number of small businesses shutting up shop entirely, as we move into the future there are going to be far fewer people who have the means or desire to endure a 2 week holiday in Pattaya.

Correct. And that applies to Thailand as a whole. I doubt tourism will ever get back to where it was. Some of us are fine with that!

[bodymassagemyfriend]

On 4/30/2020 at 10:24 AM, gamini said:

The main attraction of Pattaya is it sheer decadence and a sex  supermarket. The last time I went there, a friend of mine took me to South Pattaya. He showed  me live sex shows, bars where all the waitresses were naked and every kind of decadent situation. Nearly every bar is a brothel with prostitutes. The owners are pimps. Most of the expats who live there only do so because it's where they can find a young attractive girl cheaply. It is a haven for criminals and people on the run. And if you read Thai Visa there's not a day goes by without muggings murder drunken brawls et cetera. As the part owner and Executive Director of a large hotel there for five years and visiting it regularly for the past 40 years I've seen the resort get more and more decadent. I remember it when it was a beautiful fishing village in the 60s.  It is now filthy, full of ugly condominiums. The seawater is polluted and and the traffic is horrendous.

I believe that Thailand will have to maintain social distancing and that does not seem possible with rampant prostitution. The sexpats will all leave too. There's no way that Pattaya will ever recover. 

Its more a preach than objective description of reality. Las Vegas is full of expensive prostitutes , every one needs a playground on part with his financial capability. Don't be so arrogant and let people with less money than you play. Real easte is decadent in its own way. 15 year ago you have 100 sqm for the price which now gives you 20sqm. Dont blame it all on prostitution , the world is decadent with LGBT , eco systems destructions , insane price for health in the US. Greed is everywhere , no need to point the finger at Pattaya.

[kingdong]

On 4/30/2020 at 6:36 AM, SteveK said:

15 years ago, Thailand's tourism industry seemed unstoppable. It's sad to see that in such a relatively short space of time it has been ruined by sheer ineptitude. Having spoken to several friends and family members over the past few months, none of them said that they had any intentions of ever going back to Thailand. The country once boasted one of the highest tourist return visit rates in the world.

 

Fake figures, a head in the sand attitude, rampant corruption, inability to tackle any of the issues scaring away visitors and the belief that tourists would always 'just come' seems to have sealed their fate. Even the hardcore of repeat sex tourists have figured out that there are much more welcoming and better value destinations where they can get their fill with much less aggravation.

 

An old colleague of mine from the UK visited Phuket a couple of years ago and absolutely hated it. Third world conditions at first world prices was how she described it. In the good old days when the exchange rate was favourable, I paid no attention to the lack of customer service, overflowing bins, the rodents, mosquitoes and blatant scams because I could spend a month pottering around the country on £1000. Now that money's gone in a week! Admittedly that's still less than what I would spend on a trip to Las Vegas, but not by much.

 

Pattaya will recover for sure, but it will never be as thriving as it once was. Whatever schemes they come up with will end up costing a fortune because of corruption and bribes and those costs will be passed on to the tourists. The city was well known for one thing and did that very well. Off the back of it, thousands of businesses thrived in the city and provided a living for countless citizens up and down the country. The mae yais and paw yais across Thailand got their remittances from Pattaya, and the buffalos got their injections. Now the government has completely ballsed that up, it's the Thais who will be suffering the most.

 

Why did they have to clamp down on the one thing which made Pattaya successful? It's so stupid. It's like McDonalds stopping serving french fries, KFC stopping serving chicken, or Cairo knocking down the pyramids. Completely brain dead.

 

They need to stop touting Pattaya as a family destination and start promoting Walking Street and Soi 6 for what they really are. 

you can,t polish a turd.

[thaibeachlovers]

On 5/1/2020 at 4:36 PM, berrec said:

Your strategy is an outstanding plan, but a bridge to far for the current corrupt and greedy officials in Pattaya. 

 

You require a Trump like asskicking leader to rejuvenate the place; you won't find one of those characters in Thailand.

So true. Pattaya has had billions of baht coming in, but nothing is spent on maintaining what is already there. The only things that happen are those new projects from which a large amount can be skimmed off, and because so much money "disappears" they are invariably disastrous. Eg the new beach walkway which fell apart soon as made, the Bali Hi carpark which never worked, the marina which collapsed.

The disaster that is Pattaya was, IMO, entirely created by city hall. The only reason the malls don't fall down is that they were built by private companies.

[thaibeachlovers]

On 4/30/2020 at 5:36 PM, SteveK said:

15 years ago, Thailand's tourism industry seemed unstoppable. It's sad to see that in such a relatively short space of time it has been ruined by sheer ineptitude. Having spoken to several friends and family members over the past few months, none of them said that they had any intentions of ever going back to Thailand. The country once boasted one of the highest tourist return visit rates in the world.

 

Fake figures, a head in the sand attitude, rampant corruption, inability to tackle any of the issues scaring away visitors and the belief that tourists would always 'just come' seems to have sealed their fate. Even the hardcore of repeat sex tourists have figured out that there are much more welcoming and better value destinations where they can get their fill with much less aggravation.

 

An old colleague of mine from the UK visited Phuket a couple of years ago and absolutely hated it. Third world conditions at first world prices was how she described it. In the good old days when the exchange rate was favourable, I paid no attention to the lack of customer service, overflowing bins, the rodents, mosquitoes and blatant scams because I could spend a month pottering around the country on £1000. Now that money's gone in a week! Admittedly that's still less than what I would spend on a trip to Las Vegas, but not by much.

 

Pattaya will recover for sure, but it will never be as thriving as it once was. Whatever schemes they come up with will end up costing a fortune because of corruption and bribes and those costs will be passed on to the tourists. The city was well known for one thing and did that very well. Off the back of it, thousands of businesses thrived in the city and provided a living for countless citizens up and down the country. The mae yais and paw yais across Thailand got their remittances from Pattaya, and the buffalos got their injections. Now the government has completely ballsed that up, it's the Thais who will be suffering the most.

 

Why did they have to clamp down on the one thing which made Pattaya successful? It's so stupid. It's like McDonalds stopping serving french fries, KFC stopping serving chicken, or Cairo knocking down the pyramids. Completely brain dead.

 

They need to stop touting Pattaya as a family destination and start promoting Walking Street and Soi 6 for what they really are. 

Well done. You said it as well or better than I ever could have.

Mind you I've been saying similar for a decade.

Pattaya was always a smelly dump, but it was fun, fun, fun. It all went wrong when city hall was seduced by dreams of rich tourists spending large ( and much of it ending up you know where ). IMO everything they have done or allowed to be done has been disastrous for the city. Ended up with a dump that was neither fun, nor a rich tourist destination. Instead it was given over to the hordes and they really ruined it.

Back in the day I could never have even imagined a time when I wouldn't want to go there, but sadly, that time came a few years ago.

[HashBrownHarry]

56 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

So true. Pattaya has had billions of baht coming in, but nothing is spent on maintaining what is already there. The only things that happen are those new projects from which a large amount can be skimmed off, and because so much money "disappears" they are invariably disastrous. Eg the new beach walkway which fell apart soon as made, the Bali Hi carpark which never worked, the marina which collapsed.

The disaster that is Pattaya was, IMO, entirely created by city hall. The only reason the malls don't fall down is that they were built by private companies.

Explain why the car park never worked pls.

[Pattaya46]

6 hours ago, HashBrownHarry said:

Explain why the car park never worked pls.

He was working fine earlier this year ????, and even was full a few days in January.

Agree it was a long time for it to start after completion though...??

[Rimmer]

Flame removed

[Pilotman]

I get criticised quite a lot on TVF  for my well known dislike of Pattaya, all that it is now and all it shows of Thai inefficiency and corruption, not that I am at all bothered by any backlash.  I used to love the place.  20 years ago, it was vibrant and fun; dirty and over crowded for sure, but cheap and worth a few days holiday, even with my family.  Then the Russian Mafia tried to muscle into the Thai Mafia territory and all the back street stuff fell apart as that battle of wills took place ( inevitably, the Russians  lost). The older Farang visitors were joined by a lot of younger wide boys, who had made a bob or two, often criminally, in their own country and then they came here and carried on the same practices; many of them are still here.  At the same time, the development started to run amok and the town planning, such as it was, disintegrated. I knew the old Head of Planning for Pattaya.  Nice old chap, with a calm sensible head on his shoulders and at least a tiny bit of a vision for the future of the City, but he was replaced, pre Taksin era, by a younger generation of far less talented muppets. 

 

I smile now, as I don't think it will ever recover and in its present state, I hope that it never returns to the Pre Covid nightmare it had become.  It has a chance to really change, just like the local authority muppets keep promising.  let's hope that they don't miss the opportunity to clear out the rotten systemic, core of the City and really develop it in a sustainable way.  I hope for that to happen, but I don't expect it to. 

[torturedsole]

On 5/1/2020 at 5:24 AM, SteveK said:

When exactly was the last time Thailand was involved in a full scale conflict requiring such equipment?

Maybe they're tooling themselves up in anticipation of civil unrest.  

[thaibeachlovers]

19 hours ago, HashBrownHarry said:

Explain why the car park never worked pls.

So it's working now?

It never worked ( or was open ) for years after it was built. Apologies if it's opened since my last visit.

[thaibeachlovers]

9 hours ago, torturedsole said:

Maybe they're tooling themselves up in anticipation of civil unrest.  

Difficult to imagine how they'd use a submarine in that situation, unless it's for the elites to escape in.

[thaibeachlovers]

10 hours ago, Pilotman said:

I get criticised quite a lot on TVF  for my well known dislike of Pattaya, all that it is now and all it shows of Thai inefficiency and corruption, not that I am at all bothered by any backlash.  I used to love the place.  20 years ago, it was vibrant and fun; dirty and over crowded for sure, but cheap and worth a few days holiday, even with my family. 

First time I've seen you explain that. Seems we are of a like mind, but I think I've always stated that I loved it in the 90s, and not much now.

However, despite everything bad about it, it still stands as a bastion of non PC in a world gone mad. Given Pattaya 30 years ago obviously I'd prefer that, but I'd still take Pattaya as it is over some <deleted> version of Hua Hin or Chiang Mai.

If I wanted Hua Hin I'd have lived there instead of Pattaya.

[jacko45k]

3 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

If I wanted Hua Hin I'd have lived there instead of Pattaya.

It just strikes me that if someone dislikes the place so intensely, they should of course not go there. And if they never go there, why is it such a big problem to them? 

[thaibeachlovers]

3 minutes ago, jacko45k said:

It just strikes me that if someone dislikes the place so intensely, they should of course not go there. And if they never go there, why is it such a big problem to them? 

If that is referring to me you are taking my comment out of context.

[HashBrownHarry]

22 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

So it's working now?

It never worked ( or was open ) for years after it was built. Apologies if it's opened since my last visit.

Yes, it's been working for a long time.

 

Judging by a lot of your posts it's been decades since you've been to pattaya - 'the good old days'

[jacko45k]

4 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

If that is referring to me you are taking my comment out of context.

No, just tagging a comment onto your conversation.