Lack of foreign tourists having devastating impact on Chiang Mai tourism

 

 

Chiang Mai News reported on tourism at the weekend - or more accurately the almost complete lack of it. 

 

There may have been some Thais but everyone was missing the foreign tourists.

 

The message was that Thais are one tourism animal - foreign tourists quite another. 

 

There were some tourists at the national parks, said the media; these were clearly Thais. 

 

Picture: Chiang Mai News

 

Downtown they spotted a few visitors cycling around and milling about at the Tha Pae gate. 

 

But most said they were from neighboring provinces and were there to register their children for university. They would take a few pictures, perhaps buy the odd souvenir then be on their way home.

 

Hoteliers painted a grim picture with businesses still shuttered or for sale signs going up. 

 

Picture: Chiang Mai News

 

Private buildings that had registered several years ago to accommodate Chinese tourists were mostly going bust because their source of income had totally dried up. 

 

Lack of foreign tourists has destroyed the tourism economy and Thais just don't cut the mustard. 

 

Their headline from their Sunday report said it all: Even the weekends are not okay.

 

Source: Chiang Mai News

 

 

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Very sad and extremely worrying. 

Its also not just the Thais who earn a living from the tourist industry that are affected .

Those that usually earn money from the tourist industry are not spending that money in the local economy and numerous non tourist related businesses are closing down

11 minutes ago, webfact said:

Lack of foreign tourists has destroyed the tourism economy and Thais just don't cut the mustard. 

I think CM was recently voted as the top, or one of the top places for Thais to visit.  Not sure why, visit a few temples and waterfalls nothing new for Thais the place seems a total bore.

7 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

I think CM was recently voted as the top, or one of the top places for Thais to visit.  Not sure why, visit a few temples and waterfalls nothing new for Thais the place seems a total bore.

What are the tourist attractions that other towns  have, that CM doesnt have ?

2 minutes ago, CorpusChristie said:

What are the tourist attractions that other towns  have, that CM doesnt have ?

Beaches.

6 minutes ago, KarenBravo said:

Beaches.

Obviously , it you want to sit on a beach , CM is not the place to visit 

3 minutes ago, KarenBravo said:

Beaches.

Yes.  And the Thais with the most money, Bankonians, can drive in  few hours to the beach resorts.  Why go through the hassle of a flight to CM to be land locked and bored?  They obviously are not.

1 minute ago, CorpusChristie said:

Obviously , it you want to sit on a beach , CM is not the place to visit 

You asked a question and I gave you an answer......

3 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

Yes.  And the Thais with the most money, Bankonians, can drive in  few hours to the beach resorts.  Why go through the hassle of a flight to CM to be land locked and bored?  They obviously are not.

I have never understood the enjoyment of sitting on sand and looking at water 

34 minutes ago, webfact said:

 

Lack of foreign tourists has destroyed the tourism economy and Thais just don't cut the mustard. 

Yea I'll go along with that .. my ex-bird tried some Coleman's English at brekkers once .. smelled like medicine according to her so I said your supposed to eat it not sniff it .. which went down well as you can imagine .. 

54 minutes ago, webfact said:

The message was that Thais are one tourism animal - foreign tourists quite another. 

I wonder why, perhaps this would be a good time for the Thai's to take a SERIOUS look at reducing an ongoing problem there, e.g. we all know Chiang Mai is famous for the appalling smoke issues come burning season as I am sure not only tourists but the locals prefer good air quality, especially when one is holidaying, and many expats who lived there, have left the area, some vowing never to return. When friends ask me about Chiang Mai, I tell them to avoid it because of the smoke, if Thai's are serious about tourists returning there, they need to get with the program, I for one don't support places that allow the burn to continue.

 

On top of the precipitous decline in tourism, it shouldn't be forgotten that there are a significant number of annual "snowbird" expats who would normally be expected to arrive in the next couple of months and despite having annual visa extensions are currently unable to enter the country.  I have American friends who have spent almost half the year here for more than a decade but can't see how returning this year is going to work out, if at all.

 

I'm sure that they contribute more to the local economy than average visitors and no effort needs to be made to entice them to come.  Unlike casual tourists, I'd think that many would willingly consent to quarantine on arrival given the length of their stay.

 

Are there any figures on the number of annual Snowbird visitors?

17 minutes ago, CorpusChristie said:

I have never understood the enjoyment of sitting on sand and looking at water 

No, me neither. Except for looking at scantily clad women with hard bodies.......

19 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

Bankonians

that's a first.????

5 minutes ago, orchis said:

that's a first.????

Ha.

Can't take credit for it often used description on TVF. ????

Maybe they would attract some Farang Xpat tourists if they didn't ban them from popular running events.

 

https://bangkokherald.com/sports/chiang-mai-marathon-boss-unfazed-by-criticism/?amp&__twitter_impression=true

1 hour ago, bkk6060 said:

I think CM was recently voted as the top, or one of the top places for Thais to visit.  Not sure why, visit a few temples and waterfalls nothing new for Thais the place seems a total bore.

Lived here in CM way over 20yrs and still love it. I can still travel to beaches or BKK or where ever. Has a small city feel. After about 3 -4 days in BKK I am ready to come back home.

50 minutes ago, CorpusChristie said:

I have never understood the enjoyment of sitting on sand and looking at water 

If you get bored you can always spice it up a bit by sitting in the water and looking at the sand. ????

 

ps: sitting in pattaya water not recommended. 

1 hour ago, webfact said:

Lack of foreign tourists has destroyed the tourism economy and Thais just don't cut the mustard. 

Once again proving the stupidity of reaction against the illness for killing 0.00008% of the world population is out of all proportion. Wait till February and no tourists arrive for x-mas and new year and chinese new year, and those that feed on thailand's tourism will be completely gutted, homeless and potless

1 hour ago, CorpusChristie said:

What are the tourist attractions that other towns  have, that CM doesnt have ?

Too hot in Chang Mai.  Everyone wants to hit the beach. 

after they open the schools, maybe airports will follow ?

Maybe the junta will allow longer visas in the future?   90 days are the norm in Vietnam and Malaysia.  

6 minutes ago, The Farang said:

Too hot in Chang Mai.  Everyone wants to hit the beach. 

Not at all. I have a huge pool. Why would I want the beach if I can swim in a saltwater pool in my own house?

 

 

1 hour ago, CorpusChristie said:

I have never understood the enjoyment of sitting on sand and looking at water 

Tut tut! You're  supposed to look at the cuties in bikinis not the water! (Huh? .......Oh, sorry, if you're  gay ignore my remark)

2 minutes ago, PETERTHEEATER said:

Tut tut! You're  supposed to look at the cuties in bikinis not the water! (Huh? .......Oh, sorry, if you're  gay ignore my remark)

I only go into perv mode once they start playing beach volleyball 

Good, lets hope tourism stays low too. 

Chiang Mai has some of the worse Immigration in the country.

So if visitors stop going their the worst of the bunch will get transferred to some other post, 

or better yet, they will have to find new employment.

The city needs to spend this time improving what it does have to offer tourism, 

which at the moment doesn't really seem like much.

Just many places to eat and sleep is all after a few wasted visits to the temples.

 

1 hour ago, 4MyEgo said:

I wonder why, perhaps this would be a good time for the Thai's to take a SERIOUS look at reducing an ongoing problem there, e.g. we all know Chiang Mai is famous for the appalling smoke issues come burning season as I am sure not only tourists but the locals prefer good air quality, especially when one is holidaying, and many expats who lived there, have left the area, some vowing never to return. When friends ask me about Chiang Mai, I tell them to avoid it because of the smoke, if Thai's are serious about tourists returning there, they need to get with the program, I for one don't support places that allow the burn to continue.

 

 

Air pollution is a serious problem in SE Asia not just in Thailand and it affects 30 provinces in Thailand severely every year. Chiang Mai is just one of them.

 

Taking the average PM2.5 for the whole of 2019, Korat was the most polluted city in Thailand and ranked number 200 in the world. Chiang Rai #278. Khon Kaen #286. Chiang Mai #372.

Link: https://www.iqair.com/world-most-polluted-cities

 

Nobody likes air pollution. But there's no point demonising Chiang Mai, which remains the most popular destination for Thai tourists and hugely popular for expats. Tackling air pollution will take a concerted regional effort across several countries, something which alas doesn't seem on the cards.

If you lock the gate so tight and don't even make it viable for people who have families and live there to get in what do you expect feel sorry for the Thai people its time to rise up and drain the cesspool I think ????