Coronavirus forces tourism rethink in Bangkok, the world's most visited city

[sambum]

42 minutes ago, GAZZPA said:

No, of course it isn't. Sex tourism is a result of poverty not a development of a countries culture. Thailand needs to create other avenues for income, I have mentioned this on numerous occasions. Government development in infrastructure would be a good start. Thailand is also not the worlds most visited city. Bangkok measures it's tourists by arrivals at the airport, many of which as travelling on to further destinations. I would say Paris is far beyond Bangkok, especially as France has twice the amount of visitors. Tourism is obviously big for the Thai economy but it is not as crucial in western countries who have a developed economy. 

"Thailand is also not the worlds most visited city."

 

Thailand is not a city - just sayin'!

[GAZZPA]

2 hours ago, smudger1951 said:

You mean make Thailand like everywhere else in the world !

So, the only thing that sets Thailand apart is the sex tourism? Without it the country is boring?

 

[simtemple]

18 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Hmm, and are these restrictions on vaccines applicable to migrant workers too ? If not, its a waste of time

Filipinos are being invited to apply for fruit picking jobs in New Zealand now. 

[mpyre]

The solution to this Global economic disaster is to end the Covid charade...Sweden is right.

[elliss]

On 8/20/2020 at 7:15 PM, RichardColeman said:

It's called unemployment. Wandering around with nothing to do and nowhere to go

 

    Farlangs , can  expect , a backlash from the unemployed , in Thailand ..

 Thx , Covid-19 / Chinese flu .

Pandemic panic, has changed the World ..

 

Edited August 21, 2020 by elliss

[fraggleRock]

7 hours ago, johnnybangkok said:

Ok let’s say then the numbers are inflated so what would then be a credible number? 1 million in Europe? 2-3 million worldwide? These are still big numbers. 
Im not disagreeing with what you are saying but I think it’s plain to see that lockdown has prevented enough deaths to constitute its initiation; but the long and short of it is governments the world over (especially western ones) have been utterly clueless in their reactions. 
S.Korea and Taiwan got it right; close your borders early, identify, track and quarantine. Keep your most vulnerable locked away and monitor, monitor, monitor. 
The worldwide economic effects of this disease could have been much, much less if sensible heads had governed, but I suppose that’s too much to ask of politicians, I mean they’re only there to govern after all. 

I think you missed the memo, South Korea and Taiwan are starting to get numbers again...

[pantsonfire]

9 minutes ago, fraggleRock said:

I think you missed the memo, South Korea and Taiwan are starting to get numbers again...

Taiwan?

[billd766]

11 hours ago, NightSky said:

Many expats had already packed up and left thailand before covid 19 because of all the crack downs and stress that caused..

 

many who remain are planning to leave too..

 

You must live in a different Thailand to me.

 

I have about 20 farang friends locally, most married to Thais, many with children, families, houses etc, and none of them have made any plans to return to their home countries.

[AndrewMciver]

Quality over Quantity?

 

The moment they stopped restrictions on Indians and Chinese all that went out the window. 

 

 

[CANSIAM]

On 8/20/2020 at 5:15 AM, RichardColeman said:

It's called unemployment. Wandering around with nothing to do and nowhere to go

Shoplifting activities.....

[fraggleRock]

29 minutes ago, AndrewMciver said:

Quality over Quantity?

 

The moment they stopped restrictions on Indians and Chinese all that went out the window. 

 

 

Which is funny as they absolutely hate each other and the recent skimishes up the North of India has made it a even worse... 

[CANSIAM]

10 hours ago, dallen52 said:

The T word..

 

What about the R word?

"Retirement" people. 

All of us who are waiting to return to our homes and families. 

6 months for me now, because Thai Airways cancelled my flights..

Then the borders closed. 

 

YES! If at some point there is 'Travel Bubble Countries' all the 'R' people should be given clearance even if outside the bubble countries listed, better yet long before there is a list. Who's in charge ? Do they know the Non O yearly extension program, money ( and a lot ) in a their banks etc. Ludicrous !! 

[AndrewMciver]

13 minutes ago, fraggleRock said:

Which is funny as they absolutely hate each other and the recent skimishes up the North of India has made it a even worse... 

 

Maybe Thailand can threaten them with visa restrictions on any outbreak of war. 

[Albert Zweistein]

19 hours ago, Youlike said:

Just let them build something really amazing and huge....there's no landmark building in whole BKK like there is in ANY European citie...build the biggest Wat of Asia in BKK and make it last for thousands of years.

 

Something like the Borubodur or Taj Mahall or that temple in Cambodia....Thailand doesn't have any of that scale.

A statue of prayut.

[GAZZPA]

3 hours ago, billd766 said:

You must live in a different Thailand to me.

 

I have about 20 farang friends locally, most married to Thais, many with children, families, houses etc, and none of them have made any plans to return to their home countries.

Check the facts my friend. I left, I still have some work ties to the country but I wont live there anymore. Many of my expat friends have left, many I know are planning to. You can check the expat decline numbers online but there are approximately 40% left. I don't see why you would think the poster would lie.. If things are good for you then that's great but the facts are the facts I'm afraid. 

[Truth Will Set You Free]

Wake up Thailand, nobody coming here with all the restrictions you have put in place. So live with the fact that you want to control the spread of a second wave, you have to live with it. 
 

Plus, you still have your baht rate strong which tells people you have money to support your People and country. This is another reason the Expats are not spending their money. They are all you got for the moment which they see the true colors and not spending. 
 

Rebuild your cities and pray people will return when the pandemic is over. 

 

[Redline]

They don’t have an educated workforce, so tourism worked.

It was the easy way out-a lot easier than developing industries-especially with the skill level and productivity issues.

 

[dallen52]

8 hours ago, billd766 said:

You must live in a different Thailand to me.

 

I have about 20 farang friends locally, most married to Thais, many with children, families, houses etc, and none of them have made any plans to return to their home countries.

Suppose its down to the location. 

My partner was working for a friend in Nirun condo pattaya. 

Food shop. Restaurant. 

About 80% of the condo are empty now, or thais are moving in at 5000 a month. 

Most of the expats either got out or are now stranded Abroad and cannot get back. 

Several have abandoned the rooms, furniture and even bikes..

Fortunately for me, my lady is in the village home now.

Nothing to go back to Pats for.

And six months later I am still stranded out of Thailand. 

[Captain Monday]

"its cheap beer bars, tattoo parlours, street vendors, hostels and buzzing nightlife drawing budget travellers"

 

Where is this cheap beer in BKK? Sitting on a gutter stoop in front of 7-11?

[billd766]

10 hours ago, GAZZPA said:

Check the facts my friend. I left, I still have some work ties to the country but I wont live there anymore. Many of my expat friends have left, many I know are planning to. You can check the expat decline numbers online but there are approximately 40% left. I don't see why you would think the poster would lie.. If things are good for you then that's great but the facts are the facts I'm afraid. 

I rely on the facts that I know and can prove. The guys I posted about are in contact with each other every week.

 

I didn't say that the poster was lying (your words in my mouth and not mine). What I did say is that we live in different parts of Thailand where people and conditions are different to the cities and tourist places.

 

Many of ypur expat friends have left, many you know are planning to. Those are facts and are not easily disputed in the same way that mine are not disputed.

[billd766]

5 hours ago, dallen52 said:

Suppose its down to the location. 

My partner was working for a friend in Nirun condo pattaya. 

Food shop. Restaurant. 

About 80% of the condo are empty now, or thais are moving in at 5000 a month. 

Most of the expats either got out or are now stranded Abroad and cannot get back. 

Several have abandoned the rooms, furniture and even bikes..

Fortunately for me, my lady is in the village home now.

Nothing to go back to Pats for.

And six months later I am still stranded out of Thailand. 

I live in rural Thailand where nearest permanent farang neighbour lived about 5 km away and the last time I was in Pattaya was about 7 years ago buying a motorbike for a mate.

 

I haven't left Thailand since I retired 11 years ago.

[ThailandRyan]

14 minutes ago, billd766 said:

I rely on the facts that I know and can prove. The guys I posted about are in contact with each other every week.

 

I didn't say that the poster was lying (your words in my mouth and not mine). What I did say is that we live in different parts of Thailand where people and conditions are different to the cities and tourist places.

 

Many of ypur expat friends have left, many you know are planning to. Those are facts and are not easily disputed in the same way that mine are not disputed.

I agree with your version.  I only know of one who left and decided to move onto the Philippines last year.  For a few months last year I had even moved to Cebu, but then the stark reality of things struck me and I moved back here to Bangkok.  The folks I know that have moved here from the US have retired here and have no plans to leave, and the few that are still in the US are there because they can not get back to there homes here in either the provinces, Bangkok, or Phuket.

[Tony125]

'TWO MORE YEARS' 

Coronavirus pandemic could last for another TWO YEARS, says World Health Organisation chief

 

https://www.the-sun.com/news/1350542/coronavirus-pandemic-another-two-years-who/?utm_medium=browser_notifications&utm_source=pushly

[DrTuner]

3 hours ago, Tony125 said:

'TWO MORE YEARS' 

Coronavirus pandemic could last for another TWO YEARS, says World Health Organisation chief

 

https://www.the-sun.com/news/1350542/coronavirus-pandemic-another-two-years-who/?utm_medium=browser_notifications&utm_source=pushly

It's here to stay. But there will be antibody therapies that are effective in treating it, some are nearly ready like the Centivax monoclonal. Eventually it'll just become another bug we all will live with without much thought.

Edited August 22, 2020 by DrTuner

[elliss]

21 hours ago, billd766 said:

You must live in a different Thailand to me.

 

I have about 20 farang friends locally, most married to Thais, many with children, families, houses etc, and none of them have made any plans to return to their home countries.

 

       Sadly , they probably , don't have a plan B .

       Homeland , bridge's  burned , not welcomed Home anymore ....

[johnch99]

you can't book a flight to thailand with thai airways, eva air and emirates for october, bit odd that thai airways aren't canceling flights already booked for October but you can't book a flight on their website

 

[Blumpie]

4 hours ago, Tony125 said:

'TWO MORE YEARS' 

Coronavirus pandemic could last for another TWO YEARS, says World Health Organisation chief

 

https://www.the-sun.com/news/1350542/coronavirus-pandemic-another-two-years-who/?utm_medium=browser_notifications&utm_source=pushly

This has been widely understood for a long time now.  Yes, it's pretty much true, despite the rotten news source quoted.  And all tourism will be affected accordingly.  

[Blumpie]

I never understood bangkok as one of the worlds most visited cities.  People come to Thailand for beaches and food.  Bangkok is just a stepping stone.  

The only thing to do in Bangkok at night is go to a rotten show or step over rats in the sois late at night. I found it to be a bit of a dump.  (but nowhere near as much of a dump as many asian cities)

[purcho]

On 8/21/2020 at 12:25 PM, JonnyF said:

I don't really think that eating friend noodles on Khao San Road instead of eating fried noodles in the shop outside their condo is really going to make much difference to the economy.

 

Foreign tourism brings in huge amounts of revenue from OUTSIDE the country. Locals spending relatively small amounts of money in another suburb/province instead of in their own suburb/province does not have the same effect.

 

Maybe it's time to admit how much foreign tourism brings to the country and start treating foreign tourists with a bit more respect. You can start now while there's nothing to do by training the immigration officers at the airports not to scowl at incoming tourists as if they criminals that are ruining your day. Then stop the double pricing and ripoffs that the government itself partakes in. That way, when things open up you might start getting good reviews on social media and repeat, quality tourists.

 

Remember, tourists choose Thailand as their destination. Thailand doesn't choose their tourists.

Good post . As you point out first impressions are so important and the Imm.Dept. should really look at that issue on incoming guests .These guys at Swampy are probably the most unwelcoming lot I have encountered at any airport .....These guests, as you say spend their hard earned in Thailand and should be shown respect and gratitude...... Ever arrived at NZ immigration ??? Professional and polite .Good example .

 

[Flying Saucage]

7 hours ago, Tony125 said:

'TWO MORE YEARS' 

Coronavirus pandemic could last for another TWO YEARS, says World Health Organisation chief

 

https://www.the-sun.com/news/1350542/coronavirus-pandemic-another-two-years-who/?utm_medium=browser_notifications&utm_source=pushly

Look at DrTuner's profile pic to get an idea how we all will look like after two more years of Covid paranoia