Pattaya suffers 99% fall in tourist arrivals

[Eindhoven]

3 hours ago, BobinBKK said:

I never have nor will I EVER set foot in puke-ket ????

It's actually not that bad there. Just stay away from the touristy areas and obtain your own transport.

[Leaver]

On 3/13/2021 at 11:35 PM, ChipButty said:

I've just found out just now they only got the government subsidy for one night the other nights were 3000 baht, 

Lucky they have a farang.  ????

[BobinBKK]

On 3/14/2021 at 10:49 AM, petermik said:

I,m sure Phuket is hugely relieved...????

I try to draw as much negative attention to toilet-land as humanly possible ????

[BobinBKK]

On 3/14/2021 at 11:22 AM, Eindhoven said:

It's actually not that bad there. Just stay away from the touristy areas and obtain your own transport.

Thanks for the tip ????

[ChipButty]

On 3/14/2021 at 7:57 AM, BobinBKK said:

I never have nor will I EVER set foot in puke-ket ????

Lets keep it that way

[madmen]

 As usuall TAT wouldn't have to clue what the number is! 

[Leaver]

On 3/14/2021 at 3:22 PM, Eindhoven said:

It's actually not that bad there. Just stay away from the touristy areas and obtain your own transport.

How would one get home after drinking?  Oh, that's right, they have their own transport, because there are no real public transport options. 

Probably why Phuket province has the highest road death in Thailand.  

[Maha Sarakham]

It is quite a shame to see Pattaya struggling so badly.  I was hoping the domestic Thai travelers would have kept it propped up a bit better, but I guess that didn't happen in the slightest.  When tourism opens up later this year or next, it's going to be a totally different scene of shuttered metal gates and abandoned businesses. 

What comes first, the chicken or the egg?  How do you open and pay staff without customers?  How do customers come back to a partially abandoned Pattaya and think wow that was great, lets do it again?

I don't see a magic switch that can be flipped to turn this all on and off so quickly, this is going to be a slow recovery process for everyone on both sides...

[tingtong]

Took them 12 months...but finally!! the first real number to read.

[talahtnut]

On 3/14/2021 at 4:22 AM, Eindhoven said:

It's actually not that bad there. Just stay away from the touristy areas and obtain your own transport.

Thats funny if you are the only 1% tourist there.

[Eindhoven]

1 hour ago, Leaver said:

How would one get home after drinking?  Oh, that's right, they have their own transport, because there are no real public transport options. 

Probably why Phuket province has the highest road death in Thailand.  

 

I don't drink alcohol. Nasty stuff.

Not that I am disagreeing for when it comes to transport. Though personally it's not an issue.

[Eindhoven]

23 minutes ago, talahtnut said:

Thats funny if you are the only 1% tourist there.

 

I mean that the touristy parts are the worst parts anyway. There are some very nice nooks and crannies. That's why it's best to have your own transport.

[rcuthbert]

On 3/16/2021 at 1:57 PM, BobinBKK said:

I try to draw as much negative attention to toilet-land as humanly possible ????

Circa 2005, 500 baht for a sawng tao from Kata to Phuket City -lol!

 

[jacko45k]

9 hours ago, Maha Sarakham said:

It is quite a shame to see Pattaya struggling so badly.  I was hoping the domestic Thai travelers would have kept it propped up a bit better, but I guess that didn't happen in the slightest.  When tourism opens up later this year or next, it's going to be a totally different scene of shuttered metal gates and abandoned businesses. 

What comes first, the chicken or the egg?  How do you open and pay staff without customers?  How do customers come back to a partially abandoned Pattaya and think wow that was great, lets do it again?

I don't see a magic switch that can be flipped to turn this all on and off so quickly, this is going to be a slow recovery process for everyone on both sides...

I was thinking along those lines last night as I strolled down a very dead 3rd Rd. Pattaya is not changing nor giving up on its origins, but surely there could be enough domestic custom to fill up many bars. Perhaps they all still have falang silly level rents.

Edited March 18, 2021 by jacko45k

[Leaver]

15 hours ago, Eindhoven said:

 

I don't drink alcohol. Nasty stuff.

Not that I am disagreeing for when it comes to transport. Though personally it's not an issue.

I think there would be a direct correlation between transport mafia prices and road deaths, particularly for tourists.  200 baht to rent a motorbike for a day versus double or triple that for just one short journey.  

[Eindhoven]

1 hour ago, Leaver said:

I think there would be a direct correlation between transport mafia prices and road deaths, particularly for tourists.  200 baht to rent a motorbike for a day versus double or triple that for just one short journey.  

 

The previous time I took a bahtbus in Phuket; they charged me 20 baht and even apologised for picking up a charter passenger. The passenger also offered to pay my fare.

Clearly things have changed since then. 

Subsequent visits I've had my own transport.

[Leaver]

10 minutes ago, Eindhoven said:

 

The previous time I took a bahtbus in Phuket; they charged me 20 baht and even apologised for picking up a charter passenger. The passenger also offered to pay my fare.

Clearly things have changed since then. 

Subsequent visits I've had my own transport.

Most tourists want to sit on the beach or go sightseeing by day, and party by night.  That usually means drinking a lot of alcohol.  They were getting charged more for a short tuktuk journey than the cost of their hotel for the night.  Many hired a motorbike at 200 baht a day, with tragic consequences.  

[Eindhoven]

Just now, Leaver said:

Most tourists want to sit on the beach or go sightseeing by day, and party by night.  That usually means drinking a lot of alcohol.  They were getting charged more for a short tuktuk journey than the cost of their hotel for the night.  Many hired a motorbike at 200 baht a day, with tragic consequences.  

 

I don't know anything about that. They aren't forced to drink and drive; it's a choice.

 

[Leaver]

9 minutes ago, Eindhoven said:

 

I don't know anything about that. They aren't forced to drink and drive; it's a choice.

 

True, but the mafia cost of transport in Phuket pushed many tourists onto motorbikes that had never ridden a motorbike before.  Alcohol or not, their inexperience also lead to tragic circumstances.    

[Lacessit]

On 3/14/2021 at 7:57 AM, BobinBKK said:

I never have nor will I EVER set foot in puke-ket ????

If you have never been there, what makes you so sure you will dislike it?

[BobinBKK]

On 3/18/2021 at 8:20 PM, Lacessit said:

If you have never been there, what makes you so sure you will dislike it?

Horror stories of foreigners being cheated, overcharged and dual pricing everywhere. More than anywhere else in Thailand.

[ChipButty]

7 minutes ago, BobinBKK said:

Horror stories of foreigners being cheated, overcharged and dual pricing everywhere. More than anywhere else in Thailand.

Exactly that, Just Stories!

[Jogger88]

Pattaya will never experience a recovery off western tourism. Losses from the lockdown haven't yet been realized in western countries. The west is going to go into a long cycle of implosion as more and more jobs are lost.

 

They had better look to countries that never really locked down, like China. China is set to take over the world.

[jacko45k]

23 hours ago, BobinBKK said:

Horror stories of foreigners being cheated, overcharged and dual pricing everywhere. More than anywhere else in Thailand.

Not really, probably as much in Bangkok or Phuket, although in the latter, overcharging is just standard operating procedure. Pattaya is a cheap place to live and easy to get around... whether you get cheated is likely how open you make yourself to it. Nothing travels better than negative reports... but in reality, Pattaya may just suit you well.

[pattayadude]

On 3/12/2021 at 11:39 AM, Pilotman said:

what virus?  Why wasn't I told about this? 

me neither

Edited March 25, 2021 by pattayadude

[Leaver]

On 3/22/2021 at 9:13 AM, jacko45k said:

Not really, probably as much in Bangkok or Phuket, although in the latter, overcharging is just standard operating procedure. Pattaya is a cheap place to live and easy to get around... whether you get cheated is likely how open you make yourself to it.

 

The essential service of road transport is mafia controlled in Phuket.  If you need to go from Point A to Point B in Phuket, you either pay what is demanded, or walk, or don't go. The other option is own / rent a vehicle, which isn't great on a holiday when tourists, or expats and locals, like to drink alcohol.  So, all options are not great.  

 

Imagine Pattaya without baht buses, only having taxis that refuse to use the meter, having a minimum fare of 500 baht, regardless of the journey distance, with quoted prices rising further for any journey over just a few kilometres. 

 

Everyone would need access to a vehicle.  The amount of road accidents and death would increase a lot, especially at night.   This is why Phuket's roads are among the most dangerous in the world, statistically.    

[jacko45k]

1 hour ago, Leaver said:

Imagine Pattaya without baht buses, only having taxis that refuse to use the meter, having a minimum fare of 500 baht, regardless of the journey distance, with quoted prices rising further for any journey over just a few kilometres. 

Then it would be like Phuket but with cheaper drinks.

[RT555]

Well less sewage piped from all the hotels into the water.......

[Leaver]

On 3/25/2021 at 4:38 PM, jacko45k said:

Then it would be like Phuket but with cheaper drinks.

 

Add your taxi fare to the bar to have some cheap drinks, and the drinks end up costing 150 baht.  

[jacko45k]

13 hours ago, Leaver said:

 

Add your taxi fare to the bar to have some cheap drinks, and the drinks end up costing 150 baht.  

Taxi fares are cheap in Pattaya, under 100 baht to ride about 12km from central Pattaya to my home. It is ridiculous to add that price to the cost of a beer, and that would still be less than Phuket.