Expats’ anger and dismay at dual pricing for rapid COVID test in Phuket

[Pattaya Spotter]

1 hour ago, hotchilli said:

And I won't be... I also canceled my trip to Phuket just prior to Songkran when they announced they would welcome people from Red Zones.

Now they can forget me for the rest of this year or even longer.

It's your loss...the beaches and water are clean (maybe like 40 years ago) and you almost have the whole island to yourself. And that $15 testing fee...you'd make that back 5-10 times over on your first nite's hotel stay as the prices are so cheap. I've been here for two months and am having a great time...but I understand, you have your principles to stand on and you've drawn the line here and put your foot down. ????????????????

Edited April 23, 2021 by Pattaya Spotter

[TKDfella]

As far as I can see it is the increase to 500฿ that is really the issue. Why didn't the authorities just make free for Thai people 300฿  for others. It could be argued that the increase was to cover the cost, at least in part, for Thais too. If that were the case then it is nothing less than saying that foreigners should 'carry' Thai people. The other point is was the testing a requirement by whom? Of course, it was the authority's requirement but they wanted others to pay for it. But it doesn't concern them at all as expats have no rights anyway and as for them thinking their actions actually backfire (tourism wise)...I don't think they can think that far ahead.

[DefaultName]

My feeling is that Thai's and those who pay tax should get it free.  Me, I expect to pay.

[Grusa]

3 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

 

It would be interesting to know how many would want to return to rip-off island, wouldn't it.

I for one could care less if I never went there again. There are many good reasons that I have to, from time to time, but never simply because I want to.

 

My first ever visit was long pre tsunami, and simply an off-stop on the way to, and again on the way back from, Phi-Phi. All the requisite tourist rip-off things were duly done, noted, and struck off the bucket list. Subsequent visits were even shorter transfers to and from Phi-Phi. 

 

Now, Phi-Phi is somewhere I have no wish to go.....it is ruined. I have no interest in Bangla, Jungceylon, or any of the other "attractions" on the island. Taxi? ...forget it,  cheaper to hire a car for the day! I do however have friends, both Thai and farang, living on Phuket,  whom I would not wish to offend and who need my attention. Were it not for them, I would not go there. I would not recommend any of my foreign resident friends to go there.

 

I am not rich, but I can afford the double pricing. I simply refuse to be blatantly ripped off, for no good reason. So I will not be going to Phuket any time soon... even though I have a means of entry that circumvents such issues.

[portlandtree]

7 hours ago, shackleton said:

Its your choice don't want to pay don't go

whats all the fuss over 500 baht 

Foreigners will always pay more than Thais probably because the

Thai government think they earn more so can afford to pay ???? 

so some poor farang still needs to pay while the FAT rich thai gets it free 

[beechbum]

7 hours ago, WineOh said:

Yes. 

And i'm baffled at anyone who wants to visit an island where the taxi mafia rips you off or wants to harm you, the drinks are 4 x as expensive as the rest of the country and the locals hate you.

 

what is the point in going there.

Said the guy so full of local knowledge that's only ever sat on a barstool in Patong...

[beechbum]

6 minutes ago, Grusa said:

 I do however have friends, both Thai and farang, living on Phuket,  whom I would not wish to offend and who need my attention. Were it not for them, I would not go there. I would not recommend any of my foreign resident friends to go there.

So I will not be going to Phuket any time soon.

But what about your friends, both Thai and Farang no less,  that live here and NEED your attention??...????????

[Trip Hop]

To be honest I'd be more worried about the type and manufacturer of the test and the possibly subsequent pricey treatment than a measly 500 baht?  If it's a Lateral Flow Test (LFT) which it sounds like, at present there aren't any real accurate ones in the market so you could end up being declared falsely positive and end up suffering god knows how much in unnecessary hospital costs?  For example, the Innova (re-badged Chinese) ones which are currently being distributed in the UK are a pile of <deleted> and the Roche ones in the US were responsible for the White House outbreak?  There is a new LFT that is highly accurate at detecting infectious people being launched in the UK by Avacta next month but god knows if it would ever reach the LOS?

[Richard Kuklinski]

2 hours ago, Neeranam said:

Also, speaking Thai helps. I was only refused the Thai price once in 27 years. 

 

i guess you have only been to one national park in 27 years then. 

[Chongalulu]

7 hours ago, Pattaya Spotter said:

I can see both sides of this argument...and no one is forced to come to Phuket.

It’s not as though coming to Phuket is a privilege- it’s a choice as a customer to spend your money in the local economy which is on its @rse just now. Phuket should be incentivising that ...which doesn’t include alienating potential customers in this way.

[digibum]

17 minutes ago, TKDfella said:

. The other point is was the testing a requirement by whom? Of course, it was the authority's requirement but they wanted others to pay for it.

 

Quarantine upon entering the country is required by the authorities yet you have to pay for that.  Before you enter Thailand you have to get a COVID test and you have to pay for that. 

 

Or are you suggesting that anything the government requires should be paid for by the government?  Should they reimburse you for the cost of obtaining a visa too?  Maybe reimburse your BTS fare?  LOL. 

 

Don't get me wrong.  Not arguing for any sort of dual pricing.  It's just that your argument doesn't make any sense.  If the government requires you to do something, you're saying that they should pay for it? 

 

21 minutes ago, TKDfella said:

But it doesn't concern them at all as expats have no rights anyway

 

Was there a time in the past when you felt expats in Thailand had rights?  When was that? 

 

Sorry, but I can't help but laugh when people act like before THIS incident, the Thai government was some utopian democracy where every resident was treated with dignity and respect. 

 

It just sounds so melodramatic to complain about not having ANY rights, but not then leaving to a place where you feel you have rights.  Seriously, if expats actually had NO rights, I would leave.  Who would stay in a country where they have no rights? 

 

I mean, this is different than wanting things to be different.  I can hope and advocate for and express my opinion that immigration should do away with 90-day reporting.  But I still feel I have rights.  I simply disagree with those in power and they disagree with me.  Hopefully, over time, they can be convinced. 

 

But if you have no rights, there's no hope. 

[digibum]

11 minutes ago, portlandtree said:

so some poor farang still needs to pay while the FAT rich thai gets it free 

 

No, the FAT rich farang still needs to pay and the FAT rich Thai gets it for free. 

 

Poor people shouldn't be going to Phuket for holiday.  There are much more budget-friendly places. 

[Pattaya Spotter]

2 minutes ago, nchuckle said:

It’s not as though coming to Phuket is a privilege- it’s a choice as a customer to spend your money in the local economy which is on its @rse just now. Phuket should be incentivising that ...which doesn’t include alienating potential customers in this way.

I'd say the 50-75 percent off hotel rates and the clean empty beaches are incentive enough for most people but I can see how paying B500 for a virus test while saving B5000 baht on a hotel room would rub some people the wrong way.

[billd766]

4 hours ago, Chiang Mai Bill said:

I see no problem in giving the vaccine and tests free to one's own people -- and 'foreigners' having to pay!

 

And B500 isn't much -- not many beers!  Stop moaning!

Do you think that foreigners should pay more than the list prices for EVERYTHING they buy at 7/11, major shopping malls. How about an extra 500 baht when you buy a bottle of beer.  Would you be happy to pay an extra 500 baht every time you fill the tank of your car, catch a bus or fly internally in Thailand? How about an extra 500 baht "farang charge" every time you eat out?

 

If you don't like it those examples, then why are you happy at being charged 500 baht for a vaccine test when Thais pay nothing?

 

[digibum]

17 minutes ago, Grusa said:

Now, Phi-Phi is somewhere I have no wish to go.....it is ruined. I have no interest in Bangla, Jungceylon, or any of the other "attractions" on the island. Taxi? ...forget it,  cheaper to hire a car for the day! I do however have friends, both Thai and farang, living on Phuket,  whom I would not wish to offend and who need my attention. Were it not for them, I would not go there. I would not recommend any of my foreign resident friends to go there.

 

There's a little secret not too many farangs seem to know about.  There are other places on Phuket other than Patong. 

 

I went to Patong many years ago with my wife and she H-A-T-E-D Phuket afterwards.  Every time something came up and the topic of Phuket came up, she nixed it before I even got the full name out. 

 

But then a few people told her about Phuket Town and Rawai and other places on the island.  She started firing up YouTube videos and checking out websites about the other parts of Phuket and then out of the blue she asks if we can go to Phuket on holiday. 

 

Now she wants to move there. 

 

Seriously, if you hate Patong, get out of Patong.  Try other parts of the island. 

 

Hating Phuket because you dislike Patong is like hating Hawaii because you don't like Waikiki. 

 

[desert dueller]

5 hours ago, SymS said:

I also felt the same about Taxi drivers in the past, but now we are like best buddies. How did I achieve this feat? I simply walk.

When I discovered the frustration of dealing with taxi drivers, I decided walking was the best solution. It's good for health, it saves me money, reduces my stress levels, and I've heard it's good for the planet. Now, when I talk with taxi drivers, I feel happy talking about the weather, women, how I'm just going to walk to that location five kilometers away, etc... with a big smile on my face!!!

Indeed. When walking along the various beach roads, as songtaws creep past at a snail's pace and honk, and motosi taxi drivers shout, clap or stop to solicit my business, I simply keep walking, smile at them, and say:" I not Chinese. You wait Chinaman!"

[Richard Kuklinski]

53 minutes ago, nchuckle said:

It’s not as though coming to Phuket is a privilege- it’s a choice as a customer to spend your money in the local economy which is on its @rse just now. Phuket should be incentivising that ...which doesn’t include alienating potential customers in this way.

 

Phuket begged for customers after the tsunami. 

 

People came back to help the local Phuket economy, and what happened, they straight away started to price gouge, extort, rip off, assault, and rob people. 

 

I don't think it would be any different after covid. 

[Camillof]

3 hours ago, TigerandDog said:

My ThaI partner asked to speak to the manager, showed HIM my ID card, the employee was chastised on the spot, and I received the Thai price.

TigerandDog, you are lucky, your Thai partner is an exceptional one compared to average Thai partners of foreigners living here. Anyway that's what I meant when I wrote "not automatically".

[stewartthailand]

Testing in the UK is free. Go online and order the lateral flow testing kits and they arrive next day- a box of 7. When used order more. No cost and for everone.

[itsari]

9 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

Who wants to go to the area which generates the greatest amount of Tourism in Thailand ????

 

erm.....  did you think about your question ?

 

 

 

 

Did 

[The Hammer2021]

9 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

Who wants to go to the area which generates the greatest amount of Tourism in Thailand ????

 

erm.....  did you think about your question ?

 

 

 

 

The greatest amount of something..

[The Hammer2021]

57 minutes ago, stewartthailand said:

Testing in the UK is free. Go online and order the lateral flow testing kits and they arrive next day- a box of 7. When used order more. No cost and for everone.

Not when you  fly in and undergo the quarantine  procedure.  They are about 70 pounds

[Richard Kuklinski]

1 hour ago, digibum said:

Poor people shouldn't be going to Phuket for holiday.  There are much more budget-friendly places. 

 

In the past, Phuket could demand premium prices because of the nature.  The beaches have been polluted, and the green concreted over.  In the future, Phuket will end up a budget holiday destination. 

[billd766]

6 hours ago, RobMuir said:

 

I think you might want to change your news source from old blokes making stuff up or what they heard on a bar stool.

 

Tourism had been increasing rapidly for years with nearly 40 million in 2019 before covid hit.

 

Of course if you believed the constant whiners on TVF you would have thought that it was declining. I will go with the official airport arrival numbers which are accepted internationally over what is happening in Leks beerbar.

 

Interestingly these incessant complainers that are attracted to posting on this forum just make up numbers and reasons why Tourism is "declining" but actually chose to live here.

 

I think they would be doing everyone a favor by leaving. The Thais wouldn't have to put up with their nonsense, happy expats like myself wouldn't be constantly embarrassed by them and they themselves could find happiness wherever they go.

 

There is no reason for them to be here. I doubt if a single person would actually cancel a trip to Phuket because of 500 baht. Plenty will claim to though.

I haven't sat on a bar stool anywhere in nearly 10 years. I do however read newspapers and news websites most days.

 

What gives you the idea that I am not a happy expat living here in Thailand with my Thai wife and son. I have been living here for the past 20 years and I listen more than I speak, and think about what I want to say first.

 

I first came here in 1993 for work and AFAIR Thailand was a much nicer and happier country then and it improved under Thaksin and Yingluck.

 

The Thai people could speak out if they wished, 

and the elections were much cleaner and freer then.

You need to stop making assumptions as they are rarely correct.

 

 

5 hours ago, shackleton said:

deleted post

 

 

[billd766]

5 hours ago, shackleton said:

Have you tried to enter their the National parks pay more than the Thais

Not talking about the  general cost of living in Thailand which is the same to most if not all people 

 

This 500 baht charge is what the thread is about and, no, it is not the general cost of living, but just another mistake made by those who run Phuket thinking that they can stiff farang expats once again.

 

If they had any idea what they were doing they would spend more time thinking how to attract the few farang expats left in the country that actually WANT to go to Phuket. This is not one of the best ways to do it.

Edited April 23, 2021 by billd766
Bad spelling

[daejung]

Even if I love thailand and thai people, I always felt foreigners were unwelcome with all the paperwork and dual pricing. With covid-19, it's even worse. I will probably have to wait few years before going back to Thailand.

[daejung]

10 hours ago, Pattaya Spotter said:

I can see both sides of this argument...and no one is forced to come to Phuket.

No one is forced to go to Phuket and no one is force to go to Thailand. Up to the junta to decide if they want people to come or not.

[The Hammer2021]

The interesting thing is that Phuket could have promoted tourism massively by offering free covid tests to all and subsidized  vaccinations! The authorities made a tone deaf crass decision.

[alacrity]

15 minutes ago, billd766 said:

This 500 baht charge is what the thread is about and, no, it is not the general cost of living, but just another mistake made by those who run Phuket thinking that they can stiff farangs once again.

 

If they had any idea what they were doing they would spend more time thinking how to attract the few farangs left n the country that actually WANT to go to Phuket. This is not one of the best ways to do it.

 

Shackleton visited a National Park in Thailand and gave up. Because of the indignation???

I wonder how many perished before it's return???????

 

CYA: - never stated their proffered pronoun.

[alacrity]

22 minutes ago, billd766 said:

This 500 baht charge is what the thread is about and, no, it is not the general cost of living, but just another mistake made by those who run Phuket thinking that they can stiff farangs once again.

 

If they had any idea what they were doing they would spend more time thinking how to attract the few farangs left n the country that actually WANT to go to Phuket. This is not one of the best ways to do it.

Bill,

They don't care. It's about division.