Thai tourism in a "coma" - confidence at its worst level since records began, says academic

[chaihot]

1 hour ago, zzaa09 said:

Expensive and made up bureaucratic nonsense. Any visa can act as a COE. 

That is what I was thinking ... require visa application and nothing more.  If you are not from the restricted countries, issue the visas and move on.

[DoctorB]

11 hours ago, mommysboy said:

Assuming Thailand reopens countrywide and gets some sort of high season, come February the case load will rise to 50,000 per day imo, and deaths will be 200 plus even with 80% vaccination. UK might wear that but not Thailand. And what sort of normality will it be anyway?

So following the implications of this highly speculative doom scenario what is the plan? Do you just allow the economic devastation to continue? It's clear from the rest of the world that lockdowns and social isolation are not going to make covid disappear anytime soon. So there has to be a course of action to restart economic activity as best as one can while trying to minimise deaths.

[DoctorB]

4 hours ago, thurien said:

obviously to be expected with Chinese vaccines that won't work on DELTA?! 

And what scientific evidence is there that the Chinese vaccines don't actually work on Delta or any other variant, as opposed to having slightly less effectiveness than certain other vaccines? 

[djayz]

13 hours ago, webfact said:

5% for good

pull the other one! 

[JCP108]

2 minutes ago, DoctorB said:

And what scientific evidence is there that the Chinese vaccines don't actually work on Delta or any other variant, as opposed to having slightly less effectiveness than certain other vaccines? 

"The study found that people fully inoculated with Sinovac reduced their risk of infection by 54% and risk of death by 74% compared with unvaccinated populations. Still, the AstraZeneca vaccine appeared to offer more protection, reducing the risk of infection by 70% and the risk of death by 90%. Sinovac’s efficacy also waned in older populations, reducing the risk of death by only 35% in populations over 80."

 

https://fortune.com/2021/08/31/china-covid-vaccine-sinovac-sinopharm-delta-variant-effective/

 

[Billpro785]

12 hours ago, at15 said:

No surprise , we need a KISS plan, Keep it Simple Stupid. Look at Mexico and some other countries. They are are actually OPEN, come on in and enjoy yourself. No checking for a vaccine, no COE, no ASQs, no PCR testing, no insurance requirements, no wondering what businesses will be open, etc... Just, you know, OPEN!

100 percent correct. I travel for work and was just in Mexico City, everything open, and people having fun and enjoying life. Same when I was in Cairo , and Tbilisi. Show you vaccination card, and off you go. Thailand has to understand, this virus is never going away, time to accept that and get out and live again. 

[it is what it is]

Only 51% of businesses are open right now in the tourism sector. 44% have closed temporarily and 5% for good.

 

i'd say that was a result.

[khunPer]

3 hours ago, cheapcanuck said:

Drive down main streets in chewang or lamai.

Samui is so much else than Chaweng's beach road, and the similar stretch in Lamai...????

[GrandPapillon]

13 hours ago, at15 said:

No surprise , we need a KISS plan, Keep it Simple Stupid. Look at Mexico and some other countries. They are are actually OPEN, come on in and enjoy yourself. No checking for a vaccine, no COE, no ASQs, no PCR testing, no insurance requirements, no wondering what businesses will be open, etc... Just, you know, OPEN!

Tulum Mexico is the new hot place to be for young travelers,

 

nice condos and houses for sale, cheap, and you can own land

[whaleboneman]

12 hours ago, Rampant Rabbit said:

why not 1  out  of 28

not equal

[whaleboneman]

4 hours ago, zzaa09 said:

......great military men?!? 

 

5555555

Haven't you seen all the decorations they wear on their chest?

[Stargeezr]

Saying the Thai tourism is in a Coma is far too positive.  With all the present restrictions and

rules, like banning all alcohol except restaurants, Thailand is headed for a dead high season, with only

tourists who are desperate, or people who own some sort of property coming to escape the cold Winter

months back in their northern countries.  There will be no large hoards coming to Thailand from anywhere.

  I am waiting until the end of November, before I even think of booking for any kind of trip anywhere.

  I agree with a lot of the posters who say that most people will vacation closer to their homes this year.

  Places that do not have a bunch of rules and restrictions, as taking 2 or 3 weeks vacation means

having no time for any kind of ASQ or any thing that interferes with having a fun vacation.

   Geezer

  

  

[Darksidedude]

No s##t Sherlock

[jacko45k]

12 hours ago, MrJ2U said:

Plus Mexico is a dump.

I did quite a few assignments in Mexico many years ago, I liked the place and the people a lot. It has gone down a long way since. 

[superal]

19 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

The most ridiculous thing is they could solve this tomorrow by allowing in all foreigners that are jabbed without daft regulations. You have to open up without hoops sometime, it may as well be now

You have not factored in the UK restrictions for both going to and returning from Thailand . OK I only speak about the UK but they are significant numbers and have real tourists who spend money unlike some of your cheap Charlie all inclusive window shopping Asean tourists .

[Chongalulu]

15 hours ago, zzaa09 said:

I believe the wisest path that they could take would be to slowly remove this made up dependency on tourism and begin to choose other diverse avenues for economic growth. 

They simply don’t have the skill set or the education 

[Tonypandy]

22 hours ago, mommysboy said:

Assuming Thailand reopens countrywide and gets some sort of high season, come February the case load will rise to 50,000 per day imo, and deaths will be 200 plus even with 80% vaccination. UK might wear that but not Thailand. And what sort of normality will it be anyway?

You can only get 50,000 per day if they continue to use the useless PCR testing which was not designed for covid. The continued use of these will of course give the figures you mentioned and keep big Pharma happy. 

[MrJ2U]

3 hours ago, jacko45k said:

I did quite a few assignments in Mexico many years ago, I liked the place and the people a lot. It has gone down a long way since. 

Your right its like everywhere.

 

I guess hanging out in front of the donkey show in Tijuana isn't a great way to grade an entire country.

[paul1804]

The problem is that the authorities including TAT do not see or understand the bigger picture, yes we need to control Covid which may mean lock downs & bans etc etc when applicable. I have a restaurant in Koh Samui and we have had an alcohol ban in restaurants for the last few months, we have very little Covid here and the majority of the population are double vaccinated. Yet the authorities still impose an alcohol ban in restaurants which is a senseless exercise, all it does is further erode the few sales we have and means we still have staff laid off. It is small things like this that compound on a bad situation yet the people in decision making positions either don't care, have no foresight or lack intelligence therefore should not hold the positions they do.

What is the difference between Samui and Phuket except we have lower covid infections by % and are much smaller in terms of population therefore easier to control & police! This is a typical reason why confidence is at an all time low yet will be completely overlooked because I believe they just don't care!

It really is not rocket science!!! 

[paul1804]

20 hours ago, hotchilli said:

That's just Samui, every province has different issues.

Yes I would agree that 50% are closed of which many have gone, if they don't start relaxing the rules now for this coming high season as people plan in advance there will be more that never reopen, current ban on alcohol in restaurants is just another contributing factor to Samui's demise!! 

[garyk]

On 9/30/2021 at 10:50 PM, at15 said:

No surprise , we need a KISS plan, Keep it Simple Stupid. Look at Mexico and some other countries. They are are actually OPEN, come on in and enjoy yourself. No checking for a vaccine, no COE, no ASQs, no PCR testing, no insurance requirements, no wondering what businesses will be open, etc... Just, you know, OPEN!

Yeah, I flew into Colombia a couple of months ago and the covid-19 was spiking. Now, it is has come down in huge numbers. I got 3 months flying in, and I decided to extend it for another 3 months. I got online and did the paperwork, submitted it on-line cost me 27 bucks, and I have 6 months here. Was approved and got my paperwork back on-line in less than 24 hours.

The Government said tourism was more important for the people and opened up.

I also fly in and out of Mexico. 

 

In Thailand big business is ruining the country. Insurance companies, Government interference. 

Big business has ruined Thailand, IMO.

It's just a pain in the neck for me as a retiree. 

Edited October 2, 2021 by garyk

[spidermike007]

17 hours ago, Jen65 said:

No, it's the government in the Coma !   This military government really does not like people enjoying themselves . They said it themselves - "Only business and tourism "  .  Entertainment is not on the agenda .   It was always their intention to "kill off" Pattaya and make it "family friendly"   .  Unfortunately Pattaya has lost its identity as fun city .    

I completely agree with you, and have been saying this for years now, way before Covid. This was simply a great opportunity for them to make sure these businesses shut down, and my guess is they are hoping few bars, massage parlors, nightclubs or go-go's re-open. It does appear to me to be deliberate sabotage of tourism, and the desire to do a "Dick Cheney type rebuilding" (think Iraq and New Orleans) in their own image. Whatever that means. 

 

When a morally bankrupt den of thieves, with no moral compass, thinks they are puritans, and are in a position of leadership, the nation is in big trouble. 

Edited October 2, 2021 by spidermike007

[AnotherFarang8]

Thailand and a lot of Asia, as we knew it, is not coming back in our lifetimes. Many asian unelected governments do not have to report on their achievements and do not need to get re-elected. Asia is not known for empathy, they could not care less about people’s sufferings. The only concern is to maintain a grip on power. They may be using hi tech products but their thinking is medieval. It takes years and years of focused educational and mental efforts for a human robot to rid himself of medieval mentality. Covid will be a perfect excuse to maintain the power grip for many years, not because of its danger but because of how much promotion it got in the world media. This is and will be exploited again and again. I am simplifying for short attention spans and forum format but not by much. Feel sorry for those who got stuck because of property, families, etc.

Edited October 2, 2021 by AnotherFarang8

[PEE TEE]

On 10/1/2021 at 11:41 AM, khunPer said:

Might be depending on where on the island you look, how do you get the impression that 33 percent have "gone to the wall"..?

have to agree with that its a ghost town will know when things get better when to beach road becomes one way again .after 21 years here its very sad to see how many shops and businesses have gone to wall 

[spidermike007]

15 hours ago, DoctorB said:

So following the implications of this highly speculative doom scenario what is the plan? Do you just allow the economic devastation to continue? It's clear from the rest of the world that lockdowns and social isolation are not going to make covid disappear anytime soon. So there has to be a course of action to restart economic activity as best as one can while trying to minimise deaths.

And you expect that from PDOT (Prayuth and his den of thieves) leadership? That is a stretch, at best. Maybe prior to Covid, and the extreme vaccination failure, the punitive and highly selective shutdowns, the stunning lack of meaningful assistance, and the sadistic attitude toward the most needy here, one could hope for competence and capability. Maybe. Now? Now they are outed for exactly who they are. 

[VBF]

14 hours ago, Stargrazer9889 said:

Saying the Thai tourism is in a Coma is far too positive.  With all the present restrictions and

rules, like banning all alcohol except restaurants, Thailand is headed for a dead high season, with only

tourists who are desperate, or people who own some sort of property coming to escape the cold Winter

months back in their northern countries.  There will be no large hoards coming to Thailand from anywhere.

  I am waiting until the end of November, before I even think of booking for any kind of trip anywhere.

  I agree with a lot of the posters who say that most people will vacation closer to their homes this year.

  Places that do not have a bunch of rules and restrictions, as taking 2 or 3 weeks vacation means

having no time for any kind of ASQ or any thing that interferes with having a fun vacation.

   Geezer  

Absolutely right!  The only problem with ".....most people will vacation closer to their homes this year....." is if you happen to be in UK / Europe and want sunshine. Having said that I'm (sadly) not tempted back to Thailand "with all the present restrictions and rules....." this coming winter.

[tomacht8]

Only 51% of businesses are open right now in the tourism sector. 44% have closed temporarily and 5% for good.

 

If they then have asked the 51% of the open businesses by what percentage there sales turnover has fallen, it would be more informative. The majority of the 51% are small family businesses that live in their houses anyway. Open yes, but no customers.

[ChaiyaTH]

6 hours ago, AnotherFarang8 said:

Thailand and a lot of Asia, as we knew it, is not coming back in our lifetimes. Many asian unelected governments do not have to report on their achievements and do not need to get re-elected. 

Well I have good hope on Duerte resigning and the former boxer running the show, maybe it finally becomes their time to shine. Also love the 35 year old retirement options in PH.

Edited October 2, 2021 by ChaiyaTH

[bkk6060]

18 hours ago, khunPer said:

Samui is so much else than Chaweng's beach road, and the similar stretch in Lamai...????

Like what?

A serious question I thought Samui was one of the most disappointing places I have been in Asia can find no reason to go back.

[QPRFC]

"They made their bed, now they have to lie in it"

 

When the going was 'relatively' good they started denying visa extensions to those of us who wanted to stay and make a life there, so a mass exodus occurred in 2019-20 and now Covid strikes a reciprocal blow to Thailand!