4 hours ago, alyx said:

You seem to forget, my dear, that we own our jets. I might add that this is a smart move allowing us more parking spaces

That's right more room for the millionaires to come and buy property and have a personal hangar...just like the Thais believe they will entice....Nice...lol

3 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

The Thailand big-wigs have been predicting 100,000+ this year after 1st November and then 14,000,000 tourists next year.

 

Now my question is if (yes if) 100,000 come at the end of this year, ignoring the airline issues, at what point is Thailand going to completely abandon its entry requirements to make the tourists come and the airlines start arriving as before.

 

Way I see it is that to hit 14 million they are going to have to have all the airlines flying into Thailand by end of March and entry requirements nearly all gone. As getting near 14,000,000 if only 100,000-200,000 come in the first Q next year, is not possible. Carrying on with the entry requirements next year will lead to less than 500,000 - and Thailand cannot afford that in 2022.

 

Drop the daft entry requirements and the airlines will start coming - airlines it appears have more grip on reality than the TAT.

 

end of march? welcome to the smoke

3 hours ago, NanaSomchai said:

 

3 hours ago, smedly said:

The puritan Prayuth and his merry bunch of CCSA tea sippers are demolishing what is left of the Thai tourist industry brick by brick - why can they not see it

Oh trust me my friend, they see it.

 

They definitely see it, but they couldn't care less as they are not the average Somchai, they are not affected by it by any means.

 

They certainly haven’t the foresight to consider the later consequences . A reasonably comfortable population hasn’t the same incentive for rebellion as an impoverished one. What’s that saying - "you’re only two meals away from rebellion ". The destruction of the huge tourist industry they’re orchestrating is accelerating that potential scenario. Thais do not have the skills nor education to embrace more sophisticated technology and the relatively low skilled tourist industry was ideal for them. 
let’s hope this proves to be the rope the junta hangs itself with but it will be a bumpy ride ! 

.

 

Potential travelers are confused. Most businesses have a sign on their door that has two sides......

 

Thailand's sign only has one side, and it says: Open/Closed.  

I've booked to fly LHR-BKK on 2nd Feb with Qatar, returning to UK at end of June. I have personal matters to attend to and have been outside since Feb 2020 and am not able/willing to waste another year. However, I certainly wouldn't be in any rush to return so if I was on a regular 2 or 3 week holiday...which is the demographic the Thais need.

 

I'm travelling in business cabin and the seat selector indicated plenty of capacity both ways. Not empty but not that many seats taken as of now. Qatar have 3 daily flights between Doha and Bangkok so got to wonder if they will scrap one or two of those if sales aren't good enough.  

 

In terms of flight options, there are a reasonable number of offerings but not what would usually be expected. EVA Air (my preferred choice due to flying direct and having accrued mileage), do not have anything except weekly flights pencilled between LHR-BKK as of now. BA don't come up on the list either. Thai Airways do but no thanks. 

 In 2022 only one planeload of tourists will land in Thailand but they’ll all be multi billionaires.

1 minute ago, Stoker58 said:

 In 2022 only one planeload of tourists will land in Thailand but they’ll all be multi billionaires.

Judging by the TAT projected amount they will spend in total presumably with 2 cases full of money each. 

5 hours ago, fusion58 said:

Wait a minute…

 

If they do this, then who will transport the million wealthy foreigners Thailand is expecting any day now? ????

Presumably that is where all the charter flights to Buriram Airport come into the plan?

5 hours ago, webfact said:

He disclosed that the lowest point for the aviation industry in Thailand was from July to September, this year, after the Thai government suspended all regular flights as a precautionary measure to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, during which average daily arrivals at the six international airports was only 50 passengers

Isn't that when Phipats master plan in Phuket was up and running?

Build it and they will come...

keep it closed and they won't.

4 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

The Thailand big-wigs have been predicting 100,000+ this year after 1st November and then 14,000,000 tourists next year.

 

Now my question is if (yes if) 100,000 come at the end of this year, ignoring the airline issues, at what point is Thailand going to completely abandon its entry requirements to make the tourists come and the airlines start arriving as before.

 

Way I see it is that to hit 14 million they are going to have to have all the airlines flying into Thailand by end of March and entry requirements nearly all gone. As getting near 14,000,000 if only 100,000-200,000 come in the first Q next year, is not possible. Carrying on with the entry requirements next year will lead to less than 500,000 - and Thailand cannot afford that in 2022.

 

Drop the daft entry requirements and the airlines will start coming - airlines it appears have more grip on reality than the TAT.

 

Yes,yes,yes!

 

Mind you my Chihuahuas, Snowball and Cookie, have more grip on reality than TAT!

Hmmm..I will sit it out until Feb until I do a return visit After Christmas to see my family and friends. I think a lot of countries will have to fine tune their procedures to avoid massive cues.

Similarly airlines need to open up direct routes…only then will I travel.

Somehow i think coming in and out of Thailand might be the least of my problems.

5 hours ago, Shuya said:

With the current 'no-quaratine' rules no wonder only a few peoole will come

No bars...no booze...no entertainment. 

Why would anyone want to come to Thailand for a holiday?

8 minutes ago, wombat said:

No bars...no booze...no entertainment. 

Why would anyone want to come to Thailand for a holiday?

Because maybe they are not an alcoholic and/or sex addict.  There is a lot more to Thailand than bars and broads.  Even just in Pattaya.  I am sure that will fall on deaf ears to the whiner crowd around here.

5 hours ago, fusion58 said:

Wait a minute…

 

If they do this, then who will transport the million wealthy foreigners Thailand is expecting any day now? ????

Private plane of course, didn't you read that in the fine-print outlining the  conditions of visa / entry etc.? 

4 hours ago, smedly said:

well some head of TAT said 2 weeks ago - bars are closed forever we don't want them - that was probably one of the stupidest statements I have ever heard come from a Thai official ever and that takes some doing

I saw that comment from some youngish looking guy with a big smile on his face, I cannot imagine anyone I know coming to Thailand if they couldn’t have a drink.

Thinking back over the years I don’t recall any comment from TAT that had any connection to reality.

19 minutes ago, shdmn said:

Because maybe they are not an alcoholic and/or sex addict.  There is a lot more to Thailand than bars and broads.  Even just in Pattaya.  I am sure that will fall on deaf ears to the whiner crowd around here.

You don’t have to be an alcoholic to enjoy a drink.

I like an occasional beer and drink wine with dinner.

However I wouldn’t visit a country where that is barred and fortunately where that is the case, I wouldn’t want to visit anyway.

6 hours ago, fusion58 said:

You mean no one wants to deal with the constantly moving goal posts and jump through the interminable hoops required to enter Thailand?

 

Gee, who could’ve predicted that?

It's the same around the world...not unique to Thailand.

I know 3 guys from my old home town who come to Pattaya for " the fun" as nothing is open they are not going to come even if there is no quarantine ,my daughter snd family will come just to see us,but there is nothing to do , so why would most people bother to come to Thailand?

I was going to post about a new Europe Phuket flight that has just started but obviously this is the wrong thread as it seems to be about big pharma and alcohol.

3 minutes ago, bert bloggs said:

...so why would most people bother to come to Thailand?

That's a good question, I wonder the same thing myself.  It's a shadow of its former self for those just seeking two weeks of entertainment.  It's going to be a while for all the activities and venues to start up again.  I mean if you want a deserted beach then its still there, but for those seeking 'fun' its going to be a while.

5 hours ago, smedly said:

The puritan Prayuth and his merry bunch of CCSA tea sippers are demolishing what is left of the Thai tourist industry brick by brick - why can they not see it 

They can see it it.

It is what they want.

Thailand for the (rich) Thais.

(Lovely turn of phrase by the way.)

1 hour ago, hotchilli said:

Build it and they will come...

keep it closed and they won't.

They have to try something.  

Believe it or not the Thai government is trying to figure this out day by day and given the um, uh, interesting way that they do things.... D :  uh....  it's a lot more weird and doesn't make sense.  (did that sound right?)

Anyways....

They are trying but it won't work.  And their scheme of buying Thai insurance only?  Well, they can go straight to .... 

6 hours ago, Shuya said:

With the current 'no-quaratine' rules no wonder only a few peoole will come

Surely nobody will ever want to go to Singapore then...

 

9 minutes ago, Maha Sarakham said:

That's a good question, I wonder the same thing myself.  It's a shadow of its former self for those just seeking two weeks of entertainment.  It's going to be a while for all the activities and venues to start up again.  I mean if you want a deserted beach then its still there, but for those seeing 'fun' its going to be a while.

There does appear to be a few who would like to stroll on deserted beaches, revelling in their virtue at having vanquished the temptations of the demon drink and the evil flesh ( at this point I pause for a few deep breaths and to mop my brow!)

 

Must be a <deleted> having to wander around in this climate in black clothes, white collars and big tall hats with a buckle on!

"AOT operates Suvarnabhumi, Don Muaeng, Phuket, Hat Yai, Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai’s Mae Fah Luang international airports. ... He disclosed that the lowest point for the aviation industry in Thailand was from July to September, this year, after the Thai government suspended all regular flights as a precautionary measure to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, during which average daily arrivals at the six international airports was only 50 passengers."

 

from those airports only BKK and  HKT had international traffic, the rest had not any at all.

Closing domestic routes in the summer had no any impact on international routes.

He is confused. 

International traffic is growing gradually as travel restrictions are systematically lowered in thailand and elsewhere.

Those 20% remaining slots are more than enough for the current level.

Those slots can be reinstated at any time, airlines don't have to wait till April.

 

One of the thai banks projected 180k tourists in November-December. But now with all delays and uncertainty they would have to adjust.

TAT figures were always taken from the moon.

Even if only some 100k per month do came in 2022 it will be good enough.

And it's not about mass tourism any more, not about bars, alcohol, entertainment, but families visiting each other after 2 years separation, businessmen/traders doing their usual jobs (including conferences, exhibitions, shows), international workers and students travelling in all directions.

Add to it medical tourism, mainly from the Middle East, but also from neighbouring countries coming for long delayed treatments and operations

3 hours ago, sirineou said:

Given the covid situation, and the economic damage it is causing , except for the medical insurance that will deter many from coming, I think that what they proposing for re-opening the country to tourism is as good as it could be under the circumstances.

Why does it make sense to treat tourists who have been vaccined and tested COVID free before a flight filled with persons of similar credentials, as being more of a danger than the general Thai population?

 

If Thailand was COVID free it might make sense, but at this point in time a Thai is far more likely to catch COVID from another Thai than from a vaccined and tested tourist.

 

Stop needlessly decimating the tourist industry. 

1 hour ago, XJPSX said:

Hmmm..I will sit it out until Feb until I do a return visit After Christmas to see my family and friends. I think a lot of countries will have to fine tune their procedures to avoid massive cues.

Similarly airlines need to open up direct routes…only then will I travel.

Somehow i think coming in and out of Thailand might be the least of my problems.

Come on - what kind of a game are you playing?

12 minutes ago, tomazbodner said:

Surely nobody will ever want to go to Singapore then.

I definitely prefer Singapore's rules over Thailand's.

4 hours ago, Jerno said:

They want quality tourists who all stay at 5 star hotels and don't drink at bars.  Its simple (mindedness).

This resonates not just Thailand thinking... .....Head of Air New Zealand made similar comments regarding future tourism for New Zealand earlier this year...lets not waste the perfect opportunity given by covid to be more discerning about whom comes... we want only the very wealthy.... that way we can meet our climate change goals and targets and and have fewer flights but bringing big spenders...we don't want the back packers or cheap tourists lowering the standard of New Zealand as he sat in his glass tower office with his 6 figure salary and perks....and Government in NZ gave some backing to this....