Are they doing it deliberately?

[2long]

It's no secret that Thailand is (in)famous for sleazy nightlife and backpacking. Although our stinky government will never publicly admit that the revenue from this kind of tourism has held the country together for decades, they would most likely be keen to 'clean the image of Thailand up.'

Ok, so they're not clever enough to realise that in the age of social media Thailand has become a laughing stock for political reasons, but that topic's for another day.

The more cynical among us might guess that Pinocchio and his cronies are seeing Covid as the perfect opportunity for a reset. By dragging out bar closures and travel restrictions so that certain kinds of nightlife & accommodation close down forever, and the 'less-desirable tourists' realise it's just not worth coming. 

In their blinkered and short-sighted vision, they might think that it's good for the country, and some might agree. 

But do we think that they're deliberately trying to purge the country of certain attractive aspects during Covid, or is it just a practical coincidence?

[HashBrownHarry]

6 minutes ago, 2long said:

Although our stinky government

They are not my government.

 

Are you Thai?

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

The nightlife's not going away. It's already coming back. Many Pattaya bars and agogos have become "restaurants". One of the Nana bars I frequented long ago, an obvious girly bar, is now a sports bar. The ladies are still available for the taking, it's just not out on display like it was before.

 

Typical Thailand. A slight image readjustment. Same as when a new school director comes in, and slaps on some new paint here and there, maybe a new front gate. Yet what happens in the classrooms is totally the same. Same same but different.

[JonnyF]

Deliberate IMO.

 

A lot of these less desirable bar areas (e.g. Soi 6 Pattaya) are not only an ebarrassment to the fake puritans in power, they are also on prime real estate.

 

So if they can drive them out they get to pretend they have cleaned up the image of Thailand (they won't have) and their cronies/relatives can pick up some cheap real estate for another mall, theme park, condo etc. Two birds, one stone.

 

It's a bad idea, because 'quality' tourists won't suddenly want to come just because the bars are gone. There will still be the broken pavements, hanging wires, soi dogs, taxi thugs, poor air quality, corrupt cops, flooding, sewage etc. so they will drive out the sex tourists and not much will replace them. Fortunately for them, they have such phenomenal wealth that the fate of the average Thai doesn't really matter to them as long as they get even richer.

[internationalism]

Nothing wrong with backpacking, has nothing to do with sleaze. 
It was hippies, backpackers, gap year travellers which paved way for a mass tourism in thailand. 
 

there is not a deliberate action from the government to hamper tourism. 
They are wisely running up phuket sandbox and its easy to enter since july

[Mr Meeseeks]

The $20 billion plan for the EEC that is enshrined in the Thai Constitution, written by a self-appointed military government after a coup should give you some indication of the way Thailand is headed. 

[Gsxrnz]

14 minutes ago, CrunchWrapSupreme said:

The nightlife's not going away. It's already coming back. Many Pattaya bars and agogos have become "restaurants". One of the Nana bars I frequented long ago, an obvious girly bar, is now a sports bar. The ladies are still available for the taking, it's just not out on display like it was before.

 

Typical Thailand. A slight image readjustment. Same as when a new school director comes in, and slaps on some new paint here and there, maybe a new front gate. Yet what happens in the classrooms is totally the same. Same same but different.

Just curious - which gogo bars have become gogo/restaurants and which ones are or have been open?

[SymS]

26 minutes ago, HashBrownHarry said:

They are not my government.

 

Are you Thai?

Even I'm not Thai, I'd still consider them my government since Thailand is the only country where I pay taxes.
OK, that's not technically true, as I also pay about $2 to $3 in US taxes per month even though I'm not an American, I have no assets there, and last and only time I was there was in 2006 for one week... But I'm going on a tangent here!

[HashBrownHarry]

6 minutes ago, SymS said:

Even I'm not Thai, I'd still consider them my government

Very unfortunate for you.

[thaibeachlovers]

16 hours ago, 2long said:

It's no secret that Thailand is (in)famous for sleazy nightlife

In who's opinion is it "sleazy"? That's the sort of comment I expect from a wowser.

For actual "sleaze" one would have to go to Soho in London, IMO.

[BritManToo]

23 hours ago, 2long said:

But do we think that they're deliberately trying to purge the country of certain attractive aspects during Covid, or is it just a practical coincidence?

My misses says the general is a Muslim and his ultimate plan is prohibition.

Improbable, but these are strange times.

Edited January 6, 2022 by BritManToo
typo

[JustAnotherHun]

14 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

My misses says the general is a Muslim and his ultimate plan is prohibition.

Improbable, but thee are strange times.

Your misses is wrong. The moron before him was Muslim, chan-o cha ain't

[Chomper Higgot]

Former PM Chuan Leekpai was asked on British TV about the ‘flesh trade’ in Thailand.

 

He responded by first calling an aid onto the stage who handed the PM a large envelope, Leekpai emptied its contents onto the table and explained these were ‘calling cards’ collected by his staff from phone boxes in the vicinity of his London hotel. 
 

Point 1. It’s a UK problem too.

 

He then explained that the ‘flesh trade’ in Thailand will shrink and eventually become inaccessible to ‘sex tourists’ as Thailand’s economy grows.

 

It’s generally a slow process but it is well underway and occasionally rapidly reduces ‘participation’, the rise of the Bhat against Sterling being an example with the subsequent departure of Brits. (Cast your mind back to the angst filled discussions on the exchange rate as guys packed up and went home).

 

As noted above, the development of higher earning businesses is also pushing property prices up, prime locations are being developed and the bars are being pushed further out, dispersed rather than concentrated in one area.

 

Point 2. The contribution of the ‘nightary entertainment sector’ to the Thai economy, and perhaps more importantly, to the profits of real estate owners, is greatly over estimated.

 

These businesses will always exist, but they’re progressively becoming more dispersed and more expensive.

 

The ‘glory days’ are long gone.

[thaibeachlovers]

21 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

He responded by first calling an aid onto the stage who handed the PM a large envelope, Leekpai emptied its contents onto the table and explained these were ‘calling cards’ collected by his staff from phone boxes in the vicinity of his London hotel. 

I remember them well. Couldn't use a public phone without seeing dozens of cards advertising prostitutes stuck on the glass. I always assumed they were scams as some of the photos were obviously out of magazines like Playboy.

[thaibeachlovers]

21 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

The ‘glory days’ are long gone.

Not gone, but will be different as the girls go "on line" rather than "on stage".

[shdmn]

Let's dispell a few myths.

 

1) The worlds oldest profession is not going away.

2) Thailand does NOT rely on foreigners coming for cheap sex and hasn't for many years.

3) The Thai sex trade that caters to locals dwarfs the foreign oriented sex trade.

Edited January 6, 2022 by shdmn