Thailand’s Tourism Authority aims to attract 10 million foreign tourists in 2022, with India as a leading focus

[shackleton]

Last week it was the Saudis coming to rescue the Tourism industry now its the Indians 

I don't think they really know who is coming wishful thinking all round ???? 

[Dialemco]

Really impressive numbers but forgot to mention how much Baht they will be contributing to the Thai economy. Inflationary pressures will increase air fares by at least 100% above precovid levels also unless there is a drastic devaluation of the Baht other competing  South East Asian Countries are far cheaper than Thailand. 

[DUNROAMIN]

TAT cup runneth over again with more BS.

[mtls2005]

So ~ 33,000 per day., every day starting today.

 

Are there that many airline seats available?

 

COVID still hanging on.

 

Ukraine dust-up.

 

Who remembers the Indian Wedding Tourism campaign?

 

Thailand once again named Best Wedding Destination by Travel + Leisure India

 

https://www.tatnews.org/2016/12/thailand-named-best-wedding-destination-travel-leisure-india/

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bo6b1LM5BZs

 

[Misterwhisper]

When will TAT finally recognize the fact that it is Thailand's onerous entry requirements that keep the bulk of potential visitors away?

 

TAT can pull as many fantasy figures from its hat as they want, but that will not do anything to help bring in foreign tourists in droves.

 

Just last week TAT projected "10 million visitors from the Middle East" in 2022 in a ridiculously enthusiastic announcement just because the country had re-established relations with Saudi-Arabia. Either you've got to be really detached from reality or have a child-like mind (or both) if you truly believe that the mere re-establishment of relations will now suddenly cause every other Saudi national to immediately jump on a plane to Bangkok.

 

Just get a grip on it, TAT, and stop annoying everybody with your endless recital of wishful arrival figures as if they were some kind of magical mantra.       

[harada]

Better take Borscht off the menu it looks like the Russkies are off of the quality tourist list today, dig out the curry menu and Indian flag. ????????

[Cake Monster]

3 hours ago, hotchilli said:

The west have other issues to deal with now, stopping Putin from going over the top.

Thailand seem only concerned with themselves and their damned tourism.

Thailand

Who would expect it to be any different

[rupert the bear]

kwality  im telling u sir from the heart of my bottom

[khunpa]

So I guess we can conclude that it is not only Putin who has gone mad…

 

 

 

 

[NanaSomchai]

3 hours ago, BayArea said:

Thailand's tourism was taking a hit before covid.  It isn't a cheap destination as it once was.

Essentially this.

 

Long gone are the days where one could pick a "regular" girl on Beach Rd. in the middle of the day for a 300THB ST session.

 

These days one must; walk into a bar, look at the available "bar girls", pick one, order yourself a drink (120THB), order a lady drink (150THB) just to get her to sit near you, at that point you're not even sure whether she "likes" you or whether she's "allowed" to go out with customers yet, so you've already shelled out 270THB just to get her "attention", then you play a few games or chat a bit to assess whether she is willing to maintain "eye contact" with you or whether she's already trying to get away from you as fast as she can, by then your drink and hers (scam non alcoholic orange juice) drinks are done, therefore you order a second round for yourself and for her (120THB) and (150THB) again to "break the ice".

 

After your second drink, the effects of alcohol loosens your guard a bit which how conveniently is the right time for her to introduce her "friend" who also works in the bar, friend that is immediately "begging" for a drink within the first 15 seconds, at that point you roughly compute in your head "okay, 120+150, 120+150, that's already uhhh... 540THB, what kind of difference does it make? 150THB more or less?" so you give in and pay her "friend" her own lady drink, because afterall you're already 540THB "in" at this point, should you decline there would be a loss of face for everyone taking the risk of walking out alone, so you add up another 150THB for her "friend" to the mix, you're sitting at a whopping 690THB, you still haven't seen the color of a nipple.

 

At that point you start trying to hint her that you'd like to take her back to your room, but she makes it clear that you would have to buy a third round before you can even get to the negotiation part, so you eventually cave in, here's the last and third round, 120THB and 150THB again, your bill is already at 960THB and you still haven't discussed whether you will be able to bring her "home" or not.

 

If all goes well, she will tell you the average ST price is around 1000THB while the long time (for the rest of the night) is usually 2500THB and that also there will be a 500THB bar fine fee for taking her out of the bar.

 

You attempt to negotiate a bit, get the LT fee reduced to 2000THB which she agrees to, because after all this is Asia and it would be somewhat insulting (plus that would make you look like a newbie or a simp) if you agreed to whatever fare she gave you right off the bat, so you get it down to 2000THB.

 

You pay your tab, including the bar fine, walk away with her, few steps later she asks you "oh, you have condoms and everything?", because guess what? she doesn't. So she goes to 7/11 and there again, you're footing the bill, condoms, gel, shower gel, maybe a little snack, candy bar, energy drinks, massage oil, whatever, there goes another 500THB.

 

Finally you'd think you'd be done? Guess what, you're not even close.

 

You try to get a cab, but it's still somewhat early in the evening, the cab looks at you and sees you have a girl of the night with you so suddenly the cab fare that was 30THB earlier in the day is all of a sudden 200THB plus for no apparent reasons, disgruntled you decline letting it go waiting for the next one, bad luck for you, the next cab is trying to extort you of 250THB... you decide again to let it go and wait for the next cab, next cab is going to be 200THB again, you have the feeling they all are going to be pulling the same trick on you, the girl starts to give you a dirty look probably thinking to herself "ki nok farang", after the third scamming taxi you cave in and shell out those last 200THB.

 

You get to your room, she rushes for the bathroom, gets undressed, tatoos everywhere on her back, pregnancy birthmarks left and right around her belly and her private parts, no breast, fake hair, fake nails, fake eyelashes, (Thailand; the Land of the Fake!) as she cleans up her face removing her makeup, you realise she's ugly as !@#$, the alcohol effect has worn off, the beer glasses effect is wearing off, her mood has changed, she's no longer the "fun, trippy happy, smiling, super overtly friendly girly" girl you had 30 minutes ago but then again you've got blue balls, you grab your smartphone, reach out for the calculator app and off you go; quick recap of the evening, so far:

 

- Your 1st drink. 120.

- Her 1st lady drink. 150.

- Your 2nd drink: 120.

- Her 2nd drink: 150.

- Her "friend" lady drink: 150.

- Your 3rd drink: 120.

- Her third drink: 150.

- The barfine: 500.

- The long time fees: 2000.

- The 7/11 shopping spree: 500.

- The taxi: 200.

 

Total of the evening: 4160 THB and yet, she doesn't even like you and you don't even like her anymore.

 

But there you are, you've got blue balls, you've already paid for it all so... there you go!

 

After a short 10 minutes session (because let's face it, we're not all bodybuilders athletes) you turn to your side of the bed and you fall asleep telling yourself "yeah sure, Thailand is cheap, what a bargain that was! NOT.", it is now past 3AM but you're telling yourself, I'll go for another extra round in a few hours because... !@#$ it afterall, it cost me a whopping 4160 THB might as well get my money worth. 5AM you wake up again and want to go for a second round, 50/50 are the chances she says no, you insist and go in for a second round, she'll do the bare minimum, you'll be shagging a starfish, you'll last a whopping 5 minutes, it'll be a very mechanical

experience at best, 6AM sun rises you throw her out, you can tell by the looks on her face, even though she's the one departing your hotel room, she's the one throwing you out.

 

She slams the door, you grab your wallet and your smartphone again, you go recounting your bank notes and ask yourself while scratching your head, "maaaaan? have I really spent 4160THB on that cheap ugly *depleted word*???", it's 6AM you're now alone in your hotel room, after a quick glance across the room to make sure she hasn't left with any your valuable belongings (iPad, laptop, passport, whatever of value you may have) you notice in the distance what appears to be the corpse of a cockroach, you mutter "yeah 4 stars hotel my a$$", crawl back to bed (because after all it's 6AM there's nothing else to do) and force yourself into sleep because hey, the hotel's checkout is at 11:00, so you have less than 5 hours left worth of sleep worth of your money, the room was another 500THB (so 4160THB+500 THB) and of course you'll miss out on the disgusting "free breakfast". At this point you tell yourself:

 

Who cares?

 

Not only Thailand ain't cheap no more, but also it is not even a good value anymore.

 

Edit: This was meant to be a funny/humorous/satire post, yet... it reeks of truth.

Edited March 5, 2022 by NanaSomchai

[Road Warrior]

again wishful thoughts  from the think tank 

[farangnomore]

Do Indians know how much Thais despise them?

 

[hidbehindthesofa]

2 hours ago, geisha said:

All the 7/11s are closed so they won’t come.

All the Indian restaurants are closed too - so we are back to the ''chicken and egg'' . . .

[Blumpie]

More high quality tourists?  The definition of "high quality" appears to be obscured.

[Blumpie]

45 minutes ago, farangnomore said:

Do Indians know how much Thais despise them?

 

Well, I can only ask but a few questions:

Is it the poor personal hygiene?

Is it the strange odour that comes from eating their ethnic foods?

Is it the pushy nature?  

Is it the lack of regular laundering of clothes?

 

I just don't know if I missed something.

Obviously there are differences in the stereotype that we all know ( and know!) but by and large I feel that my list is quite relevant wouldn't you all say?

[spidermike007]

Are you kidding? With the one nite quarantine still in place, they would have to consider themselves fortunate to attract 75,000 tourists per month. Once it is scrapped, they might get up to 150,000 a month for the 1st year or two. Possibly as many as 5 million a year, five years from now, if, and only if they make some of the sacrifices that they should have made years ago, like getting rid of the luxury and wine taxes. Will that ever happen? Doubtful. And one has to ask, what are the tourisms coming back to? A DIMINISHED version of Thailand, for sure.

 

So, expect no more than 5 million tourists a year in our lifetime. Everything has changed, and Thailand has been forgotten by most. 

 

 

Edited March 5, 2022 by spidermike007

[RafPinto]

And on 01st of January 2023, it was all a mistake, a typo.
Should have said 1,000.000 tourists, including domestic trips

[RafPinto]

Just now, spidermike007 said:

Are you kidding? With the one nite quarantine still in place, they would have to consider themselves fortunate to attract 75,000 tourists per month. Once it is scrapped, they might get up to 150,000 a month for the 1st year or two. Possibly as many as 5 million a year, five years from now, if, and only if they make some of the sacrifices that they should have made years ago, like getting rid of the luxury and wine taxes. Will that ever happen? Doubtful. So, expect no more than 5 million tourists a year in our lifetime. Everything has changed, and Thailand has been forgotten by most. 

Luxury wine taxes????

Was missing this.

[RafPinto]

54 minutes ago, farangnomore said:

Do Indians know how much Thais despise them?

 

I constantly hear that Thai women don't like black or indian men but see them often running around with those men.

Probably no other choice.

[spidermike007]

7 minutes ago, RafPinto said:

Luxury wine taxes????

Was missing this.

Well, you play it down and like to make fun of this, but I know many wealthy people who visited Thailand and due to having to pay ridiculous sums for a great bottle of wine, they said they would never even consider returning. Many will not come due to this. And this suppresses what could be a very dynamic and profitable industry here. 

[bert bloggs]

31 minutes ago, Blumpie said:

Well, I can only ask but a few questions:

Is it the poor personal hygiene?

Is it the strange odour that comes from eating their ethnic foods?

Is it the pushy nature?  

Is it the lack of regular laundering of clothes?

 

I just don't know if I missed something.

Obviously there are differences in the stereotype that we all know ( and know!) but by and large I feel that my list is quite relevant wouldn't you all say?

Also when he takes a girl back to his room 3 friends are waiting to join in,  well after they have finished their one bottle of chang anyway.????

[Willy Wombat]

Most

of the civilised world is dropping mask wearing.

 

Going to a hot and sweaty country like Thailand and be told to wear a mask all day doesn’t sound like a fun and relaxing holiday to me.

[KhunLA]

So they expect oct / nov / dec 2022 to break all previous arrival record to even get close to 10m.  As this half of the dismal high season numbers is just about over.  Now heading into brutal hot, and soon rainy season.

 

Is ganga smoking already legal ... that's got to be some good sh!t.

Edited March 5, 2022 by KhunLA

[NoshowJones]

42 minutes ago, bert bloggs said:

Also when he takes a girl back to his room 3 friends are waiting to join in,  well after they have finished their one bottle of chang anyway.????

"after they have finished their one bottle of chang anyway." 

Bet they didn't forget their straws. ????

[clivebaxter]

59 minutes ago, bert bloggs said:

Also when he takes a girl back to his room 3 friends are waiting to join in,  well after they have finished their one bottle of chang anyway.????

That is not a myth, a bar girl from tilac bar told me this happened to her 20 years ago

[sawadee1947]

11 hours ago, webfact said:

tourists from Vietnam and Cambodia.

???????????? who the hell will come from those countries to LOS??? Only blind and stupid ones.

[bert bloggs]

1 hour ago, clivebaxter said:

That is not a myth, a bar girl from tilac bar told me this happened to her 20 years ago

I know its true

[sambum]

"The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) aims to attract 10 million foreign tourists, mostly from ASEAN countries, in 2022 to revive global and domestic tourism industries."

 

So THAT"S why their pie in the sky forecasts are so over the top - they aren't satisfied with unrealistic forecasts for the Thai market, they are now saying that they are going to revive the global market! ????

 

Good luck with that! (Originally I was just going to say "Yawn!" to the "TAT - 10 million......." but I see they have now set their sights further afield by declaring themselves responsible for World tourism!)

[Rohe60]

3 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Well, you play it down and like to make fun of this, but I know many wealthy people who visited Thailand and due to having to pay ridiculous sums for a great bottle of wine, they said they would never even consider returning. Many will not come due to this. And this suppresses what could be a very dynamic and profitable industry here. 

You're right.
And despite the fact that I'm considering myself not as wealthy, I know that a good (!) glass of wine is an essential part of any nice dinner.
I myself did quit drinking wine in Thailand after the last tax hike. For that reason I stopped visiting up-market restaurants when on vacation in Thailand. A fine five course dinner with beer? No way!

Edited March 5, 2022 by Rohe60

[Millcx]

9 hours ago, hotchilli said:

The west have other issues to deal with now, stopping Putin from going over the top.

Thailand seem only concerned with themselves and their damned tourism.

That’s why their support for Russia against Ukraine will haunt them