On Thailand’s Koh Samui, chain hotels look beyond Chinese tourists for a post-pandemic rebound

[webfact]

A beach on the Thai island of Samui. Photo: Shutterstock

 

Jitsiree Thongnoi in Samui

 

● On the Thai island of Samui, high-end hotel chains have been expanding to take advantage of pent-up travel demand as the country further eases entry rules

 

● Thailand’s government is aiming for 10 million international visitors this year, but high-value Chinese tourists are unlikely to be among them for a while yet

 

So many tourists used to visit Chaweng beach on the Thai island of Samui before the pandemic that “you could not find the seats or the sand”, according to hotelier Patrick Moukarzel.

 

For now there’s plenty of space, but the island’s tourism industry is not banking on that lasting much longer after Thailand further relaxed entry rules for vaccinated foreigners this month.

 

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Hotels like the Centara Reserve Samui, where Moukarzel is general manager, are gearing up to take advantage of the pent-up demand – even though he estimates that visitor numbers to the island where the six-star resort is located are currently only “15 per cent of what they used to be”.

 

Some bars and shops remain closed on Samui, but as international visitors begin to trickle in, other businesses and people who made their living from tourism before the pandemic have started to return, hoping to cash in on the rebound.

 

Full story: https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3173245/thailands-koh-samui-chain-hotels-look-beyond-chinese-tourists

 

-- © Copyright South China Morning Post 2022-04-07

 

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[Will B Good]

4 minutes ago, webfact said:

but high-value Chinese tourists are unlikely to be among them for a while yet

...or Russians...or Ukrainians.....or Indians for that matter.......I wonder? Who does that leave.....no! Surely not......not the poor, poverty stricken, penny pinching scum from the US and Europe??

[wasabi]

Get rid of the Bangkok Airways flight monopoly and their inflated prices and more will come from in-country.

[Tropicalevo]

1 hour ago, wasabi said:

Get rid of the Bangkok Airways flight monopoly and their inflated prices and more will come from in-country.

There is no flight monopoly.

Pre Covid, about half a dozen different airlines were flying direct to Samui.

This has been the case on and off for about 15 years.

Because of Covid and other restrictions, those airlines are currently not flying until demand increases.

[Captain Monday]

1 hour ago, Will B Good said:

...or Russians...or Ukrainians.....or Indians for that matter.......I wonder? Who does that leave.....no! Surely not......not the poor, poverty stricken, penny pinching scum from the US and Europe??

Why? Fly to Thailand to pay New York prices for short taxi rides, jet-ski thugs, overpriced meal of farmed seafood displayed in the traffic soot of chaweng like some exotic delicacy?  Maybe they would like to have a beer on a sun bed at 3PM , or maybe even a cigarette?  Once driven away a mature market cohort cant be so easily recovered.

[RichardColeman]

3 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand’s government is aiming for 10 million international visitors this year, but high-value Chinese tourists are unlikely to be among them for a while yet

1. Not a chance 3 million best without entry nonsense stopped 100%., relaxed 5-6 million at best

2. A while ? They were locking up 26 million people yesterday in another stupid and fruitless Chinese lockdown, at that rate 'a while' will be about 10 years from now.

[hotchilli]

4 hours ago, webfact said:

So many tourists used to visit Chaweng beach on the Thai island of Samui before the pandemic that “you could not find the seats or the sand”, according to hotelier Patrick Moukarzel.

Sounded idyllic NOT.

Great time to go now before they get back to mass tourism and spoil the paradise again.

[hotchilli]

4 hours ago, Will B Good said:

...or Russians...or Ukrainians.....or Indians for that matter.......I wonder? Who does that leave.....no! Surely not......not the poor, poverty stricken, penny pinching scum from the US and Europe??

The penny wise back-packers will return, still sporting dreadlocks.

[khunPer]

5 hours ago, wasabi said:

Get rid of the Bangkok Airways flight monopoly and their inflated prices and more will come from in-country.

Those staying in 5 star and 6 star hotels are not bothered by the domestic airfare price due to a privately funded airport with no financial government support needs to charge higher service fees; and any airline can by the way fly to Samui, there are several other airlines operating to/from the airport.

 

I you wish to travel low fare to Samui - as in the good old happy hippie days - the night train and ferry lines are still operating; and it's still cheap. Alternatively you can fly budget-price to the government funded airport in Surat Thani and commute from there...