Incoming tourism growth slows amid visas, airfares and attacks on Chinese nationals which have caused jitters

[brucegoniners]

"Tourism dips"?

 

I'm not so sure.

 

In Pattaya it isn't dipping at all. It's supposedly low season and traffic is crazy. A 6 minute drive to the beach takes 25.

[chrisbangkok]

46 minutes ago, Skeptic7 said:

Awww such a shame...NOT❗This place deserves every bit of bad it gets and only has itself to blame. Actually deserves much more than it gets, but still somehow skating by...riding the long gone reputation of yesteryears. Badly tarnished now and in dire need of a spit shine. Toxic air, hazardous death trap drivers and driving conditions, scams, regular coups, endless junta government, tourist area raids, overpricing, dual pricing and gouging, ludicrous alcohol hours...and the ???? list goes on and on. 

Som nam na. 

Enjoying life there I guess then ?

[nigelforbes]

20 minutes ago, ChipButty said:

It didnt last year low season was good, Best ever 

That was covid bounce, pent up demand. Since then we've had the massive crackdown on Chinese buying visa's and the indictment of large numbers of Immi officers etc etc

[sammieuk1]

Putting out the red carpet for the reds the free world says go somewhere red free by the look of it ????

[crazykopite]

Come visit Thailand where you will be greeted and invited to take a pee test at your own expense during a night out in downtown Pattaya .

[Gknrd]

Don't worry next week the numbers will be at record levels..

[gearbox]

51 minutes ago, Skeptic7 said:

Awww such a shame...NOT❗This place deserves every bit of bad it gets and only has itself to blame. Actually deserves much more than it gets, but still somehow skating by...riding the long gone reputation of yesteryears. Badly tarnished now and in dire need of a spit shine. Toxic air, hazardous death trap drivers and driving conditions, scams, regular coups, endless junta government, tourist area raids, overpricing, dual pricing and gouging, ludicrous alcohol hours...and the ???? list goes on and on. 

Som nam na. 

I wonder how this forum exists at all, surely everyone would have left this terrible place already ????

[moe666]

2 hours ago, madmitch said:

After the pandemic have they forgotten the annual event known as low season?

It does seem they always forget about that sticker Low season who wants to be out walking about in 40c or higher temp. Having said that just thru Pai yesterday alot of young farangs around riding their scooters about. 

The one thing the Chinese have to remember is that the crime in Thailand is usually Chinese on Chinese violence, kidnapping and hostage taking. Clean your selves up before taking it out on Thailand.

[Chongalulu]

1 hour ago, Dukeleto said:

I for one am amazed that anyone came at all considering the air-piracy being employed by airlines and the limited amount of flights. They are making everyone pay for their “losses” after taking in all the covid payouts. It’s a wonder anyone is bothering getting on a flight…I certainly am not until they return to normal.

So you’d run a business whereby catastrophic events which caused significant losses should not be offset by charging prices that reflect the current position reflecting the economic basics of supply and demand ? Well,you’d run a business…but not for long. ????‍♂️ 

[Chongalulu]

22 minutes ago, crazykopite said:

Come visit Thailand where you will be greeted and invited to take a pee test at your own expense during a night out in downtown Pattaya .

That’s ok ,they can scrape it off the wall I’ve just used on the way home! 

[gearbox]

2 hours ago, Millcx said:

Oh Cmon .. Is it any wonder … A month of more tourist and the hands of greed claws at the fabric of Tourism .. They have no understanding that to rein in the greed will multiply income in more ways than one … But the continuation of price increases and double price listing will drag it down

This. In the end travel is discretionary spending, up the prices and the people will stop coming. The airfares are between 30-100% higher than pre-covid, the hotel prices too. Ferries and boat transfers the same. People don't have infinite supply of money, they are struggling enough with the inflation back home.

[ThaiFelix]

Well I am totally surprised about this dip especially after being voted Number One Destination 2023 by the Little Rock Knitting Club.

[nigelforbes]

14 minutes ago, gearbox said:

This. In the end travel is discretionary spending, up the prices and the people will stop coming. The airfares are between 30-100% higher than pre-covid, the hotel prices too. Ferries and boat transfers the same. People don't have infinite supply of money, they are struggling enough with the inflation back home.

Tourism here in Thailand is 75% dependent on regional tourists, not the people back home. Prices here are lower than in China or Malaysia which is why it's an attractive destination for them.

[Skeptic7]

30 minutes ago, atpeace said:

In this yesteryear you mentioned there wasn't "Toxic air, hazardous death trap drivers and driving conditions, scams, regular coups, endless junta government, tourist area raids, overpricing, dual pricing and gouging, ludicrous alcohol hours".  

 

IMO most the above conditions have improved and some drastically but I do miss the pre 2000's.  The country was an adventure and now it is starting to resemble the west more and more.  Tourism now, even its reduced level, is bringing multiples of what it did 20 years ago.  No going back but sure wish it was an option.

Sure, it was all those things and more...and why I/we adored it. The big diff back then was they didn't whine & complain and weren't SO hypocritical and BS and try to hide & sugar coat everything. It was what it was, everyone knew it and were happy...smile, accept and "mai pen rai". It still is what it was, but now they try to pretend it's everything it's not, while becoming more authoritarian, repressive and silly. 

 

Have to admit...I don't see even 1 improvement you see, not even slightly, so much as drastically.

 

Air...as bad or worse

Driving...more dangerous than ever

Scams still abundant

Government sucks

Dual pricing and gouging still prevalent

Beaches filthier and tourist raids more common

Immigration more onerous 

And ludicrous alcohol selling hours were non-existent and/or not enforced in the good ol' yesteryears. 

[KiChakayan]

2 hours ago, Dukeleto said:

I for one am amazed that anyone came at all considering the air-piracy being employed by airlines and the limited amount of flights. They are making everyone pay for their “losses” after taking in all the covid payouts. It’s a wonder anyone is bothering getting on a flight…I certainly am not until they return to normal.

Beg to  differ, it is paramount for our planet that air fares stay high.

 

The cheap USD 700 Geneva/Bangkok must stay a thing of the past. And remember, they were essentially subsidised by First and Business class.

 

Tourism must be domestic if we want our kids to have a future.

[NORDO]

When in the last three years, or so, has anyone in current administration come close to projecting tourist numbers.   Rolling a set of dice may have been more accurate.

 

[jaideedave]

2 hours ago, Dukeleto said:

I for one am amazed that anyone came at all considering the air-piracy being employed by airlines and the limited amount of flights. They are making everyone pay for their “losses” after taking in all the covid payouts. It’s a wonder anyone is bothering getting on a flight…I certainly am not until they return to normal.

I just spent a week in Phnom Penh riverside area.I've been to this area several times over the years pre covid.There was a very noticable lack of tourists. Maybe low season but maybe because the world economy is hurting is also a factor.The hotel I usually stay at was virtually empty.I'm of the view that more people have less disposible income than previous years.If you lost your income from the covid disaster you won't be planning many trips abroad.

[bananafish]

Not Chinese, but I used to be able to get a return flight to Thailand for about £450, last time I looked (a few weeks ago), I was lucky to find any at £750, most were actually about £1,000. 

 

I looked up why flights are so much more expensive, and it's just demand and supply, many routes are still off since the covid shutdowns, and remaining flights are in higher demand so charging more. 

[bananafish]

30 minutes ago, KiChakayan said:

Beg to  differ, it is paramount for our planet that air fares stay high.

 

The cheap USD 700 Geneva/Bangkok must stay a thing of the past. And remember, they were essentially subsidised by First and Business class.

 

Tourism must be domestic if we want our kids to have a future.

Utter tosh. 

[Cake Monster]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Fitch Ratings already downgraded projected GDP growth for Thailand to 3% this year due to a sharp contraction in exports but even this was dependent on the country welcoming 27 million tourists this year. Based on the latest figures to April 18th, the final tally is now likely to be something like 24 million although there is hope with more flights coming on stream in the months ahead.

I have no idea how " Fitch " have arrived at their projected 3% growth rate for 2023.

Exports have plunged 4.5 % ( which is a huge amount of GDP ) as Exports are the biggest contributor to the Thai Economy.

By the Governments own admission during the high season, Tourism was expected to take up the slack, and the falling numbers have failed to achieve that prediction, and numbers are seemingly getting worse.

Maybe Thailand is flogging more Rice Globally to make up the shortfalls in both Exports and Tourism.

Thats got to be a whole load of Rice.

 

[neeray]

Just yesterday I read an article about a Chinese Trade Fair. Exhibitors were commenting about orders being down as a result of world economic problems. They spoke of cancelled plans to expand and improve, reduced hours for staff. That said, yes, less Chinese will be travelling.

[BangkokReady]

The Chinese are a lot more collectivist thinking than Europeans.  Any types of crackdowns are going to have a much bigger effect on the tourism numbers from China.

 

I'm not sure whose idea the "We have fewer tourists so we should make it harder for tourists to come here" policy was, but they must have known this is what would happen.

[Stargeezr]

Thailand is hot, and the rainy season has not done anything to cool the country down.

  This time of year is Spring in the northern half of the world and most people are

enjoying the last of cool and coldish weather. Hence it is the low tourist season.

  Besides with all the crop burning happening, most tourists do not enjoy the high

levels of pollution.  Just to remind some posters, why some of us only travel to the Tropical

countries, when it is last Fall, October until Winter is over which is about April for most of Canada.

earlies for those lucky Americans.

[Eric Loh]

3 hours ago, Hanuman2547 said:

Not really surprised that April is a lower month for international arrivals from all countries.  Guess what, May just might be a low month for international arrivals as well.  However, it's not all doom and gloom.  I predict that in November and December there will be an uptick in international arrivals.  

There is a 5 days public holidays in China from 29/4 to 3/5 for Labour day. Traditionally Chinese will take advantage of the 5 days break to travel and Thailand can be expected to see uptick in inbounds. 

[John Drake]

Quote

Fear-mongering, fake news and disinformation are being stoked in China against visiting Thailand

They put this link to another of their own stories inside a story that gives example after example that it is not fear-mongering, fake news, or disinformation that Chinese are being kidnapped.

[Bangkok Barry]

I found this interesting, from the linked article:

Yuthasak Supasorn is working with tourism industry agencies and business groups to try to find a solution relating to snags being encountered by tourists in China seeking visas but there is, as yet, no breakthrough.

 

So, Thailand is making it difficult for those who it is trying to attract to actually come here. And with no solution in sight, it appears. Just another way to discourage, alongside the weekly on average this year abductions and murders of Chinese.

 

The number of high-profile cases that have been reported since the start of the year involving Chinese nationals being abducted, extorted and even murdered comes to over a dozen

[Eric Loh]

3 hours ago, Hanuman2547 said:

Not really surprised that April is a lower month for international arrivals from all countries.  Guess what, May just might be a low month for international arrivals as well.  However, it's not all doom and gloom.  I predict that in November and December there will be an uptick in international arrivals.  

There is a 5 days public holidays in China from 29/4 to 3/5 for Labour day. Traditionally Chinese will take advantage of the 5 days break to travel and Thailand can be expected to see uptick for inbound Chinese tourists. . 

[WHansen]

2 hours ago, moe666 said:

The one thing the Chinese have to remember is that the crime in Thailand is usually Chinese on Chinese violence, kidnapping and hostage taking. Clean your selves up before taking it out on Thailand.

Really ?
That's not what i see on the tv or read in the news

[nigelforbes]

1 hour ago, Cake Monster said:

I have no idea how " Fitch " have arrived at their projected 3% growth rate for 2023.

Exports have plunged 4.5 % ( which is a huge amount of GDP ) as Exports are the biggest contributor to the Thai Economy.

By the Governments own admission during the high season, Tourism was expected to take up the slack, and the falling numbers have failed to achieve that prediction, and numbers are seemingly getting worse.

Maybe Thailand is flogging more Rice Globally to make up the shortfalls in both Exports and Tourism.

Thats got to be a whole load of Rice.

 

International Tourism is classed as an export so presumably you mean Customs Exports have plunged rather than Exports overall? Export levels are largely out of the control of Thailand and are dependent on recovery of the importing countries. The forecast was that recovery would take place in 1H23 which is now forecast for 2H23. There is still ample time this year for Customs Exports to recover and grow YoY.

[nigelforbes]

2 hours ago, nigelforbes said:

Tourism here in Thailand is 75% dependent on regional tourists, not the people back home. Prices here are lower than in China or Malaysia which is why it's an attractive destination for them.

in 2019, S and SE Asia generated  about 30 mill tourists (75%) whereas the remaining approx 10 mill were from other countries, including US and Europe. I have seen numbers for 2022 which show a trend similar to the above continuing, 

 

http://statbbi.nso.go.th/staticreport/page/sector/en/17.aspx