Why do Phuket locals seem to really dislike Foreigners?

[richard_smith237]

23 minutes ago, bob smith said:

mrs. smith wouldn't be seen dead in the place!

 

she can't stand Phuket.

 

bob.

 

Patong is not Phuket - its a bit of a cesspit but serves its purpose as a 'hedonistic party are'.

 

Phuket town itself is quite pleasant. 

Rawai has a nice little buzz.

Nai Harn is fantastic beach.

Laguana area and Bang Tao are nice residential area's.

Mai Khao has some excellent resorts for a weekend R&R getaway. 

Kata / Karen - very touristy and not unpleasant

Kamala - an ok area, plenty or residential expats there but not the same vibe as Rawai IMO.

 

 

Phuket has a lot going for it - its not my favourite place, but the island is 50km long and it takes 1.5 hours to drive from north to south, So tarring the whole Island and all communities on it is perhaps not the greatest show of critical thought. 

 

[richard_smith237]

14 minutes ago, bob smith said:

I am looking for the reason why many people that reside in Phuket have a deep resentment towards the hand that feeds them..

 

bob.

 

I think thats a 'familiarity breeds contempt' type of thing... But that only seems to exist in the area's of very high tourist footfall, specifically Patong.

 

Tourist's who can be rude and impolite. Thai's who can be rude and impolite.... 

 

 

[simon43]

It's not that they don't like farangs.  They simply don't like d*ckheads doing d*ckhead things.....

[Dolf]

37 minutes ago, bob smith said:

...bit harsh.

 

bob.

Not really.

[Denim]

1 hour ago, JetsetBkk said:

I have spent 20 years here and have never noticed any animosity from the locals.

 

Maybe it's you.

 

Poor Bob , waiting for the grahb that never comes.

[Dan O]

1 hour ago, bob smith said:

so close the island off to tourism then...

 

they wanted them to come in the first place, no?

 

bob.

They want them to come and be normal tourists not trash bag mongers that treat locals like crap and don't follow any normal etiquette while there

[stoner]

been living in phuket for a couple months now. no issues. locals love me. come visit bobby ill help you about. 

 

patong is gross and as such so are most of the people living there. 

[bob smith]

36 minutes ago, Dan O said:

They want them to come and be normal tourists not trash bag mongers that treat locals like crap and don't follow any normal etiquette while there

they are on holiday in a tourist ghetto and have american express gold cards.

 

why should they follow any kind of local etiquette?

 

bob.

[Dolf]

3 minutes ago, bob smith said:

they are on holiday and have american express gold cards.

 

why should they follow any kind of etiquette?

 

bob.

Basic manners.

[bob smith]

4 minutes ago, Dolf said:

Basic manners.

tell that to the taxi mafia.

 

bob.

[JetsetBkk]

3 hours ago, bob smith said:

have you been to Patong recently?

 

bob.

Haven't been there for about 18 years. Is it that bad?

[JimTripper]

It's envy. They see more well to do foreigners there and the envy is worse. Envy seeks to tear down people who have more. It's not as bad in places like Pattaya and Chiang Mai because most foreigners there act and dress like they are skint.

[it is what it is]

 

considering Phuket is an island that is based on tourism and needs the tourist dollar to survive - you would think the locals would be happy about them being there,

 

you need to consider another perspective... i come from a beautiful tourist area back home, sure tourists are important for the minority involved in the tourism business, but for the vast majority of us locals tourists are a pain in the butt! they clog up the roads with their awful driving, they crowd into small beautiful villages and destroy the peace and quiet and ambience for us locals, they overrun the shops and supermarkets. and i'd bet the tourists back home behave much better then the tourists in thailand. i completely understand how most locals would want rid of tourists.

 

 

[ChaiyaTH]

Anywhere where there is constant tourist streams of people it is you having to prove your different and then you meet an entirely different person than that person is as a daily worker dealing with tourists.

 

But i get where you come from with this, when living elsewhere in Thailand already and then visiting for a short holiday, the behavior in the south can come across as very aggressive and negative, anti-foreigner almost. 
 

To fix or address that is the same answer though, you have to show and proof you been around, are not a complete idiot en behave well. It sucks if being on a short holiday as of never getting that chance in that case, so again, i get where the topic comes from, feeling wise.

 

In Vietnam this is even more of a thing.

[ozimoron]

It's probably got more to do with property price inflation, over development and illegal business operations than anything else.

 

I last went to Phuket when there wasn't a single hotel on either Nai Harn or Kata. Club Med was under construction. I stayed at Ao Sane in a beach side bungalow for 50 baht a night.

 

 

[georgegeorgia]

9 hours ago, bubblegum said:

Lived there for a decade and loved it till th traffic got too much. As every local will tell you, Patong is not Phuket and for most Thais Phuket is not even Thailand.

Your post doesn't make sense,you  obviously on the turps writing this but anyway ...

Turtle 🐢 Beach is my favourite area 

[Ralf001]

9 hours ago, bob smith said:

i've done my time in Phuket, but i sure as hell didn't commit no crime brethren.

 

bob.

 

When were you last there ?

[Ms Tigger]

Taking a look at the recent news, in which foreigners have absolutely not covered themselves in glory, might give you a tiny clue. Add to that the influx of Russians, who seem to have the social skills of a grumpy, ignorant rhino with haemorrhoids, constipation and a superiority complex, and you probably have your answer.

[eumenades]

Many tourist locations around the world have a distaste for their visitors. They come and go and spend money but turn the place into a metropolis with no lasting social contacts. Then, there are the percentage who get drunk, shout in the streets after midnight and generally make themselves a niusance.

[zakalwe]

11 hours ago, bob smith said:

it seems that Phuket people have a real dislike towards farangs.

I have spent quite a bit of time there in the past and the animosity from the locals was striking!

 

There is a specific facebook gorup based in Phuket that advocates discrimination and even violence against farang.

 

I wont mention the name, but if you are in the know then you know!

 

what is it with Phuket specifically? why do the locals seem to have a deep dislike for farangs?

BKK, Patts, CNX, even Samui doesnt seem to have this level of distaste for the holidaymaker.

 

considering Phuket is an island that is based on tourism and needs the tourist dollar to survive - you would think the locals would be happy about them being there,

especially after the pandemic when many phuket locals were out of work.

 

what's it all about?

 

bob.

Perhaps Phuket locals are really tired of farangs taking the piss.

 

Well, there are plenty of non farang tourists. I think Phuket/Thailand is really trying to court them.

[bob smith]

1 minute ago, zakalwe said:

Perhaps Phuket locals are really tired of farangs taking the piss

they love their money though it would seem.

 

taxi drivers, hoteliers, restauranteurs..

 

where would they and their families be without that farang money?

 

bob.

 

[findlay13]

Have you SEEN the foreigners in Phuket ? And you need to ask?

[zakalwe]

6 minutes ago, bob smith said:

they love their money though it would seem.

 

taxi drivers, hoteliers, restauranteurs..

 

where would they and their families be without that farang money?

 

bob.

 

Probably living off that Asian money.

Malaysia was the top source market for foreign tourists to Thailand in 2023, with 4.4 million arrivals, followed by China with 2.7 million arrivals, Singapore with 1.9 million, and India with 1.6 million.

 

[bob smith]

1 minute ago, zakalwe said:

Probably living off that Asian money.

Malaysia was the top source market for foreign tourists to Thailand in 2023, with 4.4 million arrivals, followed by China with 2.7 million arrivals, Singapore with 1.9 million, and India with 1.6 million.

 

hmm.. not sure malaysian's hit the bars, restaurants, pubs and clubs in the same way that farangs do?

 

bob.

[bob smith]

5 minutes ago, findlay13 said:

Have you SEEN the foreigners in Phuket ? 

dont like it then dont advertise yourself as a tourist hub.

 

close the doors. no more foreigners.

problem solved. 

 

bob.

[zakalwe]

3 minutes ago, bob smith said:

hmm.. not sure malaysian's hit the bars, restaurants, pubs and clubs in the same way that farangs do?

 

bob.

I assume they like bars, restaurants and clubs. Not beer bars or gogo bars. They do like shopping malls like Terminal 21.

 

According to Stickman's restaurant owners, the biggest spending group are the Chinese. Do you live in Phuket? There are a lot of Asians in those expensive seafood restaurants.

[bob smith]

9 minutes ago, zakalwe said:

I assume they like bars, restaurants and clubs. Not beer bars or gogo bars. They do like shopping malls like Terminal 21.

 

According to Stickman's restaurant owners, the biggest spending group are the Chinese. Do you live in Phuket? There are a lot of Asians in those expensive seafood restaurants.

i used to have an apartment there.

 

I sold it just before covid.

 

bob.

[cdemundo]

In places that relay on tourism there can be a minority of locals who resent the tourists.

Not unusual for tourists to behave badly, a minority again but still exist.

Also often resentment of tourists who are better off financially, basically envy.

 

This is not exclusive to Thailand, I have seen it in the lake resort areas of Minnesota where some locals resent the tourists from Chicago and Minneapolis/St. Paul. They call them "City people", "summer people".

It is true that they depend on the tourists' money, maybe that somehow makes them even more resentful.

 

[DjSilver]

This is Thailand,  Land of Scammers and home of the Racists. 

[ChipButty]

I think around the world at any tourist place the locals dislike the tourist, My mother used to own a hotel in Blackpool and everybody hated the tourist, I used to say to my mother without the tourist you cant spend 3 months in Tenerife during the winter, 

Same in Phuket, but they were crying during covid now they are back to moaning about too many Russians the Chinese will be next, I live in Rawai you don't meet may local Thai's mostly migrant's from Nakorn Nowhere but they complain about Phuket people saying the are Jai Dam, to meet actual Phuket people you need to go to Phuket Town,

Having said that, I don't have a problem with any of them and there is a few live in my soi, they always speak to me,

Only yesterday a friend she is a long time resident of Phuket came back of holiday and brought me a box of chocolates and some other goodies,