Two tier pricing at hotels

[citizen33]

I'm sure that the situation described by the OP happens sometimes, but it hasn't so far happened with my family, while the opposite scenario has happened several times. That is to say you (or your wife or colleague) ring up to book, are asked how many farangs are included and then quoted a higher price for the farang. Royal River Hotel, BKK, Vong Tong, Buriram and the Nevada Grand, Ubon (name now changed) are all hotels that have done this to me.

Edited December 5, 2008 by citizen33

[Spee]

I contacted the hilton hotel in phuket a couple of years ago to enquire about a room as I had family over from the UK. I was quoted 4,700 baht for the night, yet when I mentioned I lived and worked here and had a Thai wife they said I could get much cheaper if my wife booked it at only 3,200 a night.

Having done a lot of biz with Hilton (600+ nights since 2004), including all Hilton properties in Thailand, intuition and experience suggests that these kinds of statements and those of another poster may be a little misleading.

First off, as with any major hotel chain, being registered to their customer rewards programs (HHonors in this case) adds a lot of credibility to one's reservation and one is far less likely to get any flack from the hired help (as an earlier poster suggested with the Conrad Bkk). This is even more so if one is a repeat customer. In the odd event that there is any flack, a simple call to their customer help desk will usually resolve the issue.

With respect to the pricing, I would speculate that many people booking with major chains these days, do so online. In the case of Hilton properties in Thailand (or anywhere else for that matter) there could easily be a large difference in rates depending on the type of booking and type of room. Having the first night prepaid, or the whole stay prepaid will typically give the best rates. A price range variance of 3.2k to 4.7k is not unusual.

At the Karon Beach property, my observations indicated that they cater mostly to the western traveler who is more interested in creature comforts, quiet, and relative seclusion than in watching the budget. While good rates can be found if one shops around dates online, I'd be very surprised if people at the front desk were offering preferred rates to people of Thai nationality that were better than could be found online.

[kiakaha]

on the flipside, i was emailed this 2 days ago (i must be in their database from a previous stay)

Edited December 5, 2008 by kiakaha

[Farma]

I’ve found a mixture of both situations over the years. There’s been times when my Thai wife has phoned to book a room only to be told the hotel is full. I’ve phoned a few minutes later and been offered a variety of rooms.

More recently I’ve seen hotels promoting prices on the internet stating the reduced prices are not available to Thai nationals/residents.

Other more recent situations have occurred when my wife has booked rooms at government staff discount rate. The hotel reception staff has acted rude on seeing me arrive with my wife. A quick call to the supervisor and their attitudes changed.

On future visits to those hotels there’s been no problem on check in. At one of those hotels the manager now provides a welcome basket of fruit with personal hand written message each time we arrive.

[Shah Jahan]

I try my best to stay only at hotels where the staff treat me like a thai. I hate staying at falang hotels where the bellboy is thinking "you stupid falang, are you going to give me a 20 baht tip for holding this fuc_king door open for you"

better to stay at places where they respect and the people are happy to serve.

[Mosha]

I'm sure we have had this discussion before, and got the same excuses.

Edit searched the forums and

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Thai-People-...el-t158149.html

[wileycoyote]

Dunno know quite a few thai(s) including my gf that get lower prices from hotels because they are thai. I'm assuming it must depend on the place.

I agree with britmaveric,I don't know of any Northern hotel that my wife can't get a better price for us as a family in negotiation ,than I can on the internet.

[anotheruser]

Tiered pricing should be illegal but since it isn't not much sympathy here. Maybe some of these Thais should complain to the government to make laws against such practices. What's good for the goose...

[dantilley]

The higher Thai price is very common throughout hotels in Thailand, didn't know of anywhere charging 200% more though, that really is taking the piss. Many places will also charge a higher rate for Middle Eastern guests.

I think the reasons for the higher price for Thais have been covered - cramming extra people in to the room, not using the other facilities in the hotel, only staying for a short time, etc. A farrang guest may order a 500 Baht steak dinner with a 1,500 Baht bottle of wine - Thais will order communal Thai food coming in at around 100 Baht a head and drink whisky and coke, or drink Chang / Singha at best. And that's those Thais who don't nip off outside for a somtam, or cook their own food in their room.

Although I can see why they do it, it is a practice which I think should be stopped. It causes problems all round - if someone books online, for example, at the price advertised they will then have to be told to pay more when they check-in. This then causes problems for the hotel front desk staff and the online booking company as they will be bearing the brunt of the customer's (valid, in my opinion) complaints on the policy.

[Governor]

I made a reservation in the Shangrila in Bk and when Mr and Mrs Griffiths arrived we were told they had overbooked and didn't have a room.

I believe this was blatant racism to wards my Thai wife,after some arguing my wife contacted her Aunt who's father works in a big organization in Lopburi.

With in 10 minutes the manager received a phone call and was waing me and my wife,we ended up with a suite in the executive floor for the same price as a standard room:D

They seem to assume that any Thai lady married to a foreigner must be a prostitute.

My wife is currently completing her doctorate degree at Thammasat University

I have also had a similar problem in the Conrad Bangkok.

My girlfriend and I have never had a problem at the Conrad, in fact she is welcomed by name.

However, on a recent visit to The Hard Rock Hotel in Pattaya the check in girl, who had seen us arrive together in my car with one small case, said to her in Thai "do you want a double bed so you can sleep with your customer"? I think she realised the error of her ways when she checked that we were regular customers and had booked an executive room, but the damage was done. My girlfriend was reduced to tears, the manager and the rest of his staff did their best to make amends,and we never saw that woman again.

I suppose I should ask the question, if I did choose to go to a hotel with a bargirl, should she be treated any differently?

[Soutpeel]

I suppose I should ask the question, if I did choose to go to a hotel with a bargirl, should she be treated any differently?

And this is the fundamental question...anybody turning up a hotel as a guest should not even be questioned about to their motivations for staying,they are paying guests after all.

Poor customer service as far as I am concerned, and think it shows an insite into the Thai Psyche....they do judge a book by its cover...although have experienced similar incidents/peceptions like this at hotels in Thailand with Mrs S., Even with an apology from the hotel management, I just vote with my feet and dont stay at the particular hotel again...their loss on future bookings....not that they would give a Sh*t, after all what do I know....I am just a farang..

[Mosha]

Depends on the hotel. Some eg Amari may charge you extra if you had already booked in alone, and then brought a "guest" to stay the night.

[Soutpeel]

Depends on the hotel. Some eg Amari may charge you extra if you had already booked in alone, and then brought a "guest" to stay the night.

And seeing as there is an extra charge for the "addtional guest", shouldnt they be treated the same way as any other paying guest ??

Booking a hotel on a single or twin basis is pretty much an international norm, so dont have a problem with an extra charge, but what gets up my nose is the apprarent discrimination by Thai's on Thai's, when married, Long term GF's turn up at a hotel with their farang husband/BF...especially when a booking has been made, stating two people and even given the names..

[monkfish]

That's terrible!

Glad it never happens to me

[ourmaninbangers]

I made a reservation in the Shangrila in Bk and when Mr and Mrs Griffiths arrived we were told they had overbooked and didn't have a room.

I believe this was blatant racism to wards my Thai wife,after some arguing my wife contacted her Aunt who's father works in a big organization in Lopburi.

With in 10 minutes the manager received a phone call and was waing me and my wife,we ended up with a suite in the executive floor for the same price as a standard room:D

They seem to assume that any Thai lady married to a foreigner must be a prostitute.

My wife is currently completing her doctorate degree at Thammasat University

I have also had a similar problem in the Conrad Bangkok.

welcome to another typical TIT story

of coures they thought your wife was working girl- the vast majorty with farangs were( are) and the fact she was in a thai uni means nothing -zero, justs up the fee a bit!

( and by the way, I am told that anything from any thai uni is looked upon as highly questionable, there has been too many buying qulaifications here)

you cannot blame them for this assumption

thats how they see it/us with blinkered eyes

they also have policy agaianst indian/pakistani toursits

its all very, very wrong and what upsets me- its tolerated and condoned

glad you got in okay

[fredfromalaska]

This country is very discriminative. I was talking to a hotel manager who said they don't have Thais because they sleep many to a room and only pay for 2 and they also wont rent to Indians because they smell. How sthat for a modern attitude, this was in pattaya by the way.

no offens to any group, but they do smell. try being stuck on a long haul flight and u might change your tune.

[onethailand]

It works both ways. Some hotels charge Thais more. Some charge less. And some charge (gasp!) the same price.

But it doesn't only apply to Thai/non-Thai. It applies to Japanese, Asians, Middle Easterners, and Russians (these being the next 4 popular groups to offer different rates).

And, at one very famous 5-star world-renowned hotel located somewhere in Thailand which I am not going to name, they even had different prices for US/Canada market, UK Market, CIS market, Asian Market, Middle East Market, Japanese Market, Oceania Market... and there were so many different options that I took the easy way out - I offered none.

This year, they have apparently gone back to a single price structure...

In the end, it is not always racial discrimination per se. They're happy to take your money no matter what nationality you are - but some people are either worth more, or some people cost more, or some people are more noisy, or some people put off other guests, or some people they can't communicate with... or some people are just below them.

Sadly, Dotcom, it's completely true. They are permitted to do this in Thailand, so they do.

Edited December 6, 2008 by onethailand

[Jimjim]

Sadly, double pricing is not unique to Thailand. They do it in the U.S.A. state where I live. Those with a state ID get a much cheaper price at some hotel restaurants and buffets as this is a tourist area where they have high prices in the restaurants.

[think_too_mut]

I contacted the hilton hotel in phuket a couple of years ago to enquire about a room as I had family over from the UK. I was quoted 4,700 baht for the night, yet when I mentioned I lived and worked here and had a Thai wife they said I could get much cheaper if my wife booked it at only 3,200 a night.

Having done a lot of biz with Hilton (600+ nights since 2004), including all Hilton properties in Thailand, intuition and experience suggests that these kinds of statements and those of another poster may be a little misleading.

First off, as with any major hotel chain, being registered to their customer rewards programs (HHonors in this case) adds a lot of credibility to one's reservation and one is far less likely to get any flack from the hired help (as an earlier poster suggested with the Conrad Bkk). This is even more so if one is a repeat customer. In the odd event that there is any flack, a simple call to their customer help desk will usually resolve the issue.

The real repeat buiness for hotel chains is done through American Express Travel.

They do it for my (and thousands of other) companies. Never have had to book a hotel myself for a biz trip.

In travel, they have purchasing and negotiation power comparable to that of WallMart in retail.

Conrad: 3200B

Hilton: 3100B

Marriott: 3000B

Hilton in Tokyo and Nagoya are both 110US$ (regular price is 3-4 times that).

They book it according to their contracts, I just walk in and no talk.

As for original topic - back in October 2006. I was trying to book a room at Pattaya Park Hotel for my wife and baby. As soon as the hotel realized there was farang paying but not staying, they jacked up the price, doubling it. Why? "This price is only for foreigners staying".

So 1400B shoothole (I wanted it for the proximity of Pattaya Water Park) became 2900B if only Thais were staying.

[onzestan]

and think it shows an insite into the Thai Psyche....they do judge a book by its cover..

And if I may ask, where did you get the idea that westerners do not ??

When I walk in a shopping mall with my Thai wife, in my home country, you should see the look on the faces of many passersby,

double and triple checks of passports at European airports etc. etc..

Anyway, I believe that hotel managements have to right to have their own pricing policies, based on whatever experiences they may have had, it's up to the customers to accept these policies or not.

cheers

onzestan

[ourmaninbangers]

and think it shows an insite into the Thai Psyche....they do judge a book by its cover..

And if I may ask, where did you get the idea that westerners do not ??

When I walk in a shopping mall with my Thai wife, in my home country, you should see the look on the faces of many passersby,

double and triple checks of passports at European airports etc. etc..

Anyway, I believe that hotel managements have to right to have their own pricing policies, based on whatever experiences they may have had, it's up to the customers to accept these policies or not.

cheers

onzestan

hi mr 1 in 20 man ( never did address that huge mess did you buddy-when are you gonna let us buy you a drink for that? ) so what you are saying is that if you go to a hotel and say' ' can I check in please'?

but the manager replys

" Sir,look , we wanna charge you double because you an older man with a young thai wife and talks stats out of your ass without having a clue what you are on about..

can neverr answer any questions on your mess up's..." ( I could go on- done any research lately?)

you will reply

" okay, thats fine because you have that right..'?

is that what you would say? then you would just be okay with that, and wander off happily

do you believe in racisim? discrimination?

that attitude is just pathetic, the sort that keeps this place well behind

unlike before when you were caught with your pants down, could you answer this?

[keestha]

The reason they do this (Charging Thais more than farangs, keestha) is because Thais only rent rooms, but usually ignore other hotel services which inflate the bills by quite a bit.

My experiences are different. Every now and than I have middle class Thais staying in my resort, usually they arrive by car, and they almost always eat in our restaurant, because they are" kreng jai "to go and eat somewhere else.

I must admit though, that when Thais reserve a room by telephone, I always enquire how many people are going to sleep in the room. If it is more than 2 adults, I raise the price accordingly.

Edited December 9, 2008 by keestha

[torrenova]

The answer has been given. Thais come mob handed and not only leave the room in a mess, they often cook in the room. They do burn the electric and often spend not one baht on anything in the hotel. If they go by the pool then they will occupy more than their share of beds or room and one way to recover some of this cost is for the hotel to charge them more.

Personally I'd rather stay in an hotel which didn't do this and was perhaps too expensive for such Thais to occupy.

[londonthai]

My experiences are different. Every now and than I have middle class Thais staying in my resort, usually they arrive by car, and they almost always eat in our restaurant, because they are" kreng jai "to go and eat somewhere else.

terranova, there is no single answer. As you can see the first hand answer is contrary to yours

[ourmaninbangers]

The answer has been given. Thais come mob handed and not only leave the room in a mess, they often cook in the room. They do burn the electric and often spend not one baht on anything in the hotel. If they go by the pool then they will occupy more than their share of beds or room and one way to recover some of this cost is for the hotel to charge them more.

Personally I'd rather stay in an hotel which didn't do this and was perhaps too expensive for such Thais to occupy.

oh christ.... here we go

and I thought it was only the locals who were displaying backward, pathetic, moronic thinking and that..lets never progress mentalty... are you related to mussolini/hitler?

can you back your words up....? ( I know you cannot)

so, every single thai guest is troublesome according to your logic...and all westerners are ideal THEM THEY and all general remarks lead to the sort of thinking skills you have

and that redneck mentlaity

a yes/no answer please if you can do that

if it s yes, we'll place a bet, and I will fleece you and show what stupidity thinking like that is

TV really is a forum of the herd

[torrenova]

The answer has been given. Thais come mob handed and not only leave the room in a mess, they often cook in the room. They do burn the electric and often spend not one baht on anything in the hotel. If they go by the pool then they will occupy more than their share of beds or room and one way to recover some of this cost is for the hotel to charge them more.

Personally I'd rather stay in an hotel which didn't do this and was perhaps too expensive for such Thais to occupy.

oh christ.... here we go

and I thought it was only the locals who were displaying backward, pathetic, moronic thinking and that..lets never progress mentalty... are you related to mussolini/hitler?

can you back your words up....? ( I know you cannot)

so, every single thai guest is troublesome according to your logic...and all westerners are ideal THEM THEY and all general remarks lead to the sort of thinking skills you have

and that redneck mentlaity

a yes/no answer please if you can do that

if it s yes, we'll place a bet, and I will fleece you and show what stupidity thinking like that is

TV really is a forum of the herd

I'll hazard a guess that it was this very forum where a Thai person recounted a stay at a hotel in Jomtien (not top class I admit) where they were charged more than tourists (i.e. non Thais) and when they questioned why, they were told that it was the hotel policy due to the very points I expressed above.

The same can be said about the middle east contingent and those from the Indian sub continent. Go ask hotels and their staff and see what they say about them. Just to satisfy your curiosity, I lived in an hotel in Pattaya for a year which charged more for some races because they could not police how many would end up sleeping in the room.

Now in my post which you quote and then fail to understand, the wording is a rationale as if written from the viewpoint of those places which do charge Thais more. Even then, it does not state "all" anywhere does it ?

As for locals being backward well I can read that two ways. Either you think Thais are "backward, pathetic, moronic thinking" etc. or you think I am because I am a local as well.

I doubt you are in any form of business because one thing you do is customer profiling. Have you ever been upgraded because you spend a lot in an hotel ? Have you ever heard about high rollers being comped at Casino Hotels ? Well, believe it or not but profiling works the other way and identifies those customers who overuse facilities and yet do not spend anything in the hotel.

Can you see now where price differentiation comes in ?

As for being a redneck relation of Hitler and Mussolini then yes, one was my father and the other my mother :D