What Can Be Done To Increase Tourism To The Cm Area?

[thailandlover]

It seems to me that tourism to CM is down this year and that people are complaining that bookings for Songklan are also way down.

So, the question is, what can be done to improve and increase tourism to Chiang Mai, either by the government or by individuals? What does CM need to do to attract tourists? Or are there just no tourists out there to attract?

[elektrified]

Are you joking? It's great just like it is.

[IanForbes]

Or are there just no tourists out there to attract?

I think that is your answer. When economies all over the world are failing it is tourism that gets hit first. People just stay home instead of taking foreign trips.

A high Thai baht in comparison to other currencies is not helping. I know it's hurt the trade with Great Britain expats and tourists this year, and There's a big difference with the Canadian dollar as well. Last year I got 32 to 34 baht to the Canadian dollar. This past season it's been 27 to 28 baht to the Canadian dollar. It won't stop me returning to Thailand, but for some people it might.

[shepsel]

The world economic conditions wont turn around anytime soon, so the dream of luring tourists to Thailand is only a dream of TAT. Most people just don't have money to travel, and are cutting back every which way they can. In fact I've seen a segment on one of the news stations on the new in thing in America "staycation"--stay at home and pretend it is a vacation.

What the tour operators and hotels have to do is make unbelievable luring offers to the residents in Thailand to travel. Even sell the rooms at a loss, just to create traffic. Once there, the guest is likely to spend money on other services. The rooms are there, they have to be dusted and cleaned before someone takes a room, staff has to be maintained even if there are few or no rooms rented. Larger hotels have to have their restaurants open.

I've heard that for a few weeks in a row that one of the top five star hotels in CM had no guests. Can you believe that? No guests!

[Ulysses G.]

What the tour operators and hotels have to do is make unbelievable luring offers to the residents in Thailand to travel. Even sell the rooms at a loss, just to create traffic.

Westerners would do this. The Thais rather just stay empty!

[StevieH]

create a coastline and a beach.

[Rasseru]

create a coastline and a beach.

Support global warming?

[elektrified]

The world economic conditions wont turn around anytime soon, so the dream of luring tourists to Thailand is only a dream of TAT. Most people just don't have money to travel, and are cutting back every which way they can. In fact I've seen a segment on one of the news stations on the new in thing in America "staycation"--stay at home and pretend it is a vacation.

What the tour operators and hotels have to do is make unbelievable luring offers to the residents in Thailand to travel. Even sell the rooms at a loss, just to create traffic. Once there, the guest is likely to spend money on other services. The rooms are there, they have to be dusted and cleaned before someone takes a room, staff has to be maintained even if there are few or no rooms rented. Larger hotels have to have their restaurants open.

I've heard that for a few weeks in a row that one of the top five star hotels in CM had no guests. Can you believe that? No guests!

Yes I agree with you. A few months back there was an article in the Bangkok Post about such an idea being proposed by the Tourism Ministry/Authority and was "soon to be implemented."

The only time this year I have traveled in Thailand, in February, some places down in the South where I was actually raised their prices even though some hotels admittedly where at only 10-20% capacity! Go figure...

[IanForbes]

The only time this year I have traveled in Thailand, in February, some places down in the South where I was actually raised their prices even though some hotels admittedly where at only 10-20% capacity! Go figure...

I said exactly the same thing on a Pattaya forum. Bar and restaurant owners seem to raise their prices when there is a short fall in customers which just acerbates the problem. Nobody wants to go to a bar devoid of customers. The same goes for restaurants. There are cafes in Pattaya that are always full and many that sit empty night after night. The cafes that are full have good food at a reasonable price. The few times I've tried the empty restaurants the food was average and the prices were higher than I could find elsewhere. The once busy Nana plaza girly bars sit almost empty because the owners keep cutting corners, raising the prices and generally put up a sign not to visit. Once a customer feels ripped off they don't come back.

Tourists are not stupid. They quickly learn where they get the best value for their money. They might try an establishment once, but after they learn the score it's not hard to compare prices. What might be a reasonable price to pay in London or New York is a rip off in Thailand. Phuket is dreadfully over priced when you compare it to other tourist centers in Thailand. Chiang Mai is a lot cheaper than Bangkok. Pattaya offers the best value for the dollar of most beach front locations, but even there you have to check and compare. Why pay $100 to $300 a night at some higher end hotel when you can get a nice room for $20. If money means nothing then go for it, but most of us like good value for our dollar.

[john b good]

It seems to me that tourism to CM is down this year and that people are complaining that bookings for Songklan are also way down.

So, the question is, what can be done to improve and increase tourism to Chiang Mai, either by the government or by individuals? What does CM need to do to attract tourists? Or are there just no tourists out there to attract?

Thailand has got to take a good hard look at them selves and do some thinking.

TG has been flying half empty planes so what do they do? "they put the fares up" not logical thing in a thinking world but Thailand is not a part of the thinking world.

Then you have the environmental disaster that visits Chiang Mai every February / March. Does any one really want to come here and have to wear a face mask? Even if it is not strictly necessary some folk think that it is.

Then there is the "red shirts" (OK the yellow shirts created some problems, but the red shirts are something else again, they are lunatics being egged on by a despot by the name of Thaksin)

Then you have the policy of "double pricing" why does anyone want to visit the realm and be screwed over in the process.

It really has nothing too much to do with the world economy.

I have as great a passion for Thailand as anyone but I ain't gonna glib over all the crap that is served up here.

Edited April 8, 2009 by john b good

[heybruce]

Let's see--political stability, end corruption, bring some sanity to the roads...any of these sound like good ideas?

[orang37]

... snip ... So, the question is, what can be done to improve and increase tourism to Chiang Mai ... snip ... by individuals? ... snip ...

Khun Thailandlover, Sawasdee Khrup,

An excellent and timely topic ! I think mass suicide by resident expats (many of whom are doing it slowly, anyway) could help. Clean out the flotsam and jetsam, brush away the cobwebs, let a new generation create their own Amazing Chiang Mai out of whole cloth unencumbered by the detritus of nattering nabobs whose enchantments have turned to dust when the money ran out.

I think a particularly fitting "way to go" would be by all of us eating pages of a well-used edition of the Lonely Planet Guide to Northern Thailand soaked in some Thai equivalent of Jim Jones' Guiana Kool-Aid (but there may be a problem in that many Farangs who are now using Mekong embalming fluid as their daily liquid social lubricant may be immune ?). And, I'd personally like to see an "orderly exit," perhaps British queue style : maybe using the new yellow lines on Lowly Kraw to form ranks ?

I hope we hear many other creative ideas !

~o:37;

Edited April 8, 2009 by orang37

[Ajarn]

Why increase tourism? To make money... ? I think this whole country would be better off with no increase in tourism at all.

[Ulysses G.]

That is because someone left you a hefty inheritance and you will never have to work again. If you had to earn a living in Thailand, you might have very different ideas on tourism.

I say this with the utmost in jealousy by the way.

[orang37]

... snip ... I say this with the utmost in jealousy by the way.

Now you gone and done it, Khun U, talking honest like that. What would this place be like if we all 'fessed up like that now ? Sincerity can be so virulently infectious, you know.

Your faithful dog, Argos

Edited April 8, 2009 by orang37

[chiangmaibruce]

Yes difficult times to attract tourists, but more can always be done. People have already mentioned prices and promotions (advertising) but these are just two out of dozens of pieces of the jigsaw. It needs a co-ordinated planned approach and that is something the Thais just aren't good at.

I thought I would take the slackers option and just re-cycle a letter I did for the Nation newspaper a while back (unpublished) ...

"Tourists are won, not bought"

I write in relation to yesterday's call by the Association of Thai Travel Agents for the Government to provide "money to promote growth and persuade tourists from everywhere to return".

Presumably another roadshow or two, and a few million baht more spent on glossy advertisements.

Travellers are already aware of Thailand, but they have limited funds, limited time, and almost 200 other countries to choose from. In making their holiday plans they are heavily influenced by their own previous trips to Thailand, and the Thai travel experiences of friends and family. It is in difficult times like this that Thailand needs to be able to draw on stocks of goodwill and loyalty amongst the travelling public. Alas this international goodwill account is now well and truly in overdraft.

Seeing a magazine advertisement will not be the deciding factor, more likely it will be memories or the recollections of others concerning:

* having goods stolen from them whilst travelling within Thailand, either by the staff of airports, hotels, and bus companies - and the subsequent wholly ineffective response by management, police, and TAT/Ministry of Tourism

* emailing repeatedly to hotels or tour operators but never receiving a response

* being accosted by street scammers and finding themselves bailed up in a gem shop or similar

* being unable to use the capital city airports because authorities had allowed them to be overrun by rent-a-crowd hooligans

With the exception of the last point, these are issues that have been ongoing for years due to buck-passing and other utterly ineffective responses by those who should be protecting the interests and security of foreign travellers.

So please no more roadshows and advertising campaigns. Instead start by opening your complaints folders and addressing long-standing issues there. And then publicise the decisive action you have subsequently taken to address such issues. You might find that this strategy achieves more than you would get for a 100 ad campaigns.

On a broader note, countries like Australia realised years ago that the responsible tourism agency could achieve little working in isolation. Tourism is not an industry as such, it is an amalgam of parts of many other industries - industries like accommodation, transport, retail, and so on. Thus the health and direction of Thai tourism is affected by decisions (or non-decisions) made by many different government agencies.

The first step is to educate all these various departments about the importance of tourism, and the significant role that they play in its success. The next step is to develop a whole-of- government strategy for tourism. Such a strategy must have input from all relevant government agencies, and a commitment from them that they will do their part to ensure its timely and seamless implementation. This is the stage where Thailand should be by now, but sadly simply isn't anywhere close.

[Ajarn]

That is because someone left you a hefty inheritance and you will never have to work again. If you had to earn a living in Thailand, you might have very different ideas on tourism.

I say this with the utmost in jealousy by the way.

You are complaining because you are standing in line with your hand out, right?

My ideas on tourism have nothing to with my situation, they come from my 25 years of experience here.

I truly believe what I'm saying, and I'm hoping for the best

Edited April 8, 2009 by Ajarn

[Ulysses G.]

What is your plan to make up for the vast amounts of income that would be lost by getting rid of tourism during a major economic crisis?

Edited April 8, 2009 by Ulysses G.

[Ajarn]

I'm not complaining and I don't have my hand out. I work 7 days a week.

Yes you were, and 'standing in line with your hand out' means you are grabbing the tourist money, which you are, I believe..

[Loaded]

Has tourism ever been good in Chiang Mai? I know loads of tourists come here each year but there are more farang restaurants/bars/boutique hotels being built that dilute the tourist dollars as well. It seems to be related: more tourists come, more tourists want to stay so open a business.

[Ajarn]

What is your plan to make up for the vast amounts of income that would be lost by getting rid of tourism during a major economic crisis?

Re-tooling

[Mestizo]

Not sure about increasing tourism, but how about stop driving away the tourists we already have??

For instance:

-Banning alcohol on election weekends. I know its sort of funny watching the tourists walk around with looks of utter disbelief on their faces during election weekends, but do you think these people are going to want to stay longer and/or ever come back? How about letting the bars sell to anyone that can show a foreign passport? Foreigners cannot vote anyway... Let them drink. All the Thai's know where they can go sneak a drink, all this law does, is hurt the tourists.

-The ever changing bar closing times. Seems to always happen during high season. New big police guy wants more money so he starts forcing the bars closed early. Again, the all the Thai's know where they can go sneak a drink, all this law does, is hurt the tourists. The Govt needs to take control of this. I'm sure the police can find other means of corruption to keep their pockets filled.

- Threatening alcohol bans during Songkran, the biggest holiday of the year and then at the last minute banning cars and public consumption. Great way to ruin Songkran.

- As someone previously mentioned, political stability is a big one. Looking over the past few years, every problem ties back to a single root cause. Instead of spending money on tourism advertisements, the Thai Govt would be much better off putting a bounty on Thaksin's head. Somebody out there in the world has got to be capable of finding this troublemaker and putting him (and the rest of the country) out of his misery.

Just my $0.02,

-Mestizo

[BigSnake]

Kick all the red shirts OUT of town.

[Mestizo]

I failed to also mention doing something about all the crooked taxi, tuk-tuk, and song taew drivers. Their price gouging, highly inflated rates, refusals to turn meters on, leaves one with a very bad impression. Even for people that live here. Need some sort of govt. regulation and policing.

-Mestizo

Not sure about increasing tourism, but how about stop driving away the tourists we already have??

For instance:

-Banning alcohol on election weekends. I know its sort of funny watching the tourists walk around with looks of utter disbelief on their faces during election weekends, but do you think these people are going to want to stay longer and/or ever come back? How about letting the bars sell to anyone that can show a foreign passport? Foreigners cannot vote anyway... Let them drink. All the Thai's know where they can go sneak a drink, all this law does, is hurt the tourists.

-The ever changing bar closing times. Seems to always happen during high season. New big police guy wants more money so he starts forcing the bars closed early. Again, the all the Thai's know where they can go sneak a drink, all this law does, is hurt the tourists. The Govt needs to take control of this. I'm sure the police can find other means of corruption to keep their pockets filled.

- Threatening alcohol bans during Songkran, the biggest holiday of the year and then at the last minute banning cars and public consumption. Great way to ruin Songkran.

- As someone previously mentioned, political stability is a big one. Looking over the past few years, every problem ties back to a single root cause. Instead of spending money on tourism advertisements, the Thai Govt would be much better off putting a bounty on Thaksin's head. Somebody out there in the world has got to be capable of finding this troublemaker and putting him (and the rest of the country) out of his misery.

Just my $0.02,

-Mestizo

[Ulysses G.]

Has tourism ever been good in Chiang Mai? I know loads of tourists come here each year but there are more farang restaurants/bars/boutique hotels being built that dilute the tourist dollars as well. It seems to be related: more tourists come, more tourists want to stay so open a business.

Businesses that make money from tourists also pay Thai pay checks, taxes, rents ect. It doesn't matter if more farangs stay here as they are paying their way just like immigrants with businesses in Western countries. They ADD to the economy, not "dilute" it.

[Ulysses G.]

I'm not complaining and I don't have my hand out. I work 7 days a week.

Yes you were, and 'standing in line with your hand out' means you are grabbing the tourist money, which you are, I believe..

Point out my complaint please.

I'm not sure. Would you say you used to 'stand in line with your hand out' for your paycheck at CMU every month and for the sandwiches that you were selling there? I'd just say working for a living.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Kick all the red shirts OUT of town.

Not many people left then.

Or did you forget how Chiang Mai votes? Short memory maybe..

Edited April 8, 2009 by WinnieTheKhwai

[Loaded]

Has tourism ever been good in Chiang Mai? I know loads of tourists come here each year but there are more farang restaurants/bars/boutique hotels being built that dilute the tourist dollars as well. It seems to be related: more tourists come, more tourists want to stay so open a business.

Businesses that make money from tourists also pay Thai pay checks, taxes, rents ect. It doesn't matter if more farangs stay here as they are paying their way just like immigrants with businesses in Western countries. They ADD to the economy, not "dilute" it.

I'm not sure you understood the point I'm trying to make: farang businesses rarely do well because there are so many of them.

[Ulysses G.]

Has tourism ever been good in Chiang Mai? I know loads of tourists come here each year but there are more farang restaurants/bars/boutique hotels being built that dilute the tourist dollars as well. It seems to be related: more tourists come, more tourists want to stay so open a business.

Businesses that make money from tourists also pay Thai pay checks, taxes, rents ect. It doesn't matter if more farangs stay here as they are paying their way just like immigrants with businesses in Western countries. They ADD to the economy, not "dilute" it.

I'm not sure you understood the point I'm trying to make: farang businesses rarely do well because there are so many of them.

Sorry, I see what you mean.

Edited April 8, 2009 by Ulysses G.

[Drew Aitch]

Businesses that make money from tourists also pay Thai pay checks, taxes, rents ect. It doesn't matter if more farangs stay here as they are paying their way just like immigrants with businesses in Western countries. They ADD to the economy, not "dilute" it.

This is true of course. Although my previous business wasn't aimed at tourists, it did cater for both Thais and foreigners. I used to have 6 Thais working for little ole me, and they were all happy campers. 4 of them got near on double their expected salary, and the 2 menial staff 30% more than the going rate for their job types. Of course, their salaries, and mine, went straight back into the local economy each and every month. So i created 6 jobs for locals for the duration of my time in business, and pumped a whole heap more into related businesses during the set-up and running of it.

I guess it's fair to say i was contributing to the Thai ecomomy, with the only complaints coming from the competition

Aitch