Why The Overrepresentation Of Brits In Thailand?

[nicolas18]

First off, this is NOT a complaint since I have nothing against Brits (I do have something against their food though but that's another matter ).

More seriously, I was wondering why there seems to be such a vast amount of British people in Thailand.

If we just look at demographics, countries like the US, Canada and Germany all have a much higher population. However, we see a lot less of those nationalities around here than we see Brits.

So, am I just wrong in assuming that there is an overrepresentation of Brits in Thailand compared to other Western nationalities? And if I'm not, why do so many British people decide to move to Thailand?

[Jingthing]

In regards to the US and Canada, the primary reason for the smaller numbers is the much greater DISTANCE between North America and Thailand than between Europe and Thailand.

Go to Mexico and compare the Brits vs. the Canadians and Americans and you will grasp the concept.

I also believe the U.K. population is much larger than Canada.

[nicolas18]

Sorry about Canada, I didn't check that one.

However, France has a population of 63mil and Germany should be in the 80ish. How many Frenchmen and Germans do you see in Thailand compared to Brits? The same goes for Spaniards, Italians, etc...

Still an enigma as far as I'm concerned...

[Jingthing]

English is the unofficial second language here. That could be a factor.

[webfact]

Thailands TAT has statistics on that but that covers arriving tourists only.

[nicolas18]

The same could be said about almost any country on Earth nowadays.

PS : Why on Earth doesn't Firefox let me place my new text UNDER the quote? Grr.

English is the unofficial second language here. That could be a factor.

[mca]

English is the unofficial second language here. That could be a factor.

Yeah I think it's the "relative ease" with which an English speaker can communicate here. Makes things run a lot more smoothly.

My friend is French and his 2 elderly parents visited him recently. Their English speaking skills were non-existent. On the odd occasion when my friend wasn't available to be with them they really struggled.

Compare to when my folks visit. Order some room service at the Pullman. No problem. The order taker speaks English. Even getting their laundry done at an outside laundry was a breeze. "You come back tomorrow morning." etc.

Even a tuk tuk driver could say "Big C 50 baht"

[LaoPo]

Sorry about Canada, I didn't check that one.

However, France has a population of 63mil and Germany should be in the 80ish. How many Frenchmen and Germans do you see in Thailand compared to Brits? The same goes for Spaniards, Italians, etc...

Still an enigma as far as I'm concerned...

Maybe it's because you do not speak French, German, Spanish and Italian, so you won't easily mix and/or notice what language they speak? For native English speaking people it's relatively easy to mix with one another but the Europeans do not mix that easy because of culture and above all language problems.

For me it's easy to tell and notice where they're from, including dialects although some of the Eastern European languages are sometimes a pain.

But the Brits (I'm not British) always found their way around to warmer climates, like the Dutch and Scandinavians.

There are LOTS of Swedes, Danish and Norwegians around who fled the cold and expensive booze, more so than Dutch or Belgians or French.

But, it's mainly the cold.

And, about the Brits, they were/are used to travel around the world to their former colonies and now new destinations and like Jingthing said the distance from the US to Thailand is a big factor but don't forget that in 2008 still more than 555,000 Americans found their way to LOS and that's just via Suvarnabhumi. In 2007 the number was even higher: 583.000.

That's not much less than the Brits: 2008/669.000 and 2007/702.000 but that number is nor completely correct as there are also direct flights to Phuket from the UK I believe.

LaoPo

[nicolas18]

LaoPo : Actually, I'm not a native speaker, I am Belgian and my native language is French .

[mca]

But, it's mainly the cold.

That's a good point too. At least in America you can travel from digging yourself out of a snow drift to lounging on the beach without having to pack a passport. You're still in your own country.

When my pal visited us last month the first thing he did after I gave him a beer in my back garden was to strip off his t-shirt and declare "This is lovely"

Yesterday at midday in a Thai "winter' I was hotter than the hottest day I ever experienced back in the UK in the height of summer.

Even having the sun go down at 6 pm or thereabouts is no hardship here for me. You can still sit at an outside restaurant and enjoy the warmth in the evening despite the dark.

Compared to a grey December back home with the car heater on full and dipped headlights at 4pm

No thanks.

[Thanyaburi Mac]

LaoPo : Actually, I'm not a native speaker, I am Belgian and my native language is French .

Two farangs in my mooban, me and the Italian guy across the soi. He speaks about 10 words of English, same in Thai, and my Italian is limited to vino, grappa, and spaghetti. Oh, forgot PIZZA, preferably from the local PIZZA Company outlet at Klong 10.

He's married to a Thai gal. They just returned from a 5-6 year stay in Rome a couple years back. Put their 14 year old daughter in Thai school where she's done right well. So if I need a translator, I wait for the wife or the daughter to be around.

Mac

[CelticBhoy]

^ It's all to do with the cold as far as I'm concerned!

[beano2274]

It is the language issue that is a major point, same as in Malaysia there are a lot of Brits.

But us Brits are spread around Thailand, whereas the Russian expats are mostly all in Pattaya.

From my experiences German do not like to go places if they are not understood, and most of the former East Germans do not speak English as a second language but Russian, so they would go to the former states or Pattaya. I base my experience on 12 years living and working in Germany.

Most Americans choose South America, as it is still close to home. But most Americans can choose another state as the weather is so different from one state to another.

[mca]

Two farangs in my mooban, me and the Italian guy across the soi. He speaks about 10 words of English, same in Thai, and my Italian is limited to vino, grappa, and spaghetti. Oh, forgot PIZZA, preferably from the local PIZZA Company outlet at Klong 10.

There used to be an older German guy in my soi nearly the same. He spoke no Thai or English and his Thai g/f spoke no English and limited German. Seeing as my German was (and still is) limited to stuff I picked up from war comics when I was a lad like "Achtung Spitfire!" and "Gott In Himmel!" interacting with him was limited to a wave as I drove past.

His social options were severely limited.

[jubby]

Nicolas18,

I was wondering the same thing about the over population of Belgians in my Village & surrounding Area.

Interesting you choose Canada and US as an Example , both suffered from an over population of Brits in the past as well.

Its the 'Bloody' Weather mate.

France and germany have a much better general Climate , especially in the south. Britain gets between 2 days and two weeks of sunsine a year on average. Not sure about Belgium

[GuestHouse]

Not so long ago the UK Pound was at a relatively high level against the Thai Bht remaining in the 60~73 Bht/£ range for a handful of years.

This favorable exchange rate combined with a boom in house prices and high bank interest rates back in the UK provided the economic 'power' to allow Brits to move/retire overseas.

You only need to recall posts on TV during this 'favorable' exchange rate period to see the large numbers of Brits moving to Thailand at that time - and of course when the GB Pound fell against the Bht the subsequent raft of Brits reporting they need to go home/find somewhere cheaper.

Under these circumstances I don't think the fact there are so many more Brits is at all surprising.

What is interesting and deserving of study is the demography of Brits who live in Thailand, not so much Gender, the reasons there are obvious, rather the age and socioeconomic class of Brits who come to living in Thailand.

(Oops, I've mentioned 'class' - never an easy subject for Brits).

[geriatrickid]

It's all about flight distances isn't it? Jump on a cheap Air Berlin flight and you're here in 10 hours if flying out of Germany. It's 12 hours or so for the rest of the Continent. Now for the high population zones of east coast US & Canada it's about 24-34 hours depending upon routings. It's <deleted> tiring. I know because I've been doing this route every few months for the past few years.

Airfare pricing is nonsensical.

I don't know about the rest of Thailand, but this year in Patong the place is swarming with Italians and Germans. Fewer Australians this year. (And yes I can spot them - the Australians are younger, better looking, happier looking folks) Lots of Swedish people and I'll surprise you with I haven't seen that many Brits. I'm sure they are around, but they are staying close to ground. What I see alot of are very rude North African French that are probably vying to take the crown of idiots away from the English lager lout brigade. They usually walk around shirtless and have buff bodies, so maybe the Thais tolerate the eye candy.

Maybe because you are Belgian you can't tell the difference between someone from New Zealand and England. True, they do look the same. However, if you are mistaking Australians for the English, well, that might explain it. Here's another tip to distinguish the Australians: When they smile, they have nice teeth. Maybe the British nationals stand out more for you because they tend to be elderly and in a country where the population is skewed towards youth, it is noticeable.

[mca]

Completely off topic but I'd just like to take my hat off to our Belgian friends for combining french fries and mayonnaise. Lovely!

[ronz28]

Americans are too busy traveling elsewhere. Top 15 international vacation destinations for Americans per 2009 Harris poll were:

1. Australia

2. Italy

3. Great Britain

4. France

5. Ireland

6. Germany

7. Japan

8. Greece

9. New Zealand

10. Spain

11. Canada

12. Switzerland

13. Mexico

14. Brazil

15. Jamaica

I think Americans would also go to the nearby Caribbean Islands or Hawaii and Central and South American counties like Costa Rica, Honduras, Chile, Ecuador, etc. before flying all the way to Thailand for a beach+ vacation.

[nicolas18]

Haha That is the one thing I miss about Belgium... French fries served with a choice of 40+ different sauces. And I mean, real fries, not the scrawny Mc Donalds ones.

Completely off topic but I'd just like to take my hat off to our Belgian friends for combining french fries and mayonnaise. Lovely!

[nicolas18]

Well, I just found this BBC article.

Almost one in 10 British citizens is living overseas, according to a study of people coming in and out of the UK.

Studies by the Institute for Public Policy Research, published on the BBC News website, indicate that at least 5.5m British-born people live abroad.

Figures suggest the rate of departure has been so great that population falls are only masked by immigration.

While Australia and Spain are the top locations, increasing numbers are heading to major Asian economies.

BBC News article

10%??? dam_n!

[alfieconn]

my mistake

[mca]

Americans are too busy traveling elsewhere.

I would imagine the poll is more about where Americans would like to go than where they actually go ron.

[alfieconn]

Sorry about Canada, I didn't check that one.

However, France has a population of 63mil and Germany should be in the 80ish. How many Frenchmen and Germans do you see in Thailand compared to Brits? The same goes for Spaniards, Italians, etc...

Still an enigma as far as I'm concerned...

You have answered the question yourself, the population is so low because most of the Brits have re-located to places such as Thailand . The real population is something like 160mil , lets hope they don't all return at the same time .

[Pdaz]

The reason so many Brits are here is because of their disatisfaction with their own country..

The Weather.

The High taxes.

Gormless Clown and his hopeless government.

Immigration.

Political correctness and the whole over mangement 'nanny state' nonsense.

The high cost of living.

The thought of a miserable retirement.

The lack of attractive women.

Contrast this with expats from other countries in the World.. You will find they are here for the same fun and great value.. But they never seem to be so disaffected and angry about their country of origin.

In over 20 years as an expat I've never though of returning to the UK but many of my Aussie, Kiwi and Euro friends look forward to returning home at some point in their life..

Basically Britain sucks ... Never used to... But now it's bu99ered beyond repair.

[OriginalPoster]

Americans are too busy traveling elsewhere. Top 15 international vacation destinations for Americans per 2009 Harris poll were:

1. Australia

2. Italy

3. Great Britain

4. France

5. Ireland

6. Germany

7. Japan

8. Greece

9. New Zealand

10. Spain

11. Canada

12. Switzerland

13. Mexico

14. Brazil

15. Jamaica

I think Americans would also go to the nearby Caribbean Islands or Hawaii and Central and South American counties like Costa Rica, Honduras, Chile, Ecuador, etc. before flying all the way to Thailand for a beach+ vacation.

Distance being a factor makes good sense though there seem to be exceptions to the rule. For instance, Americans seem to outnumber all other Western nationals combined throughout the Philippines.

[torrenova]

Not so long ago the UK Pound was at a relatively high level against the Thai Bht remaining in the 60~73 Bht/£ range for a handful of years.

This favorable exchange rate combined with a boom in house prices and high bank interest rates back in the UK provided the economic 'power' to allow Brits to move/retire overseas.

You only need to recall posts on TV during this 'favorable' exchange rate period to see the large numbers of Brits moving to Thailand at that time - and of course when the GB Pound fell against the Bht the subsequent raft of Brits reporting they need to go home/find somewhere cheaper.

Under these circumstances I don't think the fact there are so many more Brits is at all surprising.

What is interesting and deserving of study is the demography of Brits who live in Thailand, not so much Gender, the reasons there are obvious, rather the age and socioeconomic class of Brits who come to living in Thailand.

(Oops, I've mentioned 'class' - never an easy subject for Brits).

I think you have to add in the increase in property prices in traditional retirement places, such as Spain, France and Portugal. Coupled with the dramatic fall of the pound against the euro and the Euro zone became too expensive. In relative terms, Thailand became not only an option, but perhaps the only option.

[sharecropper]

What is interesting and deserving of study is the demography of Brits who live in Thailand, not so much Gender, the reasons there are obvious, rather the age and socioeconomic class of Brits who come to living in Thailand.

(Oops, I've mentioned 'class' - never an easy subject for Brits).

Au contraire. We don't have a problem with our old schooldays.

Your study would be more interesting spread across the whole expat community in Thailand I think.

[Boo]

Basically Britain sucks ... Never used to... But now it's bu99ered beyond repair.

and as an ex pat of 2o years you would know this how???

[mca]

And today ladies and gentlemen Boo will be posting in the style of Yoda.