Why The Overrepresentation Of Brits In Thailand?

[grantbkk]

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.

Until 9/11 only 7% of Americans had passports. You didn't need a passport to visit Canada, Mexico or nearby foreign islands in the Caribbean. Now a higher percentage have passports to travel "locally". The USA is a big place and most people are either afraid to leave the confines of the country or just find whatever they need within the US. Most from my country think Thailand is a small island on the other side of the Pacific.

I think economics, distance and the weather are the reason we see so many British here. Since so many of them come it stands to reason that when they go native there is going to be more of them staying. Many UK expats tell me the country is being taken over by immigrants and that 50% tax rate probably doesn't help. Now we've all immigrated here and the Thais feel were taking over. It never ends.

[GuestHouse]

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.

I agree, I was in Pai last week and it was quite noticeable that the demography of expats living in Pai is different from say Pattaya, Hua Hin, Patong (there's even a quite distinct body shape - beer induced obesity among expats being almost the norm in some parts of Thailand and virtually absent among expats in other parts of Thailand).

As you say, this would make an very interesting study.

[IMA_FARANG]

Americans have Mexico, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Florida, and California relitively close by for the beach vacation spots they can use to escape the cold winter weather.

South America and Central America is also relitively close and prices are cheap there.

And then there are the Carribean islands also, Jamacia and the Virgin Islands.

They are a much shorter flight than the 12 hour or more flight across the Pacific to Thailand.

Still, one of the most sucessful newspaper ads that Thai International ever ran, was run in newpapers in Chicago, Illinois.

It happened to coincide with a spell of very cold Artic air from Canada moving down into the U.S. Temperatures were in the teens (fahrenheit) with about a 30 mile an hour wind coming off the lake. It was bitterly cold weather.

It simply showed a young Thai girl on the beach, wearing a bikini. The caption simply said, "January 5th, Pattaya, Thailand". The Thai flights were full for a month after that ad.

P.S. There used to be a group of Americans, many retired military, up around Korat. Many were Ameericans who got hooked on Southeast Asia during the Vietnam war...either in Vietnam or Thailand. Unfortunately, most of them are gone now (after all, it has been since 1975 that the Vietnam war ended).

[bangsaenguy]

Bear in mind that Americans get much less vacation time than Europeans

[GuestHouse]

Bear in mind that Americans get much less vacation time than Europeans

And middle aged American Men perhaps don't retrieve as much of a residue from their marriages at divorce as their British cousins

[dumball]

Over the years of reading comments on both this and other forums by British posters , plus reports gleaned from the BBC and other writings , I would like to pass my own consensus on why 'True Brits ' have made exodus from their land of birth so popular .

With the 'Open passport' afforded to so many different nationalities in such an ambigous manner by British goverments over so many years , Britain slowly became flooded with people so many Brits found it difficult to aligne with , they had infiltrated , and taken away , what Brits thought of as the British way of life .

England was no longer suitable for them or their families to grow in the British traditional manner , they had to learn to bend to the minorities expected way of life and the traditions they had flooded the country with . The Britain I grew up in , loved and enjoyed , was no longer the same place in so many ways , Brits were never too open to radical changes or thinking , this was despite the fact that over the years of England being a shipping power of the world , many people of many stripes had had been brought to sailors 'Home country ' , those immigrants had assimilated well into the local populace , I know , I went to school with many of them , they had become as British as their school-mates .

My two penuth .

[KhunDave]

Well as I type, it's 4.30am, minus 6 degrees and snowing here in England. I can only concur with the conclusions above that "it's the weather".

Why oh why did I ever agree to visit my home country in JANUARY!!! Stupid, stupid, stupid.....

[GuestHouse]

Let me get this right.

Britons couldn't cope with living with foreigners in Britain so they go to living at the other side of the globe in society as far removed from that of Britain as Thailand.

Something doesn't add up.

The exodus in search of Cold Beer and Luke Warm Women sounds a far more plausible hypothesis..... oh and of course the search for culture.

[nicolas18]

It always amuses me to see people who immigrated to Thailand complain about those dam_n immigrants in their home country.

Take your post, dumball, replace every "brit" or "britain" with Thai or Thailand, and it could easily describe the situation in LOS regarding the way some farangs act here.

[bonobo]

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

Second that!  

[lazygourmet]

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!

So do I Nicolas, I am a Belgian French speaker, as well...

But anyway... if you are remembering before 1986, our "expat from outre-Manche" neighbors were living in mass in Spain and Portugal.

Suddenly, when both Iberic countries join the EEC, many of them made a move to better climate

Torremolinos just come to my mind...

[lazygourmet]

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

Second that!

French fries only exist for the Anglo-Saxon...

"La Frite" is Belgian

[cognos]

is this urban myth?? I heard ( in general) the first sex pats arriving in great numbers ( in Pattaya ) were Germans, followed by the Brits, and now the Russians

signed: word spreads quickly

[siggie2]

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.

VERY VERY TRUE MATE.

The last time i read about tourists in Pattaya was the brits are number 8 so you must be talking of expats

[siggie2]

is this urban myth?? I heard ( in general) the first sex pats arriving in great numbers ( in Pattaya ) were Germans, followed by the Brits, and now the Russians

signed: word spreads quickly

Cant agree about the Ruskies as most come here with their family

[givenall]

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

I think it come from history, that Brits like to go to nicer places to live and sometimes colonize the place. Africa, India, Asia, etc.

[samtam]

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

"vast" ?

"in Thailand" ?

can you quantify and qualify?

I'm always amazed at how much weather there is in the world.....

[cdnvic]

Americans have tropics within their own borders, and right next door. Canadians have access to cheap holidays in Mexico, no passport needed, that are all-inclusive for the price of airfare alone to Bangkok. Brits don't have such luxuries so it makes sense they would travel a bit more.

[Pdaz]

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???

Beacause I'm 45 years old, spent most of my younger years in the UK and still visit it/pass thru it several times a year on business travel.. I'm in touch with my relatives there and Many of my collegues are from the UK, some still living there, I keep in touch with the financial health of the country and the way it is governed as it all has an affect on my work and finances... Sorry to say just because I have lived in South East Asia for almost half my life it doesn't mean I have been living in isolation..

Of course it is only my opinion.. But the rate at which people have been leaving the UK and the current disatisfaction towards the place goes some way to affirm what I believe...

[OriginalPoster]

Of course it is only my opinion.. But the rate at which people have been leaving the UK and the current disatisfaction towards the place goes some way to affirm what I believe...

The odd thing is that when one talks to Brits in Thailand one gets the impression that they are even more dissatisfied with every other nation on earth than they are with the UK.

[yabaaaa]

It always amuses me to see people who immigrated to Thailand complain about those dam_n immigrants in their home country.

Take your post, dumball, replace every "brit" or "britain" with Thai or Thailand, and it could easily describe the situation in LOS regarding the way some farangs act here.

I dont see many Brits bleeding the Thai benefit system dry..................... do you?

[sharecropper]

It always amuses me to see people who immigrated to Thailand complain about those dam_n immigrants in their home country.

Take your post, dumball, replace every "brit" or "britain" with Thai or Thailand, and it could easily describe the situation in LOS regarding the way some farangs act here.

Think you are not looking at it the right way. Most farangs move to Thailand with their own finances which in turn goes to Thailand, the immigrants that try to get into England are mainly from the EEC with sod all in their pockets to milk the system, even terrorists have handouts and houses given them as history has shown. That's the difference. The government has LOST 500,000 immigrants in the UK in resent years (sure somebody will correct me ) Where are they, where are their tax payments etc. In London it's unbelievable the number of people who cannot speak much English, and l know cos l had a shop there.

Blimey. Where do I start?

Or just not bother.

[siggie2]

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???

Beacause I'm 45 years old, spent most of my younger years in the UK and still visit it/pass thru it several times a year on business travel.. I'm in touch with my relatives there and Many of my collegues are from the UK, some still living there, I keep in touch with the financial health of the country and the way it is governed as it all has an affect on my work and finances... Sorry to say just because I have lived in South East Asia for almost half my life it doesn't mean I have been living in isolation..

Of course it is only my opinion.. But the rate at which people have been leaving the UK and the current disatisfaction towards the place goes some way to affirm what I believe...

Does Boo live in the uk????

[Pdaz]

Of course it is only my opinion.. But the rate at which people have been leaving the UK and the current disatisfaction towards the place goes some way to affirm what I believe...

The odd thing is that when one talks to Brits in Thailand one gets the impression that they are even more dissatisfied with every other nation on earth than they are with the UK.

Maybe they were used to perfection.. Only joking..

Yes Brits do seem to complain alot.. I hear alot of guys moaning about how this place isn't like UK or cos they can't buy Branston pickle or some such.. Guess it will depend on how you are able to adapt.. For me I went 'native' years back and feel far more at 'home' in Asia.. The UK has changed so much since my youth I don't feel I have much in common with it now despite frequent visits.. It just isn't the country I remember as being 'England'

[SantiSuk]

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.

Another classic sweeping generalisation on TV. Many of the Brits I know would recognise those factors but would not be so 'never going back' bitter.

[dumball]

transam' date='2010-01-03 12:07:13' post='3241032']

'nicolas18' post='3240964' date='2010-01-03 11:40:34']It always amuses me to see people who immigrated to Thailand complain about those dam_n immigrants in their home country.

Take your post, dumball, replace every "brit" or "britain" with Thai or Thailand, and it could easily describe the situation in LOS regarding the way some farangs act here.Think you are not looking at it the right way. Most farangs move to Thailand with their own finances which in turn goes to Thailand, the immigrants that try to get into England are mainly from the EEC with sod all in their pockets to milk the system, even terrorists have handouts and houses given them as history has shown. That's the difference. The government has LOST 500,000 immigrants in the UK in resent years (sure somebody will correct me ) Where are they, where are their tax payments etc. In London it's unbelievable the number of people who cannot speak much English, and l know cos l had a shop there.

Thank you for the clarification , some posters do not take the time to 'Understand' a post or why it was written , what I wrote was an accumlutive consensus on what MANY OTHES HAD WRITTEN over some years , not from my own experience as I had migrated from jolly old England in the sixties to give my children a chance of a brighter future .

Most xpats in Thailand actualy CONTRIBUTE to the local economy , where-ever they come from , that should give them at least some small perogative of making complaints , take them for what and why these complaints are made . Some you will agree with , some you will not , but what this all adds up to is " Food for thought " , the Brits could be ligitimate complainers , their goverments had allowed immigrants to change the face and traditions of their country , in Thailand they almost need a permit to change their underware .

No bias or illwill intended to or for TV members .

[KhaoNiaw]

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.

Brits have a long long history of leaving their own shores, never to return. A couple or three hundred years or so. Some of the reasons you've listed here were being used then as well. I'll see if I can dig up a copy I had of an article about the British diaspora in The Economist a number of years ago, which had a few quotes from the 19th century that mirror some of your comments.

[Zodiac]

KN writes:

"Brits have a long long history of leaving their own shores, never to return"

That is correct. Also the Brit's have a history of conquering the world in one way or another. Hence why the English Language dominates many places.

Rule Brittania!

[sharecropper]

KhaoNiaow - it's not this one is it?

http://www.economist.com/businessfinance/d...ogin_payBarrier

Whilst it is interesting, this is more about working expat executives than the general Brit retiree/expat in Thailand. But you might be referring to another article?

[KhaoNiaw]

KhaoNiaow - it's not this one is it?

http://www.economist.com/businessfinance/d...ogin_payBarrier

Whilst it is interesting, this is more about working expat executives than the general Brit retiree/expat in Thailand. But you might be referring to another article?

No, not that one. The copy I have, or had (I'll need to go through boxes in the store cupboard), was from the early 90s if I remember rightly, and focused more on the history of the movement of the British abroad. But it certainly contains references to the weather and the government of the day, maybe even taxes and the cost of living. I don't remember anything said about the women though.

And one point made was that though the Brits may appear to be a whinging dissatisfied bunch, they are in fact pretty adaptable to local conditions.