How Is Your High Season?

[Ulysses G.]

Chiang Mai is chock full of tourists right now. It seems like there are more than December or January. Also, the bars are packed with both wayward young ladies in need of money and their fat, bald, tattooed, hansum man suitors.

How is your high season going?

Edited February 15, 2010 by Ulysses G.

[Bedrockguesthouse]

In Ban Phe opposite Koh Samet Island there are many Scandanavians, French around and our guesthouse is has basically been full since December 1. Even now we are running at 90% occupancy

Cheers Bedrock Guesthouse

[jdinasia]

Chiang Mai DOES seem busier than in the past couple of years when i have been up here but I am no judge on anything other than appearances with this having just moved up here.

In fact I am having just a bit of culture shock! I have lived in BKK most of my time in Thailand and on the outer edge in a greenbelt area. Few foreignes and no tourists around there. The year I was in Phuket was in a small beach town that was not heavily touristed as well.

I am loving Chiang Mai more and more ... honestly when I was a tourist up here it was "ok" but living here has been GREAT so far.

[gpdjohn]

Well, I did see one ( 1 ) white woman in the Big C the other day... that's not normal.

Not too many "tourists" out here in the sticks, and if they're out here they are either on their way to Poipet or lost.

Glad to see Cm is busy.

[IanForbes]

Well, considering that I never get high... except on natural stimuli, I guess it's going well. The past two months sure flew by, though. My stable is now down to two, but that's enough to keep me smiling, and fits into my budget nicely. I have seen a fair number of tourists in the bars along Loi Kroh when I drive by, and there DOES seem to be more people than in December and January. Maybe some people planned it that way to keep away during the supposedly "high season". My hotel just outside of the city core has often been full to capacity, but they only have 48 rooms and are fairly inexpensive. It's mostly Thais here, and Thais DO know where to find the cheaper places.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Chiang Mai is chock full of tourists right now.

Are we living in the same Chiang Mai? ? Sure there's some people about, but chock full of tourists to me means something different.. Like, Patong in December/January or something.

[longstebe]

I'm sure a farang has just passed my house out in the sticks. Gonna be big news here.

Apart from that, not much happening in the Phu Phan mountain range.

[Ulysses G.]

Chiang Mai is chock full of tourists right now.

Are we living in the same Chiang Mai? ? Sure there's some people about, but chock full of tourists to me means something different.. Like, Patong in December/January or something.

Yes we are, but why would you compare Chiang Mai with Patong? Patong always has had way more tourists than Chiang Mai. There are a lot of tourists in Chiang Mai in comparison with the last few years.

[barrella]

Bangkok

In general the same as last year but more quite than the year before last.

Our places are more busy by about (guessing here) 50% up like by like.

Our friends in the same business are about 30% down minimum.

[Lancelot]

When I submitted my retirement renewal at Pattaya Immigration (Feb 11) the farang volunteer informed me "We are busier this year than last." Seems to me a ton of Ruskies in town as well

[chiang mai]

Patong is certainly chocka at present, all the major hotels, Marriot, Burasari, Holiday Inn, Mercure all 100%+, at least one of those hotels is sending overflow guests elsewhere.

[SpoliaOpima]

Cha-am and Hua Hin also full to capacity.

[britmaveric]

I would think UG would know, and being busy compared to previous years would be easy to judge.

[JUDAS]

Koh Tao. Busy busy busy

[venturalaw]

Chiang Mai is chock full of tourists right now.

Are we living in the same Chiang Mai? ? Sure there's some people about, but chock full of tourists to me means something different.. Like, Patong in December/January or something.

"Chock full" ??? Some are rather prone to a wee bit of exaggeration I think. Even TOT wouldn't make such ludicrous comments. The facts certainly don't support such wild claims. Maybe there is a personal reason for talking up Chiangmai tourism. None of the travel agents in town would agree with Ulysses.

You don't get out much do you? There are more tourists currently in Chiang Mai than I have seen in a very long time. Because you apparently are unaware of what is going on, it is pathetic to conger up dubious claims of 'personal reasons' for those who are happy that the tourists are enjoying what those of us who do get out celebrate as a wonderful city.

[Ricardo]

There are a lot of tourists in Chiang Mai in comparison with the last few years.

Good to hear ... the town needs the business.

[MJP]

This all sounds very encouraging.

I've heard from folks on the eastern seaboard that trade has picked up suddenly. All seems to be well.

[BigWheelMan]

Are there two Chiang Mai`s?

The one where I live seems deader than a Dodo.

Edited February 15, 2010 by BigWheelMan

[NancyL]

Well, I live on a "quiet" soi in Chiang Mai and here it is, almost 2 am and the "condo restaurant" next door is still full of westerners drinking cheap beer and talking loudly. The good news is they don't play music or karoke at the "restaurant". The bad news is that all the customers at the bar are western and speak English, which means we can understand every word they speak (or rather slur) from our bedroom.

When we rented the place we were told the restaurant "just serves the condo" and "they shut down at midnight" Yeah, when they don't have any customers. At 12:15 am tonight I stuck my head into the place and found it full. I noticed my Thai across-the-street neighbor sticking her head out her door and tapping her watch. We're not the only ones annoyed.

Where is the dead part of Chiang Mai? I'd love to send our next-door "neighbors" there.

[Ulysses G.]

Are there two Chiang Mai`s?

The one where I live seems deader than a Dodo.

Either you are blind, deaf and dumb or you don't venture into tourist areas. The whole Night Bazaar, Loi Kroh Road and Thapae Gate area had plenty of tourists last night and both Duke's were packed to the rafters.

[thaimiller]

Are there two Chiang Mai`s?

The one where I live seems deader than a Dodo.

Either you are blind, deaf and dumb or you don't venture into tourist areas. The whole Night Bazaar, Loi Kroh Road and Thapae Gate area had plenty of tourists last night and both Duke's were packed to the rafters.

well I went for a beer about 8.30 last night to the What bar and Loi Kroh was dead, there was only a few people on the entire street. Unless there is another Loi Kroh road that has kidnapped all the tourists.

Edited February 16, 2010 by thaimiller

[Ulysses G.]

I visited Kevin Hunt at The Red Lion in the Night Bazaar about the same time and Loi Khoh Road was so crowded we could barely move. Ian Forbes stopped by and can verify this.

[anonymouse]

I guess UG being a Chiang Mai buisness owner, has some idea how busy or not this high season is

I was out and about on Sunday, there seemed to be a lot of tourists about compared to usual, maybe because it is a later Chinese New Year than usual?

A lot of Expats from China maybe?

I visited the walk street area for the first time in a couple of years and it was packed with tourists, as was Gad Suan Gaow and the area around warawot where the Chinese New Year festivities were, not sure about the rest of town.

[thaimiller]

I visited Kevin Hunt at The Red Lion in the Night Bazaar about the same time and Loi Khoh Road was so crowded we could barely move. Ian Forbes stopped by and can verify this.

Well maybe because its at the opposite ends of Loi Kroh, but the top end was really quiet. I didn't venture down as far as the red lion.

[alfieconn]

I visited Kevin Hunt at The Red Lion in the Night Bazaar about the same time and Loi Khoh Road was so crowded we could barely move. Ian Forbes stopped by and can verify this.

To be fair, saying that "Loi khoh Rd was so crowded" if it is only the last 50 metres going into the night bazaar is a bit misleading

[Ulysses G.]

I usually walk down the whole street, but I took a songteaw last night straight to the Night Bazaar. However, the night before that, there was plenty of girls and plenty of punters in the area with all the bars.

Edited February 16, 2010 by Ulysses G.

[alfieconn]

I visited Kevin Hunt at The Red Lion in the Night Bazaar about the same time and Loi Khoh Road was so crowded we could barely move. Ian Forbes stopped by and can verify this.

Well maybe because its at the opposite ends of Loi Kroh, but the top end was really quiet. I didn't venture down as far as the red lion.

What you are saying is that you only venture as far as the girlie bars, i suppose this is to help with the socialisaion of your lovely looking dog .

[thaimiller]

I visited Kevin Hunt at The Red Lion in the Night Bazaar about the same time and Loi Khoh Road was so crowded we could barely move. Ian Forbes stopped by and can verify this.

Well maybe because its at the opposite ends of Loi Kroh, but the top end was really quiet. I didn't venture down as far as the red lion.

What you are saying is that you only venture as far as the girlie bars, i suppose this is to help with the socialisaion of your lovely looking dog .

I went to The What, not exactly the bar to go to for girls. The dog stayed at home, he's more into his tecno music so he likes bubbles more

Edited February 16, 2010 by thaimiller

[alfieconn]

I usually walk down the whole street, but I took a songteaw last night straight to the Night Bazaar. However, the night before that, there was plenty of girls and plenty of punters in the area with all the bars.

I don't think bar-girls are classified as tourist's and perhaps you should have said small parts of Loi khoh rd were crowded to give a correct description.

[caf]

Well, we've moved on from "Chiang Mai is chock full of tourists right now" to comments that certain sois or parts of sois are so busy "we could barely move".

And "we" seems to be just three quoted people (two of whom have not posted though they might now join the support I suppose rather than have words put into their mouths). Comments from TOT or travel agents don't seem to warrant any cyberspace.

I agree with Bigwheelman Thaimiller and Alfieconn. The thread is very misleading but it's fun to see someone digging into a bigger and bigger hole. Booksellers should file this thread under F for fiction

What a laugh

caf

Edited February 16, 2010 by caf