In the last month or so, I'm seeing far more farangs around, both Sukhumvit-On Nut junction area and in the MBK/Siam Square/Ratprasong type areas, also in places like Seacon, Central Bang Na and the new Paradise. My building has gone from one (me) to four British in the last two months. (Source - Mk-I eyeball)

In the last month or so, I'm seeing far more farangs around, both Sukhumvit-On Nut junction area and in the MBK/Siam Square/Ratprasong type areas, also in places like Seacon, Central Bang Na and the new Paradise. My building has gone from one (me) to four British in the last two months. (Source - Mk-I eyeball)

So things must be really getting bad back in the UK.

I will take a lot of flack for this, but Chiang Mai tourism is building up slowly like it always does a month before the Loy Katung holiday.

Will it be a banner year? No.

The world economy is terrible and the red shirts antics did not help anything, but it looks like it will not be too bad (barring any more widespread red shirt violence) and beggars can't be choosers.

I admire your optimism. The bars of lower Sukhumvit were fairly dead last Friday evening although things did appear to pick up later on. Maybe the rain was also a factor.

this is because the NEW BREED of tourists going to Thailand is not interested in that.

NEW BREED = Chinese Mainlanders, Indians, Middle-East. those people will not patronize Beer-Bars.

the numbers of Tourists are growing again indeed, but they are not the kind of FARANG that used to be the backbone of Thai hospitality business income for decades.

the times they are a-changing......

I'm with SpolioOpima on this one. When was October or the first half of November anything other than low season over the last five years? Europeans and North Americans have only just finished their Summer hols and the weather isn't cold enough in Falangland to entice people into the end of a rainy season.

And the answer to my question is ... only in the minds of some hotels who like to kid themselves they can charge higher prices by renaming low season as high.

I will take a lot of flack for this, but Chiang Mai tourism is building up slowly like it always does a month before the Loy Katung holiday.

Will it be a banner year? No.

The world economy is terrible and the red shirts antics did not help anything, but it looks like it will not be too bad (barring any more widespread red shirt violence) and beggars can't be choosers.

I admire your optimism. The bars of lower Sukhumvit were fairly dead last Friday evening although things did appear to pick up later on. Maybe the rain was also a factor.

this is because the NEW BREED of tourists going to Thailand is not interested in that.

NEW BREED = Chinese Mainlanders, Indians, Middle-East. those people will not patronize Beer-Bars.

the numbers of Tourists are growing again indeed, but they are not the kind of FARANG that used to be the backbone of Thai hospitality business income for decades.

the times they are a-changing......

A younger breed too that haven't been divorced with 2 kids, bitching about the exchange rate and how their fat knacker of a wife took them to the cleaners and all western women are.....

To start with the exchange rates with most western countries is crap.The price of air fare is UP the price of a room in Thailand is UP.The perception that Thailand is in turmoil and dangerous is true.People are now really starting to belive that the Thais are out to rip all of the tourists off.True or not does not matter it is the perception.