Pattaya Is Thailand’s Role Model

[Rimmer]

Pattaya is Thailand’s role model

PATTAYA:--Pattaya has been selected as the official role model for other resort destinations in Thailand, according to the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB).

With a focus on MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, Exhibitions), Akapol Sorasuchart, outgoing president of TCEB, praised Pattaya as a resort leader for others to follow, having introduced many routes for international and domestic corporations, destination management companies and professional convention organisers.

Pattaya and Chonburi were identified offering six distinct types of activity ranging from adventure tourism to luxury tourism products.

Pattaya Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome reflected on the city’s long history of attracting tourists and holiday makers, but pointed that Pattaya now is interested in attracting more business travelers, especially as their spending profile tended to be about 25 percent higher.

Full story:http://pattayatoday.net/news/news-from-around-pattaya/pattaya-is-thailand%E2%80%99s-role-model/

--PATTAYA TODAY 2012-05-03

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[Payboy]

Pattaya to be a model city for entrepreneurialism

Quite a mouthful.

[Totster]

Gotta be a joke ?

Totster

[eTiMaGo]

Maybe they want to attract more US Secret Service guys?

[byjohnlafond]

Well of course...everybody already knows that. geesh

[petercool]

Why a joke ? I worked on communication strategies for Singapore Convention Bureau for some time and for many hotels in Thailand and what is being praised is the infrastructure and facilities put in place by the pros that bring in MICE visitors. That you might see any of that from your perspective does not negate its reality.

[thaidiver]

I was saying this all along, where else can rent a jet-ski and a trannie in the same afternoon! Role model for the world!

[BigJohnnyBKK]

I think the only positive point out of this is that Thailand needs another location that isn't completely oriented around the sex industry, but provides all the foreigner-friendly services, so that corporate event planners could (maybe) book their conferences and meetings without everyone thinking it's just a mongering boondoggle.

Individual "family" tourists with very open minds may be able to overlook the seedy side to some extent, but large international corporate planners can't leave themselves open to scandal.

Unfortunately the reputation of the whole country is largely tarred with that same brush, so they're at least pushing against a headwind in the MICE market.

[Gillespie]

So does this mean that all other resorts will be issued with a precisely calibrated complement of "resting" Russian gangsters, elderly British failures with advanced liver disease, and nasty restaurants serving nastier German sausages?

[GuestHouse]

OK but can Isaan supply the increased demand of more towns doing it the Pattaya way?

Edited May 3, 2012 by GuestHouse

[stevehaigh]

so other cities, if you want to become the sex tourism and crime hub of your country, check out Pattaya, but you probably already knew that.

[RichardSlack]

Obviously their mayor is having a laugh, or retarded. Or both.

[phl]

Funny thing is Pattaya always gets bashed, yet its jammed packed every weekend.

Pattaya in fact does have more to offer if one bothers to look.

Of course if you travel here and stay near Walking St or Soi Buakhao, all you see is the red light district, HOWEVER

Pattaya DOES have everything for everyone, just need to open your eyes and move away from the certain areas

[drdoom6996]

so other cities, if you want to become the sex tourism and crime hub of your country, check out Pattaya, but you probably already knew that.

I don't know Phuket have been trying to take the "Crime Hub" away from Pattaya. I have lived in the Pattaya area for 25 years and I know what it is and isn't. At this point I would not go to Phuket on a bet.

[StreetCowboy]

I think the only positive point out of this is that Thailand needs another location that isn't completely oriented around the sex industry, but provides all the foreigner-friendly services, so that corporate event planners could (maybe) book their conferences and meetings without everyone thinking it's just a mongering boondoggle.

Individual "family" tourists with very open minds may be able to overlook the seedy side to some extent, but large international corporate planners can't leave themselves open to scandal.

...

That would be Jomtien

[drdoom6996]

Funny thing is Pattaya always gets bashed, yet its jammed packed every weekend.

Pattaya in fact does have more to offer if one bothers to look.

Of course if you travel here and stay near Walking St or Soi Buakhao, all you see is the red light district, HOWEVER

Pattaya DOES have everything for everyone, just need to open your eyes and move away from the certain areas

+1

[sprq]

Another case of bad headline disease, which is rampant on this forum. This report is actually about Pattaya as a convention destination and nothing else. Even so, as some other people have said, its undoubted infrastructure advantages are outweighed by its super-seedy reputation, which will never go away.

[BigJohnnyBKK]

OK but can Isaan supply the increased demand of more towns doing it the Pattaya way?

Yes. You could divide up the total number of go-go/beer bars massage shops blowjob bars etc among a dozen destinations and 80% of the girls would still be sitting around waiting for punters instead of 90%, in fact they'd be happy to reduce the competition.

But of course as soon as prospects improved the limitless supply of rice farmers' daughters would just pour in at a faster rate.

[oldsailor35]

Gotta be a joke ?

Totster

No joke ! It means that all the entrepreneurial ladies from Isaan are at last to be recognized and appreciated for their talent and hard work, by the government.

[gtm2k]

The epitome of BS !

[Jim walker]

Pattaya was a magical place a few years ago but is starting to look like a bad version of Benidorm with so many tourists’/ Russians everywhere, but we still love it and live here.

[oldsailor35]

Funny thing is Pattaya always gets bashed, yet its jammed packed every weekend.

Pattaya in fact does have more to offer if one bothers to look.

Of course if you travel here and stay near Walking St or Soi Buakhao, all you see is the red light district, HOWEVER

Pattaya DOES have everything for everyone, just need to open your eyes and move away from the certain areas

Such as ?

[finnomick1]

^{This should be interesting....MICE -- More Interesting Curicular Exhibitions ( mainly on Walking Street )}

[blazes]

Funny thing is Pattaya always gets bashed, yet its jammed packed every weekend.

Pattaya in fact does have more to offer if one bothers to look.

Of course if you travel here and stay near Walking St or Soi Buakhao, all you see is the red light district, HOWEVER

Pattaya DOES have everything for everyone, just need to open your eyes and move away from the certain areas

"everything for everyone"??????????????????????????

Does it have an opera house or a symphony orchestra?

(Mind you, in fairness, you could ask that question of the whole of Thailand. And, btw, how come Japan, Korea and China manage to supply some of the best classical (western) musicians in the whole world, while Thailand has scarcely even heard of Beethoven (or Hitler for that matter)?

[ccarbaugh]

Does this mean that the rest of Thailand will become as much of a "rip-off" community as Pattaya?

I live in Bangkok, speak Thai and travel to Pattaya (at most) once a year.

All I see and hear from many Thais that live/work there is ways to get more money

out of the farangs. Over the decades, I have seen Thai society grow progressively

"money-centered" and noticeably "less friendly" towards farangs. I hope the rest of Thailand doesn't follow Pattaya's example and become a destination to go to just scam international guests.

[DrTuner]

I hope this doesn't mean other tourist traps will start to imitate Pattaya. I quite like it's originality, makes me feel oh so special living here. And ditto for turning Pattaya into a "Family/Business destination", I wonder if there will be a "Save Sin City" - movement in the nearby future.

The absolutely best side of Pattaya is that it very effectively keeps out all sorts of prudes, preachers, etc. That firewall is under pressure from the current trends

[Mikkihiiri]

I have been working in BKK for a German multinatinal company and we used to have meetings and conventions in and around Pattaya. It is nearer to BKK than other places like Hua Hin, for example, and offers a huge choice of first class resorts and hotels that are very well equipped to satisfy the needs of 200+ guests. Company meetings are always organized in a way that your time is already booked for various activities so not much time to hang around the streets, except maybe the last night. So I find Pattaya a convenient location for BKK based companies. You can always have a 3 days and 2 nights meetings in Phuket or Chiang Mai but that comes with much higher costs especially if you have to move a 200-300 of your employees. WITH A FOCUS ON MICE I agree that Pattaya is a good location. The place made a good improvement compared to 15-20 years ago and there are lots of places where to live in quiete areas and away from the party zone

[Theyreallrubbish]

No moral judgement on Pattaya, but it msut be a bit difficult for executives to stand up and explain at a shareholders' meeting why they held their work outing in Pattaya? Or tell all their executives they have to go and tell their wives that they're going to Pattaya for a company function.

At least Bangkok or Phuket the stigma and associations in people's minds isn't as bad.

[phl]

Does this mean that the rest of Thailand will become as much of a "rip-off" community as Pattaya?

I live in Bangkok, speak Thai and travel to Pattaya (at most) once a year.

All I see and hear from many Thais that live/work there is ways to get more money

out of the farangs. Over the decades, I have seen Thai society grow progressively

"money-centered" and noticeably "less friendly" towards farangs. I hope the rest of Thailand doesn't follow Pattaya's example and become a destination to go to just scam international guests.

Of course in Bangkok, Thai's NEVER scam foreigners, NEVER rip anyone off

AND of course after visiting Pattaya (at most) once per year you have learned and know all there is to know about Pattaya and its people

[metisdead]

A comment on moderation issues has been removed.