How Long Till All Russians Are Rounded Up

[stevenl]

The Russians are going no where they know who to pay , it's just a matter of amending the amount ,the TUK TUKs also know how corrupt the police etc are and that's why they have taken it upon themselves to try to do something about it .

Any bets on the Russians getting here in bigger numbers...

Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa app

With more and more signs going up 'no Russians welcome' and with more and more of the Thai businesses agitating against them, there will soon come a time when the big Russian tour agents will get too many complaints and stop selling Phuket in favour of Pattaya and maybe others.

[geriatrickid]

The Russians are in Phuket because the Pattaya market is saturated.

It may come as a shock for some, but many Russians find Pattaya as unpalatable as anyone else.

Look at the demographics of the Russian visitors. They are usually younger than the westerners and are often coming with their wives/girlfriends and/or families. They don't want want hassles nor are they easily intimidated. Many of them are educated and/or professionals. You can'tpush these people around as easily as you can retirees from Sweden or the 50+ crowd from Australia.

Be thankful the Russians are in Phuket. There is finally a group of people that will rip out the throats of the gangsters that scream at them and who will crack a few heads when they are attacked. The Russians took on Napoleon and Adolf. They survived Stalin. They know how to deal with bullies. . Anyone that wants to try and threaten the Russians is making a strategic error. If any Russians end up injured or dead, Putin will respond accordingly. He's no shrinking violet like his western counterparts. My money is on Russia.

[phuketrichard]

It's alright for farang to own a beer bar here and sell alcohol, and indirectly sell sex, but how many Russians have you seen buy a beer bar here? They are better off using their ability to speak and read a very difficult language and sell some trips to islands, or show Russians around the island, or show them real estate, or sell them activities or shows etc etc.

and the russian go go dancers on soi bangla an the touts trying to get u inside???

There undercutting the thais on the tours and trips and thtas what pisses the tukl tuk mafia off. Did u all see the latest poll on the Gazette, it was about Russians an most responders, ( expats and tourists) said that very little money from Russians makes it to the locals as there all on prebooked trips.

[NamKangMan]

It's alright for farang to own a beer bar here and sell alcohol, and indirectly sell sex, but how many Russians have you seen buy a beer bar here? They are better off using their ability to speak and read a very difficult language and sell some trips to islands, or show Russians around the island, or show them real estate, or sell them activities or shows etc etc.

and the russian go go dancers on soi bangla an the touts trying to get u inside???

There undercutting the thais on the tours and trips and thtas what pisses the tukl tuk mafia off. Did u all see the latest poll on the Gazette, it was about Russians an most responders, ( expats and tourists) said that very little money from Russians makes it to the locals as there all on prebooked trips.

Last I heard, it was 250 baht for a beer in the Russian go-go. They are targeting wealthy Russians and/or westerners. To my knowledge, there are only two Russian go-go bars on Bangla Road. They are hardly taking money out the nightlife scene on Bangla Road.

Who do you think drives the cars / minivans / buses / boats that the Russians use for transport instead of the tuk-tuks? Thai's drive them. They were taking away business from one Thai, and giving it to another Thai who was more reasonably priced.

Free market and competition is a concept the tuk-tuks do not understand, so they rebel against it.

Edited January 31, 2013 by NamKangMan

[NamKangMan]

The Russians are going no where they know who to pay , it's just a matter of amending the amount ,the TUK TUKs also know how corrupt the police etc are and that's why they have taken it upon themselves to try to do something about it .

Any bets on the Russians getting here in bigger numbers...

Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa app

With more and more signs going up 'no Russians welcome' and with more and more of the Thai businesses agitating against them, there will soon come a time when the big Russian tour agents will get too many complaints and stop selling Phuket in favour of Pattaya and maybe others.

I agree.

What amazes me is the tuk-tuks operate with the assistance of corruption, then when another group wants to operate through the use of corruption, they are against it. Seems like the tuk-tuks want to even monopolize corruption here.

Edited January 31, 2013 by LivinginKata
Off topic part of post removed

[eezergood]

Fair & equal opportunities for all - Just here some are more equal than others...........

[Notstupid30]

I say it’s only a matter of time before the Thai realize they shot themselves in the foot and say where all the tourist are gone... Plus it’s only a matter of time when the big brass in Bangkok say enough is enough ..

[LivinginKata]

I say it’s only a matter of time before the Thai realize they shot themselves in the foot and say where all the tourist are gone... Plus it’s only a matter of time when the big brass in Bangkok say enough is enough ..

That would be a long time coming ... if ever.

[Gary A]

The buzz word seems to be mafia. There may be a Russian mafia but it certainly is NOT controlled by Russians. Thailand is controlled by the police, politicians and the military. Depending on how the loot is split determines how much the Russians or any other nationality, for that matter, can afford to pay to the real bosses. I think the Phuket tuk tuks are directly controlled by the police so they are basically untouchable and no competition will be tolerated. As long as there is enough money to split up.it will be business as usual. If tourism is being affected, changes will no doubt be made by the higher up controllers. They are smart enough NOT to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs.

[KarenBravo]

I say it’s only a matter of time before the Thai realize they shot themselves in the foot and say where all the tourist are gone...

No, they won't, they'll blame everyone and anybody but themselves before accepting responsibility.

[MacChine]

Alex Tour is is owned by a Thai, he was hiring Russian speaking counter and tour guides without work permits. The problem is Russian speaking people, ( and they are not all Russian , but many nationalities that speak Russian,) travel on tours and use buses and minivans, ( which drive very badly, or did until two severe crashes last month. They have slowed down)

..hence the " stealing" of taxi and tuk- tuk customers. Yes it's called competition

The Thai owner has since shut his business down.

Russian speakers are mostly families and seem fine to me. They don't smile idiotically at nothing too much so that seems to make them into " unfriendly "

I prefer them to the drunken, grossly tattooed, sweating, bright pink sex tourists anyday, those guys are the worst.

You think it will happen, look at Jomtien !

I would like to know what did happen there between Thais and Russians What was the starting point and what is the situation today.

[Sharp]

The Russians are going no where they know who to pay , it's just a matter of amending the amount ,the TUK TUKs also know how corrupt the police etc are and that's why they have taken it upon themselves to try to do something about it .

Any bets on the Russians getting here in bigger numbers...

Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa app

Of course the Russian know who to pay, and they do pay. However, "tea money" has to be factored into your business plan. It is a liability - an expense - and it comes off your bottom line.

If they have to "amend the amount" as you put it, and the new "amount" means they will be passing higher running costs onto their customers, then, a holiday in Pattaya is now looking a lot cheaper than Phuket, and the business owner must also be thinking, "I can run the same business, with less tea money to pay, in Pattaya and no problems from tuk-tuk drivers."

So, the ussian business owner seriously considers moving his business. He can do so because, although there are thousands of Russian tourist coming to Thailand, the language barrier, both spoken and writen, does lend themselves to be a niche market. I notice you will only see Russians in an establishment that has a sign out the front writen in Russian.

The question also remains, if the Russians, like everyone else, are paying tea money and bribes to have Russian staff working, why are they being shut down???? They are paying for "protection." Why pay for protection if you are not being protected???? So, they know they are being ripped off.

This is another reason why I think many of them will be moving to Pattaya, they get better value for their corruption dollar. :) They pay their protection money and then it's "hands off" from officials and locals, and they are free to conduct their business, which we should not forget, employs a lot of Thai staff.

Some good points and I tend to agree with u but I still feel they will master the way through here and in the end do as they are doin in Pattaya the powers that be will eventually pave the way IMHO

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[NamKangMan]

The Russians are going no where they know who to pay , it's just a matter of amending the amount ,the TUK TUKs also know how corrupt the police etc are and that's why they have taken it upon themselves to try to do something about it .

Any bets on the Russians getting here in bigger numbers...

Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa app

Of course the Russian know who to pay, and they do pay. However, "tea money" has to be factored into your business plan. It is a liability - an expense - and it comes off your bottom line.

If they have to "amend the amount" as you put it, and the new "amount" means they will be passing higher running costs onto their customers, then, a holiday in Pattaya is now looking a lot cheaper than Phuket, and the business owner must also be thinking, "I can run the same business, with less tea money to pay, in Pattaya and no problems from tuk-tuk drivers."

So, the ussian business owner seriously considers moving his business. He can do so because, although there are thousands of Russian tourist coming to Thailand, the language barrier, both spoken and writen, does lend themselves to be a niche market. I notice you will only see Russians in an establishment that has a sign out the front writen in Russian.

The question also remains, if the Russians, like everyone else, are paying tea money and bribes to have Russian staff working, why are they being shut down???? They are paying for "protection." Why pay for protection if you are not being protected???? So, they know they are being ripped off.

This is another reason why I think many of them will be moving to Pattaya, they get better value for their corruption dollar. They pay their protection money and then it's "hands off" from officials and locals, and they are free to conduct their business, which we should not forget, employs a lot of Thai staff.

Some good points and I tend to agree with u but I still feel they will master the way through here and in the end do as they are doin in Pattaya the powers that be will eventually pave the way IMHO

Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa app

What's wrong with what they are doing in Pattaya? Everyone's happy. The monthly bribes and tea money is coming in. The Russian business owner is making some money. The Russian tourists are happy because they have a Russian tour guide and interpreter and are with other Russians for their holiday. The Thai staff are happy because they have a job.

Thai's have been employing Burmese, Laotians, Vietnamese and Cambodians - all illegally - paying them next to nothing, for years. If a few young Russians want a working holiday in Thailand, mainly due to their language skills, I don't see a problem with it. Yes, it's illegal, but so is Thai staff employing other nationalities, at cheaper rates, in occuptaions reserved for Thai's.

Whilst Russians are not high net worth tourists, it's still good business for the Thai tourism industry to have them here.

You make it sound like the Russians are "sneaking" into Thailand. They're not. It's within view of everyone and the Thai officials have full knowledge of what's going on. Of course, just like a beer bar paying tea money to open past 2am, they have to pay to have a Russian staff member. That's staff member is doing a job a Thai can't do, and that is, speaking, reading and writing fluent Russian and close to fluent English.

Edited February 1, 2013 by NamKangMan

[Sharp]

T.ry again as I said I kinda agree with u !! I certainly didn't mean sneak in as u put it I would defy any Russian to sneak anywhere ;-) just be clear I feel the Ruskys are the only ones with the bottle to do wot I would consider their right to run businesses in full view of all and compete with the locals hence the objections .

Wot I am saying is full credit to them and I do hope they are successful in Phuket it needs someone to knock this corrupt train off it's track.

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[jocko]

Fair & equal opportunities for all - Just here some are more equal than others...........

That quote is from Animal Farm by George Orwell which was Orwell 's take on The Russian revolution and Stalin you probably knew that so spot on for this topic

[eezergood]

Fair & equal opportunities for all - Just here some are more equal than others...........

That quote is from Animal Farm by George Orwell which was Orwell 's take on The Russian revolution and Stalin you probably knew that so spot on for this topic

At least 2 of us got it

[stiggy]

All this mafia talk,protection rackets etc etc ,unless your business is involved with nightclubs, prostituion,drugs,dodgy land deals or unlicensed utilities you will never have an issue.

The law is already set up to ensure the Thais win in big business's so no need for any low level mafia

14 years in business here, never been asked for protection money or felt threatened for simply running a business.

Now dealing with embedded corruption in gov departments etc that's a different matter, that no other nationality inc Russians could crack without actually running the country.A prospect to high, for even the most determined TV The Russians are coming conspirisist

Now I'm off to the beach to study one of the Russian advantages, fit women in micro bikinis

Edited February 3, 2013 by stiggy

[Shot]

All this mafia talk,protection rackets etc etc ,unless your business is involved with nightclubs, prostituion,drugs,dodgy land deals or unlicensed utilities you will never have an issue.

[taninthai]

Our Russian customers checked out today 1 day early after I told them our wifi is now only free for 15 minutes then 1 bht a minute,good riddance fed upvwith them sitting in restaurant on wifi for 2 days not buying any drinks, we run a bar and restaurant not an Internet cafe....

Edited February 3, 2013 by taninthai

[jocko]

Our Russian customers checked out today 1 day early after I told them our wifi is now only free for 15 minutes then 1 bht a minute,good riddance fed upvwith them sitting in restaurant on wifi for 2 days not buying any drinks, we run a bar and restaurant not an Internet cafe....

I agree with what you say but I have seen other nationally trying that one on the want you to give them your passkey and then stand outside using your Wi-Fi connection

[taninthai]

Sent from my GT-P7500 using Thaivisa Connect App

Yeah our wifi is limited to 5 gb a month so we offer it to customers free of charge for checking emails ad booking hotel rooms only, have signs up everywhere saying no skype downloading or playing on facebook for hours and still they wanna sit there all day on wifi, absolutely drives us crazy, anyway that would be a whole new topic.....

[mikebike]

Russian tourists of 2012 = the Ugly American tourists of 1962... They've only just developed a mobile middle class folks, give 'em 50 years to catch up!

[Gregory Morozov]

Sent from my GT-P7500 using Thaivisa Connect App

Yeah our wifi is limited to 5 gb a month so we offer it to customers free of charge for checking emails ad booking hotel rooms only, have signs up everywhere saying no skype downloading or playing on facebook for hours and still they wanna sit there all day on wifi, absolutely drives us crazy, anyway that would be a whole new topic.....

If you have such limits on the internet connection why don't you install the coupon system? Will set you back about 8000 baht including the installation...

[taninthai]

Never heard of it ,but since we have no electric llines,telephonelines or mains water supply to our place I'd say it's impossible to install at our location

[Guest]

Never heard of it ,but since we have no electric llines,telephonelines or mains water supply to our place I'd say it's impossible to install at our location

This sounds interesting. Where is the location?

I suppose you are using mobile broadband (3G/HSPA) and share the connection with wifi.

It's possible to do some kind of coupon system, but the simplest way is to simply change the encryption key on daily basis.. and tell that to the customers. Or use MAC address restrictions.

How do you do electricity? Solar panels with batteries or aggregator?

[taninthai]

^

spot on use a galaxy tab with true 3g and share the connection , generator runs 7pm - 6 am.

[HerbalEd]

I stand corrected was his 'residence' in Pattaya?

My understanding is he flew into Bangkok for a meeting with some Columbian rebels to do a deal to supply them with heavy weapons. The Columbian rebels were actually undercover American DEA agents and they arrested him on an INTERPOL warrant.

I don't think he lived in Pattaya. He may have visited Pattaya, but I could be wrong.

FWIW ... It's Colombia, not Columbia. Actually Colombia is probably the world's most misspelled country.

[Gregory Morozov]

Never heard of it ,but since we have no electric llines,telephonelines or mains water supply to our place I'd say it's impossible to install at our location

This sounds interesting. Where is the location?

I suppose you are using mobile broadband (3G/HSPA) and share the connection with wifi.

It's possible to do some kind of coupon system, but the simplest way is to simply change the encryption key on daily basis.. and tell that to the customers. Or use MAC address restrictions.

How do you do electricity? Solar panels with batteries or aggregator?

None of the suggested solutions solves the problem of the client draining the whole 5 Gb in one day with torrent downloading. With the tickets you can limit time, total download upload limit and max rate. As far as you can power a small router, notebook and occasionally a regular printer to print ticket sheets you can use the system.

[Guest]

None of the suggested solutions solves the problem of the client draining the whole 5 Gb in one day with torrent downloading. With the tickets you can limit time, total download upload limit and max rate. As far as you can power a small router, notebook and occasionally a regular printer to print ticket sheets you can use the system.

You are correct on that one. However that setup would require some hardware, for example openwrt router to be setup and maintenanced. It could be an overkill when shooting an social mosquito with an technical shotgun.

[DavidHouston]

The Ministry of Sports and Tourism should institute a series of crash courses in the Russian language, just like they did for English years ago. If a massive program were instituted all over the country, the "Russian" guide problem could be solved in a year or two. The Ministry could hire Russian nationals to teach the language in Bangkok and in the universities withe tourism programs, like Songkla Nakarin University in Phuket. Short courses could be given in the Ratchapat Universities or even in the technical schools. Targeted learning can work wonders.

For Thailand, Russian tourism is a gold mine; the Thai powers-that-be should take full advantage of the opportunities.