Ministry Of Tourism Considering Yingluck's ' Thai Maldives' Proposal

[geriatrickid]

I'd wager 99% of those talking about turning Thailand into the Maldives couldn't even find it on a map.

That said, someone needs to get Chalerm on this. He'll have Thailand looking like the Maldives in three months.

Is that 99% can't find the Maldives on the map or can't find Thailand............or both?

Find it? Can they pronounce it?

Probably thinks the place is called Endives or Chives and is the magical land of vegetables.

[bigbamboo]

Oh my lord......

30 years too late on this one I fear.

Spot on.

Thailand is a paradise lost I'm afraid.

Now Burma is another matter...........

Edited June 5, 2013 by bigbamboo

[notmyself]

This is supposed to attract even greater revenue from high end tourists and right on cue TAT brings out figures to show yet another expected increase in tourism this year.

I really do believe that one day TAT's figures will reflect more tourists than the amount of people inhabiting this planet.

Sounds like the last Iranian election

[ricku]

Oh my lord......

30 years too late on this one I fear.

Spot on.

Thailand is a paradise lost I'm afraid.

Now Burma is another matter...........

Same thing will happen there.

Remember what Agent Smith from The Matrix said about humans.

Edited June 5, 2013 by ricku

[chooka]

Oh my lord......

30 years too late on this one I fear.

Spot on.

Thailand is a paradise lost I'm afraid.

Now Burma is another matter...........

Same thing will happen there.

Remember what Agent Smith from The Matrix said about humans.

Only if they turn to Thailand for advice.

[AleG]

First step would be to frogmarch the entirety of the Fisheries Department off a pier. and start anew with people who actually show some concern for the protection and the sustainability of the Thai seas.

[seminomadic]

So all together now.

Please clean the beaches and put in adequatew ater and waste treatment facilities in all the resorts

What? Are you mad? That would require an investment in infrastructure that won't generate an immediate profit. Cannot.

I say again. Cannot. As the hotels on Phuket have demonstrated, foreign visitors don't mind swimming with feces. The new tourists from the middle east, China and India, don't mind because Thailand is still cleaner than the places they come from.

RIGHT. Besides, those new tourists from the khaek countries just want to shop next to their manatee-shaped wives and get real forceful with bar/massage girls rather than swim anyway.

[Sing_Sling]

So all together now.

Please clean the beaches and put in adequatew ater and waste treatment facilities in all the resorts

What? Are you mad? That would require an investment in infrastructure that won't generate an immediate profit. Cannot.

I say again. Cannot. As the hotels on Phuket have demonstrated, foreign visitors don't mind swimming with feces. The new tourists from the middle east, China and India, don't mind because Thailand is still cleaner than the places they come from.

RIGHT. Besides, those new tourists from the khaek countries just want to shop next to their manatee-shaped wives and get real forceful with bar/massage girls rather than swim anyway.

As opposed to the svelte Brits, Aussies and Seppo beauties and their respective metrosexual, buffed husbands . . . yes, luckily we are so very different from those nasty Indians, Chinese etc . . . oh, throw Russians in as well as they seem to be particularly disliked by the 'Good' tourists

Burma, Malaysia, Maldives, Sri Lanka etc . . . lots of places as alternatives so it is up to the government, both local and federal, to both clean up their act and clean up the beaches

[Suffinator]

It'll never happen as their love affair with concreting everything is evident. Just look at he damage done to Phuket over the last 30 years.

[Suffinator]

Just look at the state of Phuket and Koh Racha Island so see just how ineffectual government officials are at stopping the continuous polluting of their environment. If they were not so corrupt maybe something could be achieved.

Thailand a Polluted and Toxic Dumping Ground

[Lancelot]

Devil's Advocate here: Would "Rich" tourist help the average Thai Tourisim more that the lowly Sex Tourist/Cheap Charlie/ Backpacker?

High spending tourists usually encapsulate them selves in 5 star luxury resorts and rarely venture out to spend money "on the street" so to speak. Where do the profits go, earned from those resorts? Sure, there would be jobs for maids, cooks and other staff, but even cheap charlies have to eat and the profit from a bowl of noodles goes into Noks pocket while the profits form XYZ Resorts go... where?

Nothing wrong with high end tourisim but the low spending segment probaby benefits the averag local more.

Just my two satang

[asiamaster]

"Many other islands attract foreign tourists to Thailand, even though they are not yet as famous as the Malives, for example, Chang islands. Thus, to follow in the words of the PM, the ministry will be coordinating with each province with islands in the Gulf of Thailand and Andaman Sea," the minister said.

could that possibly be because her family owns half of the island?

[DaveHKT]

"And the difference is ..... are primarily focused on the safety of tourists" said the Prime Minister

[madmitch]

If Yingluck were to visit Switzerland in winter, she'd probably return and suggest the tourism ministry set up a new ski resort in Khao Yai to attract high end winter sports tourists.

So I would take this with a pinch of salt (as usual).

[Boinhongkong]

"The Minister of Tourism said he′s ready to adopt the idea of turning Thailand into the new Maldives as proposed by PM Yingluck Shinawatra after her trip to the South Asian nation.

Previously, Ms. Yingluck has said that the Maldives have beautiful seascape and coral reefs for tourists to see, and Thailand possesses equally beautiful islands. But the difference is that the Maldives has superior cleanliness, are more environmentally friendly, and are primarily focused on the safety of tourists, according to the Prime Minister."

So true, so true. And how will the Minister of Tourism clean the Thai beaches? Have in mind they must be clean BEFORE promoting them to high end tourism? No way any of us would fly or sail back to Thailand if we once again get cheated by empty promises.

[digibum]

In reality, how hard is it to clean beaches and stop people littering or tossing stuff overboard off boats?

Just look at the eastern coastline, it looks like a rubbish tip.

I think you forgot overfishing and dynamite fishing which help destroy the marine life.

[gavin310]

It's obvious she has no understanding of the fisherman in Thailand. I fish, have many Thai fishing friends, and go out on their long tails all the time. Anything that is not needed, from cigarette butts to empty petrol bottles to badly damaged nets, goes overboard. I've seen a guy curse because his fish trap was filled with rubbish, then take it out and throw it back into the water an arms length away. I've lived on a few islands and there's no way they're going to keep them clean as long as people have that mindset. Plus most of the coral reefs are dead already from people fishing improperly.

[Sing_Sling]

Devil's Advocate here: Would "Rich" tourist help the average Thai Tourisim more that the lowly Sex Tourist/Cheap Charlie/ Backpacker?

High spending tourists usually encapsulate them selves in 5 star luxury resorts and rarely venture out to spend money "on the street" so to speak. Where do the profits go, earned from those resorts? Sure, there would be jobs for maids, cooks and other staff, but even cheap charlies have to eat and the profit from a bowl of noodles goes into Noks pocket while the profits form XYZ Resorts go... where?

Nothing wrong with high end tourisim but the low spending segment probaby benefits the averag local more.

Just my two satang

Do you have any foundation that 'high-end' tourists don't venture out of their luxury resorts? Perhaps local ones don't but overseas ones certainly do as they are sold on the 'Thai' aspect of their holiday.

Think about it this way - why would wealthy Americans fly an inordinate number of hours just to stay at a resort and never venture out when they have Mexico and the Caribbean islands much, much closer.

They don't stay put. They take cruises, they take tours . . .

XYZ resorts? You're saying that none or few high end resorts are locally owned or partially locally owned? . . . if that is the case (which it isn't) then why the constant uproar about foreigners having to go the 49/51 route?

(Oh, and who do you think owns the four-star etc... resorts? Your average Nok?)

[allan michaud]

Thai authorities, try to do a little bit out of the box thinking, instead of only repeating what the others are saying. It is a misunderstanding that money which is made from tourism, mainly comes from high end tourists. The average backpacker contributes more to the Thai economy than the average high end tourist, because he stays longer and spends money locally, instead of at an international hotel chain. Why not consult authorities in charge of tourism in countries like Australia and Canada, where they do understand this.

The best thing you could do right now to stimulate tourism, would be giving all tourists from developed countries a 90 day visa free entry stamp at all entry points, just like Malaysia does.

You are asking the impossible. Very, very few Thais are capable of thinking outside the box. And all of them were educated, or spent decades overseas. That is just not part of the thai mentality, as they are taught that this kind of thinking is both dangerous and non-conformist. I have seen this hundreds of times. Every once in a while I am surprises to see creative thinking. But, so rarely. So, if the average thai cannot think out of the box, imagine the sub par ministers being able to do so? I have met food vendors on the street, who are more intelligent, and more capable than the average thai minister.

Mike Macarelli

Chaiyaphum, Thailand

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

Never fear superstar minister "The Plod" is on the job now, Thailand's beaches will be spotless in a matter of weeks.

[lazygourmet]

During her trip, she was certainly more interested by learning how Maldives authoritarian government keeps its people's mouth shut; rather than how it attracts high-end tourists...

Just methinks!

[NongKhaiKid]

This is supposed to attract even greater revenue from high end tourists and right on cue TAT brings out figures to show yet another expected increase in tourism this year.

I really do believe that one day TAT's figures will reflect more tourists than the amount of people inhabiting this planet.

Sounds like the last Iranian election

It happened in the Philippines in the election that started People Power. In Marcos' home area of Ilocos Norte one of his party candidates was returned with a majority in excess of the amount of registered voters.

[mancub]

There is one school of thought that says that the Maldives is slowly sinking..............................

[Ianatlarge]

Thai tourism is working, lots of tourists, so why change anything? Thailand does not need to be the Maldives, or St-Tropez, or even Brazil, just be Thailand. Then fix up the many small problems in this great nation: the petty and annoying scams, the complex visa rules, the garbage. And if you are talking "long-stay tourists" create a long term tourist visa—3 months (without extension) or 6-12 months.

[Sing_Sling]

Thai tourism is working, lots of tourists, so why change anything? Thailand does not need to be the Maldives, or St-Tropez, or even Brazil, just be Thailand. Then fix up the many small problems in this great nation: the petty and annoying scams, the complex visa rules, the garbage. And if you are talking "long-stay tourists" create a long term tourist visa—3 months (without extension) or 6-12 months.

You're just being logical and practical - stop it at once

[bigbamboo]

It'll never happen as their love affair with concreting everything is evident. Just look at he damage done to Phuket over the last 30 years.

A new family moved into a house in our village that had a nice garden and the first thing they did was dig up the plants, rip up the grass, chop down the trees and cement the whole thing over. Apparently it's easier to 'broom the ground' that way.

[bri1guy]

Thailand Beaches can never compare to Maldives. I recommend Republic of Palau instead..

[skorchio]

At least she recognised the distinction; Maldives is clean, friendly and they know how to spell 'tourist safety'.

So it seems she might be aware of the problem. Doing something to change it is another matter but I am really really impressed that the distinction has been made. I would guess that places which are already popular, such as Phuket, will be left as they are, and efforts to create the Thai Maldives experience will begin at locations which are not already destroyed by overbuilding greed and mafiosa violence. Too late to turn the clock back here in Phuket but they might be able to stop the same thing happening elsewhere. Two tier tourist destination on the cards ......

[Just1Voice]

I can count on TV to give my my daily laugh from the articles they publish in regards to the latest "hub", or "improvement" some Thai politician spouts off about.

[IDL]

By page 3, virtually everything has already been said.

My two-pennies worth: OMB!

I had a wonderful 2-week diving holiday in the Maldives around 14 years ago - by far the best/diverse diving destination in my mind. Stayed on Kanifinolu (Kani); I gather now it's the Hilton Resorts Island, post tsunami. Having tripped/dived/worked/lived in over 50 countries around the world, Yingping (and presumably her bro, as he was promoting trips there long ago) has really shot for the stars, by comparing Thailand to the Idyllic Maldive Islands. Where's the sense? It will end in tears, not least MORE egg on the face.

Thailand is what it is, and has what it has. But with less than a hand-full of reefs/beaches/islands in any way comparable to what you would see in the Maldives, over its entire territory, why would a PM risk the country's face (and long-term tourism) by 'suggesting' to newbie tourists that this is what they will experience? Unless there will be direct international flights landing in Koh Lipe [for e.g.], foreigners will see the milk long before they happen across the cream; would guess many would then be pretty upset by the false allegations.

Where does this insanity end???

...and that's without the need for higher levels of cleanliness, waste disposal, service, English language, clear rules/officialdom, quality of...everything. Bet your life on it though, they would surely be charging the same premium for the 'Thai Maldives' experience. The mind boggles!"£$%^&*?

[SSSlongtime]

north Pattaya 1978 ,jungle ,clean beach ,clean sea ,now look at it ,total now control on building Zion hotel beach just MUD ,its gone from paradise to hell in my life ,even after all that time now i am not sure if i will return ,sea is dirty , as swimmer i dont like to go into it ,Pattay out control ,impossible to clean up the act ,lot people making to much money from crime ,who is in control ,gangsters or the police ,maybe the leader should look at the south of france ,make nice holiday ,clean sea, clean towns ,no shortage of tourists even at there prices and little small crime ,police in cars,foot ,on the beach ,on horses on bikes ,boats ,even dog poo people ,have to say thai dogs are good about that ,please send few over and teach french dogs not to poo everywhere