Thailand aims to attract Muslim, Israeli and gay tourists

[tubby johnson]

Can you feel the Muslim love for the gay tourists?

[Chrisillingworth]

I have lived here for 8 years, we have the russian maffia and our beloved local 'get out of gail friends' now you want more tention, time to pack my bags again

Edited August 5, 2013 by Chrisillingworth

[geriatrickid]

They should attract gay Muslims and Jews, all other groups are already well established in BKK en Pattaya.

They should let the Saudi and Iranian religious police patrol on Shukumvit near Grace hotel, bet there going to be a lot of beheadings back home.

Uhh, Israel does not have religious police, nor does it have capital punishment, public stoneings or floggings.

I know this will put a damper on the jocularity, but Israel has approx. 1 million arab citizens who qualify for Israeli passports.

A potent demographic are the gay muslim Israelis. It is a demographic segment that is educated, wealthy and who likes to travel. If a few thousand more of these people popped over to Thailand, they would certainly meet the goal of going upscale. The Israeli arabs who have money, spend. I would expect their spending per person is significantly greater than junketeers from China, Australia and India. A gay Israeli arab would most likely be nominally muslim and more respectful of local Buddhist culture than one who was not.

[SSSlongtime]

Muslims, Israelis and gays!

Put them altogether and just feel the love!

blood bath

[drdoom6996]

"Thailand, a predominantly Buddhist country, is trying to tap into the lucrative market of Muslim travelers. Unlike neighboring Myanmar, where anti-Muslim feelings have recently spilled over into violence, Thailand presents itself as a Muslim-friendly country."

You might want to ask those in the south about that.

Have you ever Googled to see a map in 1939 of Thailand and the a map of 1945 Thailand. Kind of interesting how Thailand increased its land mass in what used to be the Malay peninsula. No wonder their fighting in what is now called "South Thailand". Muslim friendly??????????????????????????????????

[Bof]

They should attract gay Muslims and Jews, all other groups are already well established in BKK en Pattaya.

They should let the Saudi and Iranian religious police patrol on Shukumvit near Grace hotel, bet there going to be a lot of beheadings back home.

Uhh, Israel does not have religious police, nor does it have capital punishment, public stoneings or floggings.

I know this will put a damper on the jocularity, but Israel has approx. 1 million arab citizens who qualify for Israeli passports.

A potent demographic are the gay muslim Israelis. It is a demographic segment that is educated, wealthy and who likes to travel. If a few thousand more of these people popped over to Thailand, they would certainly meet the goal of going upscale. The Israeli arabs who have money, spend. I would expect their spending per person is significantly greater than junketeers from China, Australia and India. A gay Israeli arab would most likely be nominally muslim and more respectful of local Buddhist culture than one who was not.

Very true, but it is just as true that the jewish religion , like all monotheisms treats gay people as not human.

[ratcatcher]

They also want some of the Amish...they just haven't figured out, how to get the message to them, yet...

I'm sure there are gay guys in Bangkok that have two or three mennonite.

[Jingthing]

Don't know why the sarcastic comments.

My neighbour is a gay muslim from Israel and he thinks it's about time.

He was getting rather lonely.

Such people do exist.

[Jingthing]

I can't understand how one markets Thailand travel to gays. If I were gay, I might be offended at the whole idea. It seems somewhat discriminatory to me.

As for Muslims, I suppose you could cater to their very strict lifestyle, but Thailand has strong "sanook" culture that I would think offensive to most orthodox Muslims.

I used to run across the odd Israeli tourist here but not for some time, so perhaps the numbers have dwindled a lot. It's my impression that more and more people feel less and less support for Israel and think of it as a rouge state now. It seems that its only ally in the world is the USA, so Israelis may not feel welcome or comfortable anywhere else in the world now.

Many countries directly market to the gay travel market.

The gay travel market is HUGE.

Not offended to be advertised to. Why would we be?

You can't understand? Perhaps you don't get "out" much:

There are plenty of Israeli tourists in Pattaya, now as ever. It's a small market of course compared to the Muslim world, but they're here. Enough to support a number of Israeli restaurants and guesthouses anyway.

Edited August 5, 2013 by Jingthing

[unanimosity]

Muslims, Israelis and gays!

Put them altogether and just feel the love!

Yep, invite the muslims...and to show the genuine empathy for them, invite their favorite infidel targets.

[h90]

They should attract gay Muslims and Jews, all other groups are already well established in BKK en Pattaya.

They should let the Saudi and Iranian religious police patrol on Shukumvit near Grace hotel, bet there going to be a lot of beheadings back home.

Uhh, Israel does not have religious police, nor does it have capital punishment, public stoneings or floggings.

I know this will put a damper on the jocularity, but Israel has approx. 1 million arab citizens who qualify for Israeli passports.

A potent demographic are the gay muslim Israelis. It is a demographic segment that is educated, wealthy and who likes to travel. If a few thousand more of these people popped over to Thailand, they would certainly meet the goal of going upscale. The Israeli arabs who have money, spend. I would expect their spending per person is significantly greater than junketeers from China, Australia and India. A gay Israeli arab would most likely be nominally muslim and more respectful of local Buddhist culture than one who was not.

Very true, but it is just as true that the jewish religion , like all monotheisms treats gay people as not human.

Well Jewish, Christian and Muslim religion are very similar, came from the same area, have similar histories and copy/paste from each other.

So I think it is not the Monotheism.

Actually it seems sex is a very important topic of these religions.

[h90]

I can't understand how one markets Thailand travel to gays. If I were gay, I might be offended at the whole idea. It seems somewhat discriminatory to me.

As for Muslims, I suppose you could cater to their very strict lifestyle, but Thailand has strong "sanook" culture that I would think offensive to most orthodox Muslims.

I used to run across the odd Israeli tourist here but not for some time, so perhaps the numbers have dwindled a lot. It's my impression that more and more people feel less and less support for Israel and think of it as a rouge state now. It seems that its only ally in the world is the USA, so Israelis may not feel welcome or comfortable anywhere else in the world now.

Many countries directly market to the gay travel market.

The gay travel market is HUGE.

Not offended to be advertised to. Why would we be?

You can't understand? Perhaps you don't get "out" much:

There are plenty of Israeli tourists in Pattaya, now as ever. It's a small market of course compared to the Muslim world, but they're here. Enough to support a number of Israeli restaurants and guesthouses anyway.

What I'll never understand is what is the difference??? I like a beautiful clean beach and undestroyed nature, good food and friendly people.

If I would be gay I doubt I would look for anything different. And I doubt Arabs look for dirty beaches and bad food....

So how do you target normal (non sextourists) different if gay or not gay, if israeli or arab or german??

[razer]

Culture Studies 101 - Dear TAT. Muslims and Israelis don't like each other politically or religiously. This recent dislike is 65 years old but the history goes back over a thousand years. Homosexuality is forbidden by Islamic (Muslim) law.It is a crime punishable by imprisonment. This headline, I am sure, would be highly insulting to all three. Please do your homework.

[Jingthing]

What I'll never understand is what is the difference??? I like a beautiful clean beach and undestroyed nature, good food and friendly people.

If I would be gay I doubt I would look for anything different. And I doubt Arabs look for dirty beaches and bad food....

So how do you target normal (non sextourists) different if gay or not gay, if israeli or arab or german??

Oh please. Just google.

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/usa/san-francisco/travel-tips-and-articles/76124

(BTW, I would say pretty good list. I've been to 8 of 10 of them!)

http://www.traveldailynews.com/news/article/51787/gay-tourism-matters

Edited August 5, 2013 by Jingthing

[Cuban]

......by marketing itself as a place where halal food (complying with Islamic requirements) is readily available and “halal spas” offer separate facilities for women and men.

Funny that many tourists from predominately Muslim countries seek access to alcohol and ladies or boys of easy virtue when visiting Thailand. In Pattaya they also seek high powered motorbikes (which they can not access in their home countries) as well and less than legal "medication" and smoking materials.

See Sharia Law regarding one-hour marriage and easy divorce laws that exist to allow a good-Muslim to have sex with a "wife" then divorce her after the deed is done.

As for the Thai Muslims, Thailand has shown little progress in the South which would be where they might seek to create a Muslim holiday resort?

Where we used to live in Pattaya the Thai Muslims both sold and ate pork, when asked about this, it was OK because they are poor.

Thailand where flexible religious rules apply ©

That should be the marketing slogan for the campaign.

[Naam]

A muslim, an Israeli and a gay walk into a bar.......

...the bartender is a Papua New Guinea headhunter...

He gets head from the gay, then.

the Muslim asks the Israeli whether this is kosher behaviour...

...the Israeli answers "ya habibi, let's move to an establishment where they serve a twenty-five year old fatwa certified halal single malt!"

[Totster]

Muslims, Israelis and gays!

Put them altogether and just feel the love!

Can't be worse than Germans and British fighting for the reservation of a place on the pool....

That's the point... there are no reservations, yet the Germans just take without any thought to others, as usual..

totster

[unanimosity]

I can't understand how one markets Thailand travel to gays. If I were gay, I might be offended at the whole idea. It seems somewhat discriminatory to me.

As for Muslims, I suppose you could cater to their very strict lifestyle, but Thailand has strong "sanook" culture that I would think offensive to most orthodox Muslims.

I used to run across the odd Israeli tourist here but not for some time, so perhaps the numbers have dwindled a lot. It's my impression that more and more people feel less and less support for Israel and think of it as a rouge state now. It seems that its only ally in the world is the USA, so Israelis may not feel welcome or comfortable anywhere else in the world now.

Many countries directly market to the gay travel market.

The gay travel market is HUGE.

Not offended to be advertised to. Why would we be?

You can't understand? Perhaps you don't get "out" much:

There are plenty of Israeli tourists in Pattaya, now as ever. It's a small market of course compared to the Muslim world, but they're here. Enough to support a number of Israeli restaurants and guesthouses anyway.

What I'll never understand is what is the difference??? I like a beautiful clean beach and undestroyed nature, good food and friendly people.

If I would be gay I doubt I would look for anything different. And I doubt Arabs look for dirty beaches and bad food....

So how do you target normal (non sextourists) different if gay or not gay, if israeli or arab or german??

The operative word in your last sentence is "target" and you are not doing the targeting they are, and you are it.

[catweazle]

I heard that Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat inquired with the TAT to be aggressively promoted as top destinations for this very attractive elite of high end tourists listed short as "Gaysraelims" in the recently released TAT pamphlet "Outlines for explosive and dynamic Tourism in the Deep South of Thailand"...

[Johnnie99]

People from the gulf area can be found on soi nana et around Bumrungrad .... nothing new .. Gays can be found on silom soi 2 and 4 ...nothing new ... so what's new then ?

Maybe straights found everywhere else?

[biplanebluey]

A muslim, an Israeli and a gay walk into a bar.......

DONT STOP THERE!!!!!!!!

[trainman34014]

Just heard this earlier:........

The Iranian Ambassador had just finished giving a speech and walked out into the lobby of the convention center where he was introduced to a U.S Marine General. As they talked the Iranian SAID '' I have just one question about things i have seen in America ''. The General said '' Well; anything i can do to help ? ''. The Iranian whispered ''My son watches this show called Star Trek and in it there is......Scotty who is Scottish....Kirk who is Canadian....Chekhov who is Russian....Uhura who is black....and Sulu who is Japanese.....but there are NO Muslims '' ''My son is very upset and wants to know why there are no Iranian's, Iraqi's, Afgan's, Egyptian's, Pakistani's,Saudi's or Syrian's on Star Trek ? '' The General leaned towards the Iranian Ambassador and whispered '' That's because it takes place in the future ''

[catweazle]

Just heard this earlier:........

The Iranian Ambassador had just finished giving a speech and walked out into the lobby of the convention center where he was introduced to a U.S Marine General. As they talked the Iranian SAID '' I have just one question about things i have seen in America ''. The General said '' Well; anything i can do to help ? ''. The Iranian whispered ''My son watches this show called Star Trek and in it there is......Scotty who is Scottish....Kirk who is Canadian....Chekhov who is Russian....Uhura who is black....and Sulu who is Japanese.....but there are NO Muslims '' ''My son is very upset and wants to know why there are no Iranian's, Iraqi's, Afgan's, Egyptian's, Pakistani's,Saudi's or Syrian's on Star Trek ? '' The General leaned towards the Iranian Ambassador and whispered '' That's because it takes place in the future ''

Oh, I eFFin' LOVE this one!!!!

Edited August 5, 2013 by catweazle

[Bof]

......by marketing itself as a place where halal food (complying with Islamic requirements) is readily available and “halal spas” offer separate facilities for women and men.

Funny that many tourists from predominately Muslim countries seek access to alcohol and ladies or boys of easy virtue when visiting Thailand. In Pattaya they also seek high powered motorbikes (which they can not access in their home countries) as well and less than legal "medication" and smoking materials.

See Sharia Law regarding one-hour marriage and easy divorce laws that exist to allow a good-Muslim to have sex with a "wife" then divorce her after the deed is done.

As for the Thai Muslims, Thailand has shown little progress in the South which would be where they might seek to create a Muslim holiday resort?

Where we used to live in Pattaya the Thai Muslims both sold and ate pork, when asked about this, it was OK because they are poor.

Thailand where flexible religious rules apply ©

That should be the marketing slogan for the campaign.

Religious hypocrites who would otherwise most probably stone their own sister to to death in the land of the allmighty nonexistent , where unfortunately they cannot get drunk and cannot get laid .

[catweazle]

A muslim, an Israeli and a gay walk into a bar.......

DONT STOP THERE!!!!!!!!

Didn't that joke start with, "A muslim, an Israeli and a gay walk into that Hitler fried chicken store in Thailand..." - just love it when things come together and start to make sense eventually

[Jingthing]

Look, let's get real here.

Muslims are diverse and travel for different reasons.

Israelis are diverse and travel for different reasons. .

Gay are diverse and travel for different reasons..

But they are ALL good targets for many tourism markets.

Including Thailand.

I think the theme of this article was that these demographics are not courted everywhere. Which they are not.

For example, the USA welcomes Muslim travelers in theory but the VISA situation will be difficult for many depending on their country.

Israelis are banned from Malaysia, Thailand's neighbor, so obviously not welcome everywhere.

Gay tourists are not welcome in countries like Iran, Russia, and Nigeria.

Good for Thailand for being so OPEN to so many diverse people.

Edited August 5, 2013 by Jingthing

[Bluespunk]

"Thailand, a predominantly Buddhist country, is trying to tap into the lucrative market of Muslim travelers. Unlike neighboring Myanmar, where anti-Muslim feelings have recently spilled over into violence, Thailand presents itself as a Muslim-friendly country."

You might want to ask those in the south about that.

Have you ever Googled to see a map in 1939 of Thailand and the a map of 1945 Thailand. Kind of interesting how Thailand increased its land mass in what used to be the Malay peninsula. No wonder their fighting in what is now called "South Thailand". Muslim friendly??????????????????????????????????

Yep. That was what I was thinking. Edited August 5, 2013 by Bluespunk

[klauskunkel]

A muslim, an Israeli and a gay walk into a bar.......

...the bartender is a Papua New Guinea headhunter...

...does he have a work permit?

[jonclark]

Look, let's get real here.

Muslims are diverse and travel for different reasons.

Israelis are diverse and travel for different reasons. .

Gay are diverse and travel for different reasons..

But they are ALL good targets for many tourism markets.

Including Thailand.

I think the theme of this article was that these demographics are not courted everywhere. Which they are not.

For example, the USA welcomes Muslim travelers in theory but the VISA situation will be difficult for many depending on their country.

Israelis are banned from Malaysia, Thailand's neighbor, so obviously not welcome everywhere.

Gay tourists are not welcome in countries like Iran, Russia, and Nigeria.

Good for Thailand for being so OPEN to so many diverse people.

All people are diverse and travel for different reasons, Jingthing come on... lighten up if you were going to choose three completely opposite demographic groups these three are pure comedy gold. The idea behind targeting these groups is fine. But announcing all three at the same press conference as part of a new strategy is just begging for the piss to be taken.

Imagine TAT presenting this to the Israeli / Muslim public which is fed a daily stream (in different measures depending on the country) of anti semtic / muslim / gay propaganda by their domestic press. Now you want TAT to suggests they holiday together.

Good idea by TAT, but utterly idiotic and lacking sensitivity in the extreme.

[DekDaeng]

<deleted> !!!!! Is it April 1st again?

Thailand - hub of April 1st jokes.