Warning to Thai tourism sector: Unfriendly staff, poor services hit competitiveness

[Pimay1]

I'm sure the billions of tourists coming to Thailand enjoy rude staff and poor service. T.A.T. will spin this one as usual.

Yup, they'll say that tourists love coming here to be abused.

Read the reviews in this TripAdvisor page. So bad you'll LOL. The owner is clueless. I discovered this hotel on a bike ride. It stands up in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by rice fields, so the claims of its isolation are true. Doesn't it occur to someone that, if they're going to put a hotel outside of town among the rice fields that they have an obligation to provide tasty nourishing meals? Just an example of how far Thailand has to come.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Review-g293917-d447575-Reviews-The_Nara_Boutique_Resort_Spa-Chiang_Mai.html

One rant on there makes the letter to Branson about his food quite tame. "I an writing to you from the tourist police station"....

You're right. That is one of the funniest things I have ever read.

[Crazy chef 1]

Very true - we're all getting sick of the snarly Thais supposedly working as/in hospitality. A bloody shame.

I can understand them coping with some really poor farang behaviour. But it's all getting worse over the last 5 years.

Plus the threats to tourist safety. The murder, extortion, robbery, train derailments, bus + car accidents, dog bites, floods, poisonings, corruption, taxi, motorbike and water-scooter extortion are becoming everyday events in Thailand.

Oz + NZ tourists are getting the message now and are increasingly wary of holidaying here.

have you ever been to the romantic countryside of Jamaica,the romantic towns of South Africa the authentic jungle of " republic of Congo"',the nostalgic parts of eastern Germany and not to forget the amazing night life of Moscow ?than you know what means to be scared- but not here.play with fire and you will get burned...

[pookiki]

This is they way I see it for any major hotel chain. There 'should' be a standardized training for employees and a manager on duty at all times to resolve customer complaints. They should be sensitive to sensible customer complaints and, similarly, resolve the issues in a manner that relies on common sense. In most major hotel chains, they are sensitive to return visits and developing customer loyalty. That is why you will see rooms or meals 'comped' when there are serious service issues. When a chain operates throughout the country, I should be able to expect the same level of service whether in be in Mae Sot, Hui Hin, Bangkok, Ubon, or Timbuktu. I hope you agree with that assertion.

I'm assuming that my deduction was correct? In that case, hardly a major hotel chain... Nationally speaking, not even the largest provider of hotels in the country... Worldwide? Well a blip on the radar as far as that goes...

In principle I agree that service recovery and procedures should be the same. Unfortunately, being humans, everyone's interpretation is different and common sense, even in farangland is not that common.

Essentially it could be argued that the service you received is the same, not sure how many times you've had the same issue with the same hotel brand?

Broken down to the nuts and bolts of it, you had a problem, you notified the hotel of the problem, they resolved the problem by their actions. Was it to your expectations? Clearly not, was it a reasonable expectation for the hotel to do what they did? Reasonable if it eliminated the problem. You then complained further and had your initial expectation met.

However, a quick question, when you notified the hotel of the issue, did you at first request a room change because of said problem?

It wasn't mentioned in your previous post, so I'm just curious....

Oh, and I forgot to mention that I wrote a detailed customer service report at the front desk on the night of the incident. No one ever responded to me by letter or email. That is quite appalling to me.

[Timwin]

American style service...now that is so <deleted> fake crap. "How are you, sir? Oh that is wonderful, have a good day, sir!". Repeat that about 1000 times per day with that forced smile. It is so awful to see, might as well speak to a hologram.

Is it any better than the crumpy Thais? At least they are more honest to show what they really feel if you learn to read the body language.

[unanimosity]

I'm sure the billions of tourists coming to Thailand enjoy rude staff and poor service. T.A.T. will spin this one as usual.

And enjoy being charged to see the Internet. What next, charge for towels and bath water?

[lahgon29]

I have service in Thailand always be found to be excellent but maybe that is because I don't stay in cheap flop houses.

What exactly is a cheap flop house, mate? I have stayed at 300 to 400 Baht "hotels" in Nong Khai, Nakhon Phanom, Sisaket, Mukdahan, Loei, etc, etc that have good if not great service, good food near, and always a smile if I smile first,.

[lahgon29]

vtailandia is a wonderful country, I lived there for a while and I saw the same problems are everywhere. If you want you problems or approaches to them it is normal to have them. English speaking, if you go to China you know that 80% of residents do not speak English. and if you go to France or Spain like. Thailand has its natural language and hence we have to thank the efforts of the natives to excucharnos, weird is if I'm going to speak Spanish UK and want to know how many people would be happy with me?

Could you run that one past me again?

[Dumu Ali]

with so many lovely chicks tourists will always love Thailand regardless, cheap Charlies are never happy, rich people with plenty of cash to throw love Thailand and that is it

[salavan]

Thailand has the most resilient tourism industry in the world today.

If one tenth the incidents that happen here in LOS happened in Australia we would be hauled before international courts and heavily penalised by Korean 'ban the moon' boss of UN and others.

Thailand's tourism industry will continue to grow regardless of the slow/useless hotel service and no matter how many people are murdered ,drugged ,kidnapped,disappear,crippled ,scammed,ripped-off ,filthy beaches or even bankrupted.

Where else in the world can you get a hotel with pool + a drinking session + girl = about 70 dollars ? Not even in the Phillipines. ( not necessarily a girl either, tens of thousands of men and some women come here for the Issan boys).

Thailand is strategically placed in Asia with a major int airport and one smaller in Phuket.

Farangs arent coming here in as big numbers but that will change with the UK pound and euro climbing the ladder. Thai's are chasing the Chinese,Ruskie,Indian an Nth Asian markets now.

The Thais love us for it !.......... huge money. Their major industry for sure.

I visited guests at two 4 star hotels recently. Staff took 45 minutes to bring whisky glasses even though i had ordered wine glasses.

The other hotel took about 30 minutes to serve one person but not the other. Nothing, probably because i ordered a glass of iced water. No money in that ! ...f##k 'im.

Service used to be good here but they get rid of the 'old staff' and bring in pretty young faces. no experience.

actually you can get a whole lot more than what you mentioned in the Philippines for 70 dollars

im a regular visitor to the Philippines

[wotaplonker]

Thailand has the most resilient tourism industry in the world today.

If one tenth the incidents that happen here in LOS happened in Australia we would be hauled before international courts and heavily penalised by Korean 'ban the moon' boss of UN and others.

Thailand's tourism industry will continue to grow regardless of the slow/useless hotel service and no matter how many people are murdered ,drugged ,kidnapped,disappear,crippled ,scammed,ripped-off ,filthy beaches or even bankrupted.

Where else in the world can you get a hotel with pool + a drinking session + girl = about 70 dollars ? Not even in the Phillipines. ( not necessarily a girl either, tens of thousands of men and some women come here for the Issan boys).

Thailand is strategically placed in Asia with a major int airport and one smaller in Phuket.

Farangs arent coming here in as big numbers but that will change with the UK pound and euro climbing the ladder. Thai's are chasing the Chinese,Ruskie,Indian an Nth Asian markets now.

The Thais love us for it !.......... huge money. Their major industry for sure.

I visited guests at two 4 star hotels recently. Staff took 45 minutes to bring whisky glasses even though i had ordered wine glasses.

The other hotel took about 30 minutes to serve one person but not the other. Nothing, probably because i ordered a glass of iced water. No money in that ! ...f##k 'im.

Service used to be good here but they get rid of the 'old staff' and bring in pretty young faces. no experience.

I love how you talk about girls like there a commodity, Your mother would be ashamed of you.

what rubbish he's just telling it like it is

[hellodolly]

The hospitality industry is changing so fast. these days you have a lot of "garbage" working in the management levels as some owners still think that a farang face is essential so they end up hiring young punks with not so much experience or even the right qulifications as long as they have a farang face plus they are cheap. Worst still some of these are promoted so fast to management levels without even knowing a thing about their own industry or the local market. Just check out Dusit Group, Patumwan Princess, Plaza Anthenee etc and you understand what I mean.

I kind of agree with you on that. Where I stay every so often they bring in a new group of trainees. The manager as far as I can see does a good job. How ever he has to pass every thing through the owner of the building. It is not like the staff is encouraged to do more than they have to. In asll fairness since he became the manager I have noticed when they do some thing they do it in such a manner that it will last. It used to be very shoddy work. Their was a breakdown in communication with the old manager as to how bad it really was with the owner.

Another thing is this bit I constantly hear about the inability to speak English. I find that many who can speak English really don't understand it. We hear that constantly because we are on an English speaking forum. There seems to be an unwillingness to understand it. I had occasion to be at a hospital today and I noticed they had a room with two people working in it. In great big letters on the window it said English speaking in English and Japanese speaking in Japanese. Maybe English is the language of business but in the tourist sector there are other languages used.

One other point that needs addressing is the internet. I am not talking about the things said on it. I am referring to the unreliability of it due directly to the Governments actions. As the internet grows and the laptops and pads become more portable the demand for speed will increase while the supply will stay static.

As far as ther scams and what not go they are in many other countries. I don't know how any one could think it is only in Thailand. Also most of that takes place in tourist areas. Perhaps TOT should promote other parts of Thailand such as their National parks. There is a place they can easily stop double pricing as they are the ones doing it.

[Yunla]

OP>

"...amid warnings that the country is in danger of losing ground to Malaysia and Singapore."

Those countries have a much lower corruption index than Thailand has, and tourists like to holiday in places where they feel secure and that they can trust the authorities to support their law-abiding lives unconditionally, and uphold the laws of the land. That is a major factor across the board, because corruption can lead to loss of life if it involves construction, fire equipment safety, food toxicity, vehicles etc. Holidaymakers don't mind if a country is developing and poor, so long as the local authorities are keeping all the cards on the table in plain sight. Friendly staff is obviously desirable, and tbh I've not had the misfortune to meet many unfriendly staff in Thailand, but it comes a poor second place compared to honesty and transparency vs. corruption. Singapore has a very low corruption status, that encourages people because they feel safe taking their kids and their money there.

[Thai at Heart]

OP>

"...amid warnings that the country is in danger of losing ground to Malaysia and Singapore."

Those countries have a much lower corruption index than Thailand has, and tourists like to holiday in places where they feel secure and that they can trust the authorities to support their law-abiding lives unconditionally, and uphold the laws of the land. That is a major factor across the board, because corruption can lead to loss of life if it involves construction, fire equipment safety, food toxicity, vehicles etc. Holidaymakers don't mind if a country is developing and poor, so long as the local authorities are keeping all the cards on the table in plain sight. Friendly staff is obviously desirable, and tbh I've not had the misfortune to meet many unfriendly staff in Thailand, but it comes a poor second place compared to honesty and transparency vs. corruption. Singapore has a very low corruption status, that encourages people because they feel safe taking their kids and their money there.

Those places also don't have enormous red light districts front and centre...

[julemanden]

Saying that service standards in the west are better than here in thailand... Funniest thing I've heard for a while...

On a like-for-like basis, service standards in 5 star hotels in Thailand are well in front of those in Farangland. The funny thing is, the majority of these hotel management companies are based in farangland...

On a like-for-like basis, the service that I've received here is much better than in farangland. Sure, you get the odd lapse in brand standards, like the Four Seasons Bangkok not giving me a kerbside check in and having to wait in line to check in instead of doing those formalities in the room, such is life when has these first world problems. But there's a warmer sense of welcome here than in farangland.

Sure, your mileage will vary and if you're staying at the Nana Hotel you can't expect the red carpet treatment (you might, if you're unlucky, get another kind of red carpet treatment )

But overall, you're not going to get the eye rolling or trumped up excuses that you'll get in farangland.

Sorry but now i wonder if you ever stayed in a "Farang" hotel in Farang land

[Yunla]

encourages people because they feel safe taking their kids and their money there.

Those places also don't have enormous red light districts front and centre...

Thats because one of their neighbours has a monopoly on it. Sometimes when you can't compete its best not to even try.

[Thai at Heart]

encourages people because they feel safe taking their kids and their money there.Those places also don't have enormous red light districts front and centre...

Thats because one of their neighbours has a monopoly on it. Sometimes when you can't compete its best not to even try.

Ummm. Maybe they don't want it?

[Yunla]

Ummm. Maybe they don't want it?

Yeah I was joking. I was a Nun for 18 years and I do have views about the redlight industry, mainly my views are that I feel great pity for both the girls and the clients. Makes me utterly sad and no I don't see it as anything Thailand or any other country should be proud of, if thats what you mean. But do I think that prostitution deters as many visitors to a country as corruption and cataclysmic political activity do, or safety and health concerns for your family on your holiday. No I don't, not at all. In some Thai hotels they have fire extinguishers that are hooked on walls just for show, they don't actually work, they are just there for looks. Thats the kind of thing that would put me off holidaying somewhere, not prostitution.

[Thai at Heart]

Ummm. Maybe they don't want it?

Yeah I was joking. I was a Nun for 18 years and I do have views about the redlight industry, mainly my views are that I feel great pity for both the girls and the clients. Makes me utterly sad and no I don't see it as anything Thailand or any other country should be proud of, if thats what you mean. But do I think that prostitution deters as many visitors to a country as corruption and cataclysmic political activity do, or safety and health concerns for your family on your holiday. No I don't, not at all. In some Thai hotels they have fire extinguishers that are hooked on walls just for show, they don't actually work, they are just there for looks. Thats the kind of thing that would put me off holidaying somewhere, not prostitution.

Traveling with my wife and kids, I would prefer not to see it at all. I know it's there, my wife knows it's there.

It just drags any so called family resort into the latrine. It's not something I want to put my family particularly close to.

[noitom]

It's noteworthy information if Thais digest it. There is no meaningful substance behind "the Thai smile." It is not based on eagerness to serve and love of foreigners. Foreigners have been figuring out the insincerity of Thai style service for a long time as it's continued to deteriorate. So goes the inner, so goes the outer. It is clear more than ever that Thais working in the tourism service business have no clue as to the true meaning of service of value. The Thai service worker's sad, displeased, discontent look is a national problem. It's noteworthy that this Thai official made these observations.

[noitom]

If they want to improve the service,they first thing they need to do

is improve the English speaking skills of staff,management also

needs improving ,so they motivate the staff.

Then of course there are all the schemes to rip off tourists,the

Government needs to stamp all that out,Thailand wants to take

the tourists cash, but needs to give a lot more in return,like security,

stop the two tier pricing ,and be really serious about stopping the

multitude of scams and rip offs,if not the goose will one day stop

laying the golden eggs.

regards worgeordie

Well said. Thais are given no direction and guidance of value by their managers. There is no "management" to speak of or development of individuals.

[hanno]

I have service in Thailand always be found to be excellent but maybe that is because I don't stay in cheap flop houses.

What exactly is a cheap flop house, mate? I have stayed at 300 to 400 Baht "hotels" in Nong Khai, Nakhon Phanom, Sisaket, Mukdahan, Loei, etc, etc that have good if not great service, good food near, and always a smile if I smile first,.

I agree with you on that one; I have had outstanding service in some cheaper, family-run places. The worst service I have had was in places in e.g. Pattaya that seemed to cater more to the sex-tourist crowd. Dipped 2 times in 2 years as I do not know Pattaya at all (only go there for the culinary competition) and trusted Tripadvisor:-(.

[hanno]

Saying that service standards in the west are better than here in thailand... Funniest thing I've heard for a while...

On a like-for-like basis, service standards in 5 star hotels in Thailand are well in front of those in Farangland. The funny thing is, the majority of these hotel management companies are based in farangland...

On a like-for-like basis, the service that I've received here is much better than in farangland. Sure, you get the odd lapse in brand standards, like the Four Seasons Bangkok not giving me a kerbside check in and having to wait in line to check in instead of doing those formalities in the room, such is life when has these first world problems. But there's a warmer sense of welcome here than in farangland.

Sure, your mileage will vary and if you're staying at the Nana Hotel you can't expect the red carpet treatment (you might, if you're unlucky, get another kind of red carpet treatment )

But overall, you're not going to get the eye rolling or trumped up excuses that you'll get in farangland.

Sorry but now i wonder if you ever stayed in a "Farang" hotel in Farang land

Of course service standards in Thailand, and Asia, are better. I have been working in hotels for 30 years and here is the big difference: in e.g. Luxembourg I would run a 130-room hotel with about 70 full-time employees; here in SE Asia I have 200+ employees. I think many of the posters here look back at Europe with very rose-tinted glasses and have forgotten how hard it is to get any kind of service in, for example, a restaurant where on harried, badly-paid waitress is looking after 20 tables.

I spend a lot of times in hotels, both working and for leisure, and I would say that on the whole I have always had good to very good service in LOS.

[toenail]

Sorry to offend some people, but I find the Thais that work in the tourist or service sector "clueless" about customer service and how to handle customers. I compare the Thais to other places I have visited such as Bali, Malaysia or even Vietnam. Thailand has been dealing with tourists for many decades--and it seems that the professionalism is not improving - it is getting worse. True, the 5 star hotels may train their staff up to world standards, but in general many hotels lack training or supervision. then there is the customer service part of thailand in stores, restaurants that lacks "people skills". I understand thais have no "role models" to know how to wait on customers, but it is common sense not to be chewing on your chicken while waiting on a customer; looking at your zits in the mirror of the department store where you work at or talking on your phone while working...

[stoli]

It's the managements fault for allowing the staff to get away with it.

I certainly agree with this statement. I rarely see any management, other than the Mamasaan with her girls. The managers that can be found do not understand that their job is to manage, and therefore fall very far short of accomplishing their job. Owners seem to view management as just a cost that does not make them money. How wrong they are!

[hanno]

or even Vietnam

I worked in Vietnam for 15 years and can tell you that the rate of repeat visitors is almost non-existent. Service is good in the better hotels, but the constant scamming attempts by taxis, tour operators, guesthouses and the like tend to wear visitors down. I do agree that the service on Bali is very good, but that is what I would expect if I am shelling out USD 400.00 a night.

[Korat28]

I have service in Thailand always be found to be excellent but maybe that is because I don't stay in cheap flop houses.

That's a good point. However, I have stayed at Nasa Vegas hotel, which is around 500 baht a night and found their service to be really good. However, I stayed at the Baiyoke Sky Hotel and found their service to be absolutely terrible and aloof. My worst experience in Thailand was first when I stayed in a backpacker hotel on KSR (which I brought onto myself by spending 350 baht per night), then next worst was said Baiyoke, which charged around 2500 baht per night for a basic room. DAMN YOU TO HELL, BAIYOKE SKY HOTEL!!

[GeorgeO]

Thailand unemployment rate is 0.77 percent so obviously low paying tourism industry is not that attractive to Thais.

That is, however, a form of "zero unemployment" based upon made-up jobs.

Why, for example, do Homepro stores need 50 or more staff members who do nothing more than block the aisles that customers are trying to walk down? And then of course there is always that annoying t**t who follows you around asking "wha-you like Sir?".

[GrantSmith]

Saying that service standards in the west are better than here in thailand... Funniest thing I've heard for a while...

On a like-for-like basis, service standards in 5 star hotels in Thailand are well in front of those in Farangland. The funny thing is, the majority of these hotel management companies are based in farangland...

On a like-for-like basis, the service that I've received here is much better than in farangland. Sure, you get the odd lapse in brand standards, like the Four Seasons Bangkok not giving me a kerbside check in and having to wait in line to check in instead of doing those formalities in the room, such is life when has these first world problems. But there's a warmer sense of welcome here than in farangland.

Sure, your mileage will vary and if you're staying at the Nana Hotel you can't expect the red carpet treatment (you might, if you're unlucky, get another kind of red carpet treatment )

But overall, you're not going to get the eye rolling or trumped up excuses that you'll get in farangland.

Sorry but now i wonder if you ever stayed in a "Farang" hotel in Farang land

Sorry... but are you trying to take the piss?

How you come to that conclusion is anyone's guess if you're not...

[wilcopops]

I think some people are getting confused with cost - the product offered and its price - rather than CUSTOMER SERVICE which is NOT the same thing.

I suspect also that some people really don't have much experience of what service really is and comment largely through the mists of ignorance.

Edited August 29, 2013 by wilcopops

[harrry]

Whatever the price I expect to be served in a friendly manner with the item I asked. At a 3 star or above hotel I expect the food not to be reheated in a microwave with the vegetables still frozen in the middle. and the steak heated through in the same microwave.

If disabled access rooms are advertised I expect them to at least allow wheelchair access to the toilet. I have been in 3 Bangkok hotels where they do not just have a slightly larger room.

I expect the bills to be accurate and the staff to smile or greet when I enter or leave the hotel.

Sadly the most satisfactory hotels are the small lower standard hotels for all this.