China and Thailand discuss waiving visas

[Lite Beer]

China and Thailand discuss waiving visas
China Daily

BANGKOK: -- Neither Thai nor Chinese tourist operators were surprised at the two governments' decision to discuss waiving visas for both sides' visitors on Friday.

"Waiving visas is inevitable because the number of Chinese tourists to Thailand is really big," said Vichit Prakobgosol, honorary director for the Thai-Chinese Tourism Alliance Association and chairman of CCT Group, a travel service consultancy.

Lower costs and more convenience will encourage more Chinese tourists and investors to visit Thailand, said Vichit, whose company estimates it will receive 300,000 Chinese tourists this year.

Vichit said he believed about 5 million Chinese will visit Thailand next year if such a policy can take effect in 2014.

China is now the biggest source of tourists to Thailand, with about 3.22 million Chinese visiting in the first eight months of 2013, up 88.42 percent over the same period of 2012, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

If 2 million Chinese tourists come to Thailand per year on a 15-day visa that costs $25, Thailand could earn more than 1 billion baht ($32 million) a year in visa fees alone, according to the Bangkok-based TTR Weekly.

Wang Dong, a Chinese businessman in Bangkok, said what's more important than saving money is the time saved, with better scope for business.

"The Thai visa is not as difficult or expensive to get as many other countries, but for a frequent visitor who lives in a small city, I have to hire a travel agency to help me mail my documents to the consulate in Shanghai. It's troublesome," said Wang.

Currently, only the Thai embassy in Beijing and consulates in seven other big cities including Shanghai and Guangzhou can process visa applications in China.

The young generation nowadays enjoy spontaneous and independent trips. A visa exemption will give them another excuse to do this, said Zhang Guangrui, director of the tourism research center with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Song Meidan, a manager of a Beijing-based travel agency, echoed Zhang's views, but added the package tour business will benefit less from the policy because Thailand already offers visas on arrival and China's newly released tourism law has dampened the booming trend.

China's first tourism law that took effect on Oct 1 bans travel agencies, which heavily rely on package tours, from offering rock bottom prices but adds hidden costs such as mandatory shopping outings.

In response, travel agencies raised tour package prices and lost many potential clients.

"One reason for Thailand's popularity among the Chinese is its low cost. If it was as expensive as a trip to Europe, which do you think people would choose?" Song asked.

However, Vichit said most Chinese still prefer group tours when they travel to a country for the first time.

"Only 20 million Chinese tourists visited Thailand over the past two decades, while 400 million Chinese can afford to travel overseas now. For Chinese in second- and third-tier cities, package tours are still the top choice," he added.

Kanjana Boonsopa, a Thai hotel staff member in Bangkok, said she would like to see more Chinese visitors. "It's good for business," she said.

Chutinunta Agukrikul, marketing director of the Bangkok-based Central Department Store Ltd, said, "We would certainly welcome even more Chinese shoppers to our store."

Pu Yue, production manager of Ctrip's tourism department, predicts more than 20,000 Chinese travelers will visit Thailand using its services this year. The agency does not feel pressure regarding supply because the tourism industry is optimistic that Thailand's tourism resources, such as flights and accommodation, will continue to grow.

Vichit from Thai CCT Group said Thailand has to better prepare itself to welcome more tourists through such methods as developing high-speed trains and strengthening security and sanitary works. "Waiving visas is not just a technical procedure but shows a high-level of trust and friendliness between two countries, which will make the two peoples feel comfortable in each other's country," he said.

The article is reported by ZHAO SHENGNAN and GUO YALI in Bangkok, and WANG WEN in Beijing.

-- The Nation 2013-113

[MaxLee]

Means literally: Chinese ONLY tourists, the other Falang have to pay as business usual

[noitom]

"A high level of trust with Thais." This is easy to achieve. The Thais are so trustworthy.

[NongKhaiKid]

Standby for an increasing Chinese tourist invasion and instead of waving Chairman Mao's Little Red Book it will be copies of the newly published " How To Behave Overseas " which none of them will ever read.

[jaltsc]

"Vichit said he believed about 5 million Chinese will visit Thailand next year if such a policy can take effect in 2014."

And...Thailand won't have to build any more WCs, since the Chinese tourists don't know how to use them. Of course, that will be offset by having to build more Emergency Rooms at local hospitals to handle accident victims since the Chinese also don't know how to use motorized vehicles, or as a result of standing in the middle of the busy traffic while taking photos, or having yet to learn what traffic lights are, or........

[JoeThePoster]

Visa waiver - that must be good news for some.

Thai TV was reporting about Japanese already complaining about 400+ Thais that have gone missing since their recent visa waiver.

[Stradavarius37]

"Vichit said he believed about 5 million Chinese will visit Thailand next year if such a policy can take effect in 2014."

And...Thailand won't have to build any more WCs, since the Chinese tourists don't know how to use them. Of course, that will be offset by having to build more Emergency Rooms at local hospitals to handle accident victims since the Chinese also don't know how to use motorized vehicles, or as a result of standing in the middle of the busy traffic while taking photos, or having yet to learn what traffic lights are, or........ alt=whistling.gif width=19 height=18> alt=whistling.gif width=19 height=18> alt=whistling.gif width=19 height=18>

Classy...

[expat888]

Well at least we know the Thais aren't as stupid as we say. They know to get more tourist you can make it easier for them to come here.

So the remainder of us are getting harassed by choice.

Let's face it, Thais love the Chinese and they, at best, tolerate us. When they can't get the money they want from us or don't need it any more, things could get rocky.

[OMGImInPattaya]

Well at least we know the Thais aren't as stupid as we say. They know to get more tourist you can make it easier for them to come here.

So the remainder of us are getting harassed by choice.

Let's face it, Thais love the Chinese and they, at best, tolerate us. When they can't get the money they want from us or don't need it any more, things could get rocky.

What makes you think they need you now? Edited October 13, 2013 by OMGImInPattaya

[boomerangutang]

Well at least we know the Thais aren't as stupid as we say. They know to get more tourist you can make it easier for them to come here.

So the remainder of us are getting harassed by choice.

Let's face it, Thais love the Chinese and they, at best, tolerate us. When they can't get the money they want from us or don't need it any more, things could get rocky.

What makes you think they (the Thai gov't) need you now?

Easy answer: as mentioned prior, Thais only tolerate farang here, as long as farang are dishing out money. The more touristy the place, the more jaded the attitude of Thais toward farang. If you don't believe me, try hanging in Pattaya or Phuket or C.Mai for a bit, and then go to outlying towns. You'll see a lot friendlier, more sincere response from locals, the further you get from tourist centers. That's why I choose to reside in a Thai village. Every day for the past week, local hill tribers and their kids have come on my rural property to frolic, picnic, fish, gather firewood, jest, snooze. It's like an extended family.

Chinese tourists will not only flock together, they will take the giant buses and go to the recommended sights: temples, etc. all located on nice roads. You won't see individual or pairs of Chinese doing adventure sports or trekking (too dangerous and dirty). but that's ok - it's their choice.

[jalansanitwong]

The Chinese sit on buses all day taking photos of decadent Thailand and its drunk foreign tourists then go home and report to the authorities. They dont spend much money here.

Farangs spend the real money here but Thai gov couldnt care less.

As far as they're concerned we must be controlled by stricter immigration regs and bankroll all of Thailand s poor families via Isan wives.

Dont like it? no problem go home farang.

Even the looney Russians get a much better deal than us.

[NongKhaiKid]

I've posted this before but consider it's worthy of a repeat.

Earlier this year an official of the Phuket Tourist Board when interviewed about Chinese tourists said that many businesses in the area were now totally dependant on them as other tourists, both foreign and domestic, had gone elsewhere because of the anti-social behaviour of the Chinese.

Naturally he stated the obvious that if anything went wrong with Chinese tourism these businesses would cease to operate.

[expat888]

Well at least we know the Thais aren't as stupid as we say. They know to get more tourist you can make it easier for them to come here.

So the remainder of us are getting harassed by choice.

Let's face it, Thais love the Chinese and they, at best, tolerate us. When they can't get the money they want from us or don't need it any more, things could get rocky.

What makes you think they (the Thai gov't) need you now?

Easy answer: as mentioned prior, Thais only tolerate farang here, as long as farang are dishing out money. The more touristy the place, the more jaded the attitude of Thais toward farang. If you don't believe me, try hanging in Pattaya or Phuket or C.Mai for a bit, and then go to outlying towns. You'll see a lot friendlier, more sincere response from locals, the further you get from tourist centers. That's why I choose to reside in a Thai village. Every day for the past week, local hill tribers and their kids have come on my rural property to frolic, picnic, fish, gather firewood, jest, snooze. It's like an extended family.

Chinese tourists will not only flock together, they will take the giant buses and go to the recommended sights: temples, etc. all located on nice roads. You won't see individual or pairs of Chinese doing adventure sports or trekking (too dangerous and dirty). but that's ok - it's their choice.

My experience has been the opposite. The less foreigners in an area the less friendly the Thais are. I live in an area that has few foreigners and the Thais are incredibly rude specifically toward foreigners. Relatively, I can visit Bangkok and the Thais are much more friendly. Possibly, the more the foreigners, the more available money to be extracted.

Maybe it's just the areas I have experienced.

Edited October 13, 2013 by expat888

[puukao]

In the 1860's, Bangkok was roughly 25% Chinese. The Chinese worked all around Bangkok, and there are likely many families with blood-ties to this period. So, free visa is a nice gesture and hardly something to get worked up about.

*I use italics to give the false sense of credibility. But I think the figure is in the ballpark.

[martijn12345]

It strikes me every time how some people just bluntly blurt out their opinions as facts. And start by labeling every nationality as if all people originating from there are the same. I've been in tourism in Thailand for a decent amount of time now I've came across Russian people pissing from balconies into the swimming pool and Russians who were friendly, wellbehaved and fluent in English. But in general thai people do start to see that in general they are a little more rough around the edges compared to other 'farang'. In general Thai people do not like the Chinese other than for business. But in Chinese tourists are huge differences as well. On average they do spend more money than foreigners (money spend per day) but they stay for a shorter time so that makes sense. Most Chinese who come to Thailand aren't rich or big spenders. But there are also other groups of Chinese who spend money like there'sno tomorrow. they are in general not very social towards other nationalities which leads to problems in restaurants and attractions. So have to chose between the bigger but cheaper Chinese customers or the foreigners who are sometimes not coming in the numbers they used to. It's a tough choice for some businesses. I personally think I run into friendly and unfriendly thai people anywhere in the country. But find the people in the countryside more curious and open than the ones who live in big cities or tourist destinations... but I think that's very common anywhere in the world.

These are just my opinions and in general it helps me a lot to keep an open mind and judge individuals as a person rather than pre label them by country of origin. Try it, you could be very pleasantly surprised.

[Bluespunk]

"China and Thailand discuss waiving visas

China Daily "

Or china tells Thailand this is how it's going to be if you want to dump that maggot ridden rice you overpaid for on us.

Edited October 13, 2013 by Bluespunk

[impulse]

Earlier this year an official of the Phuket Tourist Board when interviewed about Chinese tourists said that many businesses in the area were now totally dependant on them as other tourists, both foreign and domestic, had gone elsewhere because of the anti-social behaviour of the Chinese.

All right! A whole new country of 1.5 billion scapegoats.

That should relieve some of the burden on the westerners blamed for causing all the social ills in the land.

Couldn't possibly be the anti-social behavior of the locals, eh?

[flyingdoc]

I just wish that Thailand would revise its policy of visas generally towards tourists, and not just in relation to China!

Considering that the country is so dependent on tourism, it always amazes me how rigid and stubborn the authorities are towards tourists and visa requirements. Even in India, one can obtain 3 months at a time!

If Thai intransigence was altered, visitor numbers would increase exponentially.

[h90]

Means literally: Chinese ONLY tourists, the other Falang have to pay as business usual

If I recall right, most western countries tourists don't need visas for holidays in Thailand.

[Tomtomtom69]

Means literally: Chinese ONLY tourists, the other Falang have to pay as business usual

Rubbish - most western tourists don't need visas to visit Thailand currently, nor have they required them for decades.

[Tomtomtom69]

The Chinese sit on buses all day taking photos of decadent Thailand and its drunk foreign tourists then go home and report to the authorities. They dont spend much money here.

Farangs spend the real money here but Thai gov couldnt care less.

As far as they're concerned we must be controlled by stricter immigration regs and bankroll all of Thailand s poor families via Isan wives.

Dont like it? no problem go home farang.

Even the looney Russians get a much better deal than us.

Everyone pretty much gets the same deal - what are you talking about? The exceptions are a couple of nationalities that get 90-day visa waivers such as Argentina, Peru, Brazil and Sth Korea while Russians can get 30 days even for overland entries, while other nationalities no longer get this privilege apart from a few ASEAN visitors from such countries as Laos, Vietnam and Malaysia (the rest get only 15 days overland or 14 days for Cambodians).

[Tomtomtom69]

The Thais would be stupid to waive visas for Chinese visitors and miss out on all that revenue. Also, screening visitors can be done through the visa process - I see plenty of problems allowing your average Chinese person into Thailand without a visa - namely them not going back home afterwards. If so many Chinese are coming, then clearly being required to apply for a visa, which isn't particularly hard anyway, doesn't seem to have hurt their numbers.

Every few weeks there is another article about this proposal and this has been talked about since 2012, with some ministers saying no and you would think it was the end of this stupid proposal - why don't they just stop the hype, I'm getting bored reading these pointless articles, but felt I had to respond this time.

[dunque]

"Vichit said he believed about 5 million Chinese will visit Thailand next year if such a policy can take effect in 2014."

And...Thailand won't have to build any more WCs, since the Chinese tourists don't know how to use them. Of course, that will be offset by having to build more Emergency Rooms at local hospitals to handle accident victims since the Chinese also don't know how to use motorized vehicles, or as a result of standing in the middle of the busy traffic while taking photos, or having yet to learn what traffic lights are, or........

I see you had to stop mid-rant - presumably to wipe away the dribble.

[impulse]

I just wish that Thailand would revise its policy of visas generally towards tourists, and not just in relation to China!

Considering that the country is so dependent on tourism, it always amazes me how rigid and stubborn the authorities are towards tourists and visa requirements. Even in India, one can obtain 3 months at a time!

If Thai intransigence was altered, visitor numbers would increase exponentially

I suspect anyone staying 3 months at a time isn't really a tourist. Or at least 99% of them.

Nothing wrong with the long stay, but it seems reasonable to query the plans and wherewithal of anyone wanting to stay longer than the visa free period.

[lee b]

I wonder if the Chinese tourists will be warned to stay well away from Phuket and Pattaya??

[wimpey1946]

The Chinese sit on buses all day taking photos of decadent Thailand and its drunk foreign tourists then go home and report to the authorities. They dont spend much money here.

Farangs spend the real money here but Thai gov couldnt care less.

As far as they're concerned we must be controlled by stricter immigration regs and bankroll all of Thailand s poor families via Isan wives.

Dont like it? no problem go home farang.

Even the looney Russians get a much better deal than us.

have some more to complain ??

[nkg]

Wang Dong, a Chinese businessman in Bangkok, said what's more important than saving money is the time saved, with better scope for business.

Listen to Wang Dong - he's a stand up guy.

[Local Drunk]

Helro hansum china man...

[zydeco]

Won't be long before Truevisions is replacing all its English language satellite channels with Chinese ones.

[Bluespunk]

Won't be long before Truevisions is replacing all its English language satellite channels with Chinese ones.

Could hardly make their programming any worse.