Pattaya sees drop in 2014 tourists to 7m

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PATTAYA TOURIST
Pattaya sees drop in 2014 tourists to 7m
Bamrung Amnatcharoenrit
The Nation

Chaos in Bangkok keeps visitors away

BANGKOK: -- The number of tourists, both local and foreign, visiting Pattaya is now projected to drop to 7.5 million this year from 9 million last year because of the prolonged political turmoil.

Tourism revenue in the city is forecast to decline to Bt70 billion this year from Bt85 billion in 2013.

Mayor Itthiphol Kunplome said yesterday that it was difficult to raise hopes high on tourist numbers at this time of uncertainty.

The old projection was to match last year's tourist numbers, but the escalating political scenario led to the downward revision. In a peaceful situation, arrivals from local and foreign markets should reach 10 million. About 70 per cent are foreign.

This quarter has seen a loss of 30 per cent in arrivals from 3.5 million a year ago and 30 per in cent in tourism revenue from Bt35 billion.

Pattaya has suffered from the political tension in Bangkok because the resort city is combined in tour packages for foreigners with the capital. Many foreigners chose to enjoy shopping and sightseeing at the Grand Palace in Bangkok before heading to Pattaya to relax with sunbathing or sea activities. This group has disappeared, especially Chinese.

During Chinese New Year, for example, inbound operators expected to receive 300 tour groups from China, but handled only 60. The major problem was that they were worried about travel insurance, which does not cover political chaos.

Occupancy remains good, averaging 80 per cent on weekends, thanks to local seminars that moved from Bangkok after it was hit by political demonstrations.

However, the city has to deal with price-cutting by unregistered hotels offering accommodation for Bt1,200-Bt1,500 a night.

To revitalise the city, the administration will focus more on local tourists to offset the missing foreigners. Thai tourists are targeted to increase to 40 per cent of the total this year. Activities are being planned to attract them.

One of the highlights is the 13th Pattaya Music Festival, which will be held from March 21-23. The three days are hoped to bring in more than 350,000 travellers and almost Bt700 million in spending.

The festival will showcase more than 90 music bands, mainly local ones, playing on six stages. Bands from such places as South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan have not confirmed their participation, partly out of fear of the political hostilities.


-- The Nation 2014-03-12

[craigt3365]

It's been wonderful. Much less traffic congestion than last year.

[KittenKong]

I dont mind there only being 7.5M tourists, but why do they all want to get on my bahtbus?

[Just1Voice]

So the typical Thai reaction to less business will be to jack up the prices even higher to "make up for the loss".

[JSixpack]

Funny how if there's an official report of a drop in tourism, then it's accepted here without question.

But if it's a report of an increase, then the figures are widely decried as fake, must be Cambodians and Burmese etc.

Seems to me the drop was mostly in Asian tourism as the report suggests. The traditional monger market seemed to do well enough. Plenty of Russians. Traffic was a bit better than last year, and the wider Beach Rd. helped as well--but it was still awful.

[captspectre]

I dont mind there only being 7.5M tourists, but why do they all want to get on my bahtbus?

drop another seven million and maybe pattaya will be a good place again! all the riff raff will go to bangkok to ply on the tourist!

[canopus1969]

Best news of the day, now lets try and get the numberrs down to 5m

[SGD]

Now if only the Russian planes could mysteriously divert to any other destination, continent, planet.

[MrWorldwide]

I dont mind there only being 7.5M tourists, but why do they all want to get on my bahtbus?

drop another seven million and maybe pattaya will be a good place again! all the riff raff will go to bangkok to ply on the tourist!

The same forces which pushed tourist numbers down in Patts seem to have left lower Suk with a high season that - by all accounts - looked a lot more like low season. In any case, I cant wait to return to Thailand in early May - bring it on.

[upena]

How does the mayor know how many tourists visit Pattaya annually? Impossible to know.

[DrTuner]

Bring on the good old low season, I've quite missed it.

[shaurene]

Not only the Bangkok problems, a lot of tourists have bad experiences in Pattaya and decide not to come back they also send the word around back home and others are put off. I was another of the bag snatchers victims, 2 on a bike snatched my wallet bag and lost my passport in it. Not much help from Police, tried the emergency number 3 times, no answer, bloody joke.

[Lupatria]

C'mon let’s see the positive side. Now it's only the créme de la crème of quality tourists left. The Russian mafia, Nigerian drug dealer, Iranian trafficker, Chinese ATM scammer and European timeshare sharks are way too scared to come here anymore.

Maybe I should apply for a job with the TAT...

[laurentbkk]

I am not sure this less tourist issue is part of the politic problems. There are so many other reason why people dont go to pattaya anymore ..

[little mary sunshine]

_{They really nead to clean this place up. Last year friends visited, had planned on staying a month, after two weeks of}

_{filthy water, filthy beaches, horrible traffic, and almost run over crossing Beach Road, they returned to Florida, Never}

_{again, Rude tourists (Russians), filthy, dangerous place. Maybe there are other reasons than the Political One that people}

_{are not returning to Pattaya.}

[laurentbkk]

C'mon let’s see the positive side. Now it's only the créme de la crème of quality tourists left. The Russian mafia, Nigerian drug dealer, Iranian trafficker, Chinese ATM scammer and European timeshare sharks are way too scared to come here anymore.

Maybe I should apply for a job with the TAT...

in your list you forgot about : fat German drunk on beer at 9 am .... it goes also for Brits, yank, Aussies and so on ....You have plenty of good Russian or Chinese tourists and plenty of bad one and that goes for all nationalities.

[craigt3365]

_{They really nead to clean this place up. Last year friends visited, had planned on staying a month, after two weeks of}

_{filthy water, filthy beaches, horrible traffic, and almost run over crossing Beach Road, they returned to Florida, Never}

_{again, Rude tourists (Russians), filthy, dangerous place. Maybe there are other reasons than the Political One that people}

_{are not returning to Pattaya.}

Florida has some of the best beaches in the world.

[laurentbkk]

_{They really nead to clean this place up. Last year friends visited, had planned on staying a month, after two weeks of}

_{filthy water, filthy beaches, horrible traffic, and almost run over crossing Beach Road, they returned to Florida, Never}

_{again, Rude tourists (Russians), filthy, dangerous place. Maybe there are other reasons than the Political One that people}

_{are not returning to Pattaya.}

I was wondering when the Russian bashing will start ..... as for rude tourists I can tell you I have met rude french, rude English , rude american , rude German etc ..... Being rude is not stick on one nationalities but on individual.

[little mary sunshine]

_{They really nead to clean this place up. Last year friends visited, had planned on staying a month, after two weeks of}

_{filthy water, filthy beaches, horrible traffic, and almost run over crossing Beach Road, they returned to Florida, Never}

_{again, Rude tourists (Russians), filthy, dangerous place. Maybe there are other reasons than the Political One that people}

_{are not returning to Pattaya.}

I was wondering when the Russian bashing will start ..... as for rude tourists I can tell you I have met rude french, rude English , rude american , rude German etc ..... Being rude is not stick on one nationalities but on individual.

No Russian bashing intended....Their complaint was being pushed and shoved

by "Rude Russians"...

[OMGImInPattaya]

_{They really nead to clean this place up. Last year friends visited, had planned on staying a month, after two weeks of}

_{filthy water, filthy beaches, horrible traffic, and almost run over crossing Beach Road, they returned to Florida, Never}

_{again, Rude tourists (Russians), filthy, dangerous place. Maybe there are other reasons than the Political One that people}

_{are not returning to Pattaya.}

Florida has some of the best beaches in the world.

Yeah...were they insane leaving Florida to visit Pattaya...what's up with dat?

[OMGImInPattaya]

Not only the Bangkok problems, a lot of tourists have bad experiences in Pattaya and decide not to come back they also send the word around back home and others are put off. I was another of the bag snatchers victims, 2 on a bike snatched my wallet bag and lost my passport in it. Not much help from Police, tried the emergency number 3 times, no answer, bloody joke.

Please continue to spread the bad word...the less tourists the better for us expats!

[Benmart]

Pattaya has a very thin, friendly, all welcoming veneer which covers a dark, ugly, greedy and corrupt interior.

I live here and plan on moving along in search of a place that may well not exist. The fun part is looking.

[soalbundy]

Those poor girls,they will have to go back to Isaan.If too many leave that will finish Pattaya for good,i mean ,what else has Pattaya to offer?

[DrTuner]

Those poor girls,they will have to go back to Isaan.If too many leave that will finish Pattaya for good,i mean ,what else has Pattaya to offer?

The refresh rate for girls is high, also due to the best looking ones being snapped away by visiting future husbands. The only fixtures are the old&ugly, they ain't going nowhere. So no worries, the flow of traffic is still from Isaan to Pattaya to outside Thailand and will likely remain so, Pattaya probably qualifies as the #1 recycling hub in the world.

[davejones23]

So the typical Thai reaction to less business will be to jack up the prices even higher to "make up for the loss".

Yet more <deleted>. Thai prices are always lower in the low season. No idea why people keep repeating this nonsense. Low IQ maybe.

[JSixpack]

Those poor girls,they will have to go back to Isaan.If too many leave that will finish Pattaya for good,i mean ,what else has Pattaya to offer?

Finally the DYING PATTAYA brigade has arrived! Just a matter of time.

Obviously Pattaya is now KAPUT, DEAD, FINISHED. The same fate awaits Pattaya as it did another city that, disastrously, constructed a promenade w/o insufficient input from its foreign doomsayers, who had, before it was even finished, declaimed bitterly the lack of shade and benches on, and the poor view from, its promenade.

Pattaya's immediate future

More views: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2352513/Take-tour-desolate-city-Earth-Google-Street-View-goes-ghostly-Japanese-island-James-Bonds-Skyfall.html

It's the CRIME. It's the STREETS. It's the REAL ESTATE BUBBLE. It's the STREET CROSSINGS. It's the PIZZA. It's the lack of proper PORK SCRATCHINGS. It's the BEING IGNORED BY THE CASHIERS AT BIG C!!! CESSPOOL!!!

Yep, the goose that laid the golden eggs has been killed; the last nail in the coffin driven. Soi dogs are already starting to roam the bleached ruins of condos. Meanwhile, Sihanoukville is being totally overwhelmed by ex-members of the Pattaya doomsayers club--the remainder who haven't already committed suicide! Lucky Cambodia!

--

DYING PATTAYA: Hate it or leave it!

[soalbundy]

Those poor girls,they will have to go back to Isaan.If too many leave that will finish Pattaya for good,i mean ,what else has Pattaya to offer?

Finally the DYING PATTAYA brigade has arrived! Just a matter of time.

Obviously Pattaya is now KAPUT, DEAD, FINISHED. The same fate awaits Pattaya as it did another city that, disastrously, constructed a promenade w/o insufficient input from its foreign doomsayers, who had, before it was even finished, declaimed bitterly the lack of shade and benches on, and the poor view from, its promenade.

Pattaya's immediate future

More views: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2352513/Take-tour-desolate-city-Earth-Google-Street-View-goes-ghostly-Japanese-island-James-Bonds-Skyfall.html

It's the CRIME. It's the STREETS. It's the REAL ESTATE BUBBLE. It's the STREET CROSSINGS. It's the PIZZA. It's the lack of proper PORK SCRATCHINGS. It's the BEING IGNORED BY THE CASHIERS AT BIG C!!! CESSPOOL!!!

Yep, the goose that laid the golden eggs has been killed; the last nail in the coffin driven. Soi dogs are already starting to roam the bleached ruins of condos. Meanwhile, Sihanoukville is being totally overwhelmed by ex-members of the Pattaya doomsayers club--the remainder who haven't already committed suicide! Lucky Cambodia!

--

DYING PATTAYA: Hate it or leave it!

So.......you like Pattaya then?...........your bar isn't doing too well lately? Blame it on the weather

[ARGUSEYE]

Those poor girls,they will have to go back to Isaan.If too many leave that will finish Pattaya for good,i mean ,what else has Pattaya to offer?

Finally the DYING PATTAYA brigade has arrived! Just a matter of time.

Obviously Pattaya is now KAPUT, DEAD, FINISHED. The same fate awaits Pattaya as it did another city that, disastrously, constructed a promenade w/o insufficient input from its foreign doomsayers, who had, before it was even finished, declaimed bitterly the lack of shade and benches on, and the poor view from, its promenade.

Pattaya's immediate future

More views: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2352513/Take-tour-desolate-city-Earth-Google-Street-View-goes-ghostly-Japanese-island-James-Bonds-Skyfall.html

It's the CRIME. It's the STREETS. It's the REAL ESTATE BUBBLE. It's the STREET CROSSINGS. It's the PIZZA. It's the lack of proper PORK SCRATCHINGS. It's the BEING IGNORED BY THE CASHIERS AT BIG C!!! CESSPOOL!!!

Yep, the goose that laid the golden eggs has been killed; the last nail in the coffin driven. Soi dogs are already starting to roam the bleached ruins of condos. Meanwhile, Sihanoukville is being totally overwhelmed by ex-members of the Pattaya doomsayers club--the remainder who haven't already committed suicide! Lucky Cambodia!

--

DYING PATTAYA: Hate it or leave it!

Sixpack, you wrote this several times before.

It gets boring.

[JSixpack]

Those poor girls,they will have to go back to Isaan.If too many leave that will finish Pattaya for good,i mean ,what else has Pattaya to offer?

Finally the DYING PATTAYA brigade has arrived! Just a matter of time.

Obviously Pattaya is now KAPUT, DEAD, FINISHED. The same fate awaits Pattaya as it did another city that, disastrously, constructed a promenade w/o insufficient input from its foreign doomsayers, who had, before it was even finished, declaimed bitterly the lack of shade and benches on, and the poor view from, its promenade.

Pattaya's immediate future

More views: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2352513/Take-tour-desolate-city-Earth-Google-Street-View-goes-ghostly-Japanese-island-James-Bonds-Skyfall.html

It's the CRIME. It's the STREETS. It's the REAL ESTATE BUBBLE. It's the STREET CROSSINGS. It's the PIZZA. It's the lack of proper PORK SCRATCHINGS. It's the BEING IGNORED BY THE CASHIERS AT BIG C!!! CESSPOOL!!!

Yep, the goose that laid the golden eggs has been killed; the last nail in the coffin driven. Soi dogs are already starting to roam the bleached ruins of condos. Meanwhile, Sihanoukville is being totally overwhelmed by ex-members of the Pattaya doomsayers club--the remainder who haven't already committed suicide! Lucky Cambodia!

--

DYING PATTAYA: Hate it or leave it!

Sixpack, you wrote this several times before.

It gets boring.

You still around, ARGUSEYE? Well, it remains an appropriate response, adapted, for the continual repetitions of doomsayings, esp for noob still-wet-behind-the-ears doomsayers as above who haven't previously read it. But the priority is simply my own enjoyment, you see.

Now, if you find it boring (as I do all the silly prophesies of Pattaya's doom for the last 25 years or so--but then I enjoy the laugh), then I got the obvious solution for ya: don't read it! Good?

Edited March 13, 2014 by JSixpack