No Visa required for Chinese and Taiwanese visiting Thailand between August-October

[webfact]

NCPO: No Visa required for Chinese and Taiwanese visiting the Kingdom between August-October

BANGKOK, 17 July 2014 (NNT) -The President of the Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT), Piyaman Techapaiboon announced at the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) daily press conference at Government House today that Chinese and Taiwanese tourists wanting to come to Thailand for a vacation don't need to apply for a visa during the three months August to October 2014.

Ms. Piyaman said the three month visa exception period is to thank the Chinese people for greatly supporting the Thai tourism industry which has resulted in high growth in the tourism sector.

During the visa free period, schools in China are having their break, and it's a great traveling time for them.

Ms. Piyaman said that the number of tourists coming to Thailand this year is expected to be similar to last year which reached 28.6 million.

Lastly, Ms. Piyaman thanked the NCPO for being able to solve many of the country's prolonged problems along with realigning public transportation such as buses and vans which in turn is bringing foreign tourist back to the country having regained their trust in regard to safety.

[nnt]2014-07-17[/nnt]

[ukrules]

They're sending a clear message by doing this right now.

[HiSoLowSoNoSo]

So Farangs out, Chinese in!  

[saakura]

Why only Aug to October? Low season campaign to push tourist numbers up?

[terryp]

thailand will never be the same...this is the opening of the floodgates, I hate this

 

 i read a report last year that said 64 million Chinese a year are expected here by 2020

Edited July 16, 2014 by terryp

[BSJ]

OK, the country needs quality tourists that spend money in the shops to help boost retail.  Are the Chinese people coming in August-October going to be the big spenders?   Cos the Chinese coming in the last 12 months haven't been spending too much!

 

I haven't had my first coffee yet so sarcasm and wit are sadly lacking!

[96tehtarp]

Why only Aug to October? Low season campaign to push tourist numbers up?

 

Probably because it is only an interim measure until a bilateral agreement gets finalized. This General Prayuth guy is quick, as it was only a couple of days ago that the Chinese asked for this.

 

Hopefully Thai nationals will get reciprocal privileges soon as well.

 

Chinese are the number one group of tourists at the moment. I see a bilateral agreement as a win win for everybody. 

Edited July 16, 2014 by 96tehtarp

[terryp]

 

Why only Aug to October? Low season campaign to push tourist numbers up?

 

Chinese are the number one group of tourists at the moment. I see a bilateral agreement as a win win for everybody. 

 

 

how? , i live in tourist resort and they are killing the place, locals complain they spend no money , abuse everything and are just rude to thais

 

go to China and see them at home they are horrific......i tried China 3 times and said never again

[96tehtarp]

OK, the country needs quality tourists that spend money in the shops to help boost retail.  Are the Chinese people coming in August-October going to be the big spenders?   Cos the Chinese coming in the last 12 months haven't been spending too much!

 

I haven't had my first coffee yet so sarcasm and wit are sadly lacking!

 

"Cos the Chinese coming in the last 12 months haven't been spending too much!"

 

The last time I was in Yawarat (Chinatown) they were spending 1500-3500 for a bowl of soup. (sharkfin).

[lostsoul49]

They are clamping down on westerners by inconveniencing thousands of them to stop a small handfull from working.

 

Have they a clue how many Chinese enter the country on tourist visas and work illegally?

 

I bet it is far more than westerners.

 

Now they don't even need a visa.... crazy.

[Saleg]

Hong Kong Chinese should respond to this favorably although it was not so long ago that a travel ban was announced by Hong Kong Tourist Authority.

[baboon]

So Farangs out, Chinese in!  

So it would seem. The visa forum is not a happy place right now. Still, let 'em get on with it, they know best.

[terryp]

 

OK, the country needs quality tourists that spend money in the shops to help boost retail.  Are the Chinese people coming in August-October going to be the big spenders?   Cos the Chinese coming in the last 12 months haven't been spending too much!

 

I haven't had my first coffee yet so sarcasm and wit are sadly lacking!

 

"Cos the Chinese coming in the last 12 months haven't been spending too much!"

 

The last time I was in Yawarat (Chinatown) they were spending 1500-3500 for a bowl of soup. (sharkfin).

 

 

Why? the Chinese have no real economic problems at this time (they will in the next 12 months)

 

 

and the noodle thing that is a million miles away from what I am seeing, in fact local business here are going out of business because of the mass tours based in CHINA that control them
 

[daoyai]

I hope they are taught not to blow their nose or spit in the hotel pools, I am a member of a hotel fitness center and use the pool, it is so common, really nasty.

[chainarong]

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Why only Aug to October? Low season campaign to push tourist numbers up?

 

Chinese are the number one group of tourists at the moment. I see a bilateral agreement as a win win for everybody. 

 

 

how? , i live in tourist resort and they are killing the place, locals complain they spend no money , abuse everything and are just rude to thais

 

go to China and see them at home they are horrific......i tried China 3 times and said never again

 

 

I fully endorse your comments. They've been voted for the past ten years as the worlds worst tourist, Thailand can have them, what go's around comes around. 

[chainarong]

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I hope they are taught not to blow their nose or spit in the hotel pools, I am a member of a hotel fitness center and use the pool, it is so common, really nasty.

 

I came across one group in HK, spitting on the footpath, (Hennessy Rd) an old grey haired guy at the back was Picking he's nose and eating it, as I went passed I asked him if he'd found any gold nuggets, filthy prick..  

[jaltsc]

"Ms. Piyaman said the three month visa exception period is to thank the Chinese people for greatly supporting the Thai tourism industry which has resulted in high growth in the tourism sector."

 

This is the low tourist season. So TAT figured it could invite the Chinese and make up the loss of revenue by charging them for the numerous hospital visits resulting from road accidents. I never thought TAT could come up with such a brilliant plan    .

[HiSoLowSoNoSo]

 

So Farangs out, Chinese in!  

So it would seem. The visa forum is not a happy place right now. Still, let 'em get on with it, they know best.

 

 

It will bite them in the arse in the long run, many of the ruling class here are of Chinese breed and don't like westerners. We should all remeber this move by them.

[metisdead]

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[96tehtarp]

 

"Cos the Chinese coming in the last 12 months haven't been spending too much!"

 

The last time I was in Yawarat (Chinatown) they were spending 1500-3500 for a bowl of soup. (sharkfin).

 

 

Why? the Chinese have no real economic problems at this time (they will in the next 12 months)

 

 

and the noodle thing that is a million miles away from what I am seeing, in fact local business here are going out of business because of the mass tours based in CHINA that control them

 

"...that is a million miles away from what I am seeing"

 

I don't dispute what you see. That's why we are discussing this in a forum. 

 

You are quite right. The Chinese do travel on group (captive) tours. They are easier to fleece that way.

[iphad]

OK, the country needs quality tourists that spend money in the shops to help boost retail.  Are the Chinese people coming in August-October going to be the big spenders?   Cos the Chinese coming in the last 12 months haven't been spending too much!

 

I haven't had my first coffee yet so sarcasm and wit are sadly lacking!

 

I just had my coffee.....where do you see that the Chinese don't spend?

I'm not doubting your statement maybe you know something that isn't apparent to me, especially for the last 12 months.

Although I have seen comments on various forums that Chinese don't spend money, the stats I see  say the reverse.

From " The Economist" dated april 24,2013

"Nearly one in ten international tourists worldwide is now Chinese, with 97.3m outward-bound journeys from the country last year, of which around half were for leisure. Chinese tourists spend most in total ($129 billion in 2013, followed by Americans at $86 billion) and per tax-free transaction ($1,130 compared with $494 by Russians). More than 80% say that shopping is vital to their plans, compared with 56% of Middle Eastern tourists and 48% of Russians. They are expected to buy more luxury goods next year while abroad than tourists from all other countries combined".

Only around 5% of China’s population now own passports, and most of those who travel go to Hong Kong or Macau. But increased affluence, a trend towards longer holidays, fewer visa conditions and growing numbers of repeat travellers mean that every year more will take foreign trips, and more will venture farther.   http://www.economist.com/news/international/21601028-how-growing-chinese-middle-class-changing-global-tourism-industry-coming.

Other articles online say somewhat the same.

 

The impression I get is that the Chinese travel for quality food & high end shopping.

certainly for the last 12 months..... 4-6 of the months had demonstrations, so that might have put off Chinese tourists & buying.

The notion that the Chinese are bad tourists,that they are cheap spenders is like saying that every farang that comes to Thailand just drinks alcohol & is a sex monger.

 

[jaideeguy]

Seems like we have 2 fronts are invading LOS now...............the Russians from the south and now the Chinese from the north and no one speaks well for either army of tourists except for the 1 in a thousand Russian girls in a bikini.  The Chinese wouldn't dare to wear bikinis.

[96tehtarp]

 

 

Why only Aug to October? Low season campaign to push tourist numbers up?

 

Chinese are the number one group of tourists at the moment. I see a bilateral agreement as a win win for everybody. 

 

 

how? , i live in tourist resort and they are killing the place, locals complain they spend no money , abuse everything and are just rude to thais

 

go to China and see them at home they are horrific......i tried China 3 times and said never again

 

 

Maybe too much coffee.

 

"..locals complain they spend no money"

 

I agree that because these Chinese tourists are on group tours their spending is tightly controlled. Aren't these tours controlling where they shop, eat, which beach chairs they sit in? They get taken to special "stores" for shopping by the busloads.

 

Probably many locals will find themselves left out. That's not win-win as I mentioned earlier.

 

I'm sure the Chinese have no monopoly on rudeness.

 

"i tried China 3 times and said never again"

 

They won't miss you and I'm not being rude or sarcastic. Certainly bad-air and smog is not good for tourism.

[ClutchClark]

This sure seems like a paradigm shift for future tourism in Thailand.
The number of potential tourists from China dwarfs Western numbers.
Do Chinese have drug issues of Westerners?
Do Chinese often remain as expats as farangs do?
Or do they dutifully spend their one week and go home?

Apart from tourism, what are the political gains by improving relations with China?
Does China offer military funding?
Does China offer infrastructure improvement?

I had been shopping for real estate and spending my invalid years here but I am placing all that on hold.

[ClutchClark]

Seems like we have 2 fronts are invading LOS now...............the Russians from the south and now the Chinese from the north and no one speaks well for either army of tourists except for the 1 in a thousand Russian girls in a bikini.  The Chinese wouldn't dare to wear bikinis.

On the contrary...I saw a woman in Samui and they don't believe in Brazilians wax...just the opposite...its like the US in the 1950's.

[iphad]

This sure seems like a paradigm shift for future tourism in Thailand.
The number of potential tourists from China dwarfs Western numbers.
Do Chinese have drug issues of Westerners?
Do Chinese often remain as expats as farangs do?
Or do they dutifully spend their one week and go home?

Apart from tourism, what are the political gains by improving relations with China?
Does China offer military funding?
Does China offer infrastructure improvement?

I had been shopping for real estate and spending my invalid years here but I am placing all that on hold.

 

I believe more Chinese tourists to Thailand is good business.so Thailand offering the Chinese better visiting rights is good ..not sure how it would affect me but for Thailand it would be beneficial.

I don't believe China offers any military spending in Thailand..I have never seen any mention of it but could be wrong.

The US I believe paid Thailand about 4 million but that's probably for use of airports etc for US military planes etc...

Infrastructure improvement by the Chinese....probably not.

As to shopping for Real Estate I would probably...( never say never)...not buy in Thailand because anything can happen...like a civil war political instability etc.

But that doesn't mean Thailand isn't a good place to buy real estate..others would know better...if you bought a condo probably good chance it will go up in value if in a good location etc.

Thailand does offer good hospitals for us old guys compared to Laos & Cambodia.

Easier life back home but not as much fun.
 

[noitom]

This is an excellent reason for Chinese and Taiwanese to book no holds barred sex tours to Thailand.

[smedly]

 

So Farangs out, Chinese in!  

So it would seem. The visa forum is not a happy place right now. Still, let 'em get on with it, they know best.

 

 

 

I thought most westerners were exempt from needing a visa for a holiday and forgetting to go home was the main issue

[upena]

According the official Department of Tourism foreign tourist arrival numbers for all airports in Thailand tourists from China are down 41.38% for June, Taiwanese tourists down 45.50%, and from Hong Kong down 46.39% (compared to June 2013).  If the Ministry of Tourism and Sports and TAT think waiving a 1,000 baht visa fee is going to improve things, they are totally wrong.

[BigRick]

I love it a pure comedy of errors on the Thais .First you lose 30-40%+ of the English teachers in the country because you want only qualified people who spent 4 year and 10,000'sUS to make less than 1000US not to mention live in an increasingly xenophobic country. Yes there are standards that can be expected but if you can't match the asking price then don't complain when no one wants to work for you. The reason why the TFEL teachers work is because the demand is so high now remove the pool the demand increases without the standard of pay increasing. Coupled by the by the fact other ASEAN countries are also in need of native speakers its A. Going to lower the English proficiency of the country B. Cause Thais to become more self absorbed and defensive when they get the hard lesson of "English is the language of ASEAN not Thai" Their neighbors are coming up while they are going down and if they ever catch up to Thailand I am pretty sure they will remember how they were treated.    

 

The Chinese now that is some funny sh*t it reminds me of a survey they published a few months back about the Thais being some of the best tippers in the world. Let me tell you knowing more than a few business owners and waitresses Thai do not tip and if they do its the 3-4 baht change almost more of an insult. Without fail most of the Chinese tourist I have been exposed too in the region were less than stellar tourists. In Wat Tom Cambodia they were screaming at the top of their lungs because they want to hear themselves in a completely quit place. On Semmaessan we were taking a military patrol boat across one of these asshats decided he wanted to be captain and sat in the his chair and played with shit. His Thai handler/Chinese almost blew a gasket when I pointed it out and the guy was lucky no Thai military saw this. Samed one knocked my wife over trying to push in front of the line so she could they could be the first ones off clearly when everyone is also standing in line. Needless to say that person get a nice elbow arm wall in the ribs when they tried to push past me. You do not push down someones wife acting like a Chinese big shot without expecting a little blowback.