Thai tourism industry: 'Martial law killing arrivals'

[Tony125]

they forgot to add the visa crackdown for long term tourists ...which is one of the reasons like it or not

That is a ridicules statement. To the best of my knowledge a long term tourist can get a double 60 day entry and in some cases a triple entry. Each one capable of extending it's expiry date by 30 days to give a long term tourist 180 days and in some cases 270 days. I don't believe you are talking about long term tourists you are talking about people trying to live here with out declaring it.

and brought a lot of benefit to local businesses, like it or not.

All of their money went into local rental, local mom n pop shops, local transport, etc.

I take it you are advocating for the continual use of the monthly visa runs because the people do not qualify for an honest visa.

I wonder if you think every country should allow illegal people in just because they bring money in.

It amazes me that some posters on TV who have been members for a year have thousands of posts so like a minimum of 12 or more per day. Nothing to do but sit at your PC trying to dispense your great knowledge of all things Thai. Yes tourism has been growing over the years but that should be expected , the downturn now is because of the crackdown , curfew and other controls. No everyone does not come over for sex and drinking ( I don't drink never have) but even in laid back somewhat puritanical Boston, MA USA the clubs and bars are open till 2 AM Restaurants even later. They say going to promote Thailand 24 hrs-----what? To stay awake at your hotel watching cable? When they put that curfew in affect many tourists moved on they don't check back every day to see if its been lifted or if martial law is still in effect. Thailand says oh we will get you insurance if you can't get it in your country to travel here. Do you think anyone overseas even knows that?

If I was booking a flite to Thailand and asked for trip insurance and the travel agency told me I can't be covered because the country is under marshall law I would say I guess I'll go somewhere else--I wouldn't know I could get trip insurance in Thailand BECAUSE ITS NOT ADVERTISED and even if it was many would think its to much of a hassle. Same with the in/out crackdown. Before if someone came on 30 day visa exempt liked the trip decided to go out and come back in to stay longer now they hear they face being refused re-entry at some borders . Remember 180,000 Burmese and Cambodians ran home because they THOUGHT the crackdown was going to target them and had to be told they could come back. How many more EU ,Aus, Russians took off because they were being refused re-entry or thought they would face problems.

Untill the rules are clear at ALL border crossings and known overseas , scamming (jet skis) and maybe reduction of higher prices people will go elsewhere. Much more countries availaable now, Viet-Nam, Burma, Laos ect.

[larsjohnsson]

Come On, 99% of tourists don't know there is Martial law in effect in Thailand

What effect has it had on your life in the last , say month living here in Thailand.

Among a few things I have to change to another insurence for travel-health-accidents because my old one didn't fully cover me when it was martial law. It will cost me 12k baht extra per year. And more this first year when I changed it

[John1thru10]

saramsland certainly has a point. I doubt most tourists are really concerned about visa restrictions on long-timers or about martial law. However, the bad press on crimes directed toward tourists, tourist ripoffs, police corruption, as well as the unstable political turmoil does send a poor message on the LOS.

No, Thailand has always had a reputation for things like crime, and worse. People don't want to come anymore EXACTLY because of visa restrictions, martial law, and an unelected Military Government. That's what it is.

[jamie2009]

Ok the Tourist might not be aware of Marshall Law but you can guarantee the Travel Agent will inform them and sell them a holiday in another location probably one where their commission rate is higher. The murders have had loads of publicity which must put people of who might not realise Thailand is huge place. Some one was murdered in my town in the UK last week, it's common place in our society, how many people get shot in the States in year ? A lot more than in Thailand I bet but it doesn't stop the Tourists, Tourists need to be convinced that murdering Tourists is not an every day thing in Thailand.

[retsdon]

If visitors are really down 30 percent, there will be a lot if businesses looking dwn the barrel. In the old days, a lot of tourist accomodation was low budget with very low overheads - so no tourists = no profit. Over the last 15 years or so, much of the low budget stuff has been replaced with higher grade accomodation which carries much higher running costs - so no tourists = big losses.

[Equalizer]

The figures are flawed. The place is dead and it will continue through the high season. Even free flights wouldn't bring in the masses here the way things are. They are in shit street and they know it.

[John1thru10]

If martial law can rid Thailand of the mafia style infrastructure in every village, province and city ... can create an honest and reliable police force ... and upgrade education to international standards .... the coups will be lauded and its leaders will go down in Thai history as heroes and Thailand will be on its way to becoming a first world country.

Look, it's obvious, guys.

They've done everything they could, to describe visa runners as criminals, low life, telling them they aren't welcome anymore, giving them a hard time when entering, trying to make them feel unwelcome, threatening them with prison, telling them they will be blacklisted, fines on top of fines, stopping people to intimidate. Many people HERE spend months calling people names, and telling them to get out, even.

Well, guess what; people didn't like it, and now they aren't here anymore. The world moved on; the fad ended when it saw how brutal Thailand could be, and now it's hurting for it.

Edited October 14, 2014 by John1thru10

[gchurch259]

In a land where a working person gets 300THB or less a day, the only thing cheap is labor. Hotels are too high, property is too high, food and shopping is too high. Even this so called cheap sex is too high, Sorry Ladies I Love you all !!

The only other thing reasonable is the Taxi, when you use the Meter. Motorcycle Taxi are good. Tuk Tuks and truck taxi like Pattaya are too high, although I ride one every now and then just for the fun of it.

Marial Law has nothing to do with it except the media runs their mouths. I have lived here 11 years and it is the same only more expensive. The only way Martial Law has bothered me is they interupt my Elglish Speaking TV with this Thai explanation of what they want to do to improve the lives of all elimnate corruption.

Edited October 14, 2014 by gchurch259

[jesimps]

I feel a lot more safe witht he army in charge rather than the police. The army leaders are a corrpupt as the police leaders, but at least the average soldier is not as dirty as the average police.

Obviously a lot of potential tourists think differently.

[ikke]

If martial law can rid Thailand of the mafia style infrastructure in every village, province and city ... can create an honest and reliable police force ... and upgrade education to international standards .... the coups will be lauded and its leaders will go down in Thai history as heroes and Thailand will be on its way to becoming a first world country.

Yeah, maybe in 2114....

[sydneyjed]

Tourism in Thailand is going to keep going up. As always there is going to be occasional yearly dips be it Political, Tsunami or Sars but last year still saw almost 3 times the number of arrivals than 10 Years ago. Tourism makes up about 9% of GDP and near 30% of this is from domestic tourism. While numbers dropped earlier this year, I would not expect much if any of a drop the rest of the year making foreign tourism down just a couple percentage points over the record high previous year. For sure the sky is not falling nor is tourism dying in Thailand as so many here have been predicting for at least the last 10 years.

The thing that will hit tourism the hardest in the coming years is modernization. Many people come to Thailand because it offers a glimpse into the past and is an adventure and cheap. Much of this is going away fairly rapidly. Be it police, Taxis, hotels, night life and so on, as laws and higher standards are enforced then costs and freedoms you can't experience at home will be less attractive. I expect neighboring countries will continue to steal these types of tourists away as Thailand continues to try to move toward more quality (higher spending) tourists while trying not to completely forget the nightlife and backpacking crowd.

Absolutely agree and no more of a prime example of over the top development than Chaweng Beach on Samui..<deleted>??

[baboon]

I think it is a general level of uncertainty - Didn't the army just take over? Didn't I read something in the travel supplements about them refusing visas or whatever it was? Aren't the islands unsafe? A mate of mine in the pub says the police plant drugs on you and extort money. Wasn't there a murder on a train a while ago? Isn't it just wall to wall prostitutes there?

Thailand just doesn't seem to be presenting themselves at all well abroad at the moment. True or not, such stories do the rounds and not everyone is a religious reader of Thaivisa...

[jesimps]

Come On, 99% of tourists don't know there is Martial law in effect in Thailand

What effect has it had on your life in the last , say month living here in Thailand.

Nonsense! I"m sure that, even if they didn't know beforehand, the penny would drop the moment they are denied travel insurance.

[Time Traveller]

that's a pity

[akc1956]

They haven't seen anything yet, most tourists are still coming cause they already booked months ago and don't want to waste their hard earned money and just come but be very careful where they go. Wait until next year and see how many book holidays in koh Tao then. I think maybe 90% down then.

[Ulic]

The numbers I have the most confidence in are from the Thai Hotel Association not the TAT.

[NativeSon360]

It seems so easy to blame Martial Law for a drop in tourists..

Forget list anything like

Rapes

Murders

Suspect Investigation Procedures

Dual Pricing

Over Charging

Assaults

Visa Crackdown

Corruption Among Police

Jet Ski's

Corrupt Politicians Protesting Against More Corrupt Politicians

The most of these criminals getting off with virtually a slap on the wrist

So on and so on. Surely gives an image of a country out of control.

Thailand is one of many supposedly cheaper holiday destinations but some others don't have the known criminal intent that Thailand currently has and has had for sometime but somewhat less known by the average tourist. I know many people that have came and would never return and others that often visit and will visit again but remain upset with a number of items as above and just try to stay clear of known issues.

Perhaps if ATTA, THA and TAT did something to help a cause rather than provide excuses for declining numbers then tourism may rise again.

How many businessmen simply blame their surroundings and go for a cuppa when times are gloom.. Only the ones that go out of business.

Time for Thailand to get something done about their problems and I for one in my foreign worthless opinion believe that holding Martial Law at this time is not a bad thing and understanding what he is up against, The new PM is doing a good job and keeping tactical. Don't expect miracles overnight but in time.

None of the things you mention have not occurred in the past. The only thing different this year is political unrest / martial law. Most people outside Thailand don't obsess about the news here and if they do read it they most likely read the news in their own country too and realize awful things happen everywhere. People don't come to Thailand because they want a perfect, clean and law abiding society ... if they did they would go to Singapore.

The only other sure thing beyond tourism continuing to grow in Thailand is that there will always be people who prey on taking advantage of tourist's lack of knowledge ... be it Thailand or just about anywhere else that has large number of tourists. Even New York tourists get mugged, killed, raped, sold counterfeit goods and scammed and that is not an inexpensive city to visit. Even in NY tourism number dropped a year due to 9/11 and then in 09 when the economy took a hit but like Thailand tourism continues to grow and like Thailand they had record number of international visitors last year and most years since 2000.

When you say Martial Law to most people in first world countries they panic -- when you say crime they generally don't bat an eyelash as they see this in the news every day. Ebola, Sars, Tsunami, Ongoing Riots are also things that tend to scare people.

I know many items are not new to Thailand but they are being broadcasted alot wider now since some recent occurrences.

And again, support fixing issues and show that Martial Law does help is better than allowing it to be misunderstood.

After all, what does a Law Abiding Tourist have to fear from Martial Law.

So, you reckon the the stuff happening Koh Tao that started around 3 weeks ago had an effect on tourism earlier in the year? Koh Tao is not going to have any noticeable difference on tourism for the country. I really don't expect the high season numbers this year to be much off, if any, from last year and that is going to be due to martial law scaring people. Not murders on an Island they don't intend to go. Though Koh Tao tourism may pickup since it has been put on the map -- kind of like the Tsunami did for the Phuket region once it got cleaned up.

NOTE: the average tourist cannot afford Singapore for more than a 3-day stay; then take a bus to Kuala Lumpur for 5-days: then take an Air Asia flight to Bangkok for a 2-week Thai excursion. Tourists (not individual backpackers) are herd creatures, who follow the trendy flow of the crowd. Period

[EnglishJohn]

I feel a lot more safe witht he army in charge rather than the police. The army leaders are a corrpupt as the police leaders, but at least the average soldier is not as dirty as the average police.

Obviously a lot of potential tourists think differently.

That's because people outside Thailand have no clue what really happens here. They assume the place is the same as some African banana republic and judge things accordingly. The foreign media (especially the BBC's Jonathan Head who has a big chip on his shoulder for some reason) publish reports which grossly misrepresent the actual situation - presumably because nobody outside Thailand really cares and will print anything someone 'in-country' sends them.

I agree 100% with the original quote.

[AZBill]

I haven't noticed any big difference here on this short visit except no lines at immigration at Swampy. Definitely looks like the crowds are down. I certainly have no safety fears. All seems pretty quiet and business as usual.

[Local Drunk]

Ok the Tourist might not be aware of Marshall Law but you can guarantee the Travel Agent will inform them and sell them a holiday in another location probably one where their commission rate is higher. The murders have had loads of publicity which must put people of who might not realise Thailand is huge place. Some one was murdered in my town in the UK last week, it's common place in our society, how many people get shot in the States in year ? A lot more than in Thailand I bet but it doesn't stop the Tourists, Tourists need to be convinced that murdering Tourists is not an every day thing in Thailand.

Well the tourists aren't being killed by the Army... What seems to be happening in my opinion is that the RTP is finally getting its toilet flushed by the social media. It seems that every little stink that the RTP has been involved with in respect to foreigners in the past 15 years has surfaced or resurfaced in the past 3 weeks. These stories are being scrutinized and shared by perhaps millions and perhaps the people reading these stories are those who would visit Thailand.

[Tony125]

I think crime is going up as well because of lack of tourists. Bargirls would just propositon a guy and if he's not innterested move onto another, now with so few customers around they get more agressive maybe drug someone and rob because the amount of guys that they can get money from now is far less. Same with snatch poketbooks and ladyboy assaults.

Those things keep happeneing and more tourists will stay away.

And for the armchair TV posters that don't get out to see whats going on I'll give examples. Had a friend from USA come over in AUG stayed at hotel in Pattaya---only 2 other guests registered there (80 rooms) Bars mostly empty and visa run services say their down 50% or more. The crackdowns on Visas and inconsistant rules are driving tourists away.

[realenglish1]

NO no no.... Martial Law is a tourist attraction i clearly remember TAT saying it yesterday .......

Maybe the TAT can sell this to the Thais but the international community will just laugh about it .

What are they smoking

[wabothai]

May be added to the known problems, it is that the average tourist is looking for other ways yo spend a vacation. Not to fotget that Thailand is getting more expensive by the day.

The hausse from the past 10 years may be coming to an end.

TAT needs some new blood to counter.

MYANMAR, LAOS, VIETNAM AND CAMBODIA.

[Emster23]

'Martial law killing arrivals'

Maybe, but at least not at airport. Let arrivals get to islands in the south, "final destination" in more ways than one, and then let private enterprise takeover from there.....

[jamie2009]

As was quoted in a previous post, Chinese, Russians, Japanese etc don't spend money in Thailand apart from the flights, hotel and tours.They will walk about all day/night never venture into a bar, take photographs then go back to their hotel and eat food and drink they have bought from the Supermarket. Another thing they don't do is tip, went on a tour the other day and nowhere did they leave a tip. Spain is suffering the same with the influx of Chinese/Russians, bars are all empty, it's not in their culture to sit in a Bar or Restaurant and spend money.

[iReason]

'Martial law killing arrivals'

And arrivals being killed...

[NongKhaiKid]

I guess it might bring down the price of high season golf but then the opposite Thainess may apply: if we don't have enough customers let's put the price up to milk the ones we do have!

You are so right.

A great friend of mine and annual visitor is due back at high season and I posted before he's being quoted ridiculously inflated prices for accommodation compared to his last visit and the receptionist at one location who remembered him said it was because of the low occupancy the owner had jacked up the prices and does not allow deals for a longer stay.

[jamie2009]

You will not be refused Travel Insurance, I wasn't, it's only if the UK government recommend you don't travel, Martial Law not an issue.

[RJF]

How does this article today coincide with yesterdays article that TAT was going to promote the fact that Thailand is under Martial Law as a plus, giving the tourists a greater sense of security. (I am not endorsing yesterdays article, just trying to compare the stark differences between the two directions. How can you turn 180 degrees in 24 hours?)

Well, today it's not TAT saying this...this might actually be a reaction by the industry to TAT's ridiculous (martial law tourism) idea from yesterday. If anything, it shows how disconnected TAT is.

[NativeSon360]

I think crime is going up as well because of lack of tourists. Bargirls would just propositon a guy and if he's not innterested move onto another, now with so few customers around they get more agressive maybe drug someone and rob because the amount of guys that they can get money from now is far less. Same with snatch poketbooks and ladyboy assaults.

Those things keep happeneing and more tourists will stay away.

And for the armchair TV posters that don't get out to see whats going on I'll give examples. Had a friend from USA come over in AUG stayed at hotel in Pattaya---only 2 other guests registered there (80 rooms) Bars mostly empty and visa run services say their down 50% or more. The crackdowns on Visas and inconsistant rules are driving tourists away.

The annual western "Migratory Snowbird" tourist season to Thailand, is about to start. Let's see what happens! Cheers,