Filthy beaches - so say the tourists

[Pakaty]

Several months ago in Kamala there were guys that would rake the rubbish on the beach into nice neat piles. After that they went back and buried the rubbish in the sand. Happily, I have not seen them doing that recently. But still the only bins I can think of are in the parking lot at the police station where the venders are working. A bit of a walk depending on where you are on the beach.

Edited January 24, 2015 by Pakaty

[csabo]

Strange, speaking on a regular basis to tourists at Nai Harn and Kata I hear something completely different.

Strange, if you go to the south side of Nai Harn beach right now, and find the food vendors where the lagoon meets the beach entry you will find a bench. The bench will be littered with plastic bags and garbage from customers of the vendors. Immediately behind the bench is the lagoon where you will see yesterday's trash. What you wont find is a trash bin. They were REMOVED about a week ago and never returned. There are some bins directly next to the vendors but if you don't put the bin where people can see it clearly they wont use it. I dont know where these animals come from but where I come from you take your crap with you when you leave. I would be honored to be deputized to give out fines for littering. I suppose it doesn't help that to the West of the lagoon an apparent landfill area has been designated which was first being filled with cut palms but now is filled with mattresses, styrofoam fragment and last week a toilet, despite of course the no dumping sign. If your a car salesman you keep the cars clean before anything else. If your a beach salesman....

[NamKangMan]

THAIS DONT CARE...THEY ARE THE ONES CREATING THIS FILTH..PARADISE LOST

Technically it's the tourists creating the filth. The Thai's just enjoy the financial returns and give nothing back towards the environment that gave them the financial windfall.

It's not quite lost but it will lose its market share with inaction.

I agree, Hans.

Obviously, it's the tourists (tourism industry) generating most of the filth here, but you would think the Thai officials would make an effort, by spending a few baht, to invest in rubbish removal, beach cleaning, and sewer treatment, to keep the island clean for the next plane of tourist, and any repeat tourists.

That's called, sustainable tourism.

Here, it's maximum baht in, for minimum baht out, and it's showing on the environment, and infastructure, and in recent times, western tourist arrival numbers.

[kwaussie]

I found the smaller beaches around Phuket at chrissy/new year such as Freedom, Paradise, Surin were very clean

What amuses/perplexes me is that inside most hotels and thai homes i have visited they are very clean, shoes off at the door etc.

and most ladies shower morning and night, love clean scented clothes, and always smell delightful yet they think nothing of dropping trash around telegraph poles etc.

I usually carry mine to the nearest 7/11 as some have bins outside.

[Bogan Koori]

Well, as you may know I am in the tourism business. I have hardly made a secret of that. I speak to tourists every day, and today for the first time I spoke to tourists who told me they would not come back unless the sunbeds come back. All others I have spoken to so far are happy with the present situation, and garbage at the beaches is not an issue at all, not in the past, not now.

I drove down to Kata beach the other day and it was filthy. Of course tourists don't tell you they think the joint is filthy when they are booking tours with you. They have already made up their mind to go out when they walk in your shop

The first part of your post is your opinion, others can and will disagree with that. The latter part of your post is not correct.

It's strange that you disagree with practically every one else on this subject. I really don't know how you could not see the plastic everywhere.

[luckynero]

I visited Pattaya and jomtien beaches, full of rubbish and rats, I have seen enough.. And I am still amazed that u see a food stall every corner, no garbage bins. Then u visit the food market, and no garbage bins... It really surprised me

[stevenl]

Well, as you may know I am in the tourism business. I have hardly made a secret of that. I speak to tourists every day, and today for the first time I spoke to tourists who told me they would not come back unless the sunbeds come back. All others I have spoken to so far are happy with the present situation, and garbage at the beaches is not an issue at all, not in the past, not now.

I drove down to Kata beach the other day and it was filthy. Of course tourists don't tell you they think the joint is filthy when they are booking tours with you. They have already made up their mind to go out when they walk in your shop

The first part of your post is your opinion, others can and will disagree with that. The latter part of your post is not correct.

It's strange that you disagree with practically every one else on this subject. I really don't know how you could not see the plastic everywhere.

Please try to understand the difference between talking to tourists and listening to their opinions and the opinions of expats, especially the notorious negative expat opinions on TV.

[Alwyn]

Simple answer as to why the beaches are so dirty now. There's nobody cleaning up. When the beach bars and massage ladies etc were there they kept it smart (they also provided a place for a shower and a toilet!)

[ianbardon]

some years ago I went to Mukdahan with poo ying , we visted her mother and her workers in the rice paddy s there was litter everywhere, after 30 mins I got up and found the rare plastic carrier bag and proceeded to fill it with other garbage , then took it to my pick up,.....the looks I got... they thought I was barking mad, jungle folk move to the city s and they just do the same, it has to be bred out of people and will take many years, so dont hold your breath.

[Time Traveller]

Sounds like the got sucked in by the glossy tourist brochures.

Thailand is one dirty place. Expect garbage and pollution everywhere.

[NamKangMan]

When talking to tourists, there can be a conflict between different toursts being subjective.

For example, a Russian tourist may be happy with a beach here, no matter how polluted it is, because he has little to no beach options in Russia. Chinese and Indian tourists the same.

On the other other hand, a tourist from Australia, for example, and a few members from Australia have posted, they would say they have paid to go on a holiday to a place that has an inferior beach to what they have domestically. So, they may not be happy.

They are both talking about the same beach. One tourist is happy, the other maybe not.

That said, the Russian tourist got a cheap package holiday to Phuket, but, the Australian, for example, may have paid big money for their holiday.

Phuket was sold to them as a "world class tourist destination" and they may very well be disappointed.

The old saying is, "You have to spend some money, to make some money." The problem on Phuket is, they only want to make money here, not spend any money. That doesn't make for sustainable tourism.

Phuket is the richest beach / tropical tourist island in Thailand, and probably South East Asia, yet there never seems to be any funding for infastructure that is critical to the tourism industry.

On Phuket, those in power get their snouts in the trough, and the locals, tourists and expats are left to deal with the infacstructure paid for with the crumbs that are left.

Edited January 24, 2015 by NamKangMan

[ggt]

all who said that they would not be returning to the dirty beaches of Phuket

Which dirty beaches did the tourists say they would be going to next time? This is Thailand...

[chill]

To be honest, a few years back I saw a huge dump of rubbish beside the road between Kata Beach and Kata Yai beach in Phuket. I wrote to the Karon Municipality to point it out and mentioned that many tourists walk along there and it would give a bad impression. Not only did they promptly clean it up but they wrote back to thank me for bringing it to their attention and showing some civic responsibilty.

[jaywalker]

In Thailand, living here for the last almost 6 years, I have always been amazed at the total lack of understanding for the need for copious amounts of public garbage cans. Thailand just doesn't seem to get it. They do not seem to be very bothered by garbage strewn everywhere and in every empty lot. I know of one empty lot next to the beach in North Pattaya that is one of the most disgusting impromptu garbage dumps I've ever seen for an empty lot. The city just doesn't seem to care or they are simply oblivious to garbage.

...But heaven forbid that you drop a cigarette butt on the sidewalk in Bangkok.

[zaZa9]

Strange, speaking on a regular basis to tourists at Nai Harn and Kata I hear something completely different.

Me to

I visit Kamala or Surin beaches daily and they are quite clean IMO

Other than about the rubble at the south end of Surin Ive heard no complaints

[Bogan Koori]

Well, as you may know I am in the tourism business. I have hardly made a secret of that. I speak to tourists every day, and today for the first time I spoke to tourists who told me they would not come back unless the sunbeds come back. All others I have spoken to so far are happy with the present situation, and garbage at the beaches is not an issue at all, not in the past, not now.

I drove down to Kata beach the other day and it was filthy. Of course tourists don't tell you they think the joint is filthy when they are booking tours with you. They have already made up their mind to go out when they walk in your shop

The first part of your post is your opinion, others can and will disagree with that. The latter part of your post is not correct.

It's strange that you disagree with practically every one else on this subject. I really don't know how you could not see the plastic everywhere.

Please try to understand the difference between talking to tourists and listening to their opinions and the opinions of expats, especially the notorious negative expat opinions on TV.

So let's get this clear. The OP is wrong, he doesn't get any complaints at all. Let's establish this first, you don't work in the tourism industry you work in the commission industry like everyone else.... And the first thing the tourists say to you when they come to book a tour with you is how clean the beaches are. Are you completely off your head?

[Bogan Koori]

Well, as you may know I am in the tourism business. I have hardly made a secret of that. I speak to tourists every day, and today for the first time I spoke to tourists who told me they would not come back unless the sunbeds come back. All others I have spoken to so far are happy with the present situation, and garbage at the beaches is not an issue at all, not in the past, not now.

I drove down to Kata beach the other day and it was filthy. Of course tourists don't tell you they think the joint is filthy when they are booking tours with you. They have already made up their mind to go out when they walk in your shop

The first part of your post is your opinion, others can and will disagree with that. The latter part of your post is not correct.

It's strange that you disagree with practically every one else on this subject. I really don't know how you could not see the plastic everywhere.

Please try to understand the difference between talking to tourists and listening to their opinions and the opinions of expats, especially the notorious negative expat opinions on TV.

So let's get this clear. The OP is wrong, he doesn't get any complaints at all. Let's establish this first, you don't work in the tourism industry you work in the commission industry like everyone else.... And the first thing the tourists say to you when they come to book a tour with you is how clean the beaches are. Are you completely off your head?

And let's add to that. The OP stated there wasn't enough bins on the beaches here. Do you disagree with that too?

Edited January 24, 2015 by Bogan Koori

[bangon04]

All of Thailand's public areas are strewn with rubbish. The exceptions are places that are directly related to a specific private or government entity. e.g. the grounds of the headquarters of a large company or an army barracks or a large CAT installation.

What you have is the "no-one else is arsed so I can't be arsed" phenomenon. There is no shame in chucking litter here and absolutely no-one picks it up. When I was at school, we were taught to pick up litter if we saw it anywhere in the school and we did. This is not so here.

Remember that most Thais are only a couple of generations removed from a rice, fishing and forest foraging subsistence existence. When grandma and grandpa cast aside their biodegradable fish bones, banana skins and banana leaf plates as they have done since childhood, it is unremarkable later generations casually throw away crisp wrappers, plastic and all other modern non-degradable garbage.

Obviously change will occur slowly over several generations. Perhaps this could be hastened by the thessaban putting up posters (they like doing that) with photos of Huddersfield or pristine beaches of Nice or Clacton with a caption along the lines of "We can be clean as farang if we make the effort".

One obvious exception - Royal Parks and Palaces. Not only do the authorities in those places enforce anti-littering rules quite fiercely, but Thais do not dare to litter in those places. Only the Chinese tourists have the nerve (or maybe the lack of awareness).

So Thais do understand and can behave well, if it suits them.

[Ulic]

Rubbish is dumped everywhere in Thailand and the place is filthy. From construction debris to cigarette butts, 7-11 bags and the

wrappers from purchases. Thailand needs a 20 year concerted campaign to get Thais to take pride in there country and put

garbage where it belongs in garbage bins.

[simon43]

Which dirty beaches did the tourists say they would be going to next time? This is Thailand...

They didn't say. But I imagine many will head to the beaches in Myanmar. (And before you tell me that those beaches are also dirty, I lived/worked full-time in Myanmar for almost 2 years and know the state of the popular beaches - they are not littered with rubbish because the government makes sure that they are clean for foreign tourists).

NKM, I agree fully with what you say about different tourist demographics. (Generalising), the Russians just want to sunbathe on the beach - what happens on the grass behind is of no interest to them. The Chinese want to hide from the sun under big hats and take photos - the rubbish is of no consequence if it is not in their photo. It is the Europeans, (Swiss, Dutch, Austrians, Germans etc) who expect a cleaner environment.

[ttthailand]

Too many beaches here have trash everywhere. I went to Bang Sare near Pattaya a few days ago to checkout the area for a possible condo investment only to find the beaches covered with trash. It was terrible, trash everywhere and also floating plastic in the water everywhere.

This is sadly very common in the villages that people throw their garbage everywhere. Maybe every once in awhile they gather up the big prices and start a fire and burn the garbage. They come to live or work near the sea and continue with this dirty habit. Garbage cans may help along with a daily clean up but habits are hard to break.

[stevenl]

So let's get this clear. The OP is wrong, he doesn't get any complaints at all. Let's establish this first, you don't work in the tourism industry you work in the commission industry like everyone else.... And the first thing the tourists say to you when they come to book a tour with you is how clean the beaches are. Are you completely off your head?

I talk to my guests. Starting a course again tomorrow, no commissions involved.

Edited January 25, 2015 by LivinginKata
Flame removed

[Oziex1]

If your living on Phuket you will remember the building waste being dumped every where after the locals had to demolish their illegal shops and restaurants, and the terrible mess that was the demolition sites.

[NamKangMan]

Which dirty beaches did the tourists say they would be going to next time? This is Thailand...

They didn't say. But I imagine many will head to the beaches in Myanmar. (And before you tell me that those beaches are also dirty, I lived/worked full-time in Myanmar for almost 2 years and know the state of the popular beaches - they are not littered with rubbish because the government makes sure that they are clean for foreign tourists).

NKM, I agree fully with what you say about different tourist demographics. (Generalising), the Russians just want to sunbathe on the beach - what happens on the grass behind is of no interest to them. The Chinese want to hide from the sun under big hats and take photos - the rubbish is of no consequence if it is not in their photo. It is the Europeans, (Swiss, Dutch, Austrians, Germans etc) who expect a cleaner environment.

" But I imagine many will head to the beaches in Myanmar." - in my opinion, Myanmar currently doesn't have the infastructure to put on a nice holiday for western tourists, but I agree, it will enter the competition for the tourist dollar in the future, and the natural beauty there is capable of drawing in a lot of tourists.

From the statistics I have seen, it's Vietnam that has taken a large slice of Thailand's market share. Even Thai's go there, though mainly to gamble.

"It is the Europeans, (Swiss, Dutch, Austrians, Germans etc) who expect a cleaner environment." - I agree, and in the past, these are the western tourists that injected a lot of money into the Phuket economy, who no longer come here in the numbers we are used to seeing.

In my opinion, it's not the miltary coup, or the exchange rate etc etc that has seen their numbers decline, it's more likely a holiday on Phuket no longer represents a value for money product.

Phuket, with its failing infastructure, pollution, scams, lack of transport etc etc is now struggling to attract tourists who expect more for what they pay.

Phuket reminds me of the Nokia company. In the past, the company had a massive market share, boardering on a monopoly. They took their eye of the ball, rested on their reputation, and now there is no more Nokia.

On Phuket, nothing has been done to address the issues which is repelling the lucrative western market. instead, they rely on new markets like Russia and China to replace the market share they have lost. You can't keep replacing segments of the market you have lost, with new markets, expecially in the age of the internet. Doing this devalues the product, and it gains a bad reputation.

They actually need to fix the issues here, to have any hope of attracting back the western tourists that they have lost.

I have stated before, we may very well see "the Phuket financial crisis" in the future, as businesses go broke, unemployment increases, crime rises, the property market saturated, banks foreclose etc etc.

[Bogan Koori]

Which dirty beaches did the tourists say they would be going to next time? This is Thailand...

They didn't say. But I imagine many will head to the beaches in Myanmar. (And before you tell me that those beaches are also dirty, I lived/worked full-time in Myanmar for almost 2 years and know the state of the popular beaches - they are not littered with rubbish because the government makes sure that they are clean for foreign tourists).

NKM, I agree fully with what you say about different tourist demographics. (Generalising), the Russians just want to sunbathe on the beach - what happens on the grass behind is of no interest to them. The Chinese want to hide from the sun under big hats and take photos - the rubbish is of no consequence if it is not in their photo. It is the Europeans, (Swiss, Dutch, Austrians, Germans etc) who expect a cleaner environment.

" But I imagine many will head to the beaches in Myanmar." - in my opinion, Myanmar currently doesn't have the infastructure to put on a nice holiday for western tourists, but I agree, it will enter the competition for the tourist dollar in the future, and the natural beauty there is capable of drawing in a lot of tourists.

From the statistics I have seen, it's Vietnam that has taken a large slice of Thailand's market share. Even Thai's go there, though mainly to gamble.

"It is the Europeans, (Swiss, Dutch, Austrians, Germans etc) who expect a cleaner environment." - I agree, and in the past, these are the western tourists that injected a lot of money into the Phuket economy, who no longer come here in the numbers we are used to seeing.

In my opinion, it's not the miltary coup, or the exchange rate etc etc that has seen their numbers decline, it's more likely a holiday on Phuket no longer represents a value for money product.

Phuket, with its failing infastructure, pollution, scams, lack of transport etc etc is now struggling to attract tourists who expect more for what they pay.

Phuket reminds me of the Nokia company. In the past, the company had a massive market share, boardering on a monopoly. They took their eye of the ball, rested on their reputation, and now there is no more Nokia.

On Phuket, nothing has been done to address the issues which is repelling the lucrative western market. instead, they rely on new markets like Russia and China to replace the market share they have lost. You can't keep replacing segments of the market you have lost, with new markets, expecially in the age of the internet. Doing this devalues the product, and it gains a bad reputation.

They actually need to fix the issues here, to have any hope of attracting back the western tourists that they have lost.

I have stated before, we may very well see "the Phuket financial crisis" in the future, as businesses go broke, unemployment increases, crime rises, the property market saturated, banks foreclose etc etc.

I think your spot on there NKM.

[LivinginKata]

Inflammatory posts have been removed

[Bogan Koori]

So let's get this clear. The OP is wrong, he doesn't get any complaints at all. Let's establish this first, you don't work in the tourism industry you work in the commission industry like everyone else.... And the first thing the tourists say to you when they come to book a tour with you is how clean the beaches are. Are you completely off your head?

I talk to my guests. Starting a course again tomorrow, no commissions involved.

So you are a charity that deals with tourists? That's odd but I believe what you say. If the punters say the beaches are clean then I should have another look around Kata and Karon with my own eyes

[stevenl]

So let's get this clear. The OP is wrong, he doesn't get any complaints at all. Let's establish this first, you don't work in the tourism industry you work in the commission industry like everyone else.... And the first thing the tourists say to you when they come to book a tour with you is how clean the beaches are. Are you completely off your head?

I talk to my guests. Starting a course again tomorrow, no commissions involved.

So you are a charity that deals with tourists? That's odd but I believe what you say. If the punters say the beaches are clean then I should have another look around Kata and Karon with my own eyes

It's all in the eyes of the beholder.

[YaiJung]

Not only is Phuket covered with filthy garbage everywhere right now, the air quality is also horrendous in the evenings when the locals decide to burn as much of the trash that is laying around as they can.

Yesterday evening I drove on a motorbike from Kata to Phuket Town and back. My eyes and throat were burning like crazy from the continual cloud of toxic smoke that I passed through as soon as I left my soi. This morning I feel like I smoked a pack of cigs last night, and I quit smoking a few yrs ago.

There is a major problem with infastructure on the island at the moment. For example, the soi I live on in Kata, there is no garbage pickup. Several condo developents, apartment buildings, houses, and a semi-permament burmese work camp are all forced to drive around looking for random trash piles to dump their garbage in. Much of that I would assume ends up being burned. No amount of money will convince the local garbage collectors to service our soi.

The greedy people in control of the island are driving Phuket down as quickly as they can.

[Bogan Koori]

So let's get this clear. The OP is wrong, he doesn't get any complaints at all. Let's establish this first, you don't work in the tourism industry you work in the commission industry like everyone else.... And the first thing the tourists say to you when they come to book a tour with you is how clean the beaches are. Are you completely off your head?

I talk to my guests. Starting a course again tomorrow, no commissions involved.

So you are a charity that deals with tourists? That's odd but I believe what you say. If the punters say the beaches are clean then I should have another look around Kata and Karon with my own eyes

It's all in the eyes of the beholder.

I'll grab some pics next time I am down at Kata of all the plastic bags and straws and other junk, because obviously you don't get away from the computer and have a look around.... 99.9 percent of the expats say it's disgusting but you say it's not, because someone walked into your business and told you its clean.

Edited January 25, 2015 by LivinginKata
inflammatory remarks removed