One million more Chinese tourists are expected to visit Pattaya each year

[superal]

Maybe time to get the duck out of fodge

[jalansanitwong]

Pattaya built its reputation over the decades on being a beer bar town for middleaged western men. Has anyone ever seen Chinese,koreans or even Russians drinking in these dives? From what i am hearing most foreign men are heading for greener pastures ie Cambodia and the Phillipines.

The Thai gov will make it easier and easier for nth Asians and Russians to get visas but tougher and more expensive for farangs.Chinese will come here but not as many farangs.

Are there any farangs left in Pattaya?

[1duckyboy]

Mr Sutham Petkate, Pattaya city deputy clerk, said Friday that at least one million more Chinese tourists would flock to Pattaya each year thanks to the opening of the two new direct routes from Utapao to Nan Ning and to Nan Xang.

Glad they named the mathematician who came up with one million more Chinese tourists figure.

[mancub]

4 Flights weekly from KL also.....so that'll be another "million"

[elgenon]

What exactly is the draw for Chinese tourists to visit Pattaya? They only thing I know of is the titillation of 20 minutes in an A Go Go. And they don't seem very titillated. Maybe pushing me out of they way, but they can do that in many places.

[misterphil]

Lets hope they're not travel guides, and none of them get raped by speed boat operators.

[Dustdevil]

I have invested in an investment condo at UNIXX so any news on improving tourist numbers including expanding the local airport at a cost or 200 million baht as well as creating the high speed train to Pattaya is good financial news to my ears.

As it stands now the market is weak, but give it 3 years with infrastructure upgrades and an elected government in power (before the next round of violence) the property prices will be much healthier than now.

While I admire your optimism I am not sure I share it.

The Chinese themselves don't seem to be big condo buyers as yet. plus their ever increasing numbers and overwhelming presence I believe will reduce the number of more suitable tourists for your investments. Perhaps the Russians will return for you.

Even your 3 year infrastructure hopes are optimistic, the trains certainly won't be ready by then, elected government... who knows, and even the tunnel could still be under construction. All I see is condo buildings going up (or stalled and standing ugly) and that will not help a soft market.

Wealthy Chinese buy houses in stable, fully developed countries. Their most popular areas are the Bay Area (San Francisco and Silicon Valley) and London.

[Cardiff1963]

Surely the usual TV whingers can find more to moan about. I suppose after a few more Archers outside 7/11 and a good feed at the balloon cafe,this thread will be much bigger

[edhart]

i will never go again

[quandow]

I went swimming in Jomtien beach for the first time in years. It was REPUGNANT! Tourist-produced garbage saturated the water. 1 million more ill-tempered, rude polluters isn't going to help the situation.

[Benmart]

I live here full-time on Pratumnak Hill.

I walk most places.

I don't care who comes or goes.

I am not in control of who comes and goes.

The government does not consult me as to who comes or goes.

I've learned to tolerate and ignore the intolerant.

The world doesn't give a twig what I think.

My time on this earth is limited, and I find more enjoyment being nice than being hateful and ugly.

When I stop enjoying my life here, I move on.

[DonaldBattles]

Pattaya is already noted as the biggest whore house in the world. With 1 million Chinese he customer mix will change a lot.

[chicowoodduck]

Holy shi*....the Hilton EDGE buffet is already being over run by the Chinese.....all the do is push and cram the food lines.....will have to find a new spot to relax and enjoy my meal......?

[Pdavies99]

I have invested in an investment condo at UNIXX so any news on improving tourist numbers including expanding the local airport at a cost or 200 million baht as well as creating the high speed train to Pattaya is good financial news to my ears.

As it stands now the market is weak, but give it 3 years with infrastructure upgrades and an elected government in power (before the next round of violence) the property prices will be much healthier than now.

Ha ! Ha! In your dreams! Upgrades,,, what a joke!

[IAMHERE]

1 Million? Hmmm.....

7 flights weekly x 180 = 1260 seats weekly = 65.520 seats yearly

true enough using arabic numbers, works to one million when using Thai numbers.

[Heng]

Funny all the naysayers.... oh the Chinese don't spend. As a Thai, and Thai-Chinese at that, trust me, we'll find some way to charge you, them, and anyone else. "After all... we are not communists."

:-)

[waldroj]

1 Million? Hmmm.....

7 flights weekly x 180 = 1260 seats weekly = 65.520 seats yearly

Maybe, they should try this?

[Mot Dang]

How very nice. One million more of these spitting, loud, rude and just plain dirty tourists, and yet no infrastructure in place to keep them in control. No viable long term parking places for the monolithic buses, no control over plastic bottle pollution in Pattaya and on the islands, no instruction on how to behave in Thailand.

[Mot Dang]

I have invested in an investment condo at UNIXX so any news on improving tourist numbers including expanding the local airport at a cost or 200 million baht as well as creating the high speed train to Pattaya is good financial news to my ears.

As it stands now the market is weak, but give it 3 years with infrastructure upgrades and an elected government in power (before the next round of violence) the property prices will be much healthier than now.

While I admire your optimism I am not sure I share it.

The Chinese themselves don't seem to be big condo buyers as yet. plus their ever increasing numbers and overwhelming presence I believe will reduce the number of more suitable tourists for your investments. Perhaps the Russians will return for you.

Even your 3 year infrastructure hopes are optimistic, the trains certainly won't be ready by then, elected government... who knows, and even the tunnel could still be under construction. All I see is condo buildings going up (or stalled and standing ugly) and that will not help a soft market.

Wealthy Chinese buy houses in stable, fully developed countries. Their most popular areas are the Bay Area (San Francisco and Silicon Valley) and London.

North Shore, Sydney. Thank God the government has realized past mistakes and are putting controls in place.

The trick of these wealthy Chinese is to come into an expensive area, buy a multi-million dollar house, never move in, board it up and pay an Estate Agent to look after council rates and taxes, electricity, and get lawns mowed. They wait several years and then sell for a whacking profit.

[mijako]

Great news. I hope they will all stays there and never come back to the south. Pattaya is anyway (as the Thais says) the bin of Thailand. Please, Pattaya, keep your quality tourists and hire a huge cleaning team, you will need it

[cockatoowho]

I have invested in an investment condo at UNIXX so any news on improving tourist numbers including expanding the local airport at a cost or 200 million baht as well as creating the high speed train to Pattaya is good financial news to my ears.

As it stands now the market is weak, but give it 3 years with infrastructure upgrades and an elected government in power (before the next round of violence) the property prices will be much healthier than now.

Now there is tue colonial logic for you. Add that it is widely reported that the Australian dollar will hit low 40's against the US dollar = about 15 baht, you will need to do a lot of praying for you precious Junta to allow an elected government in your time frame. As for the infrastructure upgrades, forget it, by the time the military have taken their cuts, there will be precious little else left. Happy investing, would have been safer to invest in Syria, you know what they say a fool and his money are soon parted. Anyway not all is lost, the Chinese will be happy to take it of your hands at the upcoming fire sale when they are the government you were expecting to be elected.

[chumpy]

I have invested in an investment condo at UNIXX so any news on improving tourist numbers including expanding the local airport at a cost or 200 million baht as well as creating the high speed train to Pattaya is good financial news to my ears.

As it stands now the market is weak, but give it 3 years with infrastructure upgrades and an elected government in power (before the next round of violence) the property prices will be much healthier than now.

Maybe you have heard of the impending Chinese recession?it's going to be huge.The TAT seems to think that everything is going to be just fine.

[little mary sunshine]

Bashful thinking on part of TAT

[jaywalker]

Not so long ago...

Wooden pier. It was 2001.

On the 20 baht ferry & NOBODY on it aside from me, my wife & a monk.

Koh Larn had zero paved roads.

Pretty much the only reason I liked/used to like Pattaya was due to Koh Larn.

[how241]

1 Million? Hmmm.....

7 flights weekly x 180 = 1260 seats weekly = 65.520 seats yearly

ha ha ha

[crusty]

Where is that view-blocking condo in that picture?

That is Nigel Cornflake's Kingdom Properties monstrosity, between the Chinese and the Brit. property wallahs Pattaya's doom is sealed !

[Shiver]

The flight seats and claimed numbers of increased tourists are for sure out of whack. Still, there'll be a few hotels that get lucky with high booking percentages. and the local economy will get little to nothing. I was optimistic with the suggested 6 month Visa rules that they'd realised that to help the local economy they needed people with different behavioural patterns, but perhaps not if this is their strategy.

I've been trying to work out why places I've been recently are so low on customers, but hotels are so full, and my conclusion so far is that they're full of people that don't leave their hotel room until the bus comes to take them on their daily tour. Nobody out walking and exploring for themselves.

[ChrisY1]

I have invested in an investment condo at UNIXX so any news on improving tourist numbers including expanding the local airport at a cost or 200 million baht as well as creating the high speed train to Pattaya is good financial news to my ears.

As it stands now the market is weak, but give it 3 years with infrastructure upgrades and an elected government in power (before the next round of violence) the property prices will be much healthier than now.

Good luck with that!

[Terrypom]

1 Million? Hmmm.....

7 flights weekly x 180 = 1260 seats weekly = 65.520 seats yearly

794 weeks to transport 1,000,000 passengers, I know there are other routes but even so???

[NickJ]

Could help with the soi cannine problem.