Pushy deckchair vendor forces foreign family off Pattaya beach

[zaphod reborn]

The sense of entitlement is amazing.

"I pay police for protection and right to operate on this part of beach. Farang sit on my beach and not pay for chair. If I harass farang, nothing they can do, because I have police in my pocket."

They know what they do is illegal, but they still think they have a right to do it.

[RidgeRunner]

Some deckchair vendors have been among the rudest people I have met in Thailand...it is as if they own the section of beach where they setup...I no longer go where there are deckchairs...screw them...not getting another baht to encourage their obstinate behavior...

At least the Army rolled into town and took back some of the beach from those jerks.

Only about 5%-10% of the chairs are ever rented it seems to me.

They set them up as obstacles to protect "their turf".

Then at night they stack up all their crap and the place looks like a slum.

Get rid of them, the pushy vendors and their jet ski buddies.

If I was in charge, I would set up a facility about every 200 meters along the beach and have a snack bar, police box/information booth and umbrella rental.

[TheCruncher]

The incident with the Russian lady last year on Koh Larn was a Cambodian.

I don't see anything in the OP that says they have even identified the chair owner from the Monday incident.

[petermik]

The incident filmed on Monday is likely to do little to try and improve the image of Pattaya, something which the tourism officials have been eager to do in recent years.

Improving Pattaya's image would be a disaster and turn it in a ghost town. People come here because it is SIN CITY, beside a few Russian families and Chinese tour busses.

Wow BrainLife your first post on here and yet you seem to be an expert on Pattaya-I am here for the culture and thainess

[phuketruski]

soon only a tumbleweed remains in pattaya

[Acharn]

The vendor should have left them on the beach to fry, then he could have doubled his price, They seemed polite enough i can understand the vendors point of view but doesnt exactly gel with the Thai smile.

The vendor's point of view is criminal. He does not own the beach. He has no right to say a person can not sit on it. He is lucky he is permitted to rent chairs at all.

Ah! Is he "permitted" to rent chairs? Is there some sort of licensing arrangement, and has he complied with the requirements? I mean beyond paying the Thetsaban their ฿500 a day.

[RidgeRunner]

The incident with the Russian lady last year on Koh Larn was a Cambodian.

I don't see anything in the OP that says they have even identified the chair owner from the Monday incident.

The kid was Cambodian, an illegal employed by a Thai. He claimed his boss ordered him to manhandle that lady tourist.

Funny, the police never could find the Thai deck chair owner. (that has a lease with the City)

[Geordie59]

Did they pay for the chair ? Probably Russians trying to get free chairs, I can understand the vendor.

Bit of a crass comment. Most Europeans put a towel down on the beach for free where they come from. Why would you assume they are Russian?

And no, I myself am not Russian.

[Geordie59]

The incident filmed on Monday is likely to do little to try and improve the image of Pattaya, something which the tourism officials have been eager to do in recent years.

Improving Pattaya's image would be a disaster and turn it in a ghost town. People come here because it is SIN CITY, beside a few Russian families and Chinese tour busses.

Wow BrainLife your first post on here and yet you seem to be an expert on Pattaya-I am here for the culture and thainess

And why shouldn't he be. I was here over 20 years before I put my 1st comment on this site. I think I had a fair idea of how things worked by then.

[petedk]

The actions of the vendor, which have resulted in numerous negative comments on social media, echoed a similar incident in 2014, which involved a Russian tourist and a vendor on a beach in Koh Larn.

Is it me who has misunderstood this article or most of you.

There are comments about "he was Cambodian" etc, but from what I understand is that the man arrested in a "similar incident in 2014" was Cambodian.

During that incident, the vendor was filmed kicking sand and arguing with a Russian woman because she refused to rent a deckchair.

The incident sparked outrage and made headlines around the world, resulting in police investigation and a crackdown on the practices and aggressive tactics used by beach vendors throughout Thailand.

The vendor was later identified as Cambodian man who was arrested for working illegally in Thailand

The incident filmed on Monday is likely to do little to try and improve the image of Pattaya, something which the tourism officials have been eager to do in recent years.

It says "during that incident" ..... "the vendor was later identified as..."

There is nothing about this guy being arrested.

Edited October 27, 2015 by petedk

[balo]

Did they pay for the chair ? Probably Russians trying to get free chairs, I can understand the vendor.

The first reply to this thread is from our resident Thai apologist "balo", and as usual he blames the victim, and defends the Thais, without even reading the FACTS. Pathetic.

I admit I was in a hurry and didn't read everything, but to accuse me of being a Thai apologist is just funny , I dont blame any victims and I dont know who you are and you dont know anything about me.

I agree that the public beach is free for everyone but it is possible to make some effort to sit down a few meters from the vendor.

[snooky]

What's all the fuss? Just fine the vendor Bt50.

Fine the vendor 150bt and the vendors boss 15,000 bt would be more like it. Might stop some of this crap!

[waldroj]

Thai Visa News deserves a big boot up the backside for this effort!

Instead of a few lines of waffle that says very little, Thai Visa could have tried some real reporting and made some effort to alert readers to their rights and obligations when visiting public beaches.

By their own admission, the video has gone viral, and as they note, is likely to do little to try and improve the image of Pattaya (or any beach in Thailand for that matter).

Confrontations between tourists and pushy local vendors on Thailand’s public beaches appear to be all too frequent, yet nobody in Thailand (not even TAT) seems to want to clarify the rules for tourists.

For those interested in this topic, http://www.windowonphuket.com/features_property_phuket/legal-matters-83.htm sheds some light on the subject.

The key point is the reference to paragraph 2 of Section 1304 of the Civil and Commercial Code which states:

The domaine public of State includes every kind of State property which is in use for public interest or reserved for the common benefit, such as property for the common use of the people e.g., foreshores, water-ways, highways, lakes.

The only caveat in the link though is, "...there are no restrictions on using public property unless specified by a special law or Royal Decree". And, as you may have already experienced, it seems that local governors (most notably Phuket) have introduced their own special laws to favour local vendors. It also seems that local RTP are only too willing to enforce local special laws, as reported in (http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Tourists-protests-drive-call-beach-chair-compromise/48349).

So, it would have been much more informative if Thai Visa had included information about beach-goer’s rights on public beaches!

[HerbalEd]

The vendor should have left them on the beach to fry, then he could have doubled his price, They seemed polite enough i can understand the vendors point of view but doesnt exactly gel with the Thai smile.

What exactly is it that you "understand"? He does not own one square centimeter of that beach nor have any other claim to the area where his chairs are located. What he did is illegal ... and he knows it.

Edited October 27, 2015 by HerbalEd

[soalbundy]

Sod off farang who needs you anyway.........oh,me

[FiveStarVagabond]

This is a common occurrence in Pattaya, the vendors often throw a fit if you decide to sit on the sand instead of paying to sit on their chairs. Just another blot on Thailand's fading image.

Here is my webcam where you can check out Pattaya beach any-time you wish, http://fivestarvagabond.com/pattaya-webcam/

[Vandadavid]

Yeah they choose carefully

What they are is weak little germs and one day if god gives me the chance I will offer a crash course in western manners

[newnative]

I don't know why Pattaya is always so brainless on such simple things. The policy of no deck chairs and umbrellas on--is it Wednesdays?-- is very bad. Some people want to rent an umbrella and chair regardless of the day of the week--and suppose you are on a tour with limited time and you decide to go to the beach on a Wednesday? Much better to have an every day policy of specific well-marked areas for chairs and have other well-marked open areas for people who want to sit on towels, build a sand castle, etc.

Edited October 27, 2015 by Rimmer
fonts re sized

[Nomyai]

The incident filmed on Monday is likely to do little to try and improve the image of Pattaya, something which the tourism officials have been eager to do in recent years.

Improving Pattaya's image would be a disaster and turn it in a ghost town. People come here because it is SIN CITY, beside a few Russian families and Chinese tour busses.

Agreed. What are those hordes of chinese doing in the evening as they walk thru walking street to the piers? Arent the boats closed?

[gandalf12]

With all the things currently happening in Thailand they are lucky that anyone wants to come here. Soon no one, and by that I mean tourists, will come then they will all be moaning about how they cant make any money.

I wouldnt want to live anywhre else but Thailand has had its day. Time to shut up shop

[Emster23]

"police investigation and a crackdown on the practices and aggressive tactics used by beach vendors throughout Thailand."

It's all for show, there is no followup, no continued enforcement of proper rules.

It would be nice if TV did do some sort of reporting & investigation. It would not be all that difficult to find that vendor and ask some questions, and post the results here.

[Lowdown]

i recently wanted to sit down at Cha-am beach and have some lunch. Before i had even sat down the deckchair vendor wanted 300baht from me just to sit there. i told her we were just eating and not going to be there all day. She still wanted 300baht. I told her that this was cheating foreigners and that i would much rather go and eat in a restaurant which i promptly did. I felt very sorry for the food vendors as they seemed to be trying ti make an honest living and i apologised to them but i am not willing to be treated like this. 300baht plus whatever i would have spent on food is ridiculous and they know it the food vendors seemed more upset than myself. In the end these sorts of vendors are only hurting themselves but i think it will take forever for them to feel the pain and when they do it will probably be too late.

the cost to rent a deck chair all day is 50 Baht, not 300 Baht. Some, not all, want to sell you food on top and then give the chair cheaper. It would be interesting to compare notes to see which women you are talking about. When I wanted to rent a chair at Cha-Am beach, a little ways to the right of the police box, she had 'my' chair moved out from under the umbrellas into the full sun away from the other chairs on top of the sand bags, although her whole area was completely empty. As if to say, we are too good for you, you can't sit with us in the shade, Falang. I find this behavior incredibly counterproductive, not only do I tell everybody about this experience with exact location, I will never ever rent a chair from her again.

[Rimmer]

Off topic personal attack removed, also a totally incorrect post giving misleading information.

[NCC1701A]

I live in Hua Hin. Boring and the beach is now covered in a oil slick. Maybe I should move to Pattaya. Always something going on there.

[HHTel]

The article seems pretty clear to me. The vendor in the previous incident in 2014 was Cambodian. The vendor in this case has not so far been identified. May even be a Thai.

[LukKrueng]

The beach chair vendors agreements (leases) only allow them specific space for chairs and umbrellas, back from the tide mark. These foreigners were just sitting in an area with no chairs or vendors. PLUS, the assh*le that hassled them turned out to be a Cambodian working illegally here. Takes all kinds!

The Cambodian is from last year's case. There is no mention in the OP about any ongoing or finished investigation of this incident.

[bwpage3]

Does the vendor own the beach the chair is sitting on?

No, then piss off!

[bodymassagemyfriend]

So a bit of Math

A chair is 2meter x1meter surface. 300 bhat for the day is 150 bhat/m2/day

The standard studio in Viewtaly is 45 m2, and amounts to around 1100 bhat per day.

The chair is priced at 150*45*30 = 6750 bhat ( we need to compare with the same surface )

That is 6 times more expensive , and it is not furnished , has no TV toilet ....

Definitely its a scam.

[cookee68]

I thought he would be Cambodian or Burmese, they usually are when the Thai government want to water it down, looks good

[RidgeRunner]

Does the vendor own the beach the chair is sitting on?

No, then piss off!

The Thais that "bought the beach" from crooked City Officials THINK they own the beach..

They hire illegal Cambodians at slave wages to police their turf. Nice eh?