Thailand hoping to attract wealthier travellers

[Robert24]

The wealthier tourists go somewhere they don't have to put up with garbage, being ripped off, assaulted, robbed, killed in motor vehicle accidents or being murdered. If you want quality tourists then provide a beautiful & safe place where they can relax & spend money (which is all you want anyway). I am leaving soon & have already told my Thai wife (who is coming with me) that I will not return. There are nicer places in this big wonderful world to go to. Maybe in about 50 years, Thailand, you might start living in the 21st century.

so where in Asia do wealthier tourists go on holiday? Bali? Hainan? Vietnam?

[Mudcrab]

Wealthy well heeled people do not sit on rubbish strewn beaches, whilst gagging on the smell from the overflowing bins being rummaged through and the contents spilled onto the roads.

Most wealthy tourists are educated enough to know not to visit parks where animals are used for entertainment.

When in 'First Class' Rail carriages they don't expect to be woken all night by vendors selling food.

I would think they don't normally frequent city centre high streets being propositioned by hookers every 5 mtrs.

The list goes on an on.....Thais being as insular as they are have no conception of what a clean modern city/country/beach/national park/river/canal looks like.

Or having to wipe your arse and put The paper in a bin at the side of the toilet.

The paper, if used, is to dry your bum, not for wiping as such. The paper should only be moist....not covered in sh!t.

Disgusting.

Learn to use the bum gun.

Edited December 26, 2015 by Mudcrab

[stoneyboy]

Maybe I'm wrong but isn't the appeal for many people holidaying here the complete opposite of the thread title.

Cheap accommodation,cheap food and the abundance of red light areas.

[Benmart]

Wealthy well heeled people do not sit on rubbish strewn beaches, whilst gagging on the smell from the overflowing bins being rummaged through and the contents spilled onto the roads.

Most wealthy tourists are educated enough to know not to visit parks where animals are used for entertainment.

When in 'First Class' Rail carriages they don't expect to be woken all night by vendors selling food.

I would think they don't normally frequent city centre high streets being propositioned by hookers every 5 mtrs.

The list goes on an on.....Thais being as insular as they are have no conception of what a clean modern city/country/beach/national park/river/canal looks like.

Or having to wipe your arse and put The paper in a bin at the side of the toilet.

No one forces anyone to wipe or not. Purely a matter of choice. I use the bum-gun and am happy to leave others to do as they please.

[dageurreotype]

All this 'quality' 'wealthy' 'first class' 'high end' is quite sickening when you consider these terms are being applied to other human beings

[Robert24]

Thailand has had its day , , They have trashed their beaches and built everywhere , while raising prices and dropping service standards, not to mention the scams and violence directed at tourist they are lucky to get the Chinese and Indians , while not big spenders they help maintain the illusion of a successful tourism industry.

not an illusion. Tourism is 14% of GDPin Thailand and growing strongly.

[weegee]

A Proper drainage system would be a good start hey?.....The smell in some places, would turn any HI-SO Tourist away.

Isnt it great...here we are not 24hrs after Xmas day and already it starts.....

Singaporean and Malaysian Tourists come here on buses for the weekend to shop in Hatyai. That is dying out fast, and Hatyai is dead...Nothing like it was 5 yrs ago.....and Cheap...PIGS DING it is, Hatyai has priced it's way out of the Market.

[SOTIRIOS]

......how perverse.....ungrateful...never enough......

[phoenixdoglover]

I just spent the last few days in Singapore and had a great time at Universal Studios on Christmas Day. Seeing the Marina Sands, walking the river area, china town, Garden on the Bay, etc was great ! The difference is night and day compared to Thailand. Everything in Singapore is clean, Taxis will take you everywhere and are nice, there is so much to see that you would need weeks , the place is very safe, traffic accidents are few, etc etc .... Thailand on the other hand offers low standards, it's dangerous, dirty resort areas, ripoff taxis, other than temples nothing really special to see, etc etc.... The only thing Thailand really offers is cheap hotels, cheap boozes, and cheap women. Why would a family with money want to come here and take the chance of getting raped, ripped off or perhaps killed ??? Chinese, Indian, , southeast Asian countries, and backpackers make up the numbers now and I understand why....

so why do you think Thailand is the no 1 holiday destination for Singaporeans?

Where do you get your information?

According to the BBC in Jan 2014, based on 2012 data, Singapore outbound tourists went to:

Malaysia 68%

Indonesia 7%

Thailand 4%

Another source said Malaysia accounts for 53% of Singapore tourists.

[Oziex1]

If they choose to come and even if they spend a small fortune it is not enough to have a significant benefit to the economy as there is simply not enough of them. Many spending a little is better, although those days may have passed.

30 Million tourists this year, big number but the demographics represented by this figure are not as profitable as the past.

All this is an indication of the deluded snobs at the top and what they consider to be the good tourists, as others have pointed out the country is not in the running for the super rich dollar.

The brand the product is not providing value as required by the tourist today.

[Oziex1]

Not too many years ago most of the tourists you met in Cambodia and Laos were there for a few days only and they would return to Thailand.

Last year I did a Mekong Christmas cruise in the North and South of Mekong. None of my fellow travellers had been to Thailand during the holiday. They flew in to Malaysia and did a SE Asian tour skipping Thailand. Some of them had been there before and never again.

The rest had heard about how bad things were, scams and pollution and they had no wishes to visit.

Back packers will of course always be attracted to Thailand, but now it is getting expensive. 200 Baht for a beer at a normal pub, this is if not more expensive than Europe at least as expensive.

People for Europe I work with comes to Thailand, young single people. But the old married/ living as a couple skip Thailand as they have heard about all the scams and the pollution.

200 Bt for a beer my goodness man where do you drink, I rarely pay more than 80Bt and happy hours are good for 50Bt beers and happy hours are usually longer than 60 minutes.

[soalbundy]

The wealthier the tourist the bigger the possible rip off, you must have some understanding.

[losworld]

Not too many years ago most of the tourists you met in Cambodia and Laos were there for a few days only and they would return to Thailand.

Last year I did a Mekong Christmas cruise in the North and South of Mekong. None of my fellow travellers had been to Thailand during the holiday. They flew in to Malaysia and did a SE Asian tour skipping Thailand. Some of them had been there before and never again.

The rest had heard about how bad things were, scams and pollution and they had no wishes to visit.

Back packers will of course always be attracted to Thailand, but now it is getting expensive. 200 Baht for a beer at a normal pub, this is if not more expensive than Europe at least as expensive.

People for Europe I work with comes to Thailand, young single people. But the old married/ living as a couple skip Thailand as they have heard about all the scams and the pollution.

200 Bt for a beer my goodness man where do you drink, I rarely pay more than 80Bt and happy hours are good for 50Bt beers and happy hours are usually longer than 60 minutes.

Yeah but in Ho Chi Minh you only pay 20-30 baht equivalent and pubs open 24/7. Thailand is in a steep decline at present.

[fred Kubasa]

" Luxury holiday makers " go to Paris/London/New York/Monte Carlo/ Las Vegas/even Dubai but divert

them to Thailand to view temples/rocks and buffalos ? Fat chance !

[taony]

Why would wealthy people want to put up with all this crap when they have so many choices? No matter how much money you have you still need to get on a road from the airport to the hotel.

[Thian]

" Luxury holiday makers " go to Paris/London/New York/Monte Carlo/ Las Vegas/even Dubai but divert

them to Thailand to view temples/rocks and buffalos ? Fat chance !

Or to the Bahamas, Hawaii, Whitsundays, sri lanka or skiing in Switzerland, Austria, Italy.

Anyway, what can they do in Thailand? See 200 temples?

The beach is great but the sun very strong and hot. And outside the 5star resort it suddenly is a different (3rd) world with stray dogs and too many vendors/crappy sidewalks.

[yellowboat]

Maybe they should focus on business travelers to fill up their 4-5 star hotels ? Oh but wait, Thailand is not really that conducive to foreign investment. Your clientele picks you. You do not pick them.

[Dap]

Wealthy well heeled people do not sit on rubbish strewn beaches, whilst gagging on the smell from the overflowing bins being rummaged through and the contents spilled onto the roads.

Most wealthy tourists are educated enough to know not to visit parks where animals are used for entertainment.

When in 'First Class' Rail carriages they don't expect to be woken all night by vendors selling food.

I would think they don't normally frequent city centre high streets being propositioned by hookers every 5 mtrs.

The list goes on an on.....Thais being as insular as they are have no conception of what a clean modern city/country/beach/national park/river/canal looks like.

Or having to wipe your arse and put The paper in a bin at the side of the toilet.

You have paper?

[mikebell]

14.5 % from tourists. I wonder how much the ex-pat retirees contribute to Thailand's economy? It must be a goodly sum: paying a 'housekeeping' allowance for their wife; school/college fees for their wife's children; car & bike purchase/hire; building houses; running farms; frequenting hotels/bars; all must add up to a decent sum. So why do the authorities treat us like 2nd class citizens with surly immigration staff; convoluted visa rules; pointless 90 day reporting; dual charging; draconian rules against home purchase etc?

[inaktive]

14.5 % from tourists. I wonder how much the ex-pat retirees contribute to Thailand's economy? It must be a goodly sum: paying a 'housekeeping' allowance for their wife; school/college fees for their wife's children; car & bike purchase/hire; building houses; running farms; frequenting hotels/bars; all must add up to a decent sum. So why do the authorities treat us like 2nd class citizens with surly immigration staff; convoluted visa rules; pointless 90 day reporting; dual charging; draconian rules against home purchase etc?

also add to that 14.5% all the non registered stuff like Bargirls , Massages, Beach services and that runs on the side far away from any taxes and recipts and its a lot more. Add the cash Thais living in other countries send to the families , moneytransfers to "Girlfriends" and such and we are suddenly talking about more than 20% and most likely more than 80% of the "hard currency" income

[LawrenceChee]

I can't reconcile the highest numbers ever with my visits to Pattaya and Chiang Mai where the hotels, restaurants and bars are empty. Yes, there are buses ferrying people (Chinese usually) around to temples and the like. Early in the year in Jomtien, the hotels were offering rooms at 1/3 of the price of the year before (high season). We paid 6500 B per night in Feb 2014 and only 2500 in Feb 2015 at the same luxury hotel.

We must be living in a different CM, which seems to be swarming with Chinese.

A friend until recently has been involved in the running of two small boutique hotels and reports high occupancy including largely independent Chinese travellers.

There seems to be a range of .chinese from many many Young motorcy renters who can't drive to those in BMW SUVs and the like.i previously heard figures saying the Chinese spend a third of the average westerner, but suggest this is changing go to Maya mall and they are certainly free spending, almost like a buying frenzy and not cheap stuff.

The Chinese can be divided into 2 groups ; FITs independent who are Internet savvy and often repeat visitors , they know how to read reviews and find their own hotels and restaurants

I know of a hotel owner who is opening his third boutique hotel in Chiangmai ....he's got the formula right and his hotel is often at 100% occupancy for most days off / on peak season

The group tours are often from smaller provinces and on a package tours and often on a tighter Budget as everything is provided for in the price they paid including meals and pit stops at tourist traps ...not indifferent from most Thai groups you see being ferried around in government buses etc.

They stay in large local hotel chains and have those 5-7 course meals in big scale local restaurants. Do you see them buy a lot of stuff ? Not really ....I was at my local market and the Govt officials tourists were all in their purple polo tee shirts and buying 100 baht sausages famous in the north

[White Christmas13]

Wealthy well heeled people do not sit on rubbish strewn beaches, whilst gagging on the smell from the overflowing bins being rummaged through and the contents spilled onto the roads.

Most wealthy tourists are educated enough to know not to visit parks where animals are used for entertainment.

When in 'First Class' Rail carriages they don't expect to be woken all night by vendors selling food.

I would think they don't normally frequent city centre high streets being propositioned by hookers every 5 mtrs.

The list goes on an on.....Thais being as insular as they are have no conception of what a clean modern city/country/beach/national park/river/canal looks like.

Or having to wipe your arse and put The paper in a bin at the side of the toilet.

You have paper?

Well I found paper but there was no bum gun

[kaetzchen]

Well, as I know, Thailand is the cheapest trip destination for Chinese, even cheaper than some of their domestic tourists attractions, and that's why it's getting so popular nowadays. For those who don't know much English, don't have much money, but still want to go abroad for traveling, Thailand is their best choice, yes I mean tourist groups. Independent tourists prefer some places with less Chinese people around, e.g. Maldives, Fiji or Seychelles... and of course, they're more likely the richer, better-educated tourists..

[PaullyW]

It's so easy actually. The same way the country has attracted so many millions over the last 30+ years with Isaan women, if they want wealthier tourists, perhaps just add some of those attractive porcelain skin Sino -Thais.

It worked for the wealthy Chinese who now run the country. I don't think well heeled men are generally attracted to the Isaan throwaways so common.

[saakura]

Bringing in plane loads of cheap Chinese tourists doesn't impress wealthier tourists. You can't have both. Pick one or the other.

What drivel

Do "wealthier" people only go to destinations where there are other "wealthier" people?

Thailand has attractions that cater to a broad range of budgets. Restricting budget travellers won't result in an increase in more moneyed ones.

This incessant bitching about the Chinese is as tiresome as the bores who spout it. m

What makes farang better than the Chinese? The fact that they've a greater propensity for blowing a small fortune on marrying and breeding a prostitute? The fact that they drink to excess and disrespect the country? LOL!

The fact of the matter is this: though the Chinese come here with Chinese-owned tour operators, stay in Chinese-owned hotels and shop at Chinese-owned outlets, all those businesses employ Thais and pay taxes in Thailand.

They bring in fresh, hard currency that they exchange for THB and spend in Thailand

Oh okay. 'Money where mouth is' time. Book yourself into a brimming to the gunnels Chinese and report back on your experience, as others have

Oh OK "avoid going off at tangent" time.

Why would I book myself into a Chinese hotel?

How would doing so disprove my point about their contribution to the Thai economy?

Would doing so prove that farangs are somehow better than Chinese?

No, but you stating that foreigners marrying prostitutes, drinking to excess and thus disrespecting the country, shows that its seriously time to put your blinkers off. The thais are very well capable themselves of disrespecting their own country.

Thais are also capable to decide if they prefer lower spending but a very high number of noisy Chinese tourists who come with their families and go to 7-11, dont drink in the bars or use prostitutes. Or a small number of higher spending western tourists who come for the beaches, bars and local women. It does seem that market forces prefer the former.

[Broeno]

Are they intending to bring wealthier tourist by train from China? Now already these tourist pay everything in China and just spend a few baht at a foodcourt. Farang get squeesed out when they stay longer then a tourist visa. I really dont understand in what way the Thai gouvernement can make Thai happyer.

[jamie obda]

How might one define "wealthy?" Total amount spent per day?

Wealth is a relative term. A middle class North American might constitute a wealthy Chinese.

There is an inverse of wealth to population distribution, hence the onslaught of cheap package tours..

It would make more sense to me to target middle class North Americans, Australians, Europeans; families, and snowbirds. But hey, what do I know.

[LawrenceChee]

Well, as I know, Thailand is the cheapest trip destination for Chinese, even cheaper than some of their domestic tourists attractions, and that's why it's getting so popular nowadays. For those who don't know much English, don't have much money, but still want to go abroad for traveling, Thailand is their best choice, yes I mean tourist groups. Independent tourists prefer some places with less Chinese people around, e.g. Maldives, Fiji or Seychelles... and of course, they're more likely the richer, better-educated tourists..

I don't think you have been to Fiji Maldives or Seychelles lately mate

[Sayonarax]

Bringing in plane loads of cheap Chinese tourists doesn't impress wealthier tourists. You can't have both. Pick one or the other.

What drivel

Do "wealthier" people only go to destinations where there are other "wealthier" people?

Thailand has attractions that cater to a broad range of budgets. Restricting budget travellers won't result in an increase in more moneyed ones.

This incessant bitching about the Chinese is as tiresome as the bores who spout it. m

What makes farang better than the Chinese? The fact that they've a greater propensity for blowing a small fortune on marrying and breeding a prostitute? The fact that they drink to excess and disrespect the country? LOL!

The fact of the matter is this: though the Chinese come here with Chinese-owned tour operators, stay in Chinese-owned hotels and shop at Chinese-owned outlets, all those businesses employ Thais and pay taxes in Thailand.

They bring in fresh, hard currency that they exchange for THB and spend in Thailand

everybody from the west spends monopoly money when they come here. Those pesky Chinese are such suckers for using real money. Put the bong down cypress hill.. Edited December 26, 2015 by Sayonarax

[MaiChai]

I have been coming to Thailand for 20 years. Its not the paradise it once was. Compare in and around Pattaya; the whole Chonburi area is totally built up now and a continuous area with very little greenery. How about Phuket? Getting similar; most of the beaches difficult to get to because of hotels and uncontrolled development. Most towns and cities look the same; anything old and interesting replaced with concrete. Its also not that cheap any more; high prices and low quality; food and fuel being the exception.