Thailand Under Strain from Tourism Surge

[lamyai3]

13 minutes ago, Hereinthailand said:

Hmm chinese are not farangs ? I feel they are being cheated by some of you posters.

No.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farang

[seancbk]

18 minutes ago, Hereinthailand said:

Hmm chinese are not farangs ? I feel they are being cheated by some of you posters.

 

When referring to English speaking foreigners I say Farang.

When referring to English speaking foreigners who have lived for most of their working lives overseas, so are not recent arrivals or tourists I say Expats.

When referring to only a particular race of foreigners I'll use the correct term to describe their race, Chinese, Indian, etc

When referring to all foreigners (although I tend to be referring to tourists types, not migrant workers as they don't really count) I'll just say foreigners.



 

[lamyai3]

3 hours ago, WinnieTheKhwai said:

 

Then you'd think wrong.  

 

(Very very wrong, actually.)

 

They're an absolute godsend. 

I'm evidently out of date with my thinking here, I still saw things from the zero dollar tours perspective which was prevalent until just a few months ago. I also recall the news articles a few years ago, of them mobbing Chiang Mai university because of a popular film that was based there, of them fighting over shrimp in the hotel buffet in Phuket. Seems like they've gone from being a bane to being a godsend rather fast, but maybe that was selective reporting -  if so, I stand corrected. 

[simoh1490]

2 hours ago, seancbk said:

 

When referring to English speaking foreigners I say Farang.

When referring to English speaking foreigners who have lived for most of their working lives overseas, so are not recent arrivals or tourists I say Expats.

When referring to only a particular race of foreigners I'll use the correct term to describe their race, Chinese, Indian, etc

When referring to all foreigners (although I tend to be referring to tourists types, not migrant workers as they don't really count) I'll just say foreigners.



 

The term farang refers just to white westerner types, including Australians, not necessarily all English speakers.

[hotchilli]

The new "Happy zones" must be working then !!

[connda]

Hey, if they have so many tourists, well heck, you can keep assaulting grandmothers and treating the marks like bird poop.  They're so stupid they just keep coming!!!    Scam them, rip them off, beat them -- they just flock in greater numbers.  

[DrTuner]

It's not tourism, it's de facto invasion. But as we know from WW2, Thais don't have any problem with that.

[Bantex]

Thailand has nothing to worry about re the number of tourists near doubling.

The news reports of the way the British, American, Australian etc tourists are  ripped off, robbed, assaulted, cheated, scammed etc will eventually drastically reduce the number high spending, law abiding tourists from these countries as they will flock to neighbouring countries offering better deals. This will leave Thailand getting the back packers, Chinese tourists etc who spend next to nothing. High end tourism will die with the loss of jobs, revenue to the countries economy which is what they should be striving for.

[simoh1490]

20 minutes ago, DrTuner said:

It's not tourism, it's de facto invasion. But as we know from WW2, Thais don't have any problem with that.

You mean they remained neutral like the Swiss.....so what's your point or did you just want to be abusive!

[DrTuner]

14 minutes ago, simoh1490 said:

You mean they remained neutral like the Swiss.....so what's your point or did you just want to be abusive!

Sure, Japanese never had camps in Thailand and US never bombed BKK. After all, Thailand has never been colonized, they invite everybody in. 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_invasion_of_Thailand

Edited April 27, 2017 by DrTuner
Wiki link

[seancbk]

2 hours ago, simoh1490 said:

The term farang refers just to white westerner types, including Australians, not necessarily all English speakers.

Yes I know. 

But most white Westerners (actually all) I meet are English speaking.

Perhaps if you are in Pattaya and come across lots of Russians and Scandinavians it would be different.  

 

 

[pentap]

Holiday surge? 555! How they like to blow their trumpet... It' is now 2017 and from what I can gather, the true figure in terms of numbers of tourists visiting Thailand has been and is decreasing. A lot can happen in the next 13 years! What a bold statement to make...


Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect

[nong38]

Oh no! We must do something to stop all of these Tourists/economic migrants from coming to Thailand!

1. Dont mention the submarines.

2. Increase bar fines and apply VAT.

[nong38]

2 hours ago, DrTuner said:

Sure, Japanese never had camps in Thailand and US never bombed BKK. After all, Thailand has never been colonized, they invite everybody in. 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_invasion_of_Thailand

Nothing but a pack of lies and old wives tails, show me a Thai history book that mentions any of this, thought not!

[Destiny1990]

8 hours ago, freethinker said:

Just 15 years ago Thailand was still beautiful and not overcrowded. It was a pleasure to visit. 

 

15 years ago u also was much more beautiful.

[lamyai3]

2 hours ago, seancbk said:

Yes I know. 

But most white Westerners (actually all) I meet are English speaking.

Perhaps if you are in Pattaya and come across lots of Russians and Scandinavians it would be different.  

 

 

The Thai classifications of foreigners would be deemed pretty racist in the West. Nothing to do with language or geographical region, all about visual appearance. Farang refers to a white skinned Caucasian, and dates back to the time where most Siamese experience of this was people from European countries. 

[natway09]

Mok 199 got it right. went for quantity not quality & did not listen that to do that you need more than an airport & roads,

even if they contribute little to the economy.

Just leave behind their filth, cooking fat residual,  sewerage & little else.

Use valuable water resources & overload systems.

Beaches in the Gulf of Thailand are dirty, the water in many  not safe to swim in.

It is "killing the goose that lays the golden egg" but unfortunately that is the way Thais think.

Why would anyone in their right mind invest in say Hua Hin where even on the beach you trip over horse shit

as well as the water smelling like human excreta . 

Ten years from now the Bight could be one big bacterial boom

 

[Kim1950]

Farangs are they like Gweilos. I have lived in Asia and traveled all through Asia on business. What's makes people think Asians don't have their prejudices among their own different nationalities. They also have prejudices by class or economic status. I have had Mandarin speaking Chinese look down on Cantonese speaking Chinese. These counties, like in the Western World, also have a history, before colonialism, of wars among themselves. We have North Korea threatening South Korea and Japan. Territorial disputes in the South China Sea. The common language and ethnic acceptance is money.

[Kim1950]

On 4/27/2017 at 2:15 AM, seancbk said:

The absolute last thing I want to see is an increase in the retired Farang population.

Of course, few people would complain about retired Farang's on a Thailand Elite Visa starting at THB 500,000 up to THB 2,000,000  Who would care what you see. Besides, these people would most likely never see you.

[anotheruser]

On 4/27/2017 at 7:22 PM, seancbk said:

Yes I know. 

But most white Westerners (actually all) I meet are English speaking.

Perhaps if you are in Pattaya and come across lots of Russians and Scandinavians it would be different.  

 

 

 

This is spot on I have never met a Swedish or Norwegian person who is proficient in English. 

[Prbkk]

Madame Tourism is never going to quantify it, at least not "publicly", but the average old-fashioned sex tourist probably spends as much if not more than a well-heeled Chinese. Average 10 day trip: at least a thousand USD on "personal services" ( which is then spend in the community on goods and services), significant expenditure on accommodation ( more typically in smaller establishments), a LOT on F&B.

Much of this expenditure is not readily seen , forming part of the black economy, but those in charge must be aware of it no matter how distasteful they find the whole sector.

[anotheruser]

16 minutes ago, Kim1950 said:

Of course, few people would complain about retired Farang's on a Thailand Elite Visa starting at THB 500,000 up to THB 2,000,000  Who would care what you see. Besides, these people would most likely never see you.

This is correct. I have an Elite visa and they don't question me at the borders. 

[simoh1490]

7 hours ago, anotheruser said:

This is correct. I have an Elite visa and they don't question me at the borders. 

I have a retirement visa (for fifteen years) and they never question me either. Which begs the question, who is being questioned and why?

[geriatrickid]

On 4/26/2017 at 11:14 PM, Destiny1990 said:

Hmmm nahh it most be their limited English skills that is holding them back?

Or the limited language skills topped off by an absence of social skills and poor hygiene of the suitor?

[Destiny1990]

10 hours ago, geriatrickid said:

Or the limited language skills topped off by an absence of social skills and poor hygiene of the suitor?

Frankly they not seem flirting at all they just busy with their selfie sticks.I do not think Chinese people may look down on anyone else their hygiene so thats not a valid concern.

[toofarnorth]

On 4/27/2017 at 7:17 AM, DoctorG said:

To assist with their overcrowding problem I will go to Bali again this year instead of TL.

What has Bali got you can't get in Tesco Lotus ?

[Rhys]

...and the Thai from Chieng Mai are delighted with this news, as they serve as a test model for services and provision of those services for the Wonder Chinese Tourist.

 

[Prbkk]

There seems to be some contradictory statements re the numbers. BKK passenger numbers increased from 53 million in 2012 to 56 million in 2016 ( as reported by the airport authorities). So where is this mega boom in tourism happening? DMK? Phuket? Chiang Mai? Land crossings?

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_busiest_airports_by_passenger_traffic

[freethinker]

On 2017-04-27 at 4:14 PM, Destiny1990 said:

15 years ago u also was much more beautiful.

Actually i've taken good care of myself. In some areas i'm probably better off than 15 years ago. Wish i could say the same for Thailand. 

 

[Reigntax]

On Thursday, April 27, 2017 at 10:47 AM, Thechook said:

Yes very common in Chiangmai, convoys of up to 15 double decker buses under police escorts with lights flashing.  The Chinese really are treated like VIP's in Thailand.  

Or the Chinese tour bus drivers have the same as the Thai and the escort it to protect and warn others.