AirBnB vs Hotels - battle lines drawn in fight for tourist dollars in Chiang Mai

[rooster59]

AirBnB vs Hotels - battle lines drawn in fight for tourist dollars in Chiang Mai

 

Image: Chiang Mai News

 

Chiang Mai News reported on the issue of foreign tourists opting to ignore hotels and guest houses and stay in AirBnB lodgings in the north. 

 

As the upcoming end of October to February tourist season approaches the issue is vital for many businesses with the law still unclear in Thailand about the legality of AirBnB.

 

CMN said that there are now 42,223 AirBnB listings in Thailand with 2,816 of those in Chiang Mai. 

 

Many are out of the cities in the countryside drawing mostly foreign tourists away from traditional centers.

 

They said that the split of tourists using AirBnB - an American company - is 70% foreigners, 30% Thai. 

 

A lot is at stake - revenue from tourism in the north is now reckoned to be 100,000 million baht annually.

 

In the period of 2013 to 2017 there was a growth in annual visitors from just over 7 million to nearly 9.5 million.

 

This year is expected to top 10 million. 

 

Rooms went up from 34,500 in 2013 to 10,000 more this year. 

 

This glut of rooms and the threat of AirBnB sucking tourists away from the cities is a major concern to hotel and guest house operators, said CMN. 

 

Source: Chiang Mai News

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2018-09-29

[Antonymous]

I can understand the point of view of the legit hotels. They have invested in property and infrastructure specifically for the purpose of accommodation; they employ staff, provide facilities, pay taxes; and they must charge a fee to cover expenses and make a profit as any business does. They are now competing with AirBnB accommodation that may be just a room in a house, that does not employ staff, doesn't have many overheads and quite possibly doesn't pay taxes either.

 

But assuming that the AirBnb providers are registered and legit, let them be. That is what competition is all about. Hotels need to up their game to provide better value for money, or else change their business model in some way to provide a more attractive service (as most well run hotels do).

 

End of the day, a wider choice for customers should be good for Chiang Mai.

[RandG]

Many of the hotels we have stayed in in Thailand use Airbnb themselves. Also,  if Airbnb draws tourists into countryside where hotels are few and far between,  and away from major tourist cities,  then that is actually in line with government policy as I understand it.  

[1duckyboy]

8 minutes ago, RandG said:

Many of the hotels we have stayed in in Thailand use Airbnb themselves. Also,  if Airbnb draws tourists into countryside where hotels are few and far between,  and away from major tourist cities,  then that is actually in line with government policy as I understand it.  

 

You are correct. A few months ago there was an MOI between the Thai government and AirBnB wherein they would work together to promote the renting of rooms in homes located in outlying, off the beaten path locals. Now Chiang Mai News and Events is reporting this is drawing tourists from traditional tourist centers. Just goes to show you can't please everyone, especially when money is involved.

[WinnieTheKhwai]

It would be excellent if tourism diversified into surrounding areas.   Sadly though the author of the article seems to have just made that up, because it's seriously difficult to get guests for a property out of town via AirBnB.   (I know, I've tried.)

[samsensam]

 

competition is good; if hotels are worried then they need to up their game, and what's wrong with distributing some of the income from tourists around the country - maybe to areas that will benefit more?

 

i was recently travelling in turkey where there are many small family run pensions in towns and the countryside, where the more adventurous tourists can enjoy the local culture and people away from the hustle bustle of crowded over-run tourist hot spots.

[Ulic]

As I understand it AirBnB can rent out/be the facilitator for hotel room rentals, and also

legally rent out private condos and houses for monthly rentals but where they run afoul of

the law is renting out condos and homes for durations of less than a month. So Airbnb

may not be illegal, but some of their business practices may be illegal. We shall see what

comes to pass. The hotel association is very powerful but as has been mentioned they

do like Airbnb facilitating hotel room rentals.

[guest879]

42 minutes ago, samsensam said:

 

competition is good; if hotels are worried then they need to up their game, and what's wrong with distributing some of the income from tourists around the country - maybe to areas that will benefit more?

 

i was recently travelling in turkey where there are many small family run pensions in towns and the countryside, where the more adventurous tourists can enjoy the local culture and people away from the hustle bustle of crowded over-run tourist hot spots.

competition is not appreciated in Thailand.  especially if it is for foreigners who make money off renting out their rooms.

[Lacessit]

1 hour ago, WinnieTheKhwai said:

It would be excellent if tourism diversified into surrounding areas.   Sadly though the author of the article seems to have just made that up, because it's seriously difficult to get guests for a property out of town via AirBnB.   (I know, I've tried.)

Air BNB didn't make it any easier for my GF's apartment when they located it in the middle of Chiang Rai, when it's 25 km away in the Phan district. Try as I might, can't change it so I have given up on them.

[connda]

All the hotels need to do is whine to their buddies in power who will make AirBnB's illegal.  Easy breezy.

 

Oh, by the way - this is called free market competition.  No doubt the owners of the hotels are stanch proponents of 'free enterprise' until competition raises its ugly head, then suddenly there will be a dire need for regulation, and of course, order.  Watch it - I bet it's coming.....

[blackhorse]

As I understand it AirBnB can rent out/be the facilitator for hotel room rentals, and also
legally rent out private condos and houses for monthly rentals but where they run afoul of
the law is renting out condos and homes for durations of less than a month. So Airbnb
may not be illegal, but some of their business practices may be illegal. We shall see what
comes to pass. The hotel association is very powerful but as has been mentioned they
do like Airbnb facilitating hotel room rentals.

". So Airbnb
may not be illegal, but some of their business practices may be ille"

Wrong air bnb have nothing to do with being illegal. They have one website platform for the entire planet.

It's the hosts that are illegal. They should be punching in 30 days minimum.. Nothing to do with air bnb the company

[0815]

49 minutes ago, guest879 said:

competition is not appreciated in Thailand.  especially if it is for foreigners who make money off renting out their rooms.

especially if hotels ask for a double or 3 times higher price in the high season... 

[blackhorse]

especially if hotels ask for a double or 3 times higher price in the high season... 

And you get a whole condo instead of a box for far less

[LomSak27]

5 hours ago, Antonymous said:

End of the day, a wider choice for customers should be good for Chiang Mai.

 

One thing lightly stated in the article, let us post it again

6 hours ago, rooster59 said:

This glut of rooms and the threat of AirBnB sucking tourists away from the cities is a major concern to hotel and guest house operators, said CMN. 

 

The big problem is the glut of hotels, hostels, boutique hotels and Arbnb.  No one for obvious reasons wants to come out and state that a whole bunch of these places are going to go belly up.

 

That is the reason they had that Guest Houses and hostels regulations crack down three months back. Try and thin things out. 

 Guest houses must now get a hotel license--any info? - Chiang Mai ...

[LivinLOS]

It all comes down to badly written blanket laws, often sponsored and for the benefit of large players only.. With poor or zero enforcement creating entire industries which are not legal.. A topic this country seems to excel at. 

 

The blanket law is, all short term accommodation must be in a registered hotel. The on the ground reality is that all homestays (something the TAT themselves promote) are then illegal, most guesthouses and budget rooms, something the country is known for and has for decades relied on for budget / backpacker growth, are illegal. Resorts on islands and places country wide are illegal. The solution is then not to make a working law, but to just ignore the law. 

Thailand is a country of wide ranging laws and grand statements, never or randomly applied. Sort the laws out and actually create working legislation first, then apply that clearly and consistently.. Ohh sorry forgot where I was talking about. 

[Grusa]

So I have a vacant condo. (I don't, by the way, never mind). I want to let it to Russians for two weeks.  I say to him, you cannot rent it for less than 1 month, but I will only charge you two weeks rent, and if you go before the end of the rental that is entirely up to you...... is this legal?

Is it doing anyone any harm?

Well yes, because that is what is happening where I live, and these people are mindless drunken animals, who don't give a tuppenny f*** for the poor sods who actually live there full time.

Even worse are their compatriots who buy up the properties, illegally convert a perfectly respectable 3 bedroom dwelling into a four bedroom, or worse, two or three dwellings, and let them out on ...you guessed it...Airb&b. Attracts even more mindless drunken animals who care even less - at least the earlier ones had children, an effective obstacle to wall-to-wall drunken sexual exploration.

[Pinot]

I just had the worst experience with an Airbnb rental. Instead of a luxury one bedroom condo, it was a postage sized studio. We checked out of the place the next morning instead of staying 3 more days. They would not admit they had changed the listing and would not return my money. Complete lack of support from Airbnb. 25 emails back and forth. I will NEVER use Airbnb again. You can get the same listings from Booking or Agoda without the service and cleaning fees. 

 

[blackhorse]

I just had the worst experience with an Airbnb rental. Instead of a luxury one bedroom condo, it was a postage sized studio. We checked out of the place the next morning instead of staying 3 more days. They would not admit they had changed the listing and would not return my money. Complete lack of support from Airbnb. 25 emails back and forth. I will NEVER use Airbnb again. You can get the same listings from Booking or Agoda without the service and cleaning fees. 

 

That would be extremely unlikely. Something is missing in your story. Can you provide the air bnb link to that property?

 

Luxury has nothing to do with condo size. The room could be decked out in Versace and be 10 sqm.. Perhaps Next time ask about room size BEFORE you book?

 

By the way all listing changes are time stamped for obvious reasons .. So has nothing to do with "not admitting it"

 

I change one word on my listing and I get an instant email saying you made changes

 

Sorry but Something off with your story

[wvavin]

Very soon the government will come down on this if the tourists money did not reach those fat toads and cats!

[Cletus]

3 hours ago, samsensam said:

competition is good

 

I don't agree. Animals compete, men cooperate.

[Classic Ray]

This makes as much sense as retail shops complaining about online sellers, and taxi drivers complaining about Grab or Uber. 

 

The battle is lost, the world has changed, and the old models don’t work in Thailand 4.0. 

 

Chiang Mai was found a few months back to have many more unlicensed hotels, some very large, than licensed ones. No enforcement of regulations and the stupid defamation laws means standards have slipped, and the ratings and review systems on apps like AirBnB are far more effective in maintaining standards.

 

i never understood why traditional B and Bs were not common in Thailand, but with the success of AirBnB it shows there was a suppressed demand. Supply and demand is what it’s all about.

[jrjrjr]

1 hour ago, Grusa said:

So I have a vacant condo. (I don't, by the way, never mind). I want to let it to Russians for two weeks.  I say to him, you cannot rent it for less than 1 month, but I will only charge you two weeks rent, and if you go before the end of the rental that is entirely up to you...... is this legal?

Is it doing anyone any harm?

Well yes, because that is what is happening where I live, and these people are mindless drunken animals, who don't give a tuppenny f*** for the poor sods who actually live there full time.

Even worse are their compatriots who buy up the properties, illegally convert a perfectly respectable 3 bedroom dwelling into a four bedroom, or worse, two or three dwellings, and let them out on ...you guessed it...Airb&b. Attracts even more mindless drunken animals who care even less - at least the earlier ones had children, an effective obstacle to wall-to-wall drunken sexual exploration.

 

yes no problem, I only print fake 1 month contracts and if someone asks why customer left earlier I just have to find a stupid excuse. Whatever condo management think, they have to evidence and I am safe ❤️

 

 

[hobz]

Only one post mentions the real problem with Airbnb. 

The neighbors to Airbnb rentals are going insane by the short term drunk loud obnoxious holiday makers.

In Phuket there's been some protests by condo owners tired of not being able to sleep due to the obnoxious holiday makers..

[hobz]

2 minutes ago, jrjrjr said:

 

yes no problem, I only print fake 1 month contracts and if someone asks why customer left earlier I just have to find a stupid excuse. Whatever condo management think, they have to evidence and I am safe ❤️

 

 

Dont you feel bad for your neighbors? 

[hobz]

5 minutes ago, jrjrjr said:

 

yes no problem, I only print fake 1 month contracts and if someone asks why customer left earlier I just have to find a stupid excuse. Whatever condo management think, they have to evidence and I am safe ❤️

 

 

Is it possible that you can get evicted if the noise complaints stack up too much? 

I'm happy to have good neighbors.. if I had a neighbor like you I would start considering ways to destroy you.

[hobz]

7 minutes ago, jrjrjr said:

 

yes no problem, I only print fake 1 month contracts and if someone asks why customer left earlier I just have to find a stupid excuse. Whatever condo management think, they have to evidence and I am safe ❤️

 

 

You are laughing when I ask if you feel bad for your neighbors? Is that because u think they are fine or are you a psychopath?

[jrjrjr]

1 minute ago, hobz said:

Is it possible that you can get evicted if the noise complaints stack up too much? 

I'm happy to have good neighbors.. if I had a neighbor like you I would start considering ways to destroy you.

 

and you you would have until the rest of your life to dream about it ❤️

if anybody could do anything I would know it maybe, I am renting 20+ condo in BKK and Pattaya...

So yes, keep dreaming about your marvelous powers ❤️

 

[hobz]

Just now, jrjrjr said:

 

and you you would have until the rest of your life to dream about it ❤️

if anybody could do anything I would know it maybe, I am renting 20+ condo in BKK and Pattaya...

So yes, keep dreaming about your marvelous powers ❤️

 

I think going Price is below 50k for Thai hitmen... Make that in a month... 

I take it you're a psychopath then.. no remorse no empathy for others.. 

Or maybe I'm wrong and it's just the way it goes in Pattaya.. I guess in place like Pattaya you have to expect some noise from neighbors. Good luck on ya. 

 

[hobz]

5 minutes ago, jrjrjr said:

 

and you you would have until the rest of your life to dream about it ❤️

if anybody could do anything I would know it maybe, I am renting 20+ condo in BKK and Pattaya...

So yes, keep dreaming about your marvelous powers ❤️

 

Do you have any complaints from neighbors? 

[hobz]

15 minutes ago, jrjrjr said:

 

and you you would have until the rest of your life to dream about it ❤️

if anybody could do anything I would know it maybe, I am renting 20+ condo in BKK and Pattaya...

So yes, keep dreaming about your marvelous powers ❤️

 

Does Airbnb have some type of system that prevents noisy customers?? ????