Tourism: An end to dual pricing? Tourism minister talks of stimulus measures

[NightSky]

A little late..? 

 

 

[juice777]

5 hours ago, Yinn said:

Good for local people get the discount.

Lol it's not a discount it's a price increase to rip of the Tourists how can you not release that 10xthe price sometimes to see a crap waterfall  when sometimes there's not even any water I stopped going years ago.

[greeneking]

18 minutes ago, dcnx said:

You must be Thai or you have stayed here so long it’s rubbed off on you.

 

Locals don’t get a “discount.” Foreigners get charged extra. A lot extra. There’s a difference.

 

Discount pricing would work like this:

 

Crappy uneventful park charges 80b for everyone to get in. However, if you produce a local ID you get 10% off entry. That’s fair and understandable.

 

What pisses people off is this:

 

Crappy uneventful park charges 20b for Thais and 400b+ for foreigners.

 

This sort of pricing structure is offensive.

And why do tropical forests here have so few animals, birds or butterflies.

Or is it just me who is unlucky?

[mike787]

BULL crap!

[bust]

https://images.app.goo.gl/fkRDR97trXJvqUQA8

[Fex Bluse]

11 minutes ago, greeneking said:

And why do tropical forests here have so few animals, birds or butterflies.

Or is it just me who is unlucky?

Not just you. 

 

Thai attractions are usually very poor quality. 

 

It's obvious that the paid fees do not go to upkeep and maintenance and rather right into some local officials pockets. 

[unamazedloso]

Lol, yeh wait till all the tourists stop coming and pretend like your discounting.... Tourists return then i bet it goes back up!!

[from the home of CC]

38 minutes ago, BobbyL said:

Thanks for the comment. Another Thai apologist I see. 

nah, just a realist for i feel the Thais have done nothing to apologize for.. 

[curious297]

5 hours ago, RotBenz8888 said:

It doesn't pull in enough money since downturn of tourists. Expect increased fees somewhere else.

I think that we quickly forget past stories like this:

 

 Phi Phi park chief moved amid B30mn national park fee fraud probe

 

It's not that the national parks don't make money, it's just gone before it can get to the big boys up top, hence it will never stop. 

 

I was at the Ice Arena Phuket in Boat lagoon the other day. Some Thais driving Mercs arrived dripping with gold. Came up to the cashier and asking for "The Thai special price".  They were visibly annoyed when they were informed they have one price for all, no special discount for Thais even though Ice Arena has to be one of the cheapest attractions in phuket.

 

I personally hate when I take my non Thai boy with his this Thai friends to Thai attractions which then he is overcharged against the thais who pay much, much less. HIs friends read the thai price list and they all took out the entrance fee. When it came time to pay, My boy was first at the cashier, he was told it cost more for him. Even his young friends could not understand it that their friend who has lived in Thailand 14 years, must pay more. His Thai friends pleaded with the cashier but she wasn't having any of it. They decided to leave.

 

For their ignorance, this attraction lost 4 customers that would have spend extra money on food and drinks. Probably this episode lost them a few thousand baht however, they feel it's a win on their part. How many times a day must this happen?

 

Maybe start a petition like the TM30 issue. List the venue, location, Thai price and foreigner price so people can decide before they get hustled. 

 

It has happened to me personally many times all over Thailand that now, I no longer visit any dual pricing attractions. I even tell my visiting friends and family not to go to certain dual price places.

 

 

 

 

[SoilSpoil]

25 minutes ago, Matzzon said:

You are not beeing ripped off. Accept that it has and still is the standard in this country. If you can´t afford or not want to pay, just don´t look or enter. Offended, by paying a little bit more??? This happens in other parts of the world too.

That doesnt make it right, does it?

A rip off is a rip off. Try charging Thais 10 times the local fee in a National Park somewhere....

[BobbyL]

2 minutes ago, from the home of CC said:

nah, just a realist..

So paying 6 - 8 times the price is acceptable?

[from the home of CC]

39 minutes ago, waxpro said:

The last time I visited the national park at khao yai was more than 2 years ago, when I paid entrance fees 450 baht, but for Thai wife paid just 40 baht,,, it's x 11 times higher,,,

and before this, was another time when trying to enter puttabat national park coming from khao kho, petchabun province, almost 3 years ago, the guards asked to pay 500 baht,, just to drive inside the park?

Anyone of you foreigner guys faced the same situation???

Any thing changed about this? or still the same policy?? I decided to never go again to any of such places,

Additionally, to make it clear, the guards in both places shown me a printed paper half Thai and half English to prove the fee amount is a regulation by the management or something alike, and not their idea, I believe the guards at the entrance saying the true amount as they told,

Anyone here to inform the minister about this? why the fees for Thai person at 40 baht, and 450-500 baht for a foreigner? any logical reason behind this? I used to pay 80 baht some years int eh past,, suddenly jumped to more than x 10 times?

 

 

costs me that much to go into a national park in Canada, don't want to go? don't go and save your money for the rainy season.. 

[Teddy3943]

It would be nice if Pipa mentioned the way to enforce these new rules, and how about market prices? If my wife wants to buy something on the market she asks me to stay out of sight, otherwise the price goes up....

[British Bulldog]

So whats going to happen now, before it was 100 baht for locals and 200 baht for foreigners, now they are going to charge 200 baht for everybody ... Ha ha ha !

[from the home of CC]

35 minutes ago, dcnx said:

That’s good to see. It helps balance out the number of prostitutes. 
 

Now Thailand is #1 for both. ????????

actually I believe the EU and the UK have that distinction but they charge too much for most of the slicksters on this site..

[CanterbrigianBangkoker]

2 hours ago, Yinn said:

I know 95% of farang ok good people. Happy and polite. Welcome to Thailand sure.

 

But only maybe 70% of thaivisa poster ok. 5555555

some the guy weird people. Angry. 

 

Many marry sex worker, and complain, criticize, ridicule and mock thai people everyday. And still want live here! 

 

 

I fully understand your appraisal of the average TV member. ????????

 

There are too many bitter and conflicted people on this forum, that's for sure. If you don't like the way things are in Thailand, then leave - simple as that, to my mind, cos it seems highly unlikely we'll change anything anytime soon. I have lived here on and off for over a decade and have made this beautiful country my home, with some success. I have decided after 11 years to relocate back to my native UK, however - for a number of reasons, some of which are personal and not informed by my experience of Thailand.

 

What it's very, very hard to impress upon a Thai, however, is the level of laziness, incompetence, xenophobia, nationalism and corruption that is experienced by people from the 'developed world'. Most Thais don't have a frame of reference outside of Thailand, but for those that do - it is beyond frustrating for most of us who actually live here - and when something is experienced wholesale by enough different people then you know it is an actual issue and not just your own neurosis. 

 

All out nation's have their faults (mine has a great many at the moment), but the issue like the one under discussion in this topic simply wouldn't fly in the Western world, ever! It is illogical in the extreme, not to mention totally hostile, inhospitable, xenophobic and nationalist - some of the worst things that a tourist can experience. When I am asked to pay double, triple or even quadruple what a Thai national is - to see something that is supposedly one of the primary reasons for visiting the area - then I (and I think any thinking person) feels utterly offended and despoiled by the notion. It doesn't exist in our respective nations and is rare to see anywhere to be honest, so why it exists here is absurd, and untenable. As I said, xenophobia and prejudice writ large. This is merely one of many examples that we ex-pats (and many tourists) can mention - things that are not necessarily common-place in daily life, but happen frequently enough to really antagonise and jade our view of the country and people - and this is being reflected in the drop in Western tourist / ex-pat figures.  

 

 

3 hours ago, Yinn said:

 

 

I'm pretty sure these figures do NOT discern whether those who are entering are in transit, on business or are actual holiday-making tourists - and perhaps crucially - how many of them are repeat tourists! I have been informed previously that these figures are simply ALL ARRIVALS in each calendar year.  It is well known to all of us who pay even the slightest attention to the trends, that Thailand is losing it's manufacturing base, and foreign investment to its neighbours - particularly Vietnam. Labour market here is simply too expensive, the THB being kept artifically strong against foreign currencies only exacerbating this issue. The infrastructure, capability/education of employees, man-power and ease of operating businesses in ASEAN neighbour states now being on a par (or in some cases better) has mean that Thailand has started to lose out - and this is just the beginning of an enduring trend. Not to mention the opening up of the Mekhong delta air-space, so that tourists can now travel directly to cities such as Vientiane, Luang Prabang, Phnom Phen, Siam Reap and the like, with this advent it is becoming less accurate to describe Bangkok as the 'gateway to SE Asia'.

 

I don't mean to mock or revel in the country's growing issues, because I do (generally speaking) still have a lot of affection for Thailand, but I'm afraid to say that this trend (particularly in regard to tourism) is something that Thailand's government (district and central) has brought upon itself. Too many absurd scams left unabated (see Phuket jet ski/taxi and Pattaya motorbike taxi cartels), the increased amount of utterly arbitrary restrictions on tourists and ex-pats in Thailand (see TM6 etc.), the never-ending instability of the military government, a concerning number of deaths and rapes of tourists throughout the country, the outright corruption and incompetence of the police and local authorities in dealing with nearly any matter brought to their attention and of course the many little irksome issues for tourists such as 'dual pricing' and being overcharged for services in general - and it's not hard to see why tourists are opting to either a) not return or b) go elsewhere - as an unsavoury reputation surrounding Thailand grows internationally.

 

I hope Thailand and it's people will use their heads and decide to combat these growing maladies, rather than stick to the tried and tested method of resting on their laurels and taking advantage of what they have now with scant regard for the future, but... knowing the place as I do, it seems that this is an unlikely outcome - it will take a hit in the wallet for attitudes to change - at every level. ????

 

 

[MartiniMan]

With baht being so expensive it will help a bit but really need to start printing more baht and bringing it down to a fair value again

[White Christmas13]

6 hours ago, Yinn said:

Good for local people get the discount.

How can the locals get a discount if they pay nothing for some attractions

[brianj1964]

My wife and I went to a dinosaur museum outside Kalasin

Foreign adult 100 baht

Foreign child 50 baht

Thai adult 40 baht 

Thai child 10 baht

how would Thais feel if this was done to them when visiting Europe 

[MartiniMan]

5 minutes ago, CanterbrigianBangkoker said:

I fully understand your appraisal of the average TV member. ????????

 

There are too many bitter and conflicted people on this forum, that's for sure. If you don't like the way things are in Thailand, then leave - seems to be as simple as that, to my mind, cos it seems highly unlikely we'll change anything anytime soon. I have lived here on and off for over a decade and have made this beautiful country my home, with some success. I have decided after 11 years to relocate back to my native UK, however - for a number of reasons, some of which are personal and not informed by my experience of Thailand.

 

What it's very, very hard to impress upon a Thai, however, is the level of laziness, incompetence, xenophobia, nationalism and corruption that is experienced by people from the developed world. It is beyond frustrating for many of us who actually live here - and when something is experienced wholesale by enough different people then you know it is an actual issue and not just your own neurosis. 

 

All out nation's have their faults (mine has a great many at the moment), but the issue like the one under discussion in this topic simply wouldn't fly in the Western world, ever! It is illogical in the extreme, not to mention totally hostile, inhospitable, xenophobic and nationalist - some of the worst trais that a tourist can experience. When I am asked to pay double, triple or even quadruple what a Thai national is - to see something that is supposedly one of the primary reasons for visiting the area - then I (and I think any thinking person) feels utterly offended and despoiled by the notion. It doesn't exist in our respective nations and is rare to see anywhere to be honest, so why it exists here is untenable. As I said, xenophobia and prejudice writ large. This is merely one of many examples that we ex-pats can mention - things that are not necessarily common-place in daily life, but happen frequently enough to really antagonise and jade out view the country and people - and this is being seen in the drop in tourist figures.  

 

 

 

I'm pretty sure these figures do NOT discern whether those who are entering are in transit, on business or are actual holiday-making tourists - and perhaps crucially - how many of them are repeat tourists! I have been informed previously that these figures are simply ALL ARRIVALS in each calendar year.  It is well known to all of us who pay even the slightest attention to the trends, that Thailand is losing it's manufacturing base, and foreign investment to its neighbours - particularly Vietnam. Labour market here is simply too expensive, the THB being kept artifically strong against foreign currencies only exacerbating this issue. The infrastructure, capability/education of employees, man-power and flexibility/ease of operating businesses in ASEAN neighbour states now being on a par (or in some cases better) has mean that Thailand has started to lose out - and this is just the beginning of an enduring trend. Not to mention the opening up of the Mekhong delta air-space, so that tourists can now travel directly to cities such as Vientiane, Luang Prabang, Phnom Phen, Siam Reap and the like, with this advent it is becoming less accurate to describe Bangkok as the 'gateway to SE Asia'.

 

I don't mean to mock or revel in the country's growing issues, because I do (generally speaking) still have a lot of affection for Thailand, but I'm afraid to say that this trend (particularly in regard to tourism) is something that Thailand's government (district and central) has brought upon itself. Too many absurd scams left unabated (see Phuket jet ski/taxi and Pattaya motorbike taxi cartels), the increased and utterly arbitrary restrictions on tourists in Thailand (see TM6 etc.), the never-ending instability of the military government, a concerning number of deaths and rapes of tourists throughout the country, the outright corruption and incompetence of the police and local authorities in dealing with nearly any matter brought to their attention and of course the many little irksome issues for tourists such as 'dual pricing' and being overcharged for services in general - and it's not hard to see why tourists are opting to either a) not return or b) go elsewhere - as an unsavoury reputation surrounding Thailand grows internationally.

 

I hope Thailand and it's people will use their heads and decide to combat these growing maladies, rather than stick to the tried and tested method of resting on their laurels and taking advantage of what they have now with scant regard for the future, but... knowing the place as I do, it seems that this is an unlikely outcome - it will take a hit in the wallet for attitudes to change - at every level. ????

 

 

Very good points we preach from the same book! 

I think you have brought up many good points - myself as an economist it's an exciting time because honestly we have great potential for after the crash. First we have huge crash here within the next year as already huge tell-tale signs are showing

First it will begin with a recession and then lower lows without any sign of change until austerity measures are brought in - only after that with help of foreign investment and a free market it will begin to rise imho

[from the home of CC]

10 minutes ago, BobbyL said:

So paying 6 - 8 times the price is acceptable?

I made sure when I moved here from Canada that I had enough money to live. Up to you if you don't want to pay, nobody is forcing you. If you can't afford to live here I've been reading on TV there are a lot of alternatives.

[sahibji]

high time it is done. it always leaves a sour taste in the mouth if you have to pay higher price than the fellow next you (a local)

[from the home of CC]

21 minutes ago, CanterbrigianBangkoker said:

All out nation's have their faults (mine has a great many at the moment), but the issue like the one under discussion in this topic simply wouldn't fly in the Western world, ever! It is illogical in the extreme, not to mention totally hostile, inhospitable, xenophobic and nationalist - some of the worst things that a tourist can experience.

I would think some of immigrants to the UK would feel some of the strongest hostility ever encountered if even a tenth of the comments I've read on TV are true. Eastern Europeans, Africans, Indians, West Indians have all been attacked and degraded on this site and from what I've read in UK news. Racism is almost as popular as a sport as football, and yet people on TV call xenophobia on the Thais when they charge more to people that earn 10, 20, 30 times more salary. What a joke from a bunch of cheap ass people. 

[simon43]

 I even stopped going to parks..

 

In 18 years of living/based in Thailand, I have never, ever visited a national park because I do not agree with dual pricing.

[DeeThai]

An so For visit9ng The Grand Palace is

Free for Thai an 500 baht for Foreigner

[MartinBangkok]

3 hours ago, Yinn said:

I know 95% of farang ok good people. Happy and polite. Welcome to Thailand sure.

 

But only maybe 70% of thaivisa poster ok. 5555555

some the guy weird people. Angry. 

 

Many marry sex worker, and complain, criticize, ridicule and mock thai people everyday. And still want live here! 

 

 

Yinn, I know many Thais want to leave Thailand and live and work in a western country, like my home country Norway. Why? I will tell you why: 10 times more salary (at least), no corruption (compared to Thailand), freedom of speach, true democracy, a welfare and health-system Thailand can only dream about, a functioning justice-system, no dual pricing, a pension-system. True, pussy is way more expensive in Norway than in Thailand.

[spidermike007]

One can only hope that not only is  Pipat Ratchakitprakarn sincere in this promise, but able to get the various parties involved, to act upon it. In Thailand the gulf between a promise to do something righteous, and correct, and the actual implementation of the policy, is as wide as the distance from Bangkok to Auckland. 

 

They can start with the National parks. I was originally told that a Thai drivers license was enough to prove you are a resident, and get you in for the price the Thai people pay. Never worked. Now, let's see how sincere this promise is, and if there is an absence of the lack of follow up Prayuth and the Thai army are world famous for. 

[Peterphuket]

Believe me, we don't get lower price, the Thai have to pay more, as simple as that, Thai logic.

How about the wine, also affordable prices, or we asking to much now?

[Matzzon]

I guess this thread is going to win the popularity of the day. What would the world be without the daily thread of massive complaints about that poor farang pay so much.

It nothing wrong with dual pricing. The thing is that we actually can afford to pay more than most Thai families. You should instead be happy to pay more of the maintenance costs in your tickets, and feel great about that you contribute to keeping the price for Thai families and their children down. With paying a little bit extra you help may children in Thailand to experience beautiful places. So, does it feel better now?

[Matzzon]

43 minutes ago, SoilSpoil said:

That doesnt make it right, does it?

A rip off is a rip off. Try charging Thais 10 times the local fee in a National Park somewhere....

Never mind, just keep on crying for every single 20 baht you loose.