Lack of European visitors the cause of Thailand's tourism woes, says hotelier

[Jiggo]

4 hours ago, ICELANDMAN said:

This denotes the inability to run a country, buy weapons and the only thing the military can do very efficiently

They wrecked all there Harriers, all 6 of them, not an efficient military, still our forces may be able to practice submariner rescue here in the near future..

[kevinmartyn]

The one and only reason that tourest numbers are greato down is the "Thai Government" / Immigration officers do not make any overseas Tourest feel welcome coming to Thailand! That is fact. 

 

 All foreigners are automatically made to feel like criminals beforehand !

 

Lack of Tourests, has zero  to do with  Brexit and strong  "Thai  baht"!  Just check  out  social media!!!

[madmitch]

Another reason for the loss of European tourists particularly Scandinavians, was the Phuket beach chair fiasco. It may seem trivial but this ended up being Phuket's loss as many, particularly older, tourists didnt want to park a towel on the sand and frazzle in the sun, so they went elsewhere. Most of these have never returned; regular Phuket visitors for many years almost accidentally found new places to visit and have realised there are many more places to go in the world. The beach chairs are back; but it's too late. Chinese and Russians hardly use the chairs.

 

 

[Mac98]

5 hours ago, xylophone said:

Speaking to an employee of a respected high class hotel chain a couple of days ago and she said "guest numbers are low" but would say no more than that.

 

However it echoes the comments from a friend at another top class establishment, and not only are numbers down, spend is a key missing factor which trickles down through the local businesses, so many are affected.

As for trickle down and the baht, when I got 42 to the dollar I was very generous with the locals, but at 30 to the dollar that's a loss of 26,000 per month and there's not much trickle down left. No wonder the entertainment value has eroded.

[4MyEgo]

4 hours ago, djlest said:

i was planning a two week vacation all around Thailand at nice hotels, then i realized i would have to do TM30 so i cancelled my trip and instead... ill stay home and watch netflix and spend my hard earned money buying <deleted> from china. mai pen rai - up to you Thailand

We all have choices, two weeks around Thailand would have been nice as opposed to staying home.

 

We are off to Sydney to spend some money, then Phuket for a week upon our return, the TM30 is not an issue, done on line for me.

 

Enjoy Netflix and your spend on Chinese goods as I am sure the Chinese will appreciate it, although your choice will be affecting innocent Thai's because of immigration rules, whilst you live in Thailand, sounds hypocritical to me, but then again that's your choice, just saying, the TM3O is not an issue, if you know how to beat the system, i.e. registering and complying, their country, their rules, we are guests, so no point in crying over spilt milk.

 

I have no doubt it will all change as pressure mounts, what will you do then, still dig your heels in ?

[capdagde]

4 hours ago, Reigntax said:

Deja vu ?

Again?

[George Aylesham]

High prices (including the dual pricing system), heavily polluted beaches and serious air pollution all play a role in the reduction of tourist numbers.

[newnative]

1 hour ago, Sujo said:

why dont u ask who has NOT changed their lifestyle because of tm30.

Me.

[DrTuner]

Chinese+Russians+Indians or Europeans. Pick a side and stop complaining already. You won't have both.

[newnative]

1 hour ago, bkk6060 said:

I disagree with all of it.

 

More and more are Airbnb, etc. renting condos.  1000' s of people everyday come to Pattaya, not staying in hotels.

 

The hotel industry should have put a stop to it a few years ago.  But they are unorganized and basically not smart about a situation that will just get worse and worse for them.

Absolutely true.  It doesn't matter where the tourist are coming from--Asia, Europe, or Mars.  Far too many now park themselves illegally in condos, not hotels.  Hotel occupancy is down largely because of this.  Duh.

[NeoDinosaw]

3 hours ago, NanLaew said:

That's 2.

And now that's 3 stay-at-homes.

 

Any advance on 3?

Add me !!   I have moved back to UK now and will only visit for 90 days in future.  I was planning to travel around the country looking at rocks, the the resurrected TM28/30 means spending a morning at an Immigration office every time I move.  Too much hassle for me now so I shall just stay in my home at the sea side, relax and save money!

[ToddinChonburi]

No shortage of tour buses running around Chonburi Province.

[StayinThailand2much]

5 hours ago, Mavideol said:

all sounds good but,.....according to TAT nothing to worry about, numbers are up

Not to forget, the Indians, according to the TAT, will 'save Thailand's tourism'...

[newnative]

1 hour ago, brendanmann said:

your airbnb numbers are extremely exaggerated

    No, they are not--at least for the two cities I know--Pattaya and Bangkok.  I owned condos in the 2 projects I mentioned in my post--The Base and Unixx. I also owned in Centric Sea.  The condos in just these 3 projects have a combined total of over 3000 units, mostly small.  3000!  Unixx has 1200 alone.  All 3 have been overrun with lots of illegal daily renters--I saw it first-hand at all 3.  

     And, as I said, that's just 3 projects and Pattaya has seen many more huge projects in the past few years--Riviera Wong Amat and now Riviera Jomtien, the 4 huge Lumpini projects, all the large, low-rise projects like Atlantis, Espania, Venetian, the Lagunas, Maldives, Seven Seas, etc., etc.   The hotel pie is being sliced into lots of smaller, illegal pieces.

[sunnyboy2018]

5 hours ago, smedly said:

also, lets not forget the expat/retired population who generally provide a steady 12 month spend that is often overlooked, I am hearing more and more exit stories as people are fed up being targeted by nonsense new cumbersome immigration rules that seem to have no other purpose than to force some people down a route of paying hefty bribes for application approvals because of some very simple marginal technicality

Although retired in Thailand I travel frequently inside the country leaving my condo and staying at hotels in many other cities, visiting local restaurants,  using all major forms of transportation. I am both a retiree and a tourist. The reporting nonsense and illogical financial demands are very off putting. 

[hotchilli]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

They said that the Bank of Thailand had downgraded its assessment of tourist arrivals for 2019 from 40.4 million to just 39 million.

 

6 hours ago, webfact said:

However, they said that if you ask some hoteliers in Phuket they will say that in reality tourism is down 50%.

So who's telling porkies ?

[Misab]

5 hours ago, JonnyF said:

Beat me to it. I used to go away twice a month to Rayong, Hua Hin etc. 

 

1 or 2 nights in a decent hotel, spending money in restaurants, local markets, beach bars etc.

 

Haven't been since this TM30 nonsense came up.

Me too, but also the strong Thai Baht keep me from visiting even local restaurants. We stay home.

[sunnyboy2018]

38 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

We all have choices, two weeks around Thailand would have been nice as opposed to staying home.

 

We are off to Sydney to spend some money, then Phuket for a week upon our return, the TM30 is not an issue, done on line for me.

 

Enjoy Netflix and your spend on Chinese goods as I am sure the Chinese will appreciate it, although your choice will be affecting innocent Thai's because of immigration rules, whilst you live in Thailand, sounds hypocritical to me, but then again that's your choice, just saying, the TM3O is not an issue, if you know how to beat the system, i.e. registering and complying, their country, their rules, we are guests, so no point in crying over spilt milk.

 

I have no doubt it will all change as pressure mounts, what will you do then, still dig your heels in ?

Its not the rules of the Thai people. Its the rules of the military and the elite who have imposed their authoritarian rules on the Thai people via a thuggish military coup.

[Artisi]

5 hours ago, ICELANDMAN said:

This denotes the inability to run a country, buy weapons and the only thing the military can do very efficiently

That could also be in doubt. 

[Speedhump]

I flatly refuse believe any of these tearful posts 'I was going to go on a lovely trip around Thailand but cancelled it because I have to do a TM28 (not TM30, actually) on my return home' . This is all total BS (or the posters are the usual whining monkeys just trying to stir things up). I went on my first ever trip from my home in Hua Hin to Pattaya last week. 3 days. On my return went to Immig to do 90 day report and TM28. Took me 30 minutes queuing (was busy, for a change, I timed it wrong for once) and less than 5 minutes at the desk. I didn't have to show anything other than my and my wife's passports. 

[Sir Dude]

Thailand just isn't the fun, relaxed, cheap, friendly, party adventure that it used to be. The hey-day has past and there are other choices that rival it easily and are giving more bang-for-the-buck ... simple really. As an aside, who wants to holiday in police state run by the military? 

[sunnyboy2018]

49 minutes ago, kevinmartyn said:

The one and only reason that tourest numbers are greato down is the "Thai Government" / Immigration officers do not make any overseas Tourest feel welcome coming to Thailand! That is fact. 

 

 All foreigners are automatically made to feel like criminals beforehand !

 

Lack of Tourests, has zero  to do with  Brexit and strong  "Thai  baht"!  Just check  out  social media!!!

There are a number of contributory factors. A Strong currency makes holidays more expensive and does not encourage holiday makers and tourists. A cheap currency makes a country more inviting for many holiday makers. Even Turkey saw an upsurge in tourist visitors when it currency went down recently. As did Greece when its prices went down. The main foreigners who think Thailand is unfriendly get their innacurate view of Thailand from this forum...not reality.

[GeorgeCross]

4 minutes ago, Speedhump said:

I flatly refuse believe any of these tearful posts 'I was going to go on a lovely trip around Thailand but cancelled it because I have to do a TM28 (not TM30, actually) on my return home' . This is all total BS (or the posters are the usual whining monkeys just trying to stir things up). I went on my first ever trip from my home in Hua Hin to Pattaya last week. 3 days. On my return went to Immig to do 90 day report and TM28. Took me 30 minutes queuing (was busy, for a change, I timed it wrong for once) and less than 5 minutes at the desk. I didn't have to show anything other than my and my wife's passports. 

 

hua hin is easy (i live there too) - try chaengwattana on a monday morning - lucky if out by lunchtime

 

 

[sunnyboy2018]

1 minute ago, Sir Dude said:

Thailand just isn't the fun, relaxed, cheap, friendly, party adventure that it used to be. The hey-day has past and there are other choices that rival it easily and are giving more bang-for-the-buck ... simple really.  

Yep. But where?

[DrTuner]

7 minutes ago, Speedhump said:

I flatly refuse believe any of these tearful posts 'I was going to go on a lovely trip around Thailand but cancelled it because I have to do a TM28 (not TM30, actually) on my return home' . This is all total BS (or the posters are the usual whining monkeys just trying to stir things up). I went on my first ever trip from my home in Hua Hin to Pattaya last week. 3 days. On my return went to Immig to do 90 day report and TM28. Took me 30 minutes queuing (was busy, for a change, I timed it wrong for once) and less than 5 minutes at the desk. I didn't have to show anything other than my and my wife's passports. 

I'd rather spend 35mins at the dentist having my molars pulled without anesthetic than visit immigration. Just sayin'.

[lust]

1 minute ago, DrTuner said:

I'd rather spend 35mins at the dentist having my molars pulled without anesthetic than visit immigration. Just sayin'.

Im in the same boat. Chaeng wattana is equivalent to a funeral.

[Pib]

11 minutes ago, Speedhump said:

I flatly refuse believe any of these tearful posts 'I was going to go on a lovely trip around Thailand but cancelled it because I have to do a TM28 (not TM30, actually) on my return home' . This is all total BS (or the posters are the usual whining monkeys just trying to stir things up). I went on my first ever trip from my home in Hua Hin to Pattaya last week. 3 days. On my return went to Immig to do 90 day report and TM28. Took me 30 minutes queuing (was busy, for a change, I timed it wrong for once) and less than 5 minutes at the desk. I didn't have to show anything other than my and my wife's passports. 

Lucky your servicing immigration office is Hua Hin.    But if your servicing immigration office was Cheang Wattana (Bangkok) you would queue for hours on top of the several hours of transportation to/from immigration.

[moonseeker]

Many of my friends, mostly couples and families, also a few singles have stopped coming the last 3 years. Cost, loss of "exotic", trash everywhere, rude service unless you stay within your 5 star compound, bad international publicity etc. main reasons. Friends who run Western oriented businesses of various kinds have been complaining about steady decline, many move on. MS>

[Rockhopper]

5 hours ago, Mike Teavee said:

And not forgetting the TM30 hassles which could be stopping Expats from travelling in-country and staying in hotels, using local businesses etc... 

And my friend, Des, has moved to Vietnam because of the immigration requirements. The required deposit of money and/or proof of deposits was a bit much but the TM30 was the straw that broke the camels back.

[Donald Trump]

Hahaha those rich Europeans from Greece and Italy and Spain , let’s kick more foreigners out. Make it hard for them to get work permits , and just hope the tourism and business traffic goes up. Stoopid idiots