Hotel prices slashed and quiet beaches, Phuket faces challenging high season

[zaZa9]

 

My Thai gf rents out scooters in Phuket - on an outlying beach.

She is called , currently ,   by Indian nationals on 'Line'  or 'Messenger' ( so free ) from perfectly nice resorts that are usually a long way from the beach/villiage and discounting heavily,

 

They quickly learn  that transport here is expensive, and  the resort that was so cheap on the net ,  wants 400-500 baht for their  hotel "Limo" ( that could well be a tuk tuk or an aging Pajero ) service to deliver them all of 3 kms to her point of rental.

 

So they research and see the gf delivers free INSIDE our  villiage .

Then they Free call her and nag and go on and on about her delivering  , usually 4 kms + OUT , ...

 

and  when we get there ( as I drive her home on my motorbike ) that they are not going to pay any deposit for damages .

AND they want a discount on 200 baht a day.

 

Of course I interject and say "See ya" , and as we start to go they change their minds,

 

But having said that , the last dozen or so ( younger Indians ) have been straight up good customers ,,,

 

Their demographic may be shifting to.

 

[ChasingTheSun]

I live in Phuket. 
 

The west coast seems busier this year compared to last year.

 

Noticed many more european and Aussies and Indians this year compared to last couple of years.
 

Chinese are also still coming, but appears to be a little less than usual.

 

[Javade joker]

Thailand is no longer a smile country and no more safe place to be happy they do not care for foreigners and it will be more worth to come no liberty and justice exist the foreigners have no right of justice becouse the court do not undrestand english

[Javade joker]

all the beaches are dies 

[Ron jeremy]

3 hours ago, zaZa9 said:

 

My Thai gf rents out scooters in Phuket - on an outlying beach.

She is called , currently ,   by Indian nationals on 'Line'  or 'Messenger' ( so free ) from perfectly nice resorts that are usually a long way from the beach/villiage and discounting heavily,

 

They quickly learn  that transport here is expensive, and  the resort that was so cheap on the net ,  wants 400-500 baht for their  hotel "Limo" ( that could well be a tuk tuk or an aging Pajero ) service to deliver them all of 3 kms to her point of rental.

 

So they research and see the gf delivers free INSIDE our  villiage .

Then they Free call her and nag and go on and on about her delivering  , usually 4 kms + OUT , ...

 

and  when we get there ( as I drive her home on my motorbike ) that they are not going to pay any deposit for damages .

AND they want a discount on 200 baht a day.

 

Of course I interject and say "See ya" , and as we start to go they change their minds,

 

But having said that , the last dozen or so ( younger Indians ) have been straight up good customers ,,,

 

Their demographic may be shifting to.

 

The retired expat community have a hard to realizing they are being pushed out and are no longer welcomed.

they in turn pounce on the new demographic, Chinese and Indian. 

Yes there are those that are cheap Charlie's, same same as western backpackers, but also many single or smaller group travellers, WITH money, that DO spend. 

Both countries have the fastest I merging middle class, so fasten your seat belts.

i can only imagine what they have to say about the vast majority of expats, especially in pattaya, you should have seen them, drunk in the bars at 9 am, dirty smelly old men, eating 40 baht meals , etc etc etc.

 

[KMartinHandyman]

I've never known a Thai so say anything favourable about people from India and have actually heard many of them say they all "smell". So, I wonder how the general population and Thai business people who cater to the tourism industry feel about the the TAT wooing them to replace tourism revenue lost from other nationalities. I suspect an influx of their fresh money will help change (outward) attitudes greatly.  

I know my wife won’t ever eat their yellow curry rice and chicken. I like it and eat it. I think she’s just spoiled.

[The Deerhunter]

On 10/26/2019 at 10:25 PM, jollyhangmon said:

 

...  ... really?! Well, good luck with them ... 

If it wasn't so serious, it would be laughable. The tourism czars here remind me of of the king who stood on the sea shore and told the tide not to come in.  As you said, good luck with the Indians.

[donnacha]

4 hours ago, Ron jeremy said:

i can only imagine what they have to say about the vast majority of expats, especially in pattaya, you should have seen them, drunk in the bars at 9 am, dirty smelly old men, eating 40 baht meals , etc etc etc.

You simply do not understand business. Quite apart from the huge question of why, exactly, Thailand feels it cannot pursue the emerging markets of China and India while also continuing to benefit from the Western tourist trade they spent half-a-century building up, you are failing to see what those "dirty smelly old men" represent.

If they are, as you say, already "drunk in the bars at 9am", that means they are hardcore drinkers hemorrhaging a serious amount of cash on alcohol every day. Alcohol is not cheap in Thailand and, between various taxes and duties, the government rakes in more than 50% of the cost of each drink. If you look closely, you may also notice that each of them has their own drink, as opposed to using straws to share each drink between four of them. Economically, this is a positive for Thailand.

The "dirty smelly old men" are also paying for accommodation in a sh*tty town that has no real attraction for "normal" tourists. If you can fill a shoddily-built hotel in an unattractive street with smelly old westerners who would, otherwise, be spending their foreign currency in a competing country, you are doing pretty well.

It is also pretty good for whoever is selling those 40 baht meals: it is nice that people can make a living selling their product to customers who like it, even if you consider it to be inferior. I suspect, however, that each of those "dirty smelly old men" actually spends more money, supports more jobs, and has poured a lot more desperately needed money into Thailand over the last few decades than you have, refined gentleman though you may be.

We are all currently watching a slow-motion car crash. Those of us who have traveled extensively already know the problems that are likely to emerge as the Thais, who have a very particular way of doing things, deal with an influx of Indians, who also have a very particular way of doing things. This is going to provide years of "som nom na" entertainment for keen Thailand watchers.

 
The funniest laugh, however, is all the arrogant idiots who enjoy rolling their eyes at the "dirty smelly old men", not realizing the head-spinning speed at which their own youth is about to evaporate ????

 

 

 

[mercman24]

post 44 made me smile, i was have seen 3 young chinese, with a trolley, brim full of mama noodles, ha ha

[Henryford]

I would never visit Phuket with their taxi mafia.

[moutamine]

On 10/26/2019 at 6:05 PM, rooster59 said:

According to the report, hoteliers have been forced to slash hotel rooms prices by as much as 50 percent.

Yesssss!!!  Bring back affordable Thailand travelling!

[metisdead]

Off topic posts and replies have been removed.

 

A post that had a link to a disallowed site has been removed:

 

26) The Bangkok Post and Phuketwan do not allow quotes from their news articles or other material to appear on Thaivisa.com. Neither do they allow links to their publications. Posts from members containing quotes from or links to Bangkok Post or Phuketwan publications will be deleted from the forum.

[yellowboat]

On 10/27/2019 at 11:28 AM, thaistocks said:

What about the Visa hazels to long term stayers? Why is this not mentioned, or did I miss it (?), its policies are way over the top besides often confusing, not friendly to even the many good people whom stay here and many have families here and contribute to Thailand.  Just take a look at yet another of many letters published in the BKK Post today, October 27th 2019.

 

Good business dictates return customers and passive sales.  Have we known the junta to act in the interest of good business or the common Thai?   You are trying to apply logic, economic fundamentals and decency to a group people who cannot comprehend such things.   They want us to move to Vietnam for whatever illogical reason.   Why is Thai Airlines failing?  Why is Bangkok boring?   Trying to understand the junta is a waste of time, unless you cannot walk away from Thailand. 

[Old Croc]

7 hours ago, Javade joker said:

all the beaches are dies 

What does a video of a tidal beach in another country (I'm guessing Vietnam) have to do with hotel prices in Phuket?

The strange commentary provides no clues.

[Skallywag]

7 hours ago, Ron jeremy said:

i can only imagine what they have to say about the vast majority of expats, especially in pattaya, you should have seen them, drunk in the bars at 9 am, dirty smelly old men, eating 40 baht meals , etc 

 

You sir have offended me personally with this statement reflecting my lifestyle and reputation. 

I challenge thee to a dual! 

[Langkawee]

21 hours ago, stevenl said:

Strange post since the op States hotel prices have been sliced. Also the experience of myself plus customers is that prices are low, and were much lower during low season as well.

is this post by the ever accurate Cheesman? 555

[androokery]

10 hours ago, Henryford said:

I would never visit Phuket with their taxi mafia.

I feel the same way. But I like the challenge of going there without making use of the taxis. It's a pretty small island????

[Langkawee]

On 10/27/2019 at 1:05 PM, NightSky said:

What the heck are you talking about, the people traffickers are usually from Asia and Africa. 

 

The poor victims you mention were trying to escape communism and poverty in Asia most likely.

 

You have no clue what you are talking about.

 

On 10/27/2019 at 1:05 PM, NightSky said:

What the heck are you talking about, the people traffickers are usually from Asia and Africa. 

 

The poor victims you mention were trying to escape communism and poverty in Asia most likely.

 

You have no clue what you are talking about.

The driver was Irish. Hard to find a crueler human being than an Irishman. Thais are nice people unless they lose face. then scores must be settled. 

[Cranky]

On 10/26/2019 at 12:42 PM, Isaanbiker said:

Why? 20 Indians in a one bedroom will do the trick. 

With a bottle of beer and one lucky lady

[Stargeezr]

I would love to get a hotel room at 50 percent off in high season. TAT the big liars can

keep up their BS, but the business owners of Thailand all know how the economy is

doing for real.

Geezer

[friend of siam]

WHO wants to visit a tourist trap like phuket where 150000 other joes <deleted> on the same beach at the same time...????

I once went to kho pi pi and krabi...it was a roundtrip with a boat snorkeling swimming food and a nice tourguide all day ...quiet cheap...but it was busy like at a metro station at rush hour incl. the sounds...it was funny to watch all these holiday makers some on a one week holiday...a highly perfected form of suffering...all year in an office and after that right into the tourist trap...

who wants that.,???.. i come and go to asia... stay awhile amongst locals far away from all these places...

if you spot a tourist developer run him over with a truck ...quickly..

 

[gk10002000]

On 10/26/2019 at 8:47 PM, baansgr said:

When a decent meal and a few drinks on a night out cost more than London or Paris with bad service to boot, what do they expect....that's not even mentioning the airport hassles, taxi and tuk tuk rip offs and violence.

Phuket really is a pain by those taxi mafias.  Few if any motorcycle taxis as in Pattaya.  What should be an easy and reasonably priced trip back and forth from Karon Beach to Patong is just a pain.  And the stories about returning late at night and getting gouged are not good. 

[Pancho]

Psssst..........Thailand has no legitimate government. Only an arrangement at the end of a machine gun barrel.

[JimmyJ]

On 10/26/2019 at 10:32 PM, Skallywag said:

The Rosewood Phuket is the best deal as you get a free breakfast with your 26,000 baht room for the night.  Better hurry though it is a "Limited time offer" 

Plus it's 2.7 km from the beach.

[The Deerhunter]

On 10/28/2019 at 9:50 AM, Ron jeremy said:

The retired expat community have a hard to realizing they are being pushed out and are no longer welcomed.

they in turn pounce on the new demographic, Chinese and Indian. 

Yes there are those that are cheap Charlie's, same same as western backpackers, but also many single or smaller group travellers, WITH money, that DO spend. 

Both countries have the fastest I merging middle class, so fasten your seat belts.

i can only imagine what they have to say about the vast majority of expats, especially in pattaya, you should have seen them, drunk in the bars at 9 am, dirty smelly old men, eating 40 baht meals , etc etc etc.

 

If you were "that" Ron Jeremy I imagine I might believe you knew what you are talking about, Dirty old men and the rest of it.  But you are not, so you probably don't!    And apparently neither do anyone on the Thai Tourism seats of importance.

Bite the hand, comes to mind and they are doing a fine job of it.  

[Old Croc]

9 hours ago, friend of siam said:

WHO wants to visit a tourist trap like phuket where 150000 other joes <deleted> on the same beach at the same time...????

I guess the 150,000 on the beach want to visit a tourist trap..

 

9 hours ago, friend of siam said:

I once went to kho pi pi and krabi...it was a roundtrip with a boat snorkeling swimming food and a nice tourguide all day ...quiet cheap...but it was busy like at a metro station at rush hour incl. the sounds.

What was it, quiet  or "busy like at a metro station at rush hour incl. the sounds" ?

 

9 hours ago, friend of siam said:

i come and go to asia... stay awhile amongst locals far away from all these places

Who cares, and how is that relevant to the thread topic?

[LetsCleanUpTHAILAND]

So empty beaches are a bad thing? Aren't empty beaches what tourist see on Instagram and flood to Phuket to relax on? 

[LetsCleanUpTHAILAND]

BIG IDEA! EXPOSE THE TRUTH!! Would one of you guys be able to buy a spy button camera. I've seen them on ebay and they are super cheap. Dress like a tourist and go about traveling around Phuket. Record the scamming tuk-tuk mafias, broken and filthy streets, ect. Then maybe someone else on here who's good at video editing can put that footage together and working with a English-Thai smart expat for inserting subtitles. Final step, upload to facebook and all social media titled: "RIP PHUKET 2000 - 2019: THIS IS WHY PHUKET DIED". 

 

Thoughts? 

[stevenl]

1 hour ago, LetsCleanUpTHAILAND said:

BIG IDEA! EXPOSE THE TRUTH!! Would one of you guys be able to buy a spy button camera. I've seen them on ebay and they are super cheap. Dress like a tourist and go about traveling around Phuket. Record the scamming tuk-tuk mafias, broken and filthy streets, ect. Then maybe someone else on here who's good at video editing can put that footage together and working with a English-Thai smart expat for inserting subtitles. Final step, upload to facebook and all social media titled: "RIP PHUKET 2000 - 2019: THIS IS WHY PHUKET DIED". 

 

Thoughts? 

Yes, nonsense.

 

Tuktuks are not scamming, prices are known before getting on. In general streets are good, streets are not filthy, etc.

[Isaan sailor]

Thailand now a sinking ship—with an overweighted Baht.