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Opinion: Bad review of Koh Chang hotel: The only real loser is Thai tourism


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From what I read earlier, the customer went over the top with his review(s) of the hotel. If the hotel management had half a brain they would have responded by saying how disappointed they were not to have satisfied him - and then point out that other reviewers had enjoyed a far better experience. Many hotels and restaurants have one or two bad reviews among them. Suck it up.

 

But no - arrest that man.

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36 minutes ago, camble said:

I'm on Koh Chang now, at The Dewa. The Emerald Cove Resort is also very good. Stay at these places and you won't have to worry about leaving a bad review. I haven't stayed at the Sea View for 12 years. 

Emerald Cove was ok, but it's a bit in the middle of nowhere. Ended up driving and parking at Kai Bae often for food.

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8 minutes ago, rkidlad said:

Did I state the person who made the complaint is Thai? 

Not at all, my post was just clarifying that it was not a Thai hotel owner for others to understand, e.g. TVF did not mention that and hence the reason for the Thai bashing, not that you had anything to do with.

 

Just clearing the air as post can sometimes be misread.

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It is only a matter of time until all of us posting on this blog will be hunted down and deported. I am mending my evil ways as of now: "Thailand is perfect! The people in charge are brilliant! Anyone complaining about ANY thing in Thailand should be deported and banned. Thailand is the cultural and intellectual center of the universe"!!! 

 

I have mended my evil ways. Please allow me to stay for a few more months!!! 

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7 hours ago, 2long said:

From what I can gather, the guy appeared to be set on writing a barrage of reviews, both on TA and on Google, using new/fake accounts, and maybe help from friends. That (not a couple of negative reviews) and the words slavery and coronavirus are what worried the resort and inspired them to reach out, as well as replying to his TA review. IMO if he had left just one bad review on each platform, nothing would have happened. It was the threat of continuous bad reviews that worried them.

Or the hotel could have responded by saying they were disappointed that his experience had not matched that of their other guests. Simple as that. Really. But we all know how Thais like to complicate even the simplest of things, even down to what colour ink you use to fill in their official forms.

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11 minutes ago, Bangkok Barry said:

From what I read earlier, the customer went over the top with his review(s) of the hotel. If the hotel management had half a brain they would have responded by saying how disappointed they were not to have satisfied him - and then point out that other reviewers had enjoyed a far better experience. Many hotels and restaurants have one or two bad reviews among them. Suck it up.

 

But no - arrest that man.

 

How do you propose the hotel keep track of dozens of venues where the guy may be planting his bad reviews and false accusations?  It seems he wasn't limiting his posting to the booking venue he actually used, where the hotel owner could respond as you suggested.  He was planting falsehoods all over the interweb.

 

I don't blame the hotel for filing the complaint against the guy, especially for his claim of "slave labor".  I fault the Thai legal system that leaves no options other than the nuclear option.  Defamation should be a civil offense, subject to injunctive relief and even reparations, but not jail time.

 

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6 hours ago, ballpoint said:

The type of person who hates on Thailand due to this story is the type of person Thailand can do without, and a loud, arrogant "tourist" had some time to cool off in jail. So win, win in my book. 

Explain exactly how this worldwide bad publicity translates as a 'win' for a Thai tourist industry currently on its backside?

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5 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

Not at all, my post was just clarifying that it was not a Thai hotel owner for others to understand, e.g. TVF did not mention that and hence the reason for the Thai bashing, not that you had anything to do with.

 

Just clearing the air as post can sometimes be misread.

The hotel lodged the charge. 

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Both sides were quite foolish. The tourist thought he could use TripAdvisor to "weaponize" his grievences against the hotel, while the hotel went far beyond it's needed approach by going after an arrest. State of tourism; foolish tourists, and foolish hotels.

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This article was not only published in the New York times, but many international media took it up, including the BBC, CNN, Guardian and more.

Now the whole world seemingly knows about this ridiculous mess. I am not saying who is in the right or wrong here but now, who will stay at that hotel?

The American spent time in jail and could face a hefty fine and more time in jail, which will no doubt be reported all over.

The best practice for the hotel would be to forget it and let it go, also for the police to do the same. Maybe give the guy a free weekend in the hotel to try and make 'friends', this would be good for everyone involved!

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8 hours ago, Jack Mountain said:

Conceited as the Thai are, they 'think' that Thailand is in the middle of everything and for once (a few days) they are right. ROFLOL

They aren't conceited (except the hi-so's) they are very unsure of themselves. especially regarding the West, they always seem to be seeking praise or confirmation of their abilities, if criticised they take it deeply to heart.

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I looked on the seaview website the other day and there are special offers available...

 

I was thinking oooer this looks nice and then I saw it..

 

...offers available ONLY for Thai citizens.

 

I will have to keep my cash to spend elsewhere.

 

They shoot themselves in the foot sometimes.

 

Edited by NightSky
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None of us really know the full story so there is most likely fault on both sides so before a major Thai versus farang war of words and insults goes any further remember a few things.

1) the customer got personal 

2) don’t you think 4 reviews is a little excessive

3) the hotel really shouldn’t have got the police involved but merely stated their side of the story in a responding review and warned others of the real situation if they were in the right!

Now you have international news to the detriment of Thailand and tourism here. Thais and farangs having a go at each other which is crazy and only make a bad situation worse. Sadly we know Thais hate to loose face but they have been that way for centuries and it’s not about to change so get used to it, a lot of farangs just love having a go at them about anything they can. So we should all take a deep breath, accept the fact that the tourist and the hotel had a fall out and send the guy back to where he came from after both parties apologize to each other. Alternatively Thai tourism should jump in and mediate with common sense and settle the matter amicably and to the satisfaction of both parties. I am sure both would like to be able to turn the clock back!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Does this type of action set a scary precedent for forums such as this where people believe they have the freedom to voice their own opinion but in reality they don't under these ridiculously harsh defamation laws.  A number of comments in this thread could be legally challenged under the same type of principal/law.... it is a bit worrying, I have to say.

Edited by tuktukracer
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9 hours ago, DirtyHarry55 said:

They talk about multiple bad reviews but does anyone know exactly how many bad reviews he posted in Total?
My understanding is he posted the 1st very bad one on Tripadvisor which the Hotel had removed by Tripadvisor for violating Rules.

So he posted another on Trip Advisor which wasn't removed and wasn't as bad as the first also he posted 2 on Google so

that's a total of just 4 with one removed and the last 3 were not as bad as the first.
If I am upset with an online company I also post multiple bad reviews to warn others.
Ps User reviews are always only personal opinions and not stating facts.
If only good reviews are allowed then there's no pint in having reviews.

I posted a valid bad review on Lazada with pictures of the defective product.  The seller removed it.   I called Lazada to ask how that is possible.   I was told “in Thailand Lazada allows sellers to delete reviews they do not like”.   Trump would love it here.   

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6 hours ago, Eindhoven said:

 

Once again; where is the Thai person in all of this? Perhaps I have missed it. So far I have seen only foreigner on foreigner interaction. Not a single Thai name involved. F&B Manager; foreigner. Person who replied to the review; foreigner.

So what does this have to do with Thais? I haven't looked into it, so correct me if I am wrong.

I read somewhere on Thaivisa that farangs cannot sue for defamation, but now it seems that is wrong as the guy is a Czeck, no Thais involved here at all.

Just out of interest, can a farang sue another farang for defamation under the Thai defamation law?

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The adult and proffesional way would have been to reply his comments on Trip Advisor with their side of the storey and if possible make him look a fool. Police reporting, arrests, gaol time..they deserve any negativity they get

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2 minutes ago, possum1931 said:

I read somewhere on Thaivisa that farangs cannot sue for defamation, but now it seems that is wrong as the guy is a Czeck, no Thais involved here at all.

Just out of interest, can a farang sue another farang for defamation under the Thai defamation law?

Yep, if you pay enough money

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1 hour ago, Flying Saucage said:

The Czech guy is just an employed manager. It is naive to believe that it was this foreigner who started to involve the defamation law and the police. This guy just did as he was told by his boss.

If that's the case, then they deserve all they get, unfortunately they will take a lot of others down with them with their its all about me, me, and me loss of face attitude......karma !

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The biggest loser is the Thai Justice system. 

People are thinking how on earth the police can arrest someone for giving his opinion? It is the justice system of Thailand which is under question. That in return will have an impact on Tourism!!!!

 

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Yes, even here in the back waters of Boston, Mass. This story has gone viral, but even more resounding is the follow up stories of double pricing, corruption, pollution, rampant scams and lawlessness which Thailand has come to represent. 

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