Thailand tourism situation

[migrant]

Hmmm since TAT is so positive I wonder where all the tourists went? If Pattaya is down 20-30% then somewhere is way up!

[STEVE G]

....Manager Online spoke to Kongsak Phupongsakorn, head of the Thai Hotels Association, Southern Thailand. Kongsak said that June was always the worst month for tourism with it being low season but that “this year was terrible”.

Yesterday a tourism official in Pattaya also admitted to a 20-30% reduction year-on-year for June.....

I was in Hua Hin in May/June and it was the same, I've been visiting every two or three months for the last 16 years and I've never seen it as quiet as that before.

[Big Boy]

My theory is that Thailand is claiming the success of neighbouring countries. I have many friends who used to come to Thailand regularly. They still fly to the main airport in the region, Bangkok, but spend 1 night in Bangkok before flying on to their final destination. Same on their way home again. Therefore, instead of one holiday in Thailand, an overnight stay coming, and another returning home is clocking up twice as many visitors, but in reality they are only transiting through Thailand.

[STEVE G]

One thing I do see is that there has been a massive increase in the number of Asian tourists in the immigration halls at Suvarnabhumi. Years ago, you would be mainly in a line of Westerners but now they're far outweighed by the number of Asians. I was recently reading that the Chinese are now the most numerous international tourists worldwide up from virtually nothing twenty years ago and I don't think they have much interest in beach resorts like Pattaya, Phuket or Hua Hin.

[buksida]

Agree, having just passed through Swampy I'd say that the immigration queues are 80%+ Asian now.

Buddha alone knows where 110,000 daily arrivals are going if they're not in the traditional tourist locations.

[Nereus]

Strong baht deals blow to Pattaya travel

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/17 ... aya-travel

The strong baht has taken a heavy toll on European tourist numbers in Pattaya, according to the Entertainment & Tourism Association of Pattaya City.

"Over the past few months, European travellers have hardly come to Pattaya at all because of the baht's appreciation," said Damrongkiat Phinitkarn, the association secretary.

Tourists are likely opting to go to other countries to save on costs, he said. Additionally, some foreign investors in entertainment venues in Pattaya have begun pulling out, according to Mr Damrongkiat.

He voiced optimism about the government's much-touted Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) scheme, saying it could help draw foreign tourists to the city, which is close to U-Tapao International Airport.

The scheme covers Chon Buri, Rayong and Chachoengsao provinces. According to him, the number of travellers in Pattaya during this low season has fallen by 20-30% from the same period last year.

The number of Chinese tourists, he said, has also dropped markedly as a result of the boat tragedy in Phuket that claimed 47 Chinese lives in July last year.

Amporn Kaewsang, one of the managers of The Stones House, an entertainment venue on Pattaya's Walking Street, said Indian tourists are replacing European travellers.

She also noted that a number of beer bars have closed as a result of the disappearing Europeans. She said bar operators should respond to the currency problem by marketing to bring travellers back.

She said local operators are pinning their hopes that the EEC project will spur economic development and bring people back to Pattaya.

[Big Boy]

I've just been looking at some tourism stats...................

10.4% of GDP that must have dropped to 7.28%

Tourism provides 9.9% of employment, so that will now be 6.3%

Typical Thai knee jerk reaction e.g. not so many tourists, so we'll increase prices to compensate - tuk-tuks have been an example talked about many times on here.

Such a hit on the country's economy should be devastating, but just a minute, if they increase the value of the Baht, income will be the same. Those who no longer have jobs can go back to their villages to struggle with everybody else. Manipulate tourism stats with visitors transiting to neighbouring counties to give the illusion that tourism is increasing. Problem no longer exists. TIT - the land of SAM (Smoke and Mirrors)

[oakdale160]

I read an article, written by a US finance authority, talking about a significant fall in Thai exports and how the high-baht although not entirely to blame is a significant factor. Devaluing the Baht would probably help both the export and tourist slumps but I guess that would be toooooo humiliating.

[Big Boy]

A strong Baht means that Thailand's elite can buy loads of property overseas, and become even richer when the Baht eventually devalues.

In the meantime, keep pumping out the propaganda that everything is OK, and what people can see with their own eyes is an illusion.

[oakdale160]

It has always been one of Thai's not-so-pleasant facts, that Issan, an economically poor province has been subsidised with the money that its beautiful daughters earn in BKK, Phuket, Pattaya etc and send back to mama back in the village.
Tourism slump in those places will mean added hardship in Issan.

[buksida]

Thailand’s tourism – stormy weather ahead
Thailands tourism industry finds itself in stormy weather as a falloff in visitors spook trade, even forcing candid admissions from some of Thailand’s tourism chiefs.

Thailand has suffered a slump in tourism figures since the beginning of the year as hoteliers and tourism trade leaders have confirmed a huge 20 to 30% drop for June in tourist numbers and trade in Pattaya and Phuket this week in separate media interviews.

The slump is a startling and quite sudden drop, just seven months after the end of a record tourist year in 2018 and a good start with Christmas, New Year and January numbers. In December of 2018, the number of Chinese visors arriving in Thailand was over 838,000, a nearly 3% increase year-on-year at the time. A third of tourist arrivals into Thailand in 2018 were mainland Chinese.

But a perfect storm has now beset Thai tourism – emerging nearby tourist markets, a high baht, the US-China trade wars and ongoing fallout from the Phuket Boat Tragedy.

Locally there are other issues such as over-development of accommodation causing too much new competition, poor infrastructure and systemic tourist turn-offs never being addressed (Phuket taxi prices is one example).

All this is now broadly accepted, even officially. Figures for tourist arrivals show a slump following January this year. In April and May 2019 the figures for monthly arrivals dropped to 3,195,006 and 2,726,808. These arrival numbers were a big drop from, say, December last year.

The TAT governor, Yuthasak Supasorn, recently spoke to a meeting in Thailand’s north-eastern city of Udon Thani. He outlined plans by tourism chiefs to develop niche markets for Thai tourism for secondary locations in the country targeting affluent tourists seeking lifestyle and wellness experiences, including LGBT travellers. He predicted that tourist revenues for 2020 would reach 3.7 billion baht with a 10% growth. The authority is, officially, still holding out hope that 2019 can rebound.

The optimism is based on hopes and prayers rather than any of the ‘problems’ actually being fixed.

https://thethaiger.com/hot-news/tourism ... ther-ahead

[Spitfire]

But a perfect storm has now beset Thai tourism – emerging nearby tourist markets, a high baht, the US-China trade wars and ongoing fallout from the Phuket Boat Tragedy.

Yes, but in this line (and the whole article) they fail to mention anything about the harassing, unfriendly and unwelcoming immigration rules and department that is now actively doing it's best to get rid of anyone it comes across. This is obviously a symptom of a paranoid military government that totally misunderstands civilian matters such as tourism as normal people don't like this and will go elsewhere ... can't have your cake and eat it. Sort this out and bring the baht in line from the silly levels it is at and problem gone. Ground Control to Thailand ... come in.

[pharvey]

Ground Control to Thailand ... come in.

"Bangkok - We have a problem"..........

[Nereus]

PM admonishes Phuket to stop ripping-off foreign tourists

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/ge ... n-tourists


Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has warned that Phuket's reputation as a tourist destination will suffer if local people do not stop trying to rip-off foreign visitors.

His message was passed on by Werachon Sukondhapatipak, a member of the prime minister's working team.

Lt-Gen Werachon said the prime minister was aware of a police complaint filed on Wednesday by two Australian tourists that a passenger van driver charged them 3,000 baht for the 50 kilometre trip from Phuket airport to their hotel in Kata area.

The story was shared widely on social media.

Lt-Gen Weerachon quoted Gen Prayut as saying the government was working hard to promote tourism and make Thailand a world class destination. Phuket's economy would benefit.

However, if people persisted in taking unfair advantage of foreign visitors it would have a negative impact on the Thai people, Phuket and Thailand, he quoted Gen Prayut as saying.

Pol Maj Techin Deethong-orn, an investigator, contacted the van driver to try and mediate an agreement between the two sides on Thursday.

Prapai Suankool, the head of the Transport Technical Group of Phuket Provincial Land Transport Office, said that Karon police station and the Transport Technical Group hosted the meeting, but there had not been any agreement so far.

He said there were many public signs stating the fares for tourists. However, the price depended on the type of vehicle. There were no fixed fares for taxi vans. It was usually up to the drivers and passengers to agree on a rate, he said.

Tourists were normally charged 1,600-2,000 baht for a trip from the airport to the Kata area of Phuket, where the hotel was located, Mr Prapai said.

The two Australian tourists pose with their written complaint about being overcharged by a passenger van for a trip from Phuket airport to a Kata area hotel, at Karon police station in Phuket on Wednesday evening. (Photo supplied)

c1_1714696_190718154824.jpg (67.52 KiB) Viewed 478 times

[nil]

1,600-2,000 baht is already a rip off.