Thailand’s foreign tourist numbers expected to plummet during 2021

[Thaiger]

Tourism officials have repeated a bleak prediction that international arrivals in Thailand are likely to drop to an all-time low this year. According to a Bangkok Post report, Tourism Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn says foreign visitors to the Kingdom may only number 500,000 this year. “If the ongoing outbreak continues past September, the total number of foreign tourists this year might be 500,000 – 700,000, which is similar to the forecast from the Bank of Thailand.” The Bangkok Post reports that during the first half of 2021, foreign arrivals plummeted to just 40,447, compared with 6.7 million during the same period […]

The post Thailand’s foreign tourist numbers expected to plummet during 2021 appeared first on Thaiger News.

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[Dr.Sivada]

Wow, what a total surprise! How could I not have foreseen such tragic outcome, given the obscenely incompetent job against the outbreaks these corrupt Thai politicians are doing? 

[HappyExpat]

This just today from a member in Phuket Sandbox. With advertising like this, saying tourism will plummet doesn't come close:
 

[HolyCowCm]

Expected? 

[Graham]

Look, there's another number floating past, quick grab it and we can publish this tomorrow with some fanfare and photos. 555

 

[DrPhibes]

24 minutes ago, HappyExpat said:

This just today from a member in Phuket Sandbox. With advertising like this, saying tourism will plummet doesn't come close:
 

Agree!  While the Thai wife does not play golf, she calls it "the sand trap" right now.

[BookShe]

21 minutes ago, HappyExpat said:

This just today from a member in Phuket Sandbox. With advertising like this, saying tourism will plummet doesn't come close:
 

Well. I'm not a big fan of TAT for sure. Half of my comments in this forum are usually a mockery of TAT. However, the closure of Phuket has nothing to do with them. This guy got the 14 days sandbox vacation that he paid for. Period. What happens afterward is governed by Thai authorities and pretty much applied to all of us. Just because he is a sandboxer he thinks he deserves different rules? Half the country's travel plans are ruined, so stay in Phuket and enjoy your sandbox-holiday. :)

[EdwardV]

Blue zone? It’s like whistling past a grave with these guys. They just don’t get it. So now it’s like 500-700K. Two months ago it was 6M, then 3M two weeks ago and 1.5M last week. Personally I hope like heck this gets turned around, I miss Thailand. It’s just hard to imagine a scheme that’s going to save this year and generate a half million tourists by the end of the year. Hope I’m wrong. 

[Hamosity]

2 hours ago, BookShe said:

Well. I'm not a big fan of TAT for sure. Half of my comments in this forum are usually a mockery of TAT. However, the closure of Phuket has nothing to do with them. This guy got the 14 days sandbox vacation that he paid for. Period. What happens afterward is governed by Thai authorities and pretty much applied to all of us. Just because he is a sandboxer he thinks he deserves different rules? Half the country's travel plans are ruined, so stay in Phuket and enjoy your sandbox-holiday. :)

Well said. Entering via the PS-B doesn’t negate changing local circumstances. For all its shortcomings TAT doesn’t owe @HappyExpat anonymous poster anything. 

[Martin]

Yet again Thai officials' display their unique grasp of maths. 

40k foreign arrivals in the first half of the year. A time, when, at least for the first few months, covid was relatively controlled in Thailand. But still, only 40k arrived. 

Now into month 8 and covid is spreading everywhere, domestic transport shut down, businesses closed, health services collapsing and still lacking vaccines. 

But TAT expect foreign arrivals to pick up to 500-700k by year end - about 20 weeks away.  What are they smoking?

I suggest the main stumbling block to foreign arrivals is the ridiculous paperwork and payment upfront insisted upon. When they abandon the COE, the multiple tests, the prepaid hotels, the exhorbitant insurance and the tracking and reporting once you're in Thailand they may see an increase in foreign arrivals. 

And whats with all the colours? We have yellow, orange, red, dark red provinces. Now talk of trying to persuade other countries to class Phuket as a green zone, while in Phuket they speak of creating blue zones. Aarrgghh!!!

[Tim]

How hilarious and stupid is looking now the prediction made 2 months ago by the the Kasikorn Research Centre 

They predicted  "1.2 million from July 1 to the end of the year. The worst-case scenario… only 250,000 tourists arrive in the next 6 months."

https://thethaiger.com/news/phuket/best-case-for-phukets-sandbox-up-to-1-2-million-tourists-kasikorn-predicts

[NCC1701A]

gravity expected to be effect on planet Earth during 2021. 

[Poolie]

Oh stop it. Show me a country where tourism is up, for Satan's sake.

[Tim]

1 hour ago, Poolie said:

Oh stop it. Show me a country where tourism is up, for Satan's sake.

Last comment I had read from you on another thread, you were stating that foreign tourists are not trapped in the Phuket Sandbox and free to travel outside Phuket...

Now you obviously don't know that there are many countries open to tourism.

I will not expand here about how I feel about your knowledge as I want to follow the forum rules of being nice with other members. 

[JackIsAGoodBoy]

After months long research, I came to the same conclusion.

 

[Poolie]

1 hour ago, Tim said:

Last comment I had read from you on another thread, you were stating that foreign tourists are not trapped in the Phuket Sandbox and free to travel outside Phuket...

Now you obviously don't know that there are many countries open to tourism.

I will not expand here about how I feel about your knowledge as I want to follow the forum rules of being nice with other members. 

Its probably safer if you dont. When I said that tourists weren't stuck in Phuket, they weren't and I am aware that various countries are available for tourism, but thats not my question is it? My question, for those who didn't read it was 'where is tourism up?' ie Increased over, say, 2019?

[EdwardV]

1 hour ago, Poolie said:

My question, for those who didn't read it was 'where is tourism up?' ie Increased over, say, 2019?

Hawaii. Tourist numbers for June 2019 were 452,958, in June of 2021 they were 521,796. An increase of some 15%. In fact they have been above the 2019 number for the island of Maui for 3-4 months now. Keep in mind that’s pretty much without the Japanese market which pre Covid made up about a quarter of all tourism to the islands. That said it’s not a question designed to counter the original point. Tourist wise, which was the point of the scheme, Phuket sandbox has been a failure. You can argue other points to claim otherwise, but for numbers sake alone it’s a failure. 

[Stardust]

Really til now they needed it to know it. Wow. Dumb and dumber

[Stardust]

8 hours ago, Tim said:

How hilarious and stupid is looking now the prediction made 2 months ago by the the Kasikorn Research Centre 

They predicted  "1.2 million from July 1 to the end of the year. The worst-case scenario… only 250,000 tourists arrive in the next 6 months."

https://thethaiger.com/news/phuket/best-case-for-phukets-sandbox-up-to-1-2-million-tourists-kasikorn-predicts

Everybody said 2 month ago already what a joke. But now it is confirmed for everybody else to say it in a diplomatic way.

[Stardust]

7 hours ago, NCC1701A said:

gravity expected to be effect on planet Earth during 2021. 

Like the sun could be go down this evening.

[Stardust]

11 hours ago, HappyExpat said:

This just today from a member in Phuket Sandbox. With advertising like this, saying tourism will plummet doesn't come close:
 

It is like the taxi scam if you are inside there is no escape and any cost can happen

[vlad]

6 hours ago, Poolie said:

Oh stop it. Show me a country where tourism is up, for Satan's sake.

The Uk.

[brianandgrace]

Thailand has become a joke they impose next to impossible entry requirements a coe  with no quarantine that it will b approved or not it goes to show that Thais don't want outsiders in the country

[Pongo]

Will there be any admission by anyone that the Phuket Sandbox has been a failure, or will it be heralded as a success?.

If not, will the Samui and Chonburi etc sandbox still go ahead?.

It's a shame, because if nothing else it did offer hope to those in the related industries that things might begin to improve, and a lot of hopes were pinned on the Phuket example to run smoothly and perhaps open the doors for other areas.

Just goes to show that you can't trust the numbers.

[PhayakPeter]

Plummet from what,