Q3 tourism hopes fade as US advises citizens not to travel to Thailand

[Shark]

39 minutes ago, Shark said:

Europeans

Americans, I meant that Europeans where coming more.

[Benroon]

1 hour ago, Poolie said:

Ah, those hoops. How I've missed them since I came over from TV. Like brown envelopes. Nostalgia ain't what it used to be.........

Don't forget the 96.7% of thai GDP that expats contribute apparently ...

[Poolie]

5 minutes ago, Benroon said:

Don't forget the 96.7% of thai GDP that expats contribute apparently ...

Oh yes, how remiss of me.

How did Thailand ever survive?

[PapayaBokBok]

17 hours ago, Benroon said:

I was thinking the same - isn't it a hideous 24 hours(ish) of flying to get to Thailand ffrom the US - stuff that, I wouldn't even consider it when you've got Hawaii on your doorstep !

As a Yank Ive been going to LOS yearly since 2008--staying for around 4 months min to get my moneys worth to counter the costs and long haul across to the world...Yep the flight is a bummer but do my best to get thru it by flying from east coast-DC to LAX..hopefully direct or with a quick layover...usually about 6 airports I go thru for a cheap tix as Ive paid about $600 one way..DC-Denver-Lax-Taipae-BKK-CM(ugh). carry on only..

I book a red eye from LAX--usually EVA Air..1:20am so Im kind of sleepy..then they feed you a hot meal on flight and open bar(wine)..then add my sleep mask and ear plugs and some advil PMs..and Im solid....

And going west I dont really get jet lag and wake up in taiwan for a few hrs to stretch my legs for Bkk trip

Hawaii is $$$$ AF......but then im an expat not a tourist..is why i stay in LOS as its cheaper than USA...

[JamesR]

18 hours ago, 9S_ said:

Nonsense girls always smile at me and invite me for a massage! When I go out to drink they always want to sit next to me and talk to me!

Really?

I thought that was only me and I was really special?

So I take it when they say, "You buy me drink" and then later on they say, "I go with you", the money they ask for is not just to pay for the expensive taxi fare for two? 

[JamesR]

13 hours ago, ThaiFoodGuy said:

My wife and I have been planning and pushing back our next trip since March 2020, and were scheduled to use the Sandbox to arrive in October, but we're moving the trip again to April 2022. We're both vaccinated and we're not really worried about the "cases" in Thailand, but we're concerned about concerning others around us - we don't want to travel as the scary enemies putting everyone at risk, or at least the perception of that. And as many, many others have said - everything is closed, and we're avid consumers of wine and/or beer with our food, two major factors which we know will affect the outcome of spending thousands of dollars, flying nearly 28 hours, having devices shoved up our nostrils, and potentially risking it all to be forced into ASQ if someone near us tests positive.

The juice isn't worth the squeeze.

I agree to what you said, my flight from London is only 12 hrs, but the risk of what you said is too high, I should have been in Phuket this year but keep on pushing it back.

[Cathat]

20 hours ago, 9S_ said:

Do Americans even vacation in Thailand en masse? There are no direct flights to Thailand from the US not to mention flights are kinda expensive coupled with either job losses or high debt. 
 

Not to mention there are cheaper alternatives such as the Caribbean, Hawaii and the Philippines 

I just don’t think Thailand is high on a vacation list for a lot of Americans. So that CDC warning is moot to begin with 

Not sure I would call the Carribbean or Hawaii cheap destinations compared to Thailand.Cheap to travel to from continental USA  but the major tourist area's are not cheap places to stay.

The Philippine Islands certainly are though.

I have met quite a few US tourists and retirees when ever I have been there.

Seems very popular with retired US military personnel.

[ThaiFoodGuy]

1 hour ago, JamesR said:

I should have been in Phuket this year but keep on pushing it back.

I'm usually in Thailand twice a year, spend a good amount of time in Rawai each time. As much shit talking as I'm seeing about Phuket on the forum lately - I wonder if many of these people have really been to Phuket, rather than having visited Patong.

I'm not sure you meant the same thing I felt when I read your comment, but the way I'm feeling at the moment is that I should have been in Phuket this year.

[JamesR]

19 minutes ago, ThaiFoodGuy said:

I'm usually in Thailand twice a year, spend a good amount of time in Rawai each time. As much shit talking as I'm seeing about Phuket on the forum lately - I wonder if many of these people have really been to Phuket, rather than having visited Patong.

I'm not sure you meant the same thing I felt when I read your comment, but the way I'm feeling at the moment is that I should have been in Phuket this year.

Me too, I had planned to be in Phuket this year and be there now but it is too much of a risk as the lockdowns might get worse there so there is no point going.

Rawai beach, at the end of the beach, there is a dirt road parallel to the sea where the fishermen wives sell fresh crab, fish, prawn etc, you buy by the kilo and then walk a few yards across the road and have in cooked as you sit drinking a beer at one of the many restaurants. They charge by the kilos for cooking. 

Phuket is a great place as you can stay in a very quiet area or go to the busier areas, the choice is up to each individual but at least there is a choice.

A friend of mine stays during the winter in a house in a village near Ayuthia, it has a shack called a restaurant and another shack which sells beer, the highlight of the day is going to the beer shack and drinking bottles of beer.

Three days there is enough but only if you have your own car to escape in in order to drive to other places. 

I think a lot of expats complaining about Phuket have not been in decades and have not seen the changes going on, plus I think a lot of them live in small villages in some remote places and are thus bored to death and need something to moan about. 

[King Cotton]

On 8/11/2021 at 11:05 AM, Nivram said:

I agree, with a big rise in cases again in the USA, there are too many pretrip expenses one has to go through as well all the dark red provinces that restrict movement in Thailand as well as Thailand's high infection rate of the Delta Variant.

You can be fully vaccinated and still get infected in Thailand.

Yes, that recent case surge in the States is a worry. And thanks for this, your debut post . . . the first of many, I hope!

Hello, Nivram and welcome to Thaiger Talk

Please feel free to tell us a bit about yourself in 'Introductions'. It's good to pick-up on those sometimes differing regional or geographical perspectives.

And check-out the Guidelines, too, when you get a free minute. They're there to help us all enjoy our time here.

Happy posting

King Cotton