After the lockdown ?

[Finnseventy]

According to the Bangkok
Post the Chinese are eager to return to Thailand as travel restrictions begin to ease. The weak Thai baht is an added incentive.

[Gaybutton]

You just ruined my whole day . . .

[Dodger]

"Would you travel to Thailand"? is a meaningless question.

"Are you planning to travel to Thailand in 2020"? would have had some substance to it.

This ad in BP is just TaT propaganda.

[Gaybutton]

This ad in BP is just TaT propaganda.

The part that is least believable to me is the part where traveling independently vastly outweighs traveling in groups. From what I've seen, it's the other way around. Who do they think occupies all those tour buses, people traveling independently? There may be a few, but most Chinese I've seen in Pattaya won't go 5 feet if they're not in a group.

Another unbelievable part is where Pattaya ranks on their destination list. Again, from what I've observed, Pattaya is in second place - maybe even first place.

Make of that chart what you will. We will see. Personally I'm considering it - for what it is worth . . .

[Undaunted]

Thai hotels ready to welcome back Chinese tourists:

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/19 ... ck-chinese

[Jun]

Another unbelievable part is where Pattaya ranks on their destination list. Again, from what I've observed, Pattaya is in second place - maybe even first place.

Considering the reputation of Pattaya, we can assume some would take a discrete approach & be reluctant to declare their intention to visit the place.
Also, I did notice quite a lot of Chinese tourists in Chiang Mai, but a lot seemed to be independent of tour groups.


Also, faced with the collapse of the tourist industry, the path of least resistance is for the Thai government to choose to believe the Chinese data on infection rates.
So I predict China will be one of the first countries they allow tourists in from. Although, Taiwan should be first on the list, for genuinely good performance achieved by it's vastly superior political system.

This also needs some reciprocal action in Beijing, as Chinese citizens returning home currently need 14 day quarantine, which would dampen tourist demand somewhat.
So when the Chinese also choose to believe Thai stats and exempt Thailand from the 14 day quarantine, the tourism industry will be up and running.

[Gaybutton]

Considering the reputation of Pattaya, we can assume some would take a discrete approach & be reluctant to declare their intention to visit the place.

Are you joking? Considering the numbers of Chinese tourists that go to Pattaya, along with the number of businesses, hotels, tour bus companies, and attractions that cater specifically to them, along with restaurants that not only cater to them, but won't even let anyone eat there unless they're Chinese and arrived on a tour bus, how on earth do you come up with that kind of assumption?

In any case, if it turns out that somehow you are right, the longer it takes for them to return in previous numbers, the better I'll like it.

[Dodger]

Honestly, I see these silly charts and cartoons illustrations in the news media as nothing more than an attempt by TaT to get people (Thais, Chinese, Farang, Whoever) to start thinking about taking holidays again. No factual content whatsoever. The chart showing the percentage of Chinese preferring to travel alone versus in groups is beyond laughable. This is just one example of TaT's attempts to use "false perceptions" as bait for the ignorant.

In reality, taking a holiday to an international destination is the last thing on most peoples minds right now. When the COVID-19 restrictions start to lift and people start crawling out of self-imprisonment, all they'll be thinking about is how nice it will be to walk freely around their neighborhoods...stop in at the local restaurant...do a bit of shopping...or chat with a friend they haven't seen in a while. Spending money they don't have to risk traveling to a foreign land where the Corona Monster may or may not still be lurking will be the last thing on the majority of peoples minds.

This pandemic is a Traumatic Event, and trauma creates shock. When people walk away from a traumatic event they typically want to stay as close to home as possible, stay as far away from the source that caused the shock as possible...and tend to gain a deeper appreciation for the simpler (and safer) things in life. This is just human nature. The Chinese people are no different. They've been through a lot and will be left traumatized by this event the same as everyone else. The middle-class Chinese, which represents the majority of tourists to Thailand, are going broke and will be focusing on just surviving this year, and possibly several more years to come.

Maybe...just maybe, one day the powers-to-be will come to realize that TaT is a totally "Non-Value-Added" function in the government, and should be restructured as an administrative function, versus having the role as the "Promoter of Tourism". It was TaT who first launched the brilliant idea to transform the image of Thailand from the "Adult Entertainment Capitol of the World" which created billions of baht in revenue each year - to a family-oriented playground for children, which did nothing but screw up the farang tourist-base resulting in the loss of billions of baht. Now that TaT''s "Let''s Transform Thailand Plan" failed to achieve its objectives, they continue to flounder by promoting ill-conceived initiatives with skewed advertising campaigns which consistently fail.

If COVID-19 has done one good thing, it's the fact that it has wiped the tourist slate clean, and will force Thailand to decide what's more important: A) Allowing TaT to continue making cartoons of family parks and swing sets, or B) Taking TaT's crayons away from them and get back to the basics that created all the wealth in the first place.

I'm betting on "B"...not a lot...just a modest bet.