Thai Tourists the Main Focus for Pattaya

[Dodger]

According to several recent news releases (as sketchy as they always are) Pattaya is going to try to attract Thai tourists during this high season - because the reopening of Pattaya to foreigners is being delayed.

According to the PattayaOne article below they plan to host firework displays, food festivals, etc., as a means of attracting Thai visitors. It doesn't sound like it's going to work to me...(there I go being pessimistic again). Maybe if they throw in a buffalo race and a couple of pie eating contests they may stand a chance. In any event, the reopening is being pushed to November or beyond for the logical reasons. I'm not even going to bother mentioning what those reasons are again. A nine year old would understand this.

Good luck to Pattaya. I wish the City the best in its endeavors. If they have a buffalo race I just may go myself.

https://pattayaone.news/thai-tourists-will-be-the-main-focus-for-pattaya/

[cdnmatt]

There's tons of Thai tourists who visit Pattaya. They don't hang out at the go-go bars, but they definitely go to Pattaya for holiday.

[Oliver2]

Interesting. You may be right but where do you think they stay? eat? shop? hang-out? do they go on the same tourist outings as foreign tourists? do they use the beaches ? Are they families? couples? singles?

I ask because your post surprises me Have you any idea where they may be when I'm in Pattaya?

[Old git]

The anti-farang Thais love to pretend that domestic tourism is far more important than foreign tourism. Someone recently trumpeted that 75% of tourism in Hua Hin is domestic..

..well, maybe - if you count the hi-so brigade from Bangkok who come down to their beach houses and condos each weekend - everything they need in the back of the car, so many don't even go shopping let alone patronise restaurants and bars.

The amount of spending per capita by domestic tourists is minuscule compared to overseas visitors - even foreign backpackers, who they sometimes call 'bird shit' tourists - spend far more than the domestic crowd.

[goji]

1 Replacing 39 million foreign tourists per annum with poorer locals just doesn't work. They can probably get a few local tourists if 1500 baht rooms are discounted down to 500 baht, but it doesn't pay the bills.

2 Considering the farang have to be vaccinated with a proper vaccine, tested before departure and then tested again shortly after arrival, I would have thought the local tourists would be a far higher risk.

[Dodger]

The amount of spending per capita by domestic tourists is minuscule compared to overseas visitors - even foreign backpackers, who they sometimes call 'bird shit' tourists - spend far more than the domestic crowd.

I'm with you.

We get those hi-so Bangkokians coming down to the shores in Bang Saray on the weekends, but, as you stated, most of them bring their own food and drink, and seem to be spending very little money in the town itself. They also seem to like the budget hotels where they can cram 3 families in one room. Some budget-conscious visitors actually prefer sleeping in the backs of their pickup trucks.

I honestly think that Pattaya has run out of ideas. They know they can't attract too many foreigners with these quarantines in place, and they're simply between a rock and a hard place. You can't blame them for trying.

[gerefan2]

Surely they are defeating the whole object?

The delay in allowing tested falang tourists who are CERTIFIED COVID FREE has been caused by the lack of vaccine so that the required 70% of locals have not been injected.

By encouraging Thai tourists, from all over, surely the required 70% is even further away?

Then when we eventually arrive we will be at further risk.

[Old git]

Surely they are defeating the whole object?

The delay in allowing tested falang tourists who are CERTIFIED COVID FREE has been caused by the lack of vaccine so that the required 70% of locals have not been injected.

By encouraging Thai tourists, from all over, surely the required 70% is even further away?

Then when we eventually arrive we will be at further risk.

That 70% figure.. hmm..

I suppose if you can convince the Thai public that 70% vaccination will make it safe to venture back into the sunlight, the inevitability that most will get an actual infection to some degree before the bug returns to the shadows is, perhaps, easier to handle.

And would the full reopening of tourism actually make that much difference? With Covid working its way through the population anyway, and most tourists 'post-Covid' either vaccinated or previously infected; and the great majority of those Thais they socialise with being of an age that rarely suffers bad outcomes from infection, is there really anything of substance to fear now?

[Brad the Impala]

We get those hi-so Bangkokians coming down to the shores in Bang Saray on the weekends, but, as you stated, most of them bring their own food and drink, and seem to be spending very little money in the town itself. They also seem to like the budget hotels where they can cram 3 families in one room

HISO is by definition about conspicuous consumption, so the idea of three HISO families crammed into one room in a budget hotel in Bang Saray for the weekend is hilarious! This might even be the format for a reality tv series along the lines of "I'm a Celebrity....Get Me Out of Here!"

[goji]

Surely they are defeating the whole object?

The delay in allowing tested falang tourists who are CERTIFIED COVID FREE has been caused by the lack of vaccine so that the required 70% of locals have not been injected.


A damn good point. Will the Thai tourists have to do a covid test before entering Pattaya ?

[Dodger]

It would sure be nice if Pattaya held off on announcing any more reopening date(s) until after 70% of the population has been vaccinated, versus continuing to announce artificial dates which does nothing but confuse the general public and tourists.

The 70% baseline was established by the CCSA and agreed upon by the government a year ago with no signs of changing. Due to insufficient supplies of vaccine Pattaya is nowhere close to hitting this target (data is all over the map).

The ball is still in the Governments court - and that's where it belongs.

If I was a tourist wanting to visit Thailand I would wait until it was substantiated that the 70% goal had been achieved before making any plans, regardless of what any of the local Thai newspapers were saying. That's all smoke & mirrors.

Pattaya is fully aware of the fact that Thai tourists don't spend anywhere close to what foreign tourists spend while on holiday, but something is better than nothing.

Local residents,Thai and farang, (including myself) are concerned about unvaccinated Thais, especially from Bangkok, coming to party in our towns. Places where they go will be avoided by many as a result.

[Old git]

Local residents,Thai and farang, (including myself) are concerned about unvaccinated Thais, especially from Bangkok, coming to party in our towns. Places where they go will be avoided by many as a result.

The widely held assumption that vaccinated people are less of a risk does not hold up well to scrutiny. Vaccinated people are catching Delta somewhat less easily than the unvaccinated, but it is still working its way through their numbers.

A vaccinated person is far more likely to be unaware of being infected however, far more likely to go out and party, spreading the bug unwittingly, than one who has not been jabbed, who is much more likely to take to their bed and stay there.

It's a bit counter-intuitive. Vaccination is great for the individual as a means of reducing impact, but the wider social impact may actually be a negative one.

[Dodger]

The widely held assumption that vaccinated people are less of a risk does not hold up well to scrutiny. Vaccinated people are catching Delta somewhat less easily than the unvaccinated, but it is still working its way through their numbers..

It's well-established that vaccinated people are less likely to get the virus than unvaccinated people, and experience much milder side-effects in the event they do. Thus the reason every country on earth is racing to get as many people vaccinated as possible.

Having a population that's mostly vaccinated doesn't prevent a person from getting the virus, I don't think anyone would debate that fact, but the risk of hospitals being overwhelmed with covid patients resulting from a super-spreader are much less in an environment where the majority of people are vaccinated, for the mere fact that the symptoms are so much milder.

When the hospitals are overwhelmed (over capacity) - then everyone's at risk. This has already happened once in Thailand caused by the rapid spread of the highly contagious Delta Variant and I don't think anyone wants to see a rerun.

[goji]

The probability of catching severe covid is reduced by over 90% with a proper vaccine.
The probability of catching mild or asymptomatic covid is reduced by less. Some studies quote figures in the 67~88% range (delta).

The effect of the vaccines on transmission are difficult to measure. So of course, it's not well understood.


However, some things are easy to understand:
1 Foreign tourists usually have had 2 doses of a non-Chinese vaccine that works
2 They have to pass a PCR test before departing
3 They have to take further PCR tests on arrival
4 The screened foreign tourist is lower risk than the unscreened local tourist.

Unless, of course, they apply the same rules to the local tourists. Somehow I think that won't happen, as it would kill off any local tourist trade as well.

I'm not sure what the Thai government are thinking. Keeping the borders shut makes sense if a country is free from covid, as at times in 2020. As covid is now endemic in the country, policy needs to be adjusted to reflect the new reality.

[Old git]

It's well-established that vaccinated people are less likely to get the virus than unvaccinated people, and experience much milder side-effects in the event they do. Thus the reason every country on earth is racing to get as many people vaccinated as possible.

The wider benefits of vaccination, such as protecting health services from overload, are undeniable, but at an individual level, are you safer partying with a crowd of vaccinated people or unvaccinated? Because the vaccinated are far more likely to be asymptomatically infected - but still infectious - you are probably better off with the un-jabbed..

[goji]

Because the vaccinated are far more likely to be asymptomatically infected - but still infectious - you are probably better off with the un-jabbed..
What is your source of data for this ?

[Old git]

What is your source of data for this ?

A combination of what has been reported in national media and backed up by correspondence with friends and family.

A lot of vaccinated people get very slight symptoms, notably fatigue, that they do not immediately recognise as illness.

[Oliver2]

Fatigue? I've obviously been suffering from Covid for a number of years. I thought it was down to ageing.

[Manforallseasons]

Thousands of Thais visit Pattaya & Koh Larn:

https://thepattayanews.com/2021/09/25/thousands-of-domestic-tourists-visit-koh-larn-and-pattaya-over-3-day-long-weekend/

[latintopxxx]

old got...u r a total idiot

[goji]

A combination of what has been reported in national media and backed up by correspondence with friends and family.

I haven't seen any such reports in the media. Here is some data from the UK ONS showing the reduction in odds of getting covid after vaccination. At least half, often a lot more.
The reduction in severe illness is much more, over 90% (as is widely reported elsewhere).

I've included a second graph which shows the people who don't wear masks are about 1.6 times as likely to get covid as those who wear masks. Do bear in mind that the average Brit will wear a poor quality decorative face mask, prioritizing style over substance and it still gives a useful improvement. More can be achieved with an FFP2 or FFP3 mask.

[latintopxxx]

its like we are all going mad having to justify vaccines and their efficacy....I blame fast food and rap music....its rotted the brains of some...