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The entry ban for Thailand is expected to expire on July 1 and commercial international flights will be allowed to land in Bangkok again. Does that mean that we can all travel en masse to Thailand again? No Unfortunately not. Although the government hardly commented on the start-up of international tourism, a number of things are becoming clearer

Anyone who reads between the lines can only draw one conclusion: Thailand is not going to hurry with the start of international tourism. It even seems, in my opinion, that the government wants to get rid of mass tourism in its old form. Thailand wants to position itself, especially until there is a vaccine, as a safe country without corona infections and will focus more on quality tourists.

Furthermore, the government mainly focuses on domestic tourism. Every year, 12 million Thai people travel abroad, half of which are stimulated by special promotions to go on holiday in their own country. The TAT has formulated a strategy to support domestic tourism first and learn from the experiences. Thai holidaymakers are reminded that their own country is safer than abroad because there are hardly any infections in Thailand.

International tourists

The plan that the TAT has drawn up for the restart of international tourism contains a number of interesting things:

  • International tourists coming to Thailand are not allowed to travel from or live in areas/countries where there are corona infections.
  • They must not have had contact with suspected or actual infected persons.
  • A health declaration must be submitted upon entry.
  • Once they arrive in Thailand, tourists are given a mandatory COVID-19 rapid test.
  • They must then leave for a closed area without stopping along the way.
  • During their stay in Thailand, tourists must install a tracking application on their smartphone and use it.

Furthermore, the TAT has established a protocol called: BEST (the new tourism under public health supervision). Whoever reads this may come to the conclusion that only organized package and group travel to Thailand will soon be possible. On spec to Thailand with only a plane ticket could encounter problems, but it is not clear to me how strictly this will be applied.

In the coming weeks, in the run-up to July 1, more will undoubtedly become clear about the possibility for Belgians and Dutch people to travel to Thailand again and what obligations will apply. The editors of Thailandblog will of course keep you informed.

Nb: There are readers who claim to know exactly when and how to travel to Thailand again (something that seems rather unlikely to us). Such reactions must therefore also be provided with a source reference, so that everyone can check this information.

Sources: TAT news and Bangkok Post

About this blogger

Editorial office
Editorial office
Known as Khun Peter (62), lives alternately in Apeldoorn and Pattaya. In a relationship with Kanchana for 14 years. Not yet retired, have my own company, something with insurance. Crazy about animals, especially dogs and music.
Enough hobbies, but unfortunately little time: writing for Thailandblog, fitness, health and nutrition, shooting sports, chatting with friends and some other oddities.

65 responses to “'No major international tourist flow in Thailand if entry ban expires on July 1'”

  1. geert says up

    If TAT's plan becomes reality, it will be over and out for most Europeans.
    I've written it before, the current government wants to get rid of the Westerners.
    Hopefully it will stay with a plan and will not or only partially go ahead.
    But what about all the expats who live here and still want to return to Europe regularly?

    Goodbye,

    • Nico van Kraburi says up

      A good question is how people in possession of an annual visa will be dealt with.
      in october i am going to apply for a new visa again for one year if it is new or extended
      visa is issued again I know the answer. Am now in Thailand, it is not yet known when Thai Airways will fly again to Brussels and back. Will have to do with permission from the competent authorities both in Europe and Thailand according to reports in several newspapers.

      Goodbye,

      Nico

      • Fernand Van Tricht says up

        I also have an annual visa..expires Jan 1st...have my address in Thailand.Go to Belgium on July 3rd with Thaiair.My return ticket is on Aug 18th.Can I still enter Thailand?

        • Cornelis says up

          The question is rather whether you can fly on July 3. It seems to me that THAI will not fly on this route yet.

          • Louvada says up

            Well Thai Air Brussels, after waiting a long time for an answer via email, they asked for understanding because they also work from home, they suggested that I fly to Brussels on July 03. However, I have answered them that I will wait a bit longer, since there is still no clarity in fact and the Thai Government can always change any directive. I usually stay in Belgium for about a month, but I want to be sure not to end up in quarantine when I return. They did inform me that my return ticket is valid until December 31.

        • RonnyLatYa says up

          Don't worry... You won't leave anyway. Don't worry about getting in either.

      • RonnyLatYa says up

        If you are in Thailand you will just get your year extension like other years. That has never been a problem.

        You must be in Thailand. If you are not in Thailand, your annual extension will expire and you will have to start again with a Non-immigrant O or OA visa.

    • Mike A says up

      I often read that kind of feeling here, usually there is great confusion among the person concerned about the visa situation, which is actually very simple. Do you have 800k baht in the bank? Are you welcome to stay in thailand forever. Why do they want to get rid of Westerners?

      Don't forget the Thailand elite that gives you 20 years of access for 1MB.

      It goes without saying that you have to watch out for the time being to visit your family in Europe and to come back after 2 weeks. That is also not possible right now. So don't be so paranoid please

    • janbeute says up

      I think it will not only be over and out for European and American tourists, but especially for the entire Thai tourist industry.
      I think that in countries such as Indonesia and Vietnam, the corks of the Champagne bottles pop with the tourist industry present there.
      How stupid can you be Thai government.

      Jan Beute.

      • chris says up

        Dear Jan,
        1. Thailand's tourist image is still very strong and much stronger than that of neighboring countries and Indonesia. Thailand is called the “Asia for beginners”.
        2.Tourism Thailand has become much more dependent (in number of visitors and money) in the past 10 years on Asian countries such as China, Japan, Korea, Russia (if you can call it Asian) and India. Tourists from Europe and the USA have really become peanuts. This was already the case before the corona crisis.
        3. It is not at all strange that when a country starts up after Corona, the neighboring countries are the first to take tourism. Look what is happening in Europe with Spain and France. They are not waiting for the Japanese and Thais, but for the Italians, Portuguese, Germans and Dutch.

        • Ger Korat says up

          As far as point 2 is concerned, I think you are exaggerating a lot when it comes to “peanuts. If I look at the year 2019, the US, UK, Germany, Australia, France, Sweden, Canada, Italy, the Netherlands and Switzerland together already had 5,8 million visitors out of a total of 39,8 million. That is 15% of the total.
          If you leave out Thailand's neighboring countries (Laos 1,8 million, Malaysia 4,2 million, Cambodia 0.9 million and Myanmar 0,4 million), the share of these Western countries is even 18%. As everyone will understand, the neighboring countries are not tourists in the sense of real tourists, but workers and day trippers and shoppers. Think of the latter as Laos, a poverty-stricken country with a population of 7,3 million people where people go shopping in Thailand because which is cheaper than in Laos.

          Compare that with Japan (only 4 to 5 hours flight time): 1,8 million, or Russia 1,5 million or India 2,0 million. Even these 3 combined (5,3 million) have fewer visitors than the Western countries mentioned (5,8 million).

          And if you take into account that all these Western countries are far away (still at least 12 hours flying time from Europe to 18 hours from the US, Australia and Canada) I think this is quite something compared to the 2 to 5 hours flying time within Asia . So you can also take into account that if one can buy expensive tickets in the West, because Thailand is a far-away destination, one is still well off and contributes best to Thailand's tourism and economy.

          source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Thailand

  2. Ferdinand says up

    I have a Thai girlfriend who was supposed to come to NL on March 25, but the trip has been postponed due to the corona. We hope that she can travel again in July and then come to NL. Then we would go back to Thailand together after the 90 days that she has been here, because I stay with her in Thailand for 5 to 6 months in the winter and have my year extension that is valid until December 29, 2020.
    I have no qualms about having to self-isolate at her house for 2 weeks in October, because that's where I have everything I need.
    I look forward to reopening the borders between Europe and Thailand.
    The virus will throw a spanner in the works for quite some time as long as there is no vaccine, and after that the world will suffer economically for years to come.

  3. Bert says up

    I think that app on the phone is a great idea, if you also get rid of all those notifications.
    I also wonder how things will go in the future with all (married) couples, of which I am one myself. Now I stay 8 months a year with my Thai wife.

    • Thailand will of course not be locked, so entering will really be possible. However, rules will apply. Just wait and see, it will become clear this month.

  4. Hans van Mourik says up

    Both my girlfriend's son and I follow it intensively, my girlfriend and son only according to the news and the Thise website.
    My girlfriend does not expect everything to be back to normal next year, as long as there is no vaccine.
    She is already very happy that I stayed here this year, she also said that she is afraid if I go to the Netherlands next year, that she will not see me again for the time being.
    I have only said, for me it is also waiting and says nothing, as long as I do not read something in black and white.
    Did say as far as I know, that quarentenne is still mandatory and insurance (she also read that) I will not go to the Netherlands next year, or something bad has to happen to my children or grandchildren, then I will go .
    She also knows that in 2 years I will in any case not go to Bronbeek before I am 80, to go to the Netherlands, to arrange things with Bronbeek, that has already been agreed 20 years ago that I will not stay here, I always like it when people know where they stand, like it or not like it.
    Hans van Mourik

  5. John A says up

    Thanks for the message meaningful and clear. To the point.
    Those who claim to know how the Thai authorities will plan further land of fables
    Is a fantasist after all June 15th there will be a sequel
    Now don't try to come up with fabrications you will only confuse other travelers

  6. Ger Korat says up

    If you read the story in the “Bookings” section, it is clear that this is meant for the group tours. And that people even want to know the expenses. Spontaneous shopping or going out in the evening is no longer an option for the group, I understand, and it seems as if this has been set up for Chinese groups with purchases in fixed stores, mandatory spending of money in the appropriate restaurants and evening shops. Think that most other Asian tourists who are individualistic (than Europeans) certainly do not choose Thailand; I am thinking here of Japan, South Korea, Singapore, India and a series of other Asian countries. In fact, only China remains.

  7. Jack S says up

    I'm honestly happy with the direction Thailand is trying to go. As a representative of a country you would be embarrassed because the vast majority of tourists come to your country because of sex and sin and actually have no interest in the country beyond that. Thai food? Bah, what a mess. And the Thais? All stupid people. But the females are so willing.
    Corona was a good way to make a little reset. I am happy if mass tourism stays away. It destroys more than you love.
    I used to hate “going on vacation” and still do. A large group of holidaymakers should stay at home, because they simply cannot behave in the host country. And if you already live in Thailand and have a household there, then it will not be such a big deal to stay at home “in quarantine” for two weeks, and then be able to live normally again.

    • Ger Korat says up

      If mass tourism stays away, where will people earn their income? Tourism is the largest industry worldwide. Now that you have settled in Thailand yourself, you criticize the person who allowed you to earn your living as a steward in an airplane and now enjoy your pension, this seems to me to be a Thai way of reasoning. Unemployment rate in Thailand is now 37% according to the official counts (14 million unemployed) and where any sensible government wants to do everything it can to get the economy going again and get people to work you suggest becoming the biggest “employer” but to tell them that they are no longer welcome.

      • Chris says up

        In the whole discussion about tourism that I see passing by here, I actually miss the most important point and that is the spending per man / per day. That is what economics is all about, and nothing else. And no matter how you look at it, the Europeans are not in the top 10. Now spare me the reactions that are personal and that will include the standard that the Chinese do not spend anything in the bars and only buy a bottle of water in the 711. Statistical data do not lie.

        • Ger Korat says up

          Of the claim that the Europeans are not in the top 10: please provide a study or source. And then an independent source or research and not a fine writing by a civil servant.
          I say with these kinds of claims: not true, because it has not been proven. The same can be said by anyone that the Europeans are the largest publishers in Thailand. Without substantiation it is not done to shout something. (I'm starting to look a lot like Rob V., the source specialist, just kidding)

    • Co says up

      What worries me is that when I want to go to the Netherlands now, I no longer know whether I can enter Thailand in the short term or maybe not at all and because I have nothing left in the Netherlands, then I am the Sjaak.

    • janbeute says up

      And what do we do with all those people? and there are a large number of them who are directly and indirectly dependent on the sex and sin industry.

      Jan Beute.

      • chris says up

        Dear Jan,
        The Ministries of Health and Tourism in Thailand have been discussing for weeks now how the rules can be defined and made clear if you want to date, kiss and make love at a distance of 1,5 meters. They are negotiating with Durex about 1,5 meter long condoms. As long as they are not yet on the market (and that can take another 1,5 years), sex between foreigners and Thai citizens is not an issue because it endangers public health. Prayut does not realize that having sex every day is good for people.
        A special agency for temporary marriages (while the holiday lasts) is also envisaged to deal with this problem.

    • Jos says up

      Sjaak S I think you live in Thailand. No problem, me too for 15 years. I have been happily married to a Thai for 40 years now, but I don't understand what you have against mass tourism and what you mean by normal life. For me, that regularly includes sex with a barmaid. My wife thinks that, as long as she doesn't see it, it's normal. Those girls do it to survive and there is nothing wrong with that, she says. I don't know how you met your wife, but I got her from a bar. And as for the food, I eat Thai but when my wife cooks it is always European. She likes it much better.

  8. Renee Martin says up

    I do not interpret the TAT brochure as striving for more group travel, but that they want to know exactly where you are going and what you are going to do. So you can travel individually, but they want total control. Subsequently, the expenses that the brochure talks about are directly related to the trip and I assume that you are not supposed to indicate in advance exactly what you are going to spend on other things.

  9. Jackie vanitterbeek says up

    Just got the notification that Thai airways will start flying first from 17th July from Belgium to Thailand and my ticket is from 12th July so I'm out of luck and chances are if you can leave after 17th you will have to quarantine so will I have to wait until sorry New Year, I feel bad no vacation now

    • Wim says up

      There are even more countries, or holiday in your own country, you also help the entrepreneurs, so you can go on holiday.

    • January says up

      Apparently you have not read this message from Thaiairways ( Belgium ).

      In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, THAI would like to inform its passengers that it will temporarily cancel flights on the Brussels-Bangkok route from July 3 to July 31, 2020.

      The first flight Bangkok-Brussels-Bangkok (TG934 / TG935) is scheduled to start on August 2, 2020 and 3 flights per week (operating on Tuesday, Friday, Sunday) will remain scheduled until October 25, 2020.

      THAI makes a rebooking of your canceled flights and extending the validity of your ticket until December 31, 2021, however, for the rebooking, extending the validity or requesting a refund of your tickets, please:

      – Please contact your travel agent if the original booking on THAI was purchased through a travel agency.

      – Contact the THAI office of the departure of your ticket, if you booked directly on the THAI website

      All info and contact details of all THAI offices can be found via https://www.thaiairways.com/en_BE/contact_us/thai_special_assistance_form.page

      We apologize for the inconveniences caused.

      Show original
      Rate this translation
      Thailand Airways's photo.

  10. Edward says up

    Our tickets for July 24, 2020
    Have been cancelled.
    Thai airways informed us yesterday by email
    For the time being, they give up August 1, 2020 to organize flights from Brussels to Bangkok again.
    Wait.

  11. Hans says up

    Well then we can all stay home and they turn their necks.

  12. Leo Fox says up

    I have been stuck in the Netherlands for 3 months now and would like to go home (Cha am) and I called the Thai embassy in The Hague yesterday. There was a video on YouTube of an Australian who neatly explained what all the rules are for covid-19 in Thailand. It was also explained that if you have a Thai family, you would be eligible for family reunification. That is fake news according to the embassy, ​​they had never heard of it.

    All I can do is wait for the official news from the government and then plan my return.

    • Rob V says up

      Thailand and human rights is not a happy combination. The chance that the government will do something special for non-Thai is nil (zero?). Good of you to check with the authorities to confirm that barstool rumors about special arrangements for non-Thai return are utter nonsense. Therefore always: source reference. Wish people in this situation a speedy reunion with their families. Greetings and love.

  13. peter hermes says up

    reading this doesn't make me happy i can forget thailand this year write my planned wedding on my stomach but well i'm not the only one.
    they don't want anyone from countries where corona reigns or has reigned well then there is little left for Europe which country has no corona.
    I just don't understand why major airlines are all going to fly to Thailand again, take Lufthansa for example, which will fly again from July.
    I booked a flight with Lufthansa to Bangkok on July 4, I can see that almost all those flights are full, what are they going to do with all those people who are going to arrive.
    hold at the airport ???? then the airport is so full that can never go well I just don't get it they allow flights again but not the passengers I can't rhyme that who has an answer to this
    greetings peter

    • Ubon thai says up

      Because the entry ban is still valid until June 30, the airlines have planned to fly from July 1. If the Thai government comes with provisions that people from Europe are not yet welcome in Thailand after June 30, all flights will still be cancelled. Thousands of tourists getting stuck at the airport is not going to happen.

    • chris says up

      The conditions under which foreign tourists may visit Thailand after July 1 are not yet known. So it remains to be seen what those will be. It is then up to the tourist to ask himself whether he/she wants to meet those conditions.
      I understand that the airline will simply schedule the flights after July 1. You can always cancel.

  14. Erik says up

    In that beautiful coloring page of the TAT I miss the guarantee for health insurance. Would that be gone or should we add that?

    • It is mentioned in the original article, but is a bit unclear: https://www.tatnews.org/2020/06/tat-unveils-three-part-strategy-for-new-normal-tourism-recovery/

  15. Juon says up

    Hoi
    I have thai girlfriend has been living with me for 7 years.
    We want to go to her family for 25 weeks on July 5, we also have a daughter together, so there are 3 of us.
    Would that be okay then.

    Kind regards, juon

    • chris says up

      Moderator: Please link to a source that says THAI will not fly until August 1.

      • RonnyLatYa says up

        Here it is already.
        At least until the end of July. They will resume flights to Brussels on August 2. At least that's the plan now.

        https://www.aviation24.be/airlines/thai-airways/extends-flight-cancellations-between-brussels-and-bangkok-until-end-of-july/

        • Okay, strange that THAI don't mention that on their own website…

          • chris says up

            They do and do here:
            https://www.thaiairways.com/sites/en_GB/news/news_announcement/news_detail/covid_19.page

            • Yes, but I meant the corporate website.

              • Ger Korat says up

                They are not allowed to mention fake news on their site, the stock market authorities, especially in the US, are quite strict about this and in view of the suspension of payments they have, you may wonder to what extent they will still fly. Also consider the claims culture in the US where Thai cannot invoke force majeure because they already know that Thai Airways is doing badly and then to announce that they are going to fly while there is no prospect of operational activities is then asking for claims in the US or elsewhere. Because I have not yet seen any communication about support from the Thai government or a solution to Thai Airways' financial problems that they had been in for years before the corona crisis, while many other airlines are now supported with billions of USD and Euros to get through the corona crisis. to come.

            • RonnyLatYa says up

              This website is actually only intended for the UK. see the /en_GB/ in the link.

              For example, you have the same for Sweden and there you can read that the flights will not continue until October 24 between Bangkok and Stockholm.
              https://www.thaiairways.com/sites/en_SE/news/news_announcement/news_detail/cancelledflights_corona.page

              To find local websites, simply click on the flag in the top right corner and then click on the country flag.

              As I said below, the Belgian link does not (yet) contain any information about flight cancellations until July 31. Belgian flag then click on it.

          • RonnyLatYa says up

            Yes it is indeed strange. Maybe because of the WE (should have no influence of course)
            I found out rather by chance as a friend informed me on Friday that their flight had been canceled in July and they had been rescheduled for August 2nd.
            I also read it somewhere afterwards, I thought FB, as it is stated in a comment above (response from Jan says on June 6, 2020 at 15:36 PM)
            However, I can no longer find the original anywhere.

            • RonnyLatYa says up

              Is something on the local Thai Airways website of the UK, but not (yet) on the Belgian Thai Airways website.
              However, the text speaks of "international operations" and I suspect a standard text that applies to all their international flights.

              https://www.thaiairways.com/en_GB/news/news_announcement/news_detail/covid_19.page

        • pratana says up

          Well, I am actually one of the “lucky ones” by accident. On March 26, TA asked me by email to rebook my trip from 1/8 to 2/8 (departure Brussels) and immediately agreed.
          But now that I read everywhere that we as tourists almost fall by the wayside because they want to fly in corona-free countries first, so be it, I also have a question here, ask my wife and daughter to take a Thai passport, is that possible?
          @SJAK S:
          I find your reaction very offensive to all the Dutch and Belgians who have their family in Thailand, of whom I have been married for 20 years and the family is also part of our existence and we work hard to be able to visit once a year!
          how you view the entertainment sector is very disappointing question is around all those people who are in traffic jams to get a food package because the money flow has been stopped by covid-19 and how are they supposed to continue to support their families if they already receive state aid???
          that had to come out

          • Nico says up

            I don't think Sjaak S said anything about the entertainment sector. About the sex and sin industry. I agree with him. It's good that Corona is going through it quite a bit.
            The fact that Thailand, in terms of image and in the perception of many, has to do with sex and sin (see also Jos's reaction at 04.16:XNUMX am) is a thorn in the side of many Thais. Corona now makes it possible and necessary to go unseen to other ways of bending national economies. This does not only apply to Thailand, the Netherlands cannot escape it either. Thai are much more creative and inventive than many people think. Mainly because they are less dependent on state aid. It is precisely because of this that they find solutions again. Corona has kept much less house in Thailand and will also prove beneficial in other areas.

  16. Guy says up

    Touristic travel and travel under the heading of "family" are of course not the same.

    Married people always have a different international status than tourists.
    I think that Thailand has also signed and thus accepted certain international agreements regarding marriage – family and everything related to it.

    Visiting your marriage partner and family, staying as a married couple, with or without children, in the country where one of the partners was born will therefore certainly not be completely blocked,

    A legal regulation will therefore probably be developed to distinguish that category from what tourist travel entails.

    Waiting and searching thoroughly for information – possibly via diplomatic channels (embassies and Foreign Affairs) seem appropriate here for this category of people.

    • chris says up

      Of course you have to be OFFICIALLY married according to Thai law; and can prove it.

      • RonnyLatYa says up

        Can't be hard to prove. Everyone who is officially married has proof of that.
        Possibly first to the Thai embassy / consulate, which then issues a statement confirming that you are officially married.
        Same if one is father/mother/guardian of a Thai child.

        • chris says up

          Yes I understand that. But Guy says there's a different protocol for people who are married. But quite a few commenters here write about their girlfriend or partner, straight or homosexual. That is legally not the same as married so that prorocol probably does not apply there. And legally married in the Netherlands does not always mean legally married in Thailand.
          In short: there are some pitfalls and traps.

          • RonnyLatYa says up

            That's right, but when it comes to returning to Thailand, one will have no choice but to apply the legal Thai view to marriage. And as far as I know, in Thailand that also stops with classic male/female combination.

            Also for children, of course. Your child can return because it has Thai nationality, but you as a father cannot…

            Indeed some pitfalls and traps…

        • janbeute says up

          They call that here the Kor Ror 2 and Kor Ror 3, is issued at the Amphur, the ones who have it, to which I also belong, recognize this as one of them, resembling a school diploma with even a kind of flower frame around it to.

          Jan Beute.

  17. RobHH says up

    I read in several comments that people have booked flights with Thai Airways. Maybe not everyone heard, but Thai Airways is bankrupt. Bankrupt.

    There is a restart. But that is still far from certain. So don't count on anything for now.

    • chris says up

      No, Thai Aiways has been granted suspension of payment. That is not the same as bankruptcy.

    • John says up

      An acquaintance of mine would now fly with Thai with the family. This is of course not going to happen.
      No voucher and no money back was said.

  18. Khunchai says up

    It's me what with that COVID19 the World is turned upside down. I am glad that the restrictions in the EU are becoming more flexible again. You never know when it comes to Thailand. I understand that they do not want infections in Thailand, but why such strict measures apply while the number of infections has been reduced (says the government) is of course strange, but there must be a Thai philosophy behind it. For years I had planned to live in Thailand with my Thai wife after my retirement, but I decided against this a few months before my retirement, partly due to the unpredictability of the Thai government and the unpredictable legislation that can change every day, certainly for foreigners. And now with the "prospects" I thank God on my bare knees that I did not retire earlier because then the damage would probably have happened. Too bad of course Thailand is a beautiful country with friendly people, it will probably never be the same as it was . I wish the foreigners who live in TH the best of luck with their stay in the coming years, I will stay in the free world. And if my wife wants to visit her family she will have to go alone or I will stay in Vietnam or Cambodia.

  19. Peter Young says up

    First of all, I would like to congratulate the Thai authorities for their efficient and consistent approach to Covid-19, and Thai society for their discipline and sense of duty in following the sensible rules. The Netherlands and Belgium can take a bit more of that.
    As a result, we live in a country where the situation is much safer and healthier than in most European countries; not to mention the United States.
    I have a distinctly different view than many who have commented here:
    I hope that we only very gradually restart tourism, and use this unique opportunity to promote high-quality tourism. To be more careful and respectful of our fragile nature, and to make air travel more expensive, so that we receive motivated tourists and so that airlines finally earn the salt in the porridge.
    That would, in my view, be a fantastic consequence of this crisis. A crisis that once again makes it clear how vulnerable people are, and how destructively they treat their living environment.
    Is this going to happen?
    Probably not. Consumers have a short memory. 'Cheap Charlie' wants to score another cheap beer and girl soon, and at TAT it ultimately remains a 'numbers game': more bodies in Thailand means more budget for next year. So it goes.
    But the dream of a healthier, more prosperous and more sustainable tourism was pleasant for a while: now I'm awake again.

    • You can also turn it around. What if the Thai authorities significantly increase the requirements for expats and pensioners? That 800.000 baht, what if we turn that into 8 million baht? You also get better quality expats and retirees. Is that a good idea, Peter?

      • Peter Young says up

        My comments and suggestions relate solely to tourism. Incidentally, my comment is not limited to Thailand, but is intended globally: we must treat our planet more carefully. And that requires that 'destinations' be protected from overtourism (and that applies just as much to Amsterdam as to Venice, to name just two examples).
        This can be achieved by organizing fewer but better trips to vulnerable places and by strengthening air traffic as an economic sector.
        Much of today's misery can be traced back to the 'low cost airlines' explosion, allowing you to fly for an apple and an egg for lunch from Manchester to Lyon to have lunch there and be back home in the evening. That's not only irresponsible for the environment, but it doesn't benefit Lyon (except for the Michelin chef).
        Many of the herds of British young people who come from London to AMS on Ryan or EasyJet do so mainly to fill themselves with beer, consume cheap soft drugs and then quickly return home. As a result, Amsterdam is becoming more unlivable for its tax-paying residents. Similar examples can also be imagined for Thailand.
        As far as retirees are concerned, after 18 years in this country I have the impression that a large majority of them are well behaved and a welcome support for the local economy. My nefarious plan therefore does not provide for a punitive expedition for them.
        Incidentally, I understand that to some my position comes across as elitist; I'm at peace with that.

        • Well, elitist isn't the right word. You are in Thailand yourself and you don't want others to come to Thailand? They call that selfish.

          • harry says up

            Completely agree with you, unfortunately there are some "farang" in Thailand that feel far superior to other "farang". Maybe we can call this the "reserve king syndrome"?
            Well, for some it is difficult to let other people into their own values.


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