Pattaya devastated as coronavirus hits travel

Anything and everything about Thailand
Post Reply
User avatar
Gaybutton
Posts: 21461
Joined: Sat Jul 31, 2010 11:21 am
Location: Thailand
Has thanked: 2 times
Been thanked: 1306 times

Pattaya devastated as coronavirus hits travel

Post by Gaybutton »

I believe Pattaya's best chance for a resurrection will be allowing Pattaya to return to what it always was - sex tourism with the police looking the other way - for a price. If they continue the nonsense about trying to make Pattaya a nice lily-white family oriented holiday spot, I believe Pattaya has had it. It didn't work and it's not going to work. That was never the reason most people went to Pattaya and no matter how hard they try, it never will be.

If other countries and do-gooder groups try to interfere again, they should be told Thailand couldn't care less whether they like it not and told to mind their own business and just fuck off. You don't like Pattaya or what goes on there? Fine. Then don't go to Pattaya.

I also believe if businesses continue to cater solely to Chinese tourists, that will be a major mistake.

Also, comparing the traffic flow now to what it was when it was wall-to-wall Chinese tour buses, this would be a good time for the city to take a good look at ways to solve the traffic problems, and do whatever needs to be done before Chinese tourism makes a comeback. I doubt many residents want to end up going through that again while the city does nothing and just lets it happen. If that does happen, as Yogi Berra said, it will be "deja-vu all over again."
______________________________________

Pattaya devastated as coronavirus hits travel

March 29, 2020

PATTAYA: Beaches are deserted, go-go bars stand empty and cabarets have shut their doors in the tourist haven of Pattaya, as business has ground to a standstill after worldwide travel restrictions because of the coronavirus pandemic.

For one of the world's most famed -- some might say infamous -- tourism hotspots, the economic devastation is near-total and business owners say haven't seen anything like it for four decades.

"Our organisation has halted business 100%. Pattaya is a tourist city, we rely mostly on them. The whole city is affected by the virus," Alcazar Cabaret Show executive Pawin Phettrakul told Reuters.

In normal times, the theatre -- which features high-kicking dancing girls wearing elaborate feather headdresses and sequined dresses -- sees over a thousand tourists daily, but now there are zero.

Alcazar Cabaret is not planning on laying off its staff at the moment, but the foreseeable future seems bleak.

Thailand depends on tourism for around 12% of its GDP, but in Pattaya, nearly the entire economy runs on visitors.

The resort town saw over 15 million visitors in 2018, according to the 2019 Chonburi Provincial Statistical Report, which was already a 20% drop from the previous year.

"I would say that this is the worse that has ever hit Pattaya. And, during the past two to three weeks, so much businesses has already folded, has already [gone] bankrupt, closed down due to the coronavirus," said Roy Fu Wanlong, a business owner in Pattaya.

The city in recent years has been trying to shed its association with sex tourism that started in the 1970s when it became a rest and relaxation spot for US soldiers during the Vietnam War.

The town has promoted family-friendly entertainment and boat tours in the city.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/ge ... its-travel
Post Reply