Why is phuket so expensive

Both Thais and foreigners are voting with their feet saying that a trip to the Thai holiday island is as expensive as going abroad - and possibly more so. A devastating analysis - mostly via pictures - appeared on Facebook and was widely shared and picked up by the Thai press. Suggestions were being made in comments that Phuket was too expensive - and Thai and foreign tourists were looking for more affordable options elsewhere. Just been speaking to a couple who own a small hotel in Phuket town and they said this year business is very bad, they are trying to sell.

A couple of days ago, I was shopping at the local market, when a young Thai man came up and said hello. I was hesitant at first because he looked like a typical island guy wearing a sleeveless shirt, long shorts and covered in tattoos.

Farmers don't wear clothes like this. But, his English was not bad and we got to talking. North, was his name and he was actually from this district where I live in Phitsanulok. But he had made a living as a tattoo artist down in Phuket for the last ten years.

Why was he home? He said no tourists. Maybe the tourists were put off, not by the price, but by the dirty, smelly and scruffy streets, rubbish on the beach, and polluted brown sea water? Phuket is my favourite place in Thailand. When holidaying here, I spent days on Phuket every trip. When moving here permanently, I decided that Phuket was too expensive and a bit isolated for me to make it my permanent base.

However, Phuket was a magnet to me and I still made a trip there every year. I didn't enjoy my trip and felt that it was one big rip off and not the place it was. This year, for the first time in a good number of years, I haven't visited and have no plans to do so in the future. No tourists? Som nam na. If you looked after them better, and ripped them off less, you might not have the problem. Phuket is not alone in having very few tourists. Pattaya looks like the depths of low season compared with a few years back.

It will be tough for TAT to spin some lies to pretend this is not the case, when the evidence, or lack of it, is clearly visible to all.

Thailand has problems with its tourist industry, and it is time for the denial to stop. Im sure they are scatching their heads thinking ''we tried everything ,even the honest taxi tall tales aren't working'' Took my son to the ice rink in Harbor, this Sunday afternoon this high season. He was the only one on the ice. The Harbour never really attracted tourists, more of a place for expats and Thais. Please notice this topic is about Phuket, let's not try to hi-jack this topic into a Pattaya topic.

I think the Exchange rate has a fair bit to do with it. I've been when its up around 30 AUD that is which makes everything a lot cheaper. I was there in November and it was still quite busy. Our hotel was full and a lot of the bars all had people in them. The current administration house of fools could not have possible screwed this one up more, even if they were making an effort to deliberately destroy Western tourism.

Sure, some Chinese are still coming. But, despite the surveys to the contrary, the average Chinese tourist does not spend much, and if they are spending alot, at least a portion of it stays home, with the tour operators, etc. Few Thais are really benefitting from the Chinese wave. So, what happened? The Western tourists started to decline in number, and the genius minds at the TAT decided it was time to "lure" the Chinese.

They came. They came in droves. But, they did not spend much money. Hotels, restaurants, gift shops, jewelers, galleries, spas, massage shops, bars, and countless other businesses suffered, and will continue to suffer from this extreme myopia, on the part of the officials in charge of tourism.

Oh well. Can't say they were not warned. Zero baht tourists are the majority who visit Thailand now. But, that is about it, for some of the super low budget Chinese tours. Not many rich Chinese are visiting Thailand, for a dozen good reasons.

They have too many other options, and the services are nowhere near a world class standard. By clicking the link and making a purchase, we may receive a small commission, but this does not affect the price of your purchase.

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Budget Your Trip. How much does it cost to travel to Phuket? Average Daily Cost Per person, per day. One Week Per person. One Month Per person. One Week For a couple. One Month For a couple.

This data comes from the travel budgets of real travelers - How it works. Put these numbers on your website. How expensive is Phuket? How much money do I need for Phuket? Accommodation 1 Hotel or hostel for one person. Accommodation 1 Typical double-occupancy room. Vacation Rentals. Find the best vacation rental for your travel style. With a Pool.

With a Kitchen. Food 2 Meals for one day. Transportation Budget in Phuket Average Daily Costs Calculated from travelers like you The cost of a taxi ride in Phuket is significantly more than public transportation. Transportation 1 Taxis, local buses, subway, etc. Flights to Phuket How much does it cost to go to Phuket? Typically, a quarter of Thailand's visitors go to Phuket. Thailand had just 28, visitors in the first four months of this year.

One Phuket hotel owner said the sandbox initiative was "a bunch of bull" that would make little difference, in part because much of the target audience - middle class and wealthy Asians - must quarantine upon their return home. Empty chairs are seen on a beach which is usually full of tourists, amid fear of coronavirus in Phuket, Thailand March 11, SI told Reuters its Phuket flights will increase from two per week to seven from July, after receiving interest from customers. But a few obstacles remain, with outbound movement restrictions in some key markets, like China, Japan and Malaysia, while Thai health authorities have banned visitors from some high-risk countries, like India.

Phuket has recorded single digit cases most days since May, when it introduced negative test requirements for domestic arrivals.