whackyjacky

Anything above the 12th floor should be fine ! The floods a couple years ago were more due to mismanagement than too much rain. They were saving water for the rice farmers and they got a lot of late monsoon rain, throwing them for a loop. Don't worry, they'll keep central Bangkok dry unless it's a Noah type event.

dsquared37

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/loca...rist-entry-fee

If this isn't sufficient to see the level of contempt currently held in the gov for 1) tourists 2) intelligence 3) people in general then I don't know what will.

nkedel

This could be implemented well (as a tax on the incoming airline ticket) or really badly (cash on arrival)... a online-payment thing like Australia or Argentina uses would be in between, but still quite annoying.

In the first case, nobody much is going to notice $16, even on a $150-ish regional airline ticket (on top of the $20+ already going to departure tax)... in the latter cases, expect it to piss everybody off.

dsquared37

It would have to be at least partly the latter since they want to implement it at land crossings. This entire idea is half baked if they believe it will increase the number of 'quality tourists'.

I can see it now:

F: Honey let's go to Thailand.
M: Nah, there's too many low lifes there.
F: No sweetie, they're now charging MORE to enter.
M: Oh, in that case let's buy our tickets today!!

dsquared37

Also they want to assess a 30THB charge per day on land crossings (which would max to 450THB if using the whole 15 day allowance on a visa exemption) and a straight 500 THB if entering by air... even if a transit?

In the case of a visa exemption land crossing you'd need to pay on departure obviously... in the case of air arrivals on entry.

This is nothign but a ploy to put more money into the hands of police to shore up support for the failing policies of PT.

Globehopper

I'm surprised no one has posted the latest brainchild from the politicians in Thailand--a proposed 500 Baht bahksheesh (tourist entry fee). This is in the guise of encouraging "quality" tourists to enter (whatever quality means).

The Bangkok Post reports that "The tourism and sports minister (Somsak Phurisrisak) told me that every other country is collecting entry fees from foreigners," Mr Pradit said.

The above statement illustrates just how clueless and unworldly that decisionmaker is.

The fee is proposed to take effect 1 January 2014, but may be postponed until mid-January to avoid "confusion."

Read more here:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/loca...ry-fee/page-2/

and here:

http://www.eturbonews.com/39047/fore...le-in-thailand

I for one am totally opposed to this bahksheesh. Even worse is that neighboring countries may seek to copy this absurd idea. We'll take our tourist dollars elsewhere.

If you're opposed to this idea, make your voice heard. Vote with your wallet!

CrazyInteg

I was under the impression that it was just an idea thrown out and was never going to be implemented.

They already charge us 500 or 600 baht just to fly out of the country.

How do they determine who is a tourist?

EDIT: Just went onto united.com. It looks like Thailand charges 700 baht ($22.40) to fly out of the country, and Japan collects 3000 yen ($30.80) for the connecting flight through Narita. I read the thread over on ThaiVisa also, it looks like it might be more than just the idea-of-the-day.

dsquared37

I had posted about it in http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/thail...thread-10.html downpage at post 399.

If this moves forward toward implementation it would definitely deserve it's own thread but when posting initially I vacillated and chose to put it into the news thread (where it quickly was camouflaged).

dsquared37

Just another bat-turd idea thrown against the wall to see what sticks but it was reported in the Bangkok Post and the vitriol in the comments is beyond what I've prior. Deservedly so.

Hopefully this goes to the dustbin like another recent brilliant idea to shutdown street alcohol sales (which would have done nothing but put money into the pockets of police in the same vein that this would have done nothing but put money into the pockets of immi agents).

It was 500 THB before the departure tax was incorporated into the ticket purchase. Now it's 700.

Not only that, but how do they implement this absurd idea... pay by the day for land crossing but a 1 time payment for airport entry? This is at the level of late-night-mushroom-eating-in-high-school-world-clarity garbage.


Unless UA double charges you which I am about to deal with now. A previous time it self corrected when making an award change.

seanthepilot

d37, I can't believe that you fall for the trolling news stories like this. It's another of a million Thai government proposals (that will ultimately fail).

The press jump all over stories like this for a few reasons.
1) sensationalism
2) they are unable to properly investigate and report real news (censorship / corruption)

IIRC, this story has evolved from the proposal to require mandatory health insurance for tourists.

dsquared37

Not sure if it's trolling news (as sad as the English news in Thailand is) but rather the gov putting out feelers and seeing what is plausible.

Absolutely right this has evolved and each utterance from the gov is the money will go to a different proposition... it's all justification, again, to see what is plausible and accepted.

If put into effect I'd pay more on a yearly basis than for a 10yr entry into Argentina.

lovtofly3

Add more fire to the pot

AoT to increase airport departure tax

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breakingn...final-approval

IAN-UK

For WTO just about anyone who crosses a border is an international tourist, whatever the motivation for travel. OK, invading forces and nomads are among those excluded

I think countries look with envy at the high taxes levied on air travellers elsewhere. In the UK the tax (air passenger duty) generates around £3billion - and although the tax hides itself under a green umbrella, the cash goes directly to the UK exchequer: no particular benefit to tourism or air transport.

dsquared37

Interesting article in the NYTimes yesterday:

Left to Languish, Costly Fire Trucks Present a Reminder of Thai Dysfunction

Amazingly the final paragraph states:

So the charade still isn't over.

forumpersona999

The initial motivation here was to deal with backpackers etc who go to Koh Samui without travel insurance, rent a scooter, ride without a helmet and then encounter Thai Style road safety. End up in a coma in a nice expensive International Hospital and have no money to pay the bills.

There were calls to ensure people have travel insurance. At first glance, a good idea. ^ Thailand cannot provide quality health-care to their own citizens unless they pay up top dollar so why spend on foreigners who could have afforded travel insurance but just didn't give a crap about it....

The problem is implementation and enforcement. I suppose immigration police did not want to get involved in checking all kinds of country's insurance certificates at the border. The queues are long enough as it is. So the Thai solution? Propose that everyone has to pay this, no matter what.

Makes their life easier but very unfair because a lot of people (most flyertalkers, i would think) have some form of travel insurance from premium credit cards...