finchyboy

Hi noticed on my last trip over xmas and new year that Thailand is really starting to get expensive now. I appreciate it was high season but even so it is now nowhere near is cheap as it used to be.

sociophobe

ladyboys driving the price up?

KiwiGTI

Yes, too many idiots travel there now and pay through the nose, the Thais will just take advantage of it.

finchyboy

The Thai's really are starting to take the micky now. I was looking to buy some football shirts on sukhumvit and the cheeky so and so starting price was 2000 baht !! and he wouldn't go below 700 baht i just walked out.

sociophobe

Back of the net.....

AP mode off

KiwiGTI

But nowadays you get Brits (and other nationalities) going out there for a fortnights holiday larging it up, showing off with their money etc. They save all year for a good time and don't care about blowing £2000+. I once lived for a month there on £300.

The football shirt wouldn't be worth 99 baht.

It's gone from being a backpacking type place into a place for luxury spa's, stag weeks, partying etc.

finchyboy

When i first strapped on the backpack and went to Thailand in 2000 i could live down on Samui ,Koh Tao or Pang Yang easily for 700 baht inc accomadation a day. Now they want that in certain places for a football shirt!! What you say is spot on it's such a shame but the place is really loosing it's appeal to me. My favourite haunts have mostly all been ruined by having seven eleven's, KFC's internet cafe's or even shopping centre's built on them. I'm no longer prepared to put up with getting my dessert before my main course and just laugh it off as T.I.T (This Is Thailand) not when i'm now paying prices that are virtually inline with Malaysia and Singapore.

Recaro

Agreed

Spent December there. Everyone told me that you pay only third of what they start at, so if they said 1200Baht, you'd be guranteed to get it for 300.

But most of the time, you can only get them to go down a few hundred. You end up walking away hoping they call you back and they don't.

Though, my dad has spent the last 6 months there and he seems to be excellent at getting things cheap there now. Must be an art you need to learn.

Its gonna be a shock for him when he comes back to the UK in April!

KiwiGTI

The average salary in rural Thailand is still only about 5000 baht a month, if you get out of tourist areas the prices do drop substantially.

finchyboy

After a while the charm of rural Thailand soon wears thin unless you do as the locals do and constantly getting plastered on Rice Whiskey. You really would have to be a dedicated culture vulture not to get hacked off with it after a while. I couldn't really recommend it for more then 10 days or so.
Like it or not generally if i am in search of descent nightlife , shopping and leisure activities scuba diving etc i inevertably end up in tourist areas. I don't have a problem with this i'm just saying that Thailand is not the bargain paradise it once was.