Island Wrap #84: "Dynamic pricing" raises Phuket room rates, some Chinese tourists avoid Thailand over scam gang fears, wild tigers on the rebound, and more
A free monthly spin around the most intriguing and consequential news and other media from Thailand's islands and coastal areas.
Happy Lunar New Year and welcome to your free monthly news review from Thailand’s islands and coastal areas — and sometimes beyond.
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Catch of the month
Recently from Thai Island Quest…
T.I.C.D.: Intro to the Northern Thai Andaman Sea
Later this month I’ve got two new sections covering Ranong’s laid-back islands and shorelines before starting on upper Phang Nga, as I (finally) close in on finishing the Thai Island & Coastal Directory. The project already covers 1,000+ islands and 300+ mainland coastal areas in all 24 of Thailand’s coastal provinces.
I also want to mention that if you’re a paid subscriber with a specific question, feel free to ask it in the comments section at the end of any article on TIQ. The comments go directly to my inbox even if posted to an old article, and I’m always happy to help. To see what I mean, check out my reply to one subscriber who recently sought suggestions for family-friendly islands that are good for snorkeling.
Also check this out…
English-language writing that looks under the hood of Thailand’s often baffling politics can be invaluable for Anglophones who wants to understand the country better. That’s why I’m excited about The Coffee Parliament, a new Substack newsletter by Ken Lohatepanont, who in my my opinion is one of the most insightful writers / commentators covering the modern Thai political scene.
Note, this is not a paid promotion — just sharing something I like!
Weather and shipwrecks
We’re now entering those wonderful few months of the year when all of coastal Thailand enjoys largely dry weather at the same time. The Gulf coast remains windy in many places, however, and severe storms hit parts of Surat Thani province early last month, halting ferry services around Ko Phangan and toppling several beachfront bungalows on the eroding coast of Chaiya district.
Though apparently not resulting from bad weather, a large tourist catamaran sank near Ko Racha Yai in far southern Phuket province last month. Crews of other boats in the vicinity safely rescued all 33 passengers along with several crew members, all of whom were “wearing life vests” according to Bangkok Post.
Travel and food
Bar-hopping in Phuket (Time Out with choice cocktail spots from a local writer who knows the island’s food and drink scene as well as anyone.)
Bangkok’s unexpected outdoor adventures (Forbes offers an active approach to the Thai capital, which Time Out recently ranked second on its widely shared annual list of the “50 best cities in the world.”)
Southern Thai temple proposed for Unesco recognition (Bangkok Post on a fresh campaign to push Nakhon Si Thammarat’s Wat Mahathat, which has sat on UNESCO’s tentative list since 2013 and finished a lengthy restoration project last year, over the finish line to gain World Heritage status this year.)
Tourism
Southern hotels boom amid tourist influx (Bangkok Post on how some properties are now “focusing more on driving room rates than occupancy, as well as utilising a dynamic pricing strategy rather than binding themselves with fixed contract rates.” That explains why I’ve been hearing so many complaints about sky-high room rates in Phuket! In related news, Phuket’s unemployment rate stands at an astonishingly low 0.85% according to a local jobs agency, though the island also faces a “growing garbage crisis” despite regular beach and reef cleanups.)
Chinese celebrities and tourists think twice about Thailand (The New York Times is joined by similar articles from AFP and CNBC looking at fears over criminal gangs that use Thailand to lure and traffic people from China into forced work at scam call centers in Myanmar. Many Chinese tourists are canceling trips to Thailand in response, even if those who do visit tend to find it safe for leisure travel. An internationally coordinated effort to eradicate scam centers is underway, but Thailand’s PM was criticized for releasing an AI-generated video depicting her speaking Mandarin to “reassure” potential tourists from China.)
The ‘new China’ in Thailand: ‘if you want hope, you have to leave’ (The Guardian with a video report interviewing China citizens who have permanently left their home country to create new lives as expats in Chiang Mai.)
Online TM6 form for visitors to Thailand coming on May 1 (Bangkok Post on a form long known as the “arrival card” until it was suspended for air travelers in 2023 and then for land arrivals last year. The exact nature of the new online form has not yet been announced, but it “is expected to help track tourists while they are in Thailand,” prompting concerns about privacy and data breaches.)
Environment
Underwater citizen science reveals the specter of ghost fishing in Thailand (MongaBay explains a study spearheaded by Thailand-based divers that covered over 100 marine sites in both the Gulf and Andaman and “assessed the scale of the impacts of discarded or ‘ghost’ fishing gear on Thailand’s marine species.”
Thai fisherfolk warn of ‘marine devastation’ from fine-mesh net bill (The Nation spotlights a chorus of resistance against a bill that passed the lower House and is now under consideration in the Senate that would, in the words of the president of Thai Sea Watch Association, “effectively legalise a practice that has been banned for decades (and) will lead to the depletion of crucial fish stocks.”
Thailand orders crop burning crackdown as pollution spikes (AFP via CNA on a move that seems to have made little difference given that the air quality in 64 of Thailand’s 77 provinces remained at “unsafe” levels yesterday. More permanent solutions could result from the Clean Air Act if it’s ever passed into law, but air pollution is a regional problem that’s unlikely to be fully solved without a high level of cooperation between several ASEAN countries.)
Thailand bans imports of plastic waste to curb toxic pollution (The Guardian on how, as of this month, it’s illegal for developed countries to offload their rubbish to Thailand, although worries over enforcement persist.)
Wildlife
Two more dugongs were sadly found dead around Phuket as discussions continue about how to protect the few dugongs that remain in that area after abandoning the degraded seagrass beds where they have historically subsisted further south in parts of Krabi and Trang provinces.
A new season of leatherback sea turtle nesting kicked off with a nest of 124 eggs discovered on Ko Phra Thong in Phang Nga province.
Authorities are moving ahead with a controversial plan to sterilize some of Thailand’s wild elephants, whose numbers have grown to well over 4,000 as dangerous conflicts with humans increase. “Since 2012, at least 240 people have been killed and 208 others injured in conflicts as the massive creatures stray out of forests in increasing numbers to forage in farmland and communities that continue to encroach on their wild habitats,” reports Thai PBS.
Thailand’s wild tiger numbers are also growing, primarily amid the Western Forest Complex in what’s seen as an “extremely positive” sign that conservation efforts for this critically endangered species are working. Camera traps recently spotted three tiger cubs in Kaeng Krachan National Park and, for the first time in a decade, a tiger appeared in Kui Buri National Park.
Society
US aid freeze leads to suspension of health care to Myanmar refugees in Thailand (AP explains the dire effects of withdrawing aid from camps that shelter over 100,000 primarily Karen refugees near the borders in northwestern Thailand. The freeze on USAID — now directly under attack from the top US advisor who owns the X social media site — is also disrupting a long-running scholarship program for Myanmar students and efforts to dispose of landmines and other unexploded ordinances left over from the American-Vietnam War era in Cambodia.)
Most Thais oppose government plans for casinos, online gambling, poll finds (Reuters)
Hundreds of same-sex couples wed as Thailand’s landmark marriage bill takes effect (CNN)
In other news
Belgian kite surfer dies after being swept onto rocks in Pran Buri (The Nation on a tragic accident at a popular kite surfing spot near Hua Hin.)
Immigration raids net 17 foreigners on Thai tourist islands (Bangkok Post on the “Operation X-Ray” targeting Ko Phangan, Ko Tao and Ko Samui.)
Big Buddha construction listed as ‘contributing factor’ in deadly Kata landslide (The Phuket News on a Dept. of Mineral Resources investigation concluding that a parking lot and bathroom built in recent years at the once-popular mountaintop site did indeed play a role in the tragedy that took 13 lives last August.)
Chon Buri’s new stadium ‘half done’ after 17 years (Bangkok Post on the 20,000-seat hilltop stadium near Pattaya that was originally slated for completion by 2017 and now appears largely “abandoned.”)
I leave you with…
The touching moment, filmed by a CNA news crew, when the father of a Thai farm worker who had been held hostage in Gaza since October 7th, 2023, received the first verifiable video confirmation that his son had been freed and was on his way home to Buriram. He was one of five released Thai hostages who recounted hunger and difficulty breathing during 482 days in captivity. 🌴
Thank you for reading Thai Island Quest. For the love of the islands.
wow David, 1,000 islands+ and 300+ mainland areas, i still don't know how you've done it! (stillongoing, obviously!) beyond impressive, and surely the most comprehensive directory ever done! maybe Thai gov't/tourism board(s) undertake sponsorship/prmotion?
thank you for all the news reports- the pollution, dugongs, and much of what i read very much saddened me...