Costs for resort holidays in Thailand now partly higher than in Europe
The cost of a holiday in popular beach resorts in Thailand is now on par with or higher than in Greece, Italy, Spain, Turkey and Egypt, and significantly higher than in other countries in the Southeast Asia region, New York-based travel industry intelligence platform Skift noted in a recent analysis.
Citing Bangkok-based travel agency to Diethelm Travel Group, Skift said that, for example, the cost of five-star resorts in Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Samet has reached around $500 per room per night including American breakfast. This is similar to the cost of five-star beach resorts in Greece, Italy and Spain, and less expensive than a comparable property in Turkey or Egypt, which costs around $350 a night. It is even pricier than a mountain resort in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, which is $450 a room in the summer July-August high season for Europeans.
Prices for four-star Thai beach hotels also show a similar pattern: They cost around $350, as do counterparts in Greece, Italy and Spain, and are higher than the $200 in Turkey and Egypt and $300 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
One reason for the price surge is the strong baht, Diethelm’s Group CEO Stephan Roemer said. Given the appreciation of the Thai currency, and factoring in inflation, costs for a holiday in Thailand has increased by about 30 per cent in US dollar and British pound terms and 20 per cent in euros over the last five years.
“This is definitely too much. I fear a negative impact in the medium to longer term, say, six to 18 months, particularly for the leisure market to Thailand,” Skift quoted Roemer as saying.
However, when digging deeper, the strong baht is not the only reason for the price hike.
Many Thai hotels have raised rates as they can count on Asian first-timers and repeaters to continue flocking into Thailand, the analysis stated. In addition, a guest mix heavily geared towards Asia, and particularly China, has become an issue for some upmarket European guests for whom Thailand also appears have lost a bit of amazingness which led to a status some describe as “overfamiliarity.”
Other issues are the political situation, overdevelopment, environmental negligience and security issues, aside from the structural change in the market mix. The low English proficiency of Thais, even of many of those who work directly in the tourism industry, can also be sometimes an annoyance for tourists trying to navigate their way around and explore culture and food. Some former visitors to the country also say they quit coming to Thailand as they feel the decade-long overexposure to tourism has made Thais less welcoming and friendly, and in parts even aggressive, even though tourism plays a very important economic role for the country.
Ruth Landolt, general manager of Asia365, an Asia-focused travel company based in Zurich for German-speaking markets, said that she is losing clients because of a changing in the guest mix.
“Some of the hotels have shifted their guest mix and sell a bigger percentage to the Chinese market. So the atmosphere in the hotel can change to the point where clients tell us they will not go back. This is a very important issue,” she said.
“The regional destination that is getting a lot of business now is Vietnam,” she added, noting that “we also have a lot of business to Japan, but this is a different market. Thailand is competing with Southern Europe, Egypt, Mexico and the Caribbean.”
Bangkok-based Kasikorn Research Center expects the whole European travel source market to Thailand to decline by 1.5 per cent this year over 2018 to reach 6.66 million arrivals, and spending to shrink one per cent year-on-year to $15.4 billion.
In turn, Thailand is now relying on China, India and other emerging markets to make up for the shortfall from traditional markets such as Europe.
The cost of a holiday in popular beach resorts in Thailand is now on par with or higher than in Greece, Italy, Spain, Turkey and Egypt, and significantly higher than in other countries in the Southeast Asia region, New York-based travel industry intelligence platform Skift noted in a recent analysis. Citing Bangkok-based travel agency to Diethelm Travel Group, Skift said that, for example, the cost of five-star resorts in Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Samet has reached around $500 per room per night including American breakfast. This is similar to the cost of five-star beach resorts in Greece, Italy...
The cost of a holiday in popular beach resorts in Thailand is now on par with or higher than in Greece, Italy, Spain, Turkey and Egypt, and significantly higher than in other countries in the Southeast Asia region, New York-based travel industry intelligence platform Skift noted in a recent analysis.
Citing Bangkok-based travel agency to Diethelm Travel Group, Skift said that, for example, the cost of five-star resorts in Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Samet has reached around $500 per room per night including American breakfast. This is similar to the cost of five-star beach resorts in Greece, Italy and Spain, and less expensive than a comparable property in Turkey or Egypt, which costs around $350 a night. It is even pricier than a mountain resort in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, which is $450 a room in the summer July-August high season for Europeans.
Prices for four-star Thai beach hotels also show a similar pattern: They cost around $350, as do counterparts in Greece, Italy and Spain, and are higher than the $200 in Turkey and Egypt and $300 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
One reason for the price surge is the strong baht, Diethelm’s Group CEO Stephan Roemer said. Given the appreciation of the Thai currency, and factoring in inflation, costs for a holiday in Thailand has increased by about 30 per cent in US dollar and British pound terms and 20 per cent in euros over the last five years.
“This is definitely too much. I fear a negative impact in the medium to longer term, say, six to 18 months, particularly for the leisure market to Thailand,” Skift quoted Roemer as saying.
However, when digging deeper, the strong baht is not the only reason for the price hike.
Many Thai hotels have raised rates as they can count on Asian first-timers and repeaters to continue flocking into Thailand, the analysis stated. In addition, a guest mix heavily geared towards Asia, and particularly China, has become an issue for some upmarket European guests for whom Thailand also appears have lost a bit of amazingness which led to a status some describe as “overfamiliarity.”
Other issues are the political situation, overdevelopment, environmental negligience and security issues, aside from the structural change in the market mix. The low English proficiency of Thais, even of many of those who work directly in the tourism industry, can also be sometimes an annoyance for tourists trying to navigate their way around and explore culture and food. Some former visitors to the country also say they quit coming to Thailand as they feel the decade-long overexposure to tourism has made Thais less welcoming and friendly, and in parts even aggressive, even though tourism plays a very important economic role for the country.
Ruth Landolt, general manager of Asia365, an Asia-focused travel company based in Zurich for German-speaking markets, said that she is losing clients because of a changing in the guest mix.
“Some of the hotels have shifted their guest mix and sell a bigger percentage to the Chinese market. So the atmosphere in the hotel can change to the point where clients tell us they will not go back. This is a very important issue,” she said.
“The regional destination that is getting a lot of business now is Vietnam,” she added, noting that “we also have a lot of business to Japan, but this is a different market. Thailand is competing with Southern Europe, Egypt, Mexico and the Caribbean.”
Bangkok-based Kasikorn Research Center expects the whole European travel source market to Thailand to decline by 1.5 per cent this year over 2018 to reach 6.66 million arrivals, and spending to shrink one per cent year-on-year to $15.4 billion.
In turn, Thailand is now relying on China, India and other emerging markets to make up for the shortfall from traditional markets such as Europe.
