Survey reveals tourists in Thailand worried most about taxi scams

A recent survey in Thailand revealed that tourists are worried most about taxi scams when moving about in the country. The Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT) conducted a quarterly survey, which polled 200 Western tourists in Thailand during the last quarter of 2022.

According to Bangkok Post, the survey saw respondents rank taxi service satisfaction as the lowest (3.5 out of 5), indicating a critical problem for visitors to the country. The TCT says the survey of such tourists in Bangkok found that they were unsatisfied with what is considered to be unfair treatment as taxi drivers often only take passengers who agree to pay a fare without using the meter.

TCT president Chamnan Srisawat says the government can help solve the problem by working with private taxi firms to offer a different type of taxi service that features a distinct label or sign to guarantee that the fares are based on the driver’s meter.

The respondents ranked poor garbage management and facilitation at the airport ranked after taxi scams. Those respondents that were from the US and Europe rated the entry process at the airports 3.45 out of 5. They also spoke of the litter problem at many popular tourist sites and air pollution.

The TCT is now urging the government to increase its budget for the 10 most popular tourism provinces to provide more natural resource preservation schemes and increase garbage disposal capacity.

Meanwhile, the survey found that 50% of respondents had travelled to Thailand before. Some 98% of respondents say they were travelling for leisure. Tourists from the US say they spent an average of 2,000-3,000 baht on accommodation per night, with their trip lasting around two weeks.

European tourists say they chose rooms for around 1,000-2,000 baht per night and stayed in Thailand for around 12 to 13 days.

Tourists from the US were found to spend an average of 96,269 baht per person, while those from Europe spend on average 88,661 baht per person.