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News Forum - Bali eyes wealthy tourists, while considering a ban on backpackers


Thaiger
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Bali, Thailand,Amsterdam, Venice, Paris,Rome.They are the ones who all aspire to only want high spending quality tourists that I know of,no place for the young backpackers who are the most vibrant and alive fun people on the planet,and probably have the smallest carbon footprint.Lets hope that when they grow up and have money and families they will remember how some places treated them.

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I thought leaders of other countries, regarding tourism, would be smarter than here. But the decision to ban backpackers who bring in money is as stupid as when Thailand opened Koh Larn except the beaches. 

Isn't this actually discrimination? I thought discrimination was the worst thing possible in 2021. 

I'm not a backpacker but I love to travel cheap. So to travel cheap (what backpackers do) will be banned from now on? 

So in other words, you are not free to go on holiday where you want? You can ban certain indoor places, but you can't ban the outside for others... 

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“We still need to be patient as well as be aware of this virus,

 

Not only with the virus, but also with the money. Because when people get to hear this, no one will come there anymore.

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6 minutes ago, DiJoDavO said:

I thought leaders of other countries, regarding tourism, would be smarter than here. But the decision to ban backpackers who bring in money is as stupid as when Thailand opened Koh Larn except the beaches. 

Isn't this actually discrimination? I thought discrimination was the worst thing possible in 2021. 

I'm not a backpacker but I love to travel cheap. So to travel cheap (what backpackers do) will be banned from now on? 

So in other words, you are not free to go on holiday where you want? You can ban certain indoor places, but you can't ban the outside for others... 

I went to Bali twice around 1995 and 2000 and loved it.

Went back in 2017. It had changed into one big fairground with tuktuk drivers lining up and asking you every 3-4 meters tuktuk? Restaurants trying to pull you in as in Turkey, not a pristine bit of beach and even the remote mountains and paddy fields crowded.

It may actually be quite nice now and I think the locals (as far as they are truly locals and haven't moved to Bali for the tourist money already) prefer it less frantic too. There are lots of hostels and places that don't cater for the wealthy, so it's not being eradicated. But I don't think a little less mass-tourism is a bad thing.

BTW, the same is happening in London, Amsterdam, Paris etc. They just do not want the big crowds disrupting regular life so much anymore.

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3 hours ago, Ludo said:

They also tend to spend more with local businesses, rather than on the products and services of large international corporations.

I guess we found the reason now. In their eyes the only way money should go, is up. 

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8 minutes ago, Bob20 said:

I went to Bali twice around 1995 and 2000 and loved it.

Went back in 2017. It had changed into one big fairground with tuktuk drivers lining up and asking you every 3-4 meters tuktuk? Restaurants trying to pull you in as in Turkey, not a pristine bit of beach and even the remote mountains and paddy fields crowded.

It may actually be quite nice now and I think the locals (as far as they are truly locals and haven't moved to Bali for the tourist money already) prefer it less frantic too. There are lots of hostels and places that don't cater for the wealthy, so it's not being eradicated. But I don't think a little less mass-tourism is a bad thing.

BTW, the same is happening in London, Amsterdam, Paris etc. They just do not want the big crowds disrupting regular life so much anymore.

To ban a certain group is not the way to do it. Especially to the group that helped you becoming famous. 

I agree mass tourism should be taken care of, but aren't there any other ways? But to do this, there's too much involved, so they just ban a certain group, so it's 'solved'. But wait until it backfires and those woke backpackers spam the whole twitter feed full. They apparently don't know what the internet is capable of. 

To ban certain people is a very slippery slope. How are they going to follow the rules they set? Should you be afraid to be sent back home if you arrive with anything other than a suitcase? What if you want to wear some nice easy clothes? You need to go there in stress, afraid you're going to be sent back? 

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9 minutes ago, DiJoDavO said:

To ban a certain group is not the way to do it. Especially to the group that helped you becoming famous. 

I agree mass tourism should be taken care of, but aren't there any other ways? But to do this, there's too much involved, so they just ban a certain group, so it's 'solved'. But wait until it backfires and those woke backpackers spam the whole twitter feed full. They apparently don't know what the internet is capable of. 

To ban certain people is a very slippery slope. How are they going to follow the rules they set? Should you be afraid to be sent back home if you arrive with anything other than a suitcase? What if you want to wear some nice easy clothes? You need to go there in stress, afraid you're going to be sent back? 

Yes, that's what I said. Less tourism. Not just one group. They can't really do that anyway, because they'd push the part of their workforce that caters for that group out of business.

P.S.

Even encouraging wealthy individuals like here in Thailand with special visas won't work.

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5 hours ago, Ynwaps said:

Don't expect any grumpy retirees to understand any of this though 

I think most understand it very well, which is why they're happy not to have begpackers here 😂

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9 hours ago, DiJoDavO said:

I thought leaders of other countries, regarding tourism, would be smarter than here. But the decision to ban backpackers who bring in money is as stupid as when Thailand opened Koh Larn except the beaches. 

Isn't this actually discrimination? I thought discrimination was the worst thing possible in 2021. 

I'm not a backpacker but I love to travel cheap. So to travel cheap (what backpackers do) will be banned from now on? 

So in other words, you are not free to go on holiday where you want? You can ban certain indoor places, but you can't ban the outside for others... 

I think you'll find that Asians aren't all caught up in the virtue signaling oppression Olympics that the west is.

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13 minutes ago, Zool said:

I think you'll find that Asians aren't all caught up in the virtue signaling oppression Olympics that the west is.

Exactly, you will be crying and screaming (discrimination! racism! sexism!) while being dragged up the airport terminal back to a return flight home, and no one will care one bit.  

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14 hours ago, Ludo said:

Backpackers may spend less per day, but they commonly spend more overall because they stay longer. They also tend to spend more with local businesses, rather than on the products and services of large international corporations.
As such, backpackers can be of more value to the country than high-end, short-stay visitors. There is also evidence these lower-budget travellers are valuable word-of-mouth ambassadors who often return when they are older, booking upmarket accommodation, attractions and tours.

The thing about backpackers, as found in Australia, is that they travel around a lot and spend their money with the locals. They do occasionally work for cash here and there, but they spend that money - again with the locals. They tend to get involved with the local culture and they dont tend to become part of the local criminals (drug imports etc.). They also will sometimes decide to stay longer (spend more) and some stay forever - plus some go back and later come back as an immigrant.  But if you look at only the 'surface' stuff like paying cheap rents and eating cheap, those pluses are not counted.  Because of all their net positives, Australia has 3 and 6 month 'backpacker' Visa (from selected countries), and they are allowed to work (and pay taxes) in that period. Many of those bar/restaurant workers in the big cities of Australia are UK and USA backpackers on an extended holiday - they make money in the cities and then they go to the country and spend it. And some of them actually decide to stay (meet a girl/boy or get a great job) and some use that to check out the country before applying to emigrate later. 

Meanwhile, in Australia we found out that the Chinese and Indian and Russian tourists dont spend anywhere near as much as they come on cheap 'packages', and they have a higher tendency to get up to no good, and they contribute SFA to the economy overall, and they give very little net benefit. Plus they are rude and arrogant, and show respect for our customs and social norms. 

Tell those UK and USA backpackers that they are more than welcome in Australia - and even from some other countries too.  Thailand doesn't want them, nor does Indonesia/Bali - we dont have the culture or history, but our rainforests and beaches and tropical island resorts (many work there) are the best and cleanest and safest in the world. Just dont leave your shoes outside - deadly spiders love to nest in them overnight - only kidding - deadly snakes actually 😁

 

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1 hour ago, Zool said:

I think you'll find that Asians aren't all caught up in the virtue signaling oppression Olympics that the west is.

"Virtue Signaling Oppression Olympics" - I think I will use that if I may.  Plus I might add Feminist and Trans. 

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16 hours ago, Stonker said:

Spot on, @AussieBob.  I think quite a few people who see a "digital nomad" visa as good news are going to have a nasty shock quite soon .....

Yep - but I think many of the better and more successful ones (like that Canadian guy) are smart enough to realise what is coming - and probably why they are all currently 'restructuring'.  But the many 'little' blokes who have a channel with their Thai wife and are making some money each month showing people things in Thailand, are going to be in for a huge shock. 

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4 hours ago, AussieBob said:

"Virtue Signaling Oppression Olympics" - I think I will use that if I may.  Plus I might add Feminist and Trans. 

Also add "progressive".

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On 9/16/2021 at 10:41 AM, Thaiger said:

Travellers visiting Bali on a budget may have to haul their backpacks elsewhere if one Indonesian government official gets his way. Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, who serves as the country’s Maritime and Investment Coordinator Minister, has put forward a controversial proposal to ban backpackers from Bali once the hugely popular tourist island re-opens. His comments are captured in a Bali Sun report, in which the minister says the island will instead market itself to more affluent visitors. He was speaking during a recent visit to the island. “We’ll aim for quality tourism in Bali, so we won’t allow backpackers to enter […]

The post Bali eyes wealthy tourists, while considering a ban on backpackers appeared first on Thaiger News.

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These guys don't understand it is about the infrastructure and cannot be done over night. This guy must be a army or a friend of the Junta they think you can order such things and then it is like that. We order all rich tourist to Bali but sleep in huts and live like a backpacker. The Backpackers are there because there is a infrastructure there with hostels and guesthouses. They think with a order this guesthouses will be overnight transformed into 5 star luxury hotels. Same like they think Pattaya will be Singapore or Miami. It is unbelievable that such Clowns with empty heads and dumb as hell can be in charge for higher positions and open their mouth. In Europe they woud think these guys maybe not even can do a cleaning job dumb as they are.

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1 hour ago, Stardust said:

These guys don't understand it is about the infrastructure and cannot be done over night. This guy must be a army or a friend of the Junta they think you can order such things and then it is like that. We order all rich tourist to Bali but sleep in huts and live like a backpacker. The Backpackers are there because there is a infrastructure there with hostels and guesthouses. They think with a order this guesthouses will be overnight transformed into 5 star luxury hotels. Same like they think Pattaya will be Singapore or Miami. It is unbelievable that such Clowns with empty heads and dumb as hell can be in charge for higher positions and open their mouth. In Europe they woud think these guys maybe not even can do a cleaning job dumb as they are.

Bad news for you @Stardust - the ones in charge ARE the smarter ones here.  Seriously. You know it too 😉

And then there is always the exceptions - like Boris and Donald.

 

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3 hours ago, Stardust said:

These guys don't understand it is about the infrastructure and cannot be done over night. This guy must be a army or a friend of the Junta they think you can order such things and then it is like that. We order all rich tourist to Bali but sleep in huts and live like a backpacker. The Backpackers are there because there is a infrastructure there with hostels and guesthouses. They think with a order this guesthouses will be overnight transformed into 5 star luxury hotels. Same like they think Pattaya will be Singapore or Miami. It is unbelievable that such Clowns with empty heads and dumb as hell can be in charge for higher positions and open their mouth. In Europe they woud think these guys maybe not even can do a cleaning job dumb as they are.

Why would they think "the guesthouses will be transformed overnight into 5 star luxury hotels"?

They just think they'll be gone, like the backpackers, and the luxury hotels and resorts they already have will be full and out of sight, like the Seychelles or the Maldives.

Hardly the same thing, even if it's still la-la land as the Seychelles and the Maldives don't need the numbers Indonesia or Thailand do to make money.

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38 minutes ago, Stonker said:

Why would they think "the guesthouses will be transformed overnight into 5 star luxury hotels"?

They just think they'll be gone, like the backpackers, and the luxury hotels and resorts they already have will be full and out of sight, like the Seychelles or the Maldives.

Hardly the same thing, even if it's still la-la land as the Seychelles and the Maldives don't need the numbers Indonesia or Thailand do to make money.

 

3 hours ago, Stardust said:

These guys don't understand it is about the infrastructure and cannot be done over night. This guy must be a army or a friend of the Junta they think you can order such things and then it is like that. We order all rich tourist to Bali but sleep in huts and live like a backpacker. The Backpackers are there because there is a infrastructure there with hostels and guesthouses. They think with a order this guesthouses will be overnight transformed into 5 star luxury hotels. Same like they think Pattaya will be Singapore or Miami. It is unbelievable that such Clowns with empty heads and dumb as hell can be in charge for higher positions and open their mouth. In Europe they woud think these guys maybe not even can do a cleaning job dumb as they are.

Too me this whole thinking of "lets get the rich tourists over here" does not make any sense at all. Where does this thinking come from? And why are they so certain they will get rich tourists coming too all of Thailands tourist places? There are many places competing for rich tourists, why would they suddenly choose Thailand or Bali? Is there even enough of them for this?

I have never heard Greece or Spain talking about this..?

Where on earth does this thinking come from?!?!?

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8 minutes ago, divrg said:

Too me this whole thinking of "lets get the rich tourists over here" does not make any sense at all. Where does this thinking come from? And why are they so certain they will get rich tourists coming too all of Thailands tourist places? There are many places competing for rich tourists, why would they suddenly choose Thailand or Bali? Is there even enough of them for this?

I have never heard Greece or Spain talking about this..?

Where on earth does this thinking come from?!?!?

I agree with you 100%  - they won't, and there aren't enough. 

It works for places like the Maldives and the Seychelles, but only because the numbers they need to make it work are so low.

It's at least as much about getting rid of the begpackers as it is attracting the rich.

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10 minutes ago, divrg said:

Too me this whole thinking of "lets get the rich tourists over here" does not make any sense at all. Where does this thinking come from? And why are they so certain they will get rich tourists coming too all of Thailands tourist places? There are many places competing for rich tourists, why would they suddenly choose Thailand or Bali? Is there even enough of them for this?

I have never heard Greece or Spain talking about this..?

Where on earth does this thinking come from?!?!?

I guess incompetence, dumb and greed. I guess even if you show them Monaco they would not understand it and would order tomorrow Pattaya will be another Monacco because he saw all the rich people there. They are too dumb and uneducated to understand that Singapoore was not developped over night and was a process over decates. Also they not understand for developpment you need a good eductation system, educated people, competent people and good conditions to get this people. You have to build up a good infrastucture and they are not even can make an proper sidewalk or waste water management. For businesses and investors you need a trustfull courtsystem and laws, what Thailand not have. And so on.. But to think you can order that without any developpment shows how dumb and incompetent they are and they not even what dumb they are talking. So I guess they doing that because of greed and no understanding at all how Singapore became Singapore and that it was a developpment over decades and not over night.

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22 hours ago, Zool said:

I think you'll find that Asians aren't all caught up in the virtue signaling oppression Olympics that the west is.

I'm not into the woke bs either, but taking a group of people and say only these specific people may not come in, is actual discrimination 😂

At least I know the right words for it. Those woke people would call it racism without thinking, as if 'backpacker' is a race. Or sexism, because some may identify as backpacker. 

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21 hours ago, AussieBob said:

The thing about backpackers, as found in Australia, is that they travel around a lot and spend their money with the locals. They do occasionally work for cash here and there, but they spend that money - again with the locals. They tend to get involved with the local culture and they dont tend to become part of the local criminals (drug imports etc.). They also will sometimes decide to stay longer (spend more) and some stay forever - plus some go back and later come back as an immigrant.  But if you look at only the 'surface' stuff like paying cheap rents and eating cheap, those pluses are not counted.  Because of all their net positives, Australia has 3 and 6 month 'backpacker' Visa (from selected countries), and they are allowed to work (and pay taxes) in that period. Many of those bar/restaurant workers in the big cities of Australia are UK and USA backpackers on an extended holiday - they make money in the cities and then they go to the country and spend it. And some of them actually decide to stay (meet a girl/boy or get a great job) and some use that to check out the country before applying to emigrate later. 

Meanwhile, in Australia we found out that the Chinese and Indian and Russian tourists dont spend anywhere near as much as they come on cheap 'packages', and they have a higher tendency to get up to no good, and they contribute SFA to the economy overall, and they give very little net benefit. Plus they are rude and arrogant, and show respect for our customs and social norms. 

Tell those UK and USA backpackers that they are more than welcome in Australia - and even from some other countries too.  Thailand doesn't want them, nor does Indonesia/Bali - we dont have the culture or history, but our rainforests and beaches and tropical island resorts (many work there) are the best and cleanest and safest in the world. Just dont leave your shoes outside - deadly spiders love to nest in them overnight - only kidding - deadly snakes actually 😁

The ski resorts in western Canada are almost 100% Aussie workers in hotels/bars/restaurants and the mountain itself

 

And Caanada/Australia actually has a 2 year recip agreement

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I remember 15 or 20 years ago when Thailand said exactly the same thing. They wanted to do away with the backpackers and go after high end tourists (and they've been saying it in various degrees since).

Lately, it's been more along the lines of 'get rid of the sexpats and go for the wholesome milk skinned families.'

So be it. Let them try. The market will decide. Backpackers still come here - despite the crackdown on full moon parties and rising prices. Sexpats still have a decent time despite their best efforts to implant a 7 eleven and mini-mart where every bar once was, have early closing times, and restrict liquor.

I've been to a number of high end destinations and Bangkok doesn't really fit in with that group. It's sort of like Manila trying to be Baden-Baden or Monaco.

 

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