From today's Bangkok Post:

Flagrantly racist pricing

Yesterday my family and I discovered one of the more unpleasant sides of Thai tourism. We decided to visit Siam Ocean World at Siam Paragon. My children were looking forward to the visit. On arrival at the premises we learned that it is 1,500 baht for family entry _ that is, if you are a Thai family. For a foreign family the entry fee is double: 3,000 baht.

I have never seen a more flagrantly racist policy which is an insult to all foreigners and should not be allowed.

How would Thai people feel if they visited Disneyland or Ocean Park in Hong Kong and there was one price for locals and a double price for overseas visitors?

The Tourism Authority of Thailand needs to stop this travesty, and I hope foreign visitors stop going to Siam Ocean World until entrance fee parity is achieved for locals and visitors alike.

JAMES MIDDLETON

Hong Kong

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The Truly Wise Man Never Plays Leapfrog With A Unicorn

Same for Koh Samet though Bobmac!

The national park fee is more than 4 times for tourists than it is for Thais.

Den

Been there a dozen times now Den and never paid a bean to get in, if they're gonna try to stick me then I'll stick them back.

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The Truly Wise Man Never Plays Leapfrog With A Unicorn

Agree with you, don't like it as well, but: it is not racist.

The same policy applies to all foreigners, so also Japanese, Chinese, Malaysians, etc.

Yes well we like to stay on the beach and there is no way past them now unless you wait til after dark to slip past the pay booth and boom gate.

We got a speedboat across a few times and avoided it but they seem to have employed more rangers to take your baht.

last time we went, there were uniforms on the beach the whole time making sure people didnt slip in on a speedboat without paying.

If you dont stay on the beach then its easy not to pay.

den

It is racist because I've been to Thai historical sites with school groups and as the only caucasion I've been singled out and they try to charge me double, however, I've got through for the flat rate because the head Thai teacher has spoken up, but Filipino and Malaysian teachers just wander through with the Thais without being hit upon. Only caucasion teachers get hit for more, they get singled out because of their different racial features and that's called racism.

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The Truly Wise Man Never Plays Leapfrog With A Unicorn

Den, like a said I stick em right back, can't tell here what I do because everybody will do the same but I never pay them a brass razzoo. In fact whenever I find myself at some place with dual admission fees I explain that I'm not a tourist and in fact live and work in Thailand (for a piddely Thai salary) and pay taxes. I show some Thai ID and usually that does the trick. If it doesn't I turn around and walk away, whatever it is they can shove it up their jumper, they have nothing I want to see that badly. It's a disgusting practice and a national disgrace.

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The Truly Wise Man Never Plays Leapfrog With A Unicorn

This sort of thing coupled with incresingly bad exchange rates and sharply incresed prices and the credit crunch.............(just realised that that is not coupled!) Also sorry for using the word credit crunch as it is a media hysteria word................I digress.......... will keep people away and make them make different choices.
The last visit we had I pointed out to a Thai stall holder that the childrens clothes we were trying to buy were more expensive than back in the UK and was bluntly told well buy them there then!
The dual picing is a liberty and I do class it as racist. Whilst I love all things Thai and have been very vocal about on this site i have visited enough to see an underlying dislike of farang and in particular white farang.
I think that you would have to be pretty short sighted not to see this.
Bob you have lived and worked there and I don't know if you agree with the last comment but I have heard the same from others who live and work there.
Newspaper reports about unfair pricing are very regular from entrance fees to duel pricing in all establishments.
As I say things ar tight for everyone at the moment.

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Kiss
God laughs at people who make plans.

If the attraction is one that is Govt (taxpayer) funded, then I see no problem with it. Thai's should not have to pay the same as they are already part funding the operation. If it is purely a commercial operation it may be different.
I have long thought that we should excercise this same policy in Australia. There are a lot of attractions that are priced out of the average Aussie household budget because they are set based on what a Japanese tourist is prepared to pay. As a tax and ratepayer, I believe this should be subsidised. I believe that if you were to look at this closely youwill find that there are many attractions in the US that have dual pricing policy on a state basis. Not commercial operations like Disneyland but many Parks and natural attractions.
I know that many will disagree but I cant see a problem with this. If you dont like it, you have a choice. It is drawing a long bow to label this as racism.

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I love Thailand this much

thought i posted this once already, abbreviated version.

the dual pricing in see in states is for senior citizens or students, or as in case of disney, discounts for locals, who have probably been there too many times already, so definitely need so motivations.

but here in thialand, charging a tourist or long term guest 1-2-3-4-500 % or more than thai national price is outrageous. here it's not racism, it's nationalism, or better defined as, they got, they pay it. sorry, not this puppy, thiere isn't a park here worth 400, 200 or even the thai charge for some of them. where i come from, it's racism, as pointed out, if you don't look thai/asian, you are charged extra.

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https://sites.google.com/site/lareegem/