Pattaya hotels flounder in March, await April uptick

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Thai Hotels Association Eastern Chapter President Phisut Sae-khu warned that unless the government do away with the Thailand Pass, Test & Go and Sandbox schemes, foreigners will simply choose to go elsewhere.

Hotel occupancy in Pattaya fell slightly in March, and 20% of all accommodations remain closed, an industry association said.

A survey by the Thai Hotels Association found a nationwide occupancy rate of 33%, down a point from February.

April’s numbers are expected to improve, due to a slight relaxation of tourist-entry rules, Songkran and the government’s latest subsidized tourism campaign for Thais.

Foreign tourists made up only 35% of hotel guests, most of them from Europe.



THA Eastern Chapter President Phisut Sae-khu warned that, unless the government do away with the Thailand Pass, Test & Go and Sandbox schemes, foreigners will simply choose to go elsewhere, including Thailand’s neighbors, which either have removed all restrictions or retained much less complex and expensive rules.

Local tourists enjoy the view from the top of Pratamnak Hill over the beautiful Pattaya Bay lined with hundreds of hotels and apartments housing tens of thousands of rooms which are mostly empty.