Review of ‘Thailand: Tourism & the Truth’.

by Kristy Blakeley - 21 July 2011

The program started with Stacey spending time, as many people do, enjoying the warm sunshine, glorious hotels and high standard of service in the resort of Phuket, before taking on the role of a room attendant at the hotel. She came to realise that the local people who are employed in these positions are pushed to their limits, working 6 days a week, cleaning 14 rooms to a very high standard each day and being paid £4 for the privilege.

Of course we all expect our rooms to be ready and to be pristine when we arrive, even when it is on an 8am flight, but do we think about the people making it this way?

The minimum wage in Thailand ranges from 148 Thai baht (£3.00) to 203 baht (£4.12) per day. The room attendants come to Phuket as the hotels pay better wages here than in other provinces. Many of the employees stay in dormitory accommodation provided by the hotel and are not allowed to have their families/children live with them. They see them once a month on average but travelling to the outer provinces costs money and this will eat away at the savings that they can send home to their families.

The alternative option is pretty grim – Stacey spent time with another room attendant who had chosen not live in the hotel accommodations. As you can imagine, to live in Phuket comes at a premium and £4 a day does not stretch far. She lives, in what can only be described as slums, on the outskirts of town. She makes this sacrifice for her freedom and to be able to come and go without asking permission.

Is a ‘cheap’ package holiday really worth splitting up families or making people live in squalor?

What can be done about this?

As a tour operator sending travellers to Thailand, we have a responsibility to make sure that our holidays are run in as responsible and sustainable way as possible. We take this very seriously, and while we do need to work within the systems operating in any particularly country, there is still a lot we can do when it comes to selecting resorts and areas to promote, and putting pressure on local suppliers to act as responsibly as possible. In Thailand we try to use as many local and family owned, smaller hotel properties as possible, and to avoid the mass market package resorts where some of the problems mentioned above are at their worst. You can read more information about our Responsible Tourism policy here

What can you as a traveller do?

• Be mindful of the impact your ‘footprint’ is making.
• When thinking about your holiday arrangements, ask to discuss with us the boutique or family run hotel options. You may also enjoy accommodations a little off the beaten track like the tree and raft houses in Khao Sok National Park and home stays in Kanchanaburi and Chiang Mai that allow you to see more of the country.
• Be generous when tipping locals who look after you during your stay (eg. hotel staff, street food vendors, guides and drivers).
• Spend some time talking to the local people; sometimes an English lesson is more valuable to them than your leftover coins.

When you travel in Thailand you’ll find that the Thai people set an amazing example in their kindness, respect and generosity to you as a visitor – if you try and reciprocate all of these, it will really enhance your experience of visiting this beautiful country.