Bangkok: Business as usual – well almost

by Yeoh Siew hoon

I had never seen Suvarnabhumi airport look so quiet. I sailed through immigration. The woman officer did not look happy at all. I thanked her and she grunted. I sailed through customs – more glum faces than happy arrivals.

It was Monday, the day after the weekend in which airports in Phuket and Krabi were shut down by protestors and the Malaysian and Singapore newspapers were flooded with reports of travellers being stranded in both places.

It wasn’t exactly the kind of news you want to read on a flight bound for Bangkok. On the Thai International flight was a tour group from Penang. I asked them if they were worried. One man answered (in Hokkien), “No, we are only visiting Bangkok. Should be ok.” Another said, “We’ve been many times, so we are not scared.”

The next day a state of emergency was declared in the Thai city, and the media showed scenes of clashes between protestors and troops. One dead, several injured.

All bad news for investor confidence and tourism. In Singapore, there’s an advisory by the government, “Avoid Bangkok”.

The day I was there I did not see or feel there was anything untoward going on. I had three Singaporean friends who were in Bangkok from Saturday through Wednesday and they enjoyed themselves, oblivious to what was going on.

One of them told me, “Bangkok was totally peaceful and there wasn’t a single moment when we felt threatened at all. We received many calls from friends, colleagues and family. All were concerned by the media reports.

“But all the favourite shopping and eating hangouts of Singaporeans were business as usual. Where we were, at Silom everyone was behaving normally – rushing to work, eating, shopping. The Suan Lum night bazaar was very interesting

“Generally we had a good time, enjoying the usual Singaporean pastimes – shopping, eating and massage.”

To contain the damage the Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau issued a statement, saying, “The current protests are limited to the area around Government House and Rajdamnoen Road area; delegates are therefore advised to be prudent and avoid these specific areas. All convention and exhibition venues in Bangkok are unaffected. All major MICE venues are operating normally.:

It added that the declaration of a state of emergency “simply gives the Prime Minister and the Cabinet wider and more direct legal powers to maintain law and order within Bangkok. There are no wider implications such as curfew at present”.

Reassurances such as these can only go so far however. Having travellers stranded at airports, which have been shut down by protestors, is never good for image or business especially for event organisers who fear the same thing happening to their delegates.

Suchada Yuvaboon, managing director of the Rose Garden, reported two group cancellations, the day before the state of emergency was declared.

Peter Caprez, general manager of the JW Marriott, said the booking pace was slowing down. “Meeting group planners are looking at developments on a daily basis. Yes, cancellations did come in for this week and the next, coupled with the postponement of some planned meetings.”

The good news, he said, is that there is a flow of communication which means “meeting planners still have faith in the country and its stability and are interested to re-book with us.”

Like everyone, Caprez is observing the developments for the next seven to 10 days. “By then we should have a better picture about the immediate future.”

He remains optimistic about the coming high season. “Our forecasts indicate there is no change to this pattern. However, the booking window will become shorter than it was before. November looks very promising and there is no change to this expectation.”

Jetstar Asia’s CEO Chong Phit Lian said the airline would also continue to watch developments very closely. “With the travel advisory from the MFA and the continued uncertainty in the Thai capital, we expect demand to Bangkok to be affected in the next few weeks,” she said.

Daniel Desbaillets, COO of the Imperial Hotel Group, said, “Things are normal here and you certainly don’t feel that there is something out there. I would say to travellers to come, turbulence in Thailand is only short-lived.”

Luzi Matzig, group managing director of Asian Trails, calls it a “storm in a tea cup.”

“There is no problem to hold a meeting in Bangkok anytime. We do city tours as normal. The whole affair is more of a carnival.”

Catch up with Yeoh Siew hoon every week at The Transit Cafe – www.thetransitcafe.c