Just came back from Thailand and wanna talk about Tourists and their lack of respect for the environment

[norwegiandude86]

So long story short I went down to the islands in the south and found out the most famous beach Maya Bay was closed, for those who don't remember it was the location featured in the movie The Beach with Leo DiCaprio.

5000 tourists a day but the Thai government closed it off because it was completely ruined and now has returned to its natural beauty again and it will likely remain closed for another three years.

I was shocked to see so many young people from the west many of whom seem highly educated just treat these places like their own personal playground, these are the same folks who give moral lectures on the environment when they are at home but stops caring when they are abroad.

I saw so many tourist just throw trash everywhere even though there are plenty of places to dispose of bottles and trash nearby.

It just pisses me off and had to rant on it for a bit but a video was made on the topic a few days ago.

 

[samoyed]

Yeah tourists suck. Good for the local economy but bad for the local environment. It's a complicated problem that goes back all the way to the way someone is raised and respect for other people's living space. Media exacerbates this by playing up the foreign experience but not tying enough personal responsibility for it. Tourism advertising and mass-media blogs are in the business of selling dreams, not responsibility and sustainability.

 

[Marin-Lune]

Not denying the impact of (mass) tourism, environmental and beyond, but I myself have been and worked & lived in many places where locals treat their own backyard way worse than visitors. Especially in SEA...

If anything, I'd talk about foreigners' behaviours and lack of cultural awareness in these countries.

 

[Kapryov]

This shit just boggles the mind.

Travel - especially to foreign and unfamiliar places - has only made me more open-minded and self aware. The total lack of respect described is simply inconceivable.

 

[Emergency & I]

Come to America. People throw trash everywhere or just leave it places because they're too fucking lazy to get it to a trash can probably 20 ft away.

 

[aleminkirali]

At the current moment I live in Bangkok for almost a year. While the tourism is bad for the environment there are so many things that need to change in Thailand. If you have been here you will know the over usage of plastic and especially the plastic bags. You buy a small bottle of water in 7/11 and they put it in a bag. I always refuse myself.

The other problem is the usage of cars. There are just too many cars. From what I have learned from the locals this is tied to corruption. They can't heavily invest in public transport because of the taxi's, motorbike taxi's and tuktuks.

I am not saying all is bad. We could learn alot in the West from these people also. Like washing your ass with a bumgun 😉

Edit: There are not many trashcans either on the street. Sometimes I have to walk with a empty can for 20 minutes in my hand. A tourist would be like fuck it and throw it on the street.

 

[Donos]

Read an (german) article recently about how cheap ways of traveling changed many former niche places. Nowadays beautiful beaches and places are easy to reach so people want to go to even more "untouched" or remote places, since these are also nice to show on social media and talk about in social circles. "I went to Paris / Miami / Lima" doesn't cut it but when they can show beautiful places not many people go to, people feel good.

Article touched also on how bloggers/intsta people with many followers who post pics about these remote places ignite a run from people who want to make a pic there too. These places often don't really cope well with the influx of people.

Also happens with chinese people. There is a farm in the US with a field of colorful blooming flowers and when a famous chinese girl took pictures/vids there and i t got shown on TV, chinese people pilgrimaged to this places in droves. Granted the place wasn't fit for thousands of people, cars/busses. Owner made some $$$ and even hired someone who could speak chinese.

One shorter article (german): http://www.spiegel.de/reise/fernweh...m-ruiniert-diese-orte-komplett-a-1233701.html

Google Translate (pics not working right)
https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=de&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http://www.spiegel.de/reise/fernweh/reisefotos-in-sozialen-medien-instagram-ruiniert-diese-orte-komplett-a-1233701.html

DeepL.com does maybe a better job translating it. (copy article text into it)

 

[Rangerx]

I travelled around Thailand for two months around ten years ago. There was a village called Pai up north that was popular with tourists. At night time when the main street was full of people pissing,vomiting, and throwing shit on the ground. You could tell the locals just wanted everyone to fuck off.

 

[signal]

Article touched also on how bloggers/intsta people with many followers who post pics about these remote places ignite a run from people who want to make a pic there too. These places often don't really cope well with the influx of people.

Click to shrink...

 

[Datajoy]

Most south east asian countries are full of the worst kind of tourists.. particularly from western countries.

 

[ZackieChan]

At the current moment I live in Bangkok for almost a year. While the tourism is bad for the environment there are so many things that need to change in Thailand. If you have been here you will know the over usage of plastic and especially the plastic bags. You buy a small bottle of water in 7/11 and they put it in a bag. I always refuse myself.

The other problem is the usage of cars. There are just too many cars. From what I have learned from the locals this is tied to corruption. They can't heavily invest in public transport because of the taxi's, motorbike taxi's and tuktuks.

I am not saying all is bad. We could learn alot in the West from these people also. Like washing your ass with a bumgun 😉

Edit: There are not many trashcans either on the street. Sometimes I have to walk with a empty can for 20 minutes in my hand. A tourist would be like fuck it and throw it on the street.

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No lies detected. Lived here longer and this is all true.

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Yes, people take photos on vacation. Crazy, huh?

 

[Datajoy]

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All I'm seeing here are some great boyfriends.

 

[IDreamOfHime]

To be fair, its not just tourists. Thai's are doing a superb job fucking things up themselves. They have a huge plastic problem that they seem happy to ignore.



Koh Taos plastic mountain is an embarrassment.

It pisses me off buying anything from a seven and them trying to load me up with plastic. I don't need a bag for gum!

 

[Wackamole]

you're a horrible person if you do that.
Some parents really did a shitty job.

 

[signal]

Yes, people take photos on vacation. Crazy, huh?

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Angry influencer detected.

 

[massoluk]

Native here, I went to many half-marathons in Thailand's National Parks, kinda pissed me off when I saw Western runners (some Thais too) just nonchalantly threw water bottles into the woods after so many pleas from the organizers. The money go to conservation, but sometime I doubt if this is worth it

 

[ZackieChan]

Native here, I went to many half-marathons in Thailand's National Park, kinda pissed me off seeing when I see Western runners (some Thais too) just nonchalantly threw water bottle into the wild after so many pleas from the organizers. The money go to conservation, but sometime I doubt if this is worth it

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Just spent a week in Seoul, and the difference is stark. Sad, really, because I love this city. Wish people treated it with more respect!

 

[Saya]

It's a big problem in Southeast Asia.

 

[Hrodulf]

Come to America. People throw trash everywhere or just leave it places because they're too fucking lazy to get it to a trash can probably 20 ft away.

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As a university student, I can confirm this. Garbage and recycling bins all over the place, yet people still throw their empty water bottles in the brush.

 

[the magical kitsune]

Traveled to Ko Phi Phi in 2016 and yeah it was some experience. Party hostels and garbage everywhere, and every night you'd just see a bunch of white people wasted and barfing on the side of the street.

 

[Cipherr]

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Lol damn.

 

[erd]

Read an (german) article recently about how cheap ways of traveling changed many former niche places. Nowadays beautiful beaches and places are easy to reach so people want to go to even more "untouched" or remote places, since these are also nice to show on social media and talk about in social circles. "I went to Paris / Miami / Lima" doesn't cut it but when they can show beautiful places not many people go to, people feel good.

Article touched also on how bloggers/intsta people with many followers who post pics about these remote places ignite a run from people who want to make a pic there too. These places often don't really cope well with the influx of people.

Also happens with chinese people. There is a farm in the US with a field of colorful blooming flowers and when a famous chinese girl took pictures/vids there and i t got shown on TV, chinese people pilgrimaged to this places in droves. Granted the place wasn't fit for thousands of people, cars/busses. Owner made some $$$ and even hired someone who could speak chinese.

One shorter article (german): http://www.spiegel.de/reise/fernweh...m-ruiniert-diese-orte-komplett-a-1233701.html

Google Translate (pics not working right)
https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=de&sl=auto&tl=en&u=http://www.spiegel.de/reise/fernweh/reisefotos-in-sozialen-medien-instagram-ruiniert-diese-orte-komplett-a-1233701.html

DeepL.com does maybe a better job translating it. (copy article text into it)

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This reminds me of this article about Trolltunga, which got really famous for the awesome looking instagram shots you can take there:

Unfortunately, it got so popular that people apparently need to queue for hours before being able to take that shot:

But a bunch of behind-the-scenes videos on social media expose the reality of the spot – with hundreds of tourists lining up for hours for their turn to get the Instagrammable snap.

And that means you'll get a couple of minutes – tops – to take the perfect shot, before tired tourists start tutting and you're forced to move on.

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It's one of a number of places that have exploded in popularity since the advent of ubiquitous smartphones with good quality cameras. Before 2010, just 800 people hiked to Trolltunga each year. But by 2016 more than 80,000 make the trek from nearby Skjeggedal, making it one of Norway's most popular hikes.

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The article also mentions this creates safety concerns, as hiking down after dark (after waiting for hours at the top) can be pretty dangerous.

 

[massoluk]

They are not going to allow anchor at the beach after opening and set a tourist quota after reopening, about time. Honestly blew my mind when I saw the amount of boats anchoring at that beach last I went there (me unwitting part of the problem unfortunately:/)

 

[Donos]

This reminds me of this article about Trolltunga, which got really famous for the awesome looking instagram shots you can take there:

Unfortunately, it got so popular that people apparently need to queue for hours before being able to take that shot:



The article also mentions this creates safety concerns, as hiking down after dark (after waiting for hours at the top) can be pretty dangerous.

Click to shrink...

Yeah, Trolltunga is mentioned in one of the pictures in the german linked article. Shot from the side :(http://www.spiegel.de/fotostrecke/i...-auf-instagram-sind-fotostrecke-164488-6.html)
Friend was also there and mentioned how many people where there and waited for taking a picture. Some complaining about others who took their time.

 

[SWoS]

They are not going to allow anchor at the beach after opening and set a tourist quota after reopening, about time. Honestly blew my mind when I saw the amount of boats anchoring at that beach last I went there (me unwitting part of the problem unfortunately:/)

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Most people are an unwitting part of the problem. Probably stems from all the social media posts that are out of context.

"That person is alone on that incredible beach!". Nope, there were hundreds of people just out of the frame.

Ethical tourism is becoming much harder to do as travel is so cheap now. Not saying cheap travel is bad, it just is what it is.

 

[massoluk]

Hopefully you can zoom in, those are all the boats crammed into the beach area

 

[bane833]

The local governments need to crack down on this shit. Throwing trash around is unacceptable no matter where you are.

 

[DosaDaRaja]

Will never forget some drunk old white fart was trying to pick a fight/swindle the wallets of random (brown) passers-by in Sukhumvit Road, Bangkok, probably to fuel his hooker addiction.

Or no one batting an eye at that dude for doing the same.

And then the Thai have the gall to place whites on a higher pedestal than others...

 

[ahoyhoy]

For the environment's sake, we all need to stop traveling so damn much.

The internet should have allowed us to forgo travel, not encourage it.

 

[Deleted member 28131]

Yeah, people can be so disrespectful. You see it heaps in Bali, Indonesia, with Aussie tourists. Last time I went with a cousin of mine, I was surprised how much of an ass he was to some of the locals.

 

[Deleted member 2809]

For the environment's sake, we all need to stop traveling so damn much.

The internet should have allowed us to forgo travel, not encourage it.

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But then how do I post cool pictures on my instagram for cool followers ? How do you get meaning in life without that ?

 

[Futureman]

Going to Thailand right now (at airport).

I don't litter at home and won't abroad!

 

[Travo]

A lot of Americans are fucking awful at being responsible. There's a McDonald's a mile and a half from my house. In the time between McDonald's and my house, people have finished their food then throw their trash in my yard.

 

[PintSizedSlasher]

Yeah, it's horrible.
Question though: how did you get there? In Thailand I mean.

 

[Gekidami]

Yea Thailand is like the first step for teenagers and 20 somethings who are travelling for the first time.

It gets pretty bad there but it's still a beautiful country

 

[Jaaake]

My mother was telling me the other day how every time there is a cruise ship docking here, the amount of smoke butts that are dropped goes up tenfold. She works for a hotel near the wharf that has bins plastered around but the tourists don't give a shit and just throw them anywhere.

Incredibly frustrating

 

[siddx]

Not denying the impact of (mass) tourism, environmental and beyond, but I myself have been and worked & lived in many places where locals treat their own backyard way worse than visitors. Especially in SEA...

If anything, I'd talk about foreigners' behaviours and lack of cultural awareness in these countries.

Click to shrink...

Yup. Spent most of my life in SEA. As bad as tourist can be, and I fucking loathe most tourists, the way many locals treat the environment is far more appaling. Vietnam was the worst.

 

[honest_ry]

Its not just Thailand. Its humans in general.

 

[ZackieChan]

Will never forget some drunk old white fart was trying to pick a fight/swindle the wallets of random (brown) passers-by in Sukhumvit Road, Bangkok, probably to fuel his hooker addiction.

Or no one batting an eye at that dude for doing the same.

And then the Thai have the gall to place whites on a higher pedestal than others...

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Luckily, the locals would never dream of scamming a tourist
(Not all locals, of course, but this is such a weird anecdotal accusation)

A lot of Americans are fucking awful at being responsible. There's a McDonald's a mile and a half from my house. In the time between McDonald's and my house, people have finished their food then throw their trash in my yard.

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Not even remotely an American thing. People litter worldwide.

 

[Buckle]

Come to America. People throw trash everywhere or just leave it places because they're too fucking lazy to get it to a trash can probably 20 ft away.

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The amount of people that just throw shit out of their car is depressing.

"Meh. Someone else's problem now."

 

[gdt]

For the environment's sake, we all need to stop traveling so damn much.

The internet should have allowed us to forgo travel, not encourage it.

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Lol what.

Cheap travel is a blessing now. I think local laws and rules just have to clamp down on this shitty behavior.

 

[Fliesen]

Not even remotely an American thing. People litter worldwide.

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But not to the same degree, i'm afraid. I'm always flabbergasted when doing a road trip to the US how there's all those signs and fees against littering and people still apparently just toss their shit everywhere.

Like, you stop at a "scenic point" sign and you're in awe seeing this.

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and you look down and you're disgusted seeing this.

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I'm sorry, but i've never seen anything remotely like that - neither where i live (Austria), nor in the many other places i've visited.
So, while it doesn't need to be an "exclusively American" thing, neither is it an "all over the world" thing either.

(That's in Hawai'i btw, and not a particularly dramatic example - but i've had many similar experiences during road trips across both, the Pacifici West as well as the US East Coast)

In general, the US has a way different relationship towards trash / recycling in general, compared to many European countries

 

[Karu]

This reminds me of this article about Trolltunga, which got really famous for the awesome looking instagram shots you can take there:

Unfortunately, it got so popular that people apparently need to queue for hours before being able to take that shot:



The article also mentions this creates safety concerns, as hiking down after dark (after waiting for hours at the top) can be pretty dangerous.

Click to shrink...

I went there in 2013. We started our tour around midday, which was way too late, as it got dark during the way back. The first part of the road is really steep, not lit at all obviously and the opposite of a straight way. It was scary as all fuck lol. There was no line up at the Trolltunga then. Cue one year later, when we went back with better preparation and way earlier... arrived at the tongue and BOOM hundreds of people waiting in line. I was like... ohhhhh shit. Well, I got my photo a year earlier, luckily.

 

[PintSizedSlasher]

Lol what.

Cheap travel is a blessing now. I think local laws and rules just have to clamp down on this shitty behavior.

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Maybe you should look up what kind of effect air travel has on your carbon footprint?

 

[Ginta]

Yeah could not visit the turtle island because tourists fucked up too much and now it's off limits for a couple years. Chinese are no better tho, leaving trash on the table when the bin is 6ft away.

They want to get rid of plastic bags by 2020 I read. Unlikely, but they started having plastic free days now. But 7-11 and pretty much every other store is full of plastic too.

 

[ahoyhoy]

Lol what.

Cheap travel is a blessing now. I think local laws and rules just have to clamp down on this shitty behavior.

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I think it's amazing that air travel is cheap enough that people can travel if they really need to.

But I don't think millions of people should be doing transcontinental travel annually. The carbon emissions alone from that much burning fuel is staggering.

I've flown over the Atlantic twice but I think I'll probably wait to go again for the environment's sake.

 

[ravnelis]

After travelling a bit and observing how tourists behave... I think that bad habits cultivated at home are x10 worse when abroad. It's a bit like when people are anonymous on the internet and feel free to just spew vile shit they wouldn't say out loud, face to face with someone.

I have been to Thailand and saw how people behave. I actually avoided the biggest crowds because I went off season... it was still bad. I remember picking up trash from a beach after a couple from Europe/US had a few beers, snacks, etc. and just left leaving all their shit on the sand. I guess it was inconvenient to drag few bottles to a trash bin 100 meters away from them.

 

[Deleted member 27246]

Yup. Spent most of my life in SEA. As bad as tourist can be, and I fucking loathe most tourists, the way many locals treat the environment is far more appaling. Vietnam was the worst.

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Lol seriously this. People should see rivers in Indonesia (in the non-tourist spots)

The attitude is changing there too though. Especially considering plastic and that was really needed. If you did groceries there they gave you like 20 plastic bags.

 

[Doctor Doggo]

Yeah I grew up in a big tourist area in New Jersey most of my life. And it is disgusting the total lack of regard that people have for the environment and the locals that live at these places.

New Jersey just banned smoking on all of its beaches recently and you should of seen some of the reactions on NJs subreddit. People think this earth is theirs and they're entitled to what ever the fuck they want to it.

 

[Deleted member 15428]

A plane ticket to Thailand doesn't sound environment-friendly to begin with