In Thailand, Tourists’ U.S. Dollars Go a Long Way, and Then Some

BANGKOK —  Beverly Hills accountant Philip Kal was jubilant. For the price of the suit hanging in his closet at the five-star Oriental Hotel, he had just purchased two tailor-made suits and three dress shirts.

Kal’s $500 clothing spree capped a day of sightseeing and shopping that included some purchases for his wife, Judy Savage, at the Gems Gallery, the world’s largest jewelry store. The evening before, they had indulged in a sumptuous French meal complete with champagne and a 30-year-old bottle of port.

“We don’t usually eat that way,” confided Savage, the head of a Los Angeles children’s talent agency.

Americans visiting the country that calls itself the land of 59 million smiles are living like never before, thanks to a dramatic plunge in the Thai currency that has turned the entire country into a giant half-off sale.

While some tourist spots such as hotels are starting to charge visitors in dollars to protect against a further weakening of the currency, the baht, countless items and services can still be purchased at pre-July 2 prices. That is the day the baht went into a free fall, triggering a regional slump in currency and stock markets that continues to reverberate throughout the world.

Thai officials hope that Americans, who as tourists have lagged far behind Asians and Europeans, will provide a silver lining for this very dark cloud by stepping up their visits to this part of Southeast Asia.

“Tourism is soft right now in spite of the fact that the dollar buys so much more,” said William Heinecke, whose Bangkok-based firm, Minor Group, owns half a dozen hotels in Southeast Asia. “There’s been so much negative press about Thailand that people are not rushing to get on airlines.”

Tourism, one of Thailand’s major hard currency earners, has also suffered badly from similar slumps in the economies of Japan and neighboring countries in Southeast Asia, which have always provided the lion’s share of its visitors.

Meanwhile, once their currency and stock markets began tumbling--they have plunged more than 40% since early July--fearful Thais also quit traveling overseas, leaving tour operators holding pre-purchased air and hotel space abroad with no customers to fill them.

Last month, Piti Sukakul, the managing director of President Tour Co., a leading travel company, checked himself into a hotel in Bangkok and shot himself dead. He was apparently despondent about his company’s financial troubles.

Thai businessmen, desperate for cash, have generally opted not to raise their baht prices, at least not until they sell off their old inventory. A tailor at World Group Co., a popular shop among foreign tourists, said he is still using European fabric imported before the baht’s decline.

All this is good news for tourists, who are able to enjoy some of Asia’s best luxury hotels for $100 to $200 a night, lavish Thai meals with drinks for less than $20 and a hand-tailored suit for less than $200.

Thus for the price of an undistinguished hotel room in Los Angeles, an American visitor can now enjoy the supreme luxury of Bangkok’s 121-year-old Oriental Hotel, immortalized by novelist Joseph Conrad. Its services include a revitalizing seaweed treatment ($43) at the Oriental Spa across the Chao Phraya River, or high tea in the colonial-style lounge ($11.50).

“This puts everything in the United States to shame,” said Kal, the California businessman, who was enjoying a few nights at the Oriental before moving on to Chiang Mai in the north. “I’ve never been treated so well in my whole life.”

Asian airlines are starting to offer special rates, hoping to fill the half-empty flights in and out of Thailand. Savvy U.S. business travelers are booking one-way fares to Thailand and buying a cheaper return ticket in baht, shaving a sizable chunk off the round-trip price.

Thailand is even cheap for budget travelers like Robert Fallowfield and Criss Parrilla of Ketchum, Idaho. Having just completed a trek in Nepal, they were heading to Koh Samui, a small island off Thailand where a rustic beach bungalow can be rented for less than $10 a night.

“After a month in Nepal, we just want to lie on the beach and do nothing,” said Fallowfield, a lawyer.

One of Thailand’s newest tourist attractions is a swap meet with a different twist: the talad nat khon kuey ruay, or “market for the once rich.” It was started several weekends ago as a place for Thailand’s nouveau pauvre to raise some quick bucks.

As one of Bangkok’s most successful Mercedes dealers, Wasun Panon was friends with many of the country’s rich and famous. When their fortunes took a nose dive, he converted a parking garage to a place where Thais could unload their Rolex watches and private aircraft. On a recent weekend, more than 5,000 people shopped there.

“Thai people have been spoiled for so long,” he said. “Even my secretaries bought Louis Vuitton.”