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The Death of the Full Moon Party

bbc.co.uk

31–40 of 68 posts

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#31
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's true by definition? But you're probably not displacing jobs for the locals, which is the typical justification for why it's hard for foreigners to get local work permits.

The rationale I've seen is that you're contributing less (risk-adjusted) to the country's economy than either a tourist (who would be spending more) or someone on a work visa (who would have a stable job and be paying local taxes) would.

The belief that DNs necessarily pay less than tourists is largely based on stereotypes. In order to be able to focus on work, DNs tend to look for full apartment rentals, often in relatively upscale places where fast and reliable internet is guaranteed. In many countries that means they are already paying less than ordinary backpackers who are staying in hostel accommodation.

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Unpopular opinion: If you're a "digital nomad", you're not a tourist. You're working.

That's true by definition? But you're probably not displacing jobs for the locals, which is the typical justification for why it's hard for foreigners to get local work permits.

> But you're probably not displacing jobs for the locals

That's incredibly arrogant and patronising, you're absolutely displacing jobs from locals, who could also working remotely for a foreign company

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#33
post #19
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In theory yes, although you probably want to declare yourself as tourist in many countries, unless you want to have some fun with local authorities.

.. until they find out you've been working without a visa, which (while unlikely) will result in even more "fun". (I do side-eye people who refer to westerners working illegally in the non-west as "digital nomads" while referring to non-westerners doing the same in the west as "illegals")

Digital nomads? They're digital colonists.

It's colonialism in everything but name.

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#34
post #16
post #3

Earlier quoted context omitted.

After years of being against all of those visa-runners and digital nomads of all kinds I am a bit skeptical of Thai goverment actually wanting long-stay tourists.

They were actually quite tolerant of the visa runners. I used an organised service where they drove you to a park on the Myanmar border, you exited Thailand, 5 mins later re-entered Thailand, had a coffee then got the bus back. They could be like Europe and ban you for 90 days after you've been there for 90 days if they wanted to.

You can get away with this twice. Once you hit 180 days in the last year you'll face some probing questions as to exactly what you're doing, and you better have a good answer or they'll simply deny re-entry.

With this being Thailand, of course there's going to be some wriggle room and variation depending on who you get, but it's a pretty high risk roll of the dice.

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#35
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The rationale I've seen is that you're contributing less (risk-adjusted) to the country's economy than either a tourist (who would be spending more) or someone on a work visa (who would have a stable job and be paying local taxes) would.

The belief that DNs necessarily pay less than tourists is largely based on stereotypes. In order to be able to focus on work, DNs tend to look for full apartment rentals, often in relatively upscale places where fast and reliable internet is guaranteed. In many countries that means they are already paying less than ordinary backpackers who are staying in hostel accommodation.

[deleted]

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#36
post #23
post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What have all the Western Scuba instructors been up to during the pandemic?

I haven't spoken to any on Koh Phangan. On Koh Tao (an hour away with boat) they are broke and there's no work. I would guess the situation is the same for diving instructors on Koh Phangan.

I have the feeling that half of the foreigners are broke as they rely on tourism, the other half are doing fine as they're working remotely, how accurate is my assessment?

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's true by definition? But you're probably not displacing jobs for the locals, which is the typical justification for why it's hard for foreigners to get local work permits.

> But you're probably not displacing jobs for the locals That's incredibly arrogant and patronising, you're absolutely displacing jobs from locals, who could also working remotely for a foreign company

You appear to be subscribing to a weird variant of the lump of labor fallacy here. There's nothing stopping the locals from working remotely for a foreign company -- except a shared language, connections in the field, relevant skills and a proven track record, which are why the nomad is employed by the foreign company and the local is not.

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#38

This is very good news. Full moon parties are not the stuff of legend, but rather the lowest point of party tourism in Thailand. Although I think that, give it 5 years, something similar will pop-up somewhere in SEA.

I agree. Unfortunately, equivalents already exist in many places: Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Philippines, Taiwan... with Vietnam well on the way.

What's the equivalent in Vietnam?

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#39
post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

.. until they find out you've been working without a visa, which (while unlikely) will result in even more "fun". (I do side-eye people who refer to westerners working illegally in the non-west as "digital nomads" while referring to non-westerners doing the same in the west as "illegals")

Digital nomads? They're digital colonists. It's colonialism in everything but name.

I probably shouldn't, but I'll bite: how does a dude with a laptop in a beachside cafe implement "the policy of a country seeking to extend or retain its authority over other people or territories, generally with the aim of economic dominance"? They're likely not even paying taxes to their home country.

Re: The Death of the Full Moon Party

#40
post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the Philippines, Boracay used to be a party destination but the govt banned parties last year.

Or this one in Laos that got shutdown. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/apr/07/vang-vieng-lao...

I was there 2 years ago, its a beautiful place. One of my fav in Laos. Shame it will be remember in years to come by those incidents.
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