Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Local Hua Hin and regional Thailand news articles and discussion.
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404cameljockey
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by 404cameljockey »

GOOD JOB. The only people not sick of running their hands through the sand and sieving out cigarette butts must be the smokers complaining here.
Fines are not enough to make a real impact on the moronic behaviour of some smokers. Smoking is allowed in designated areas. I smoked on the beach last night. There was no refuse bin so I put the dogend in a paper tissue until I got back to the bar.
Dog faeces is another problem, I agree but do not confuse the two. A strong law for either is fine.
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by Spitfire »

Singling out smokers whiffs of the Thai killjoy brigade, like the holier-than-thou anti-alcohol lobby finger wagers, that get their way often. Why aren't they just enforcing a much stricter littering law policy in general? And it should also be coupled with a high profile educational "Keep Thailand Tidy" campaign on TV, printed and social media. Remember the one in the UK in the 80s or so....worked well and many things still have the "Keep Britain Tidy" symbol still on them, I believe. Long overdue here and it's good to target contemptuous smokers within it but it should be all littering.

Seeing as how nationalist and prideful etc. the locals are in general of all things Thai & Thainess, it surprises me how completely apathetic they are on this issue. Guess it's 'out of sight is out of mind' and the 'couldn't give a fcuk' attitude of many exposed good and proper.
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by MDMK »

Takiap wrote: Wed Oct 11, 2017 7:36 am
I seriously doubt that there has ever been a single person who decided not to spend their holiday in Thailand simply because people were allowed to smoke on the beaches here. On the other hand, if I were still young, free and single, and I heard you were not allowed to smoke on the beaches in Thailand, I probably would never have come here. Naturally, I would have thought that if you cannot even have a cigarette on the beach, what other draconian are there.

While this new law may not have a big impact on tourism, I firmly believe that it will deter some people from visiting, and for Thailand's sake, let's hope all the Chinese smokers don't decide to go elsewhere because of this.
I smoke. We're looking at HH for future retirement, and in the mean time a couple of months there each year. If smoking gets banned on beaches then we'll just go elsewhere. I'm not someone who ever lies sunbathing on a beach, I rarely, if ever, swim in the sea. But I love walking along quiet beaches. I walk and smoke. I always carry my cigs, a lighter and a very small tin which I use as an ashtray (carry my tin everywhere, not just Thailand). I would wholeheartedly support heavy fines for smokers who throw their butts away, it's littering after all, and I want to see all littering heavily fined. But if I am restricted to "smoking zones" on beaches, nope, our holidays and retirements will be elsewhere in Asia.

I wouldn't mind smoking zones on beaches at the busy spots populated by lots of people. Say an area with sunbeds or tables & chairs close to each other, to say "these sunbeds/tables/chairs here are for smokers, and those sunbeds/tables/chairs there are for non-smokers", I welcome those kinds of moves. But if I can't stroll along largely deserted beaches smoking, nope, I'll go elsewhere. I already avoid busy parts of beaches. I already avoid sitting smoking anywhere where other people are. To ban me from walking along a beach smoking, while 99% of the time I never even come within 20 meters of another person is just stupid. No one (apart from the terminally-offended-at-any-hint-of-smoking-brigade) has any negative side effects to my smoking, so I don't plan to change how I do it. I'd just change country.
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by buksida »

Looks like this will only come into effect on touristy beaches, such as Hua Hin, where the revenue stream from fines will be greater. Can't see it working or being enforced on the hundreds of other empty beaches across Thailand. The choices are easy - don't pick the target touristy areas if you want more freedom.
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by Big Boy »

buksida wrote: Wed Oct 11, 2017 5:14 pm Looks like this will only come into effect on touristy beaches, such as Hua Hin
But the most touristy part of the beach in Hua Hin isn't affected.
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by MDMK »

this is what's confusing me ....

I could smoke at 2pm in the busy area in front of the Hilton/Centara. I don't want to do that anyway but if I did do it would be smoking in very close proximity to very many non-smokers. But that would be ok.

What I did do most days was access the beach via the little soi across from Soi 94 (soi 75 I think it's called) and would wander the beach somewhere between Market Village and The Marakesh Condo. Did this for an hour in the very early morning just after sunrise, it was largely deserted. The people who I did see I never came closer than 20 meters or so to them so non one could possibly have had any nuissance effect from my smoking. But I would be forbidden from doing this as it's in the 12km exclusion zone.

As a woman alone, I like peace and quiet (and a smoke) on my little strolls, which is why I generally walk in quiet areas at off-peak times, but I also don't like to wander totally deserted in the middle of nowhere beaches at sunrise. I just wouldn't feel safe.

I guess I either stop smoking or start looking at Penang, lol.
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by caller »

It defies all logic that the busiest area in front of the Hilton isn't included in the exclusion zone.
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by Big Boy »

I'm just back from walking my dogs on the beach. As I was walking, I was thinking about the effect this would have on each big hotel I walked past. Then the brain cells started working overtime, thinking back to the major beach clean-up when all sunbeds, umbrellas etc were removed from the beach. Hotels were exempt on their own beach fronts.

I was wondering if there will be a similar exemption regarding smokers in front of hotels.
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by Ralfredo »

Big Boy wrote: Wed Oct 11, 2017 8:57 pmHotels were exempt on their own beach fronts.
Not all hotels or all times. I've been to Anantasila several Wednesdays when they didn't have the sun beds on the beach. Guess if I saw any cleaning going on... :roll:
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by Big Boy »

OK, my fault :oops: , but we're drifting off topic here.
Ralfredo wrote: Wed Oct 11, 2017 9:52 pm Guess if I saw any cleaning going on... :roll:
I don't know about Anantasila, but Intercontinental clean their beachfront at night, and a very good job they do too.

:offtopic:
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by Vital Spark »

Good posts MDMK. You echo my sentiments totally.

I have a little pouch for my cigarette butts that I got from the UK, which I put my still lit cigarette ends in and squash them dead. I empty it out when I get home. They're given out free by various local councils. It's really handy in Thailand when I've finished a ciggie and there's no bin around (which is pretty much the norm).

Pretty much every day I see a Thai dropping rubbish on the ground. Usually empty cola bags tossed by the passenger on a motorcycle, with, of course, the totally non-biodegradable plastic straw. Every day I pick up plastic bags that have accumulated outside the gate of my house. If the government really wants to do something about rubbish, they should subsidize biodegradable packaging for all takeaway food and force every store to charge for plastic bags to finance the subsidizing.

I guess some non-smoking, non-drinking, sad little general wants to justify why he's been promoted into a position waaay above his abilities by coming up with a stupid law. :cuss:

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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by buksida »

:agree:

The international media are now running the story. Plus one for tourism :roll:.

https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2017 ... st-beaches
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by Big Boy »

Out of interest, we know it's going to be 100,000 Baht and/or 1 year in prison for smoking.

Does anybody know the penalty for fly tipping? In proportion, I guess it must be a lethal injection or firing squad. Maybe just life imprisonment if you admit the crime :?

I hate smoking, but this is the silliest idea yet from The Ministry of Silly Ideas.
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by Ralfredo »

Big Boy wrote: Thu Oct 12, 2017 9:32 amI hate smoking, but this is the silliest idea yet from The Ministry of Silly Ideas.
:P :rasta: :laugh:
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Re: Smoking ban on Hua Hin and Thai beaches, jail time for offenders

Post by STEVE G »

Yes, I don't smoke but after reading this thread yesterday, I was walking along the beach from Khao Takiap to Khao Tao and I didn't particularly notice either anyone smoking or any number of discarded cigarette ends so I'm not sure exactly what the problem is.
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