Chinese tourists flocking to Pattaya for transgender shows, Thai food, property – but not for sex
The notorious sleazy side to Thai seaside resort Pattaya is not what is pulling in millions of Chinese tourists every year who, guided by social media like WeChat, go to see things like Tiffany’s Show, and are even buying property
A transgender extravaganza that has been running since 1974, Tiffany’s Show in Pattaya is still going strong, packing in hundreds of ogling tourists every night. The entrance fee is not cheap – 900 baht (US$28) for an ordinary ticket and 1,600 baht for VIP seats – but this does not put off an audience that nowadays is more than 60 per cent made up of Chinese tourists.
Of the 35 million international tourists who visited Thailand last year, about 30 per cent came from China, making it Thailand’s main tourist market for the third year in a row. Pattaya, a seaside resort town with a seedy reputation 100km southeast of Bangkok, attracted between 2 million and 3 million Chinese tourists last year, out of an estimated 10 million international visitors, according to local tourism authorities.
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Unlike tourists from many other countries, however, the Chinese do not seem to be attracted to Pattaya for its notorious nightlife of girlie bars and prostitution. They are more interested in all other things Thai, including the food, silk and the exotic “ladyboy” performances staged by the 44-year-old Tiffany’s Show.
“Many people have already visited the show and they have recommended it,” says Chan Xiali, 30, waiting outside the venue’s entrance with a friend. “We want to see the show because they [transgenders] are so beautiful and dance so gracefully. There is nothing like this in China.”
Chan, from Guangdong province, is a so-called FIT (foreign independent tourist) visiting Thailand, but is constantly guided by social media advisers such as WeChat, which provides input on everything from hotels to street food.
“I think the Chinese who come to Pattaya now are better informed,” says Alisa Phanthusak, managing director of Tiffany’s Show and part of the family that established it. “Everywhere they go in Pattaya they have WeChat giving them suggestions all the time. So this is the new word of mouth. And if you consider that China has a billion people, if you can get them all plugged in by word of mouth via social media, that’s your marketing.”
