Yes, “tourist” costs are a lot of what I was referring to…nice hotels, western food, “REAL” name brand clothes from the mall stores, etc. And no, not years ago, I just arrived in July (piggybacking on my visit from last year) and I have noticed prices have risen in that timeframe, especially hotels even in the “slow” season recently. With the new Visa regs, I think the more popular Thailand becomes, the prices will trend even higher. Would still rather overpay here than in the US. 😁