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Is Now the Time to Invest in “The Land of Smiles”?

Jeff D. Opdyke · August 12, 2026 ·

A couple years back, my wife and I spent most of the summer in Koh Samui, Thailand.

Bliss…

It’s such a lovely place. Tropical. Hilly. Beaches everywhere.

While there, I got a tattoo on my inner forearm, which is neither here nor there… except for what I learned while getting it.

The tattoo artist told me during the five-hour session that talk was ramping up about finally building a 12.5-mile bridge between the southern tip of Samui and the mainland.

This is a plan the Thai government had long talked about—and it seemed the push was really beginning to take off.

All I could think about during that conversation were the words of my good friend, international real estate investor and founder of Real Estate Trend Alert, Ronan McMahon…

“It’s the Path of Progress, Jeff.”

Buy well in the “Path of Progress”—and you can make a killing.

In real estate terms, the opportunity comes in buying a property in a place where development is about to bring big changes—a new bridge being built, a new highway being laid—and then waiting for the inevitable price-spike as others begin to notice the progress and want in.

That’s what I saw in my mind as the tattoo artist told me about plans for the bridge…

But the thing is: It’s not just Koh Samui.

These days—as you’ll read in this month’s Global Intelligence—bridges are being built and major infrastructure upgrades are happening across Thailand…

Could now be the time to think about investing there?

Your August Global Intel takes you to “The Land of Smiles”—as we investigate what’s going on in one of Asia’s most exciting economies… and figure out a path to potentially profit.

Get your new issue of Global Intelligence right here.

Issues

About Jeff D. Opdyke

Jeff D. Opdyke is an American financial writer and investment expert based in Portugal. He spent 17 years covering personal finance and investing for the Wall Street Journal, worked as a trader and a hedge fund analyst, and has written 10 books on such topics as investing globally and personal finance.

Future of Wealth 2026

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