The Thai Minister for Tourism and Sports, Mr. Chumpol Silapa-archa, urged residents of the Middle East not to forget Thailand as an attractive holiday, business, medical and wellness destination, when addressing a press conference today in Dubai hosted by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM), Dubai International Conference Centre. The minister highlighted the Thai people's desire for a peaceful resolve to the current situation and the robust nature of Thailand's tourism industry to quickly attract visitors following such challenges.
He said: "Thai people will work together to resolve the current situation and move ahead. Thailand's tourism sector has proven its ability to bounce back in the past. Our tourism offering has many strengths. The things that make Thailand such an appealing destination for visitors from all over the world are still in place, and I am confident that Thailand's tourism sector will quickly recover and rebuild once the current situation is resolved."
Also in attendance at the press conference was the new Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), Mr. Suraphon Svetasreni, who highlighted the 50 year old tourism body's new challenges to restructure Thailand's tourism operations and products to meet the changes in both external and internal environments.
Says Mr. Suraphon Svetasreni; "As the new TAT Governor, I will focus on digital marketing; strengthening Thailand's brand image; promoting sustainable tourism, and ensuring effective crisis management and response. I also plan to step up our coordination efforts to enhance public-private co-operation. I strongly believe that if the first 50 years of tourism development focused largely on maximising the economic returns, the next 50 years will require an equivalent focus on minimising the ecological impact of tourism."
The Middle East is considered an important and fast-growing market for Thai tourism recording an average annual growth rate of around 10% between 1999 and 2005. In 2009, arrivals from the Middle East were up around 5% to more than 370,000, with the top source markets being the UAE (84,000), Kuwait (44,500) and Oman (41,000).
For the first two months of 2010 Thailand received over 100,000 visitors from the Middle East which was a robust 39% increase compared to the same period in 2009. Reasons for the growth are cited as visa facilitation efforts and growing direct aviation links especially through the Gulf countries. At present, citizens of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates can obtain visa-free entry to Thailand. As of May 2010, 117 direct scheduled flights per week, operated by 12 airlines, connect Thailand to nine countries in the Middle East. These airlines include Emirates, Qatar Airways, Gulf Air, Etihad Airways, Kuwait Airways, Oman Air, Iran Air, Royal Jordanian Airlines, Egypt Air, Mahan Air, Turkish Airlines and Thai Airways International.
The marketing focus for Thailand in the Middle East for 2010 was declared by the Governor to promote Thailand's strengths in terms of the "3Gs", namely "Good Health", "Good Food", and "Good Price", with "Good Health" referring to Thailand's internationally recognized medical and wellness tourism products. "Good Food" refers to Thailand's Halal gourmet produce. Under a five-year plan starting this year, the government plans to spend up to 5 billion Baht or around 155 million US Dollars to market Thai Halal food to international Muslim consumer. The strategy also includes plans to encourage hotel entrepreneurs and restaurant operators to improve their services to meet the varying demands of Muslim visitors. Finally, "Good Price" will highlight Thailand as an affordable, value for money, luxury destination, both in terms of luxury accommodation and the vast shopping opportunities available.
Concluding the presentation, the Governor of TAT, Mr. Suraphon Svetasreni, reassured potential Middle East visitors to Thailand of the availability of many destinations and attractions within Thailand not affected by the recent politcal incidents by stating; "Tourists who visit Thailand can continue to enjoy their journey if they are travelling to areas outside of Bangkok, or if they avoid the areas within Bangkok where the political activities are taking place. - Life in almost all of Thailand continues as usual."
