Tourism plan for second half of 2024 unveiled
TAT highlights 11 ‘star countries’ as it sets out to rake in 200-billion-baht revenue from long-haul tourists
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) on Wednesday unveiled its tourism promotion policy for the second half of the year, saying it would focus on attracting customers from long-distance markets to help the agency meet the government’s target of 3.5 trillion baht in tourism revenue this year.
Siripakorn Cheawsamoot, TAT’s deputy governor for Europe, Africa, Middle East, and Americas markets, said that long-distance markets for the rest of this year will be divided into two groups.
The stable ones, or “star countries”, are Russia, the UK, the US, Germany and France. Tourists from these countries are already familiar with Thailand and tend to visit the kingdom before the end of the year, he said.
TAT also addressed six high-potential long-distance countries, which it terms “rising stars”, namely Canada, Italy, Kazakhstan, Poland, Denmark and Saudi Arabia. These countries have shown increasing tourism revenues in recent years and are now benefitting from the government’s visa-free policy, said Siripakorn.
“These six countries are considered rising stars due to good economic status and the potential to introduce more flights to Thailand,” he added.
The deputy governor explained that TAT needs to penetrate potential markets in order to meet the government’s revenue target of 3.5 trillion baht from the tourism industry. This target is 500 billion baht higher than the TAT’s original target of 3 trillion baht.
“Through tourism promotion campaigns, we hope to make around 200 billion baht from these 11 star countries in the second half of the year, moving us closer to securing the additional 500 billion baht,” he said.
These promotions, to be carried out with airlines and hotels, aim to extend the stay in Thailand among tourists from long-haul countries, thus increasing their spending in the kingdom. For example, Air Canada is now offering a “Long Stay Airfare” programme, which offers discounts on air tickets for travellers who stay longer, while the airline’s boarding pass can be shown at participating hotels and restaurants to get discounts.
“We planned these campaigns with partners well before the government announced its policy to lift visa requirements for 93 nations, starting from this month,” said Siripakorn. “As the policy allows tourists to stay here without a visa for up to 60 days, we discussed with partner airlines and hotels to adjust the promotional period accordingly to accommodate even longer stays.”
