Thailand pledges to improve the tourism environment to attract more Chinese tourists
Thailand has designated 2019 as the Thailand-China Tourism and Culture Year. It will host a series of related activities and attract Chinese tourists through strengthening tourism safety and service measures.
The Director of the National Tourism Administration of Thailand, Yu Tasha, said at a Chinese media meeting on the 1st that Thailand is preparing a series of large-scale tourism activities to attract Chinese tourists, including the Chinese Lunar New Year celebrations held at Siam Square in the center of Bangkok, Phuket Michelin Food Festival, Lancang-Mekong Cultural Tourism Friendship Caravan Tour in Thailand, etc.
Yutasha said that in the first half of this year, the number of Chinese tourists to Thailand increased by 25% year-on-year, but the third quarter fell 9% year-on-year, and it is expected that the fourth quarter will decrease 15% year-on-year. He said that the average number of Chinese tourists entering Thailand in the first half of the year was 40,000 to 50,000. After the sinking of the Phuket ship in July, the number of Chinese tourists dropped to an average of 20,000 per day.
He said that the Phuket shipwreck in July and the attack on Chinese tourists by the Bangkok Airport security in September hurt the feelings of Chinese tourists and are the main reasons for the sharp decline in the number of tourists. In addition, competition in the international tourism market is fierce, and Vietnam and Japan attract a large number of Chinese tourists, which has a certain impact on travel to Thailand. Nevertheless, he predicted that there will be more than 10 million Chinese tourists to Thailand this year.
He said that Thailand is aware of the security risks and lack of services in its tourism industry. In order to show Thailand’s sincerity in welcoming Chinese tourists, Thailand is considering waiving visa fees on arrival, and will provide Chinese tourists with the service of filling out entry cards to reduce the entry process. Language barriers in China.
Thailand will also enhance travel safety measures for Chinese tourists, strengthen driving safety, strictly check the age of tourist vehicles, and strictly supervise the rental of tourist vehicles; improve safety warnings on beaches, hotel pools and major attractions; the Tourism Bureau will join forces with Thailand’s three major attractions Telecom operators send travel warning text messages to tourists.
In addition, the Tourism Authority of Thailand will cooperate with the navy and hospitals to provide maritime surveillance and rescue to ensure the safety of tourists on the water. Thailand will supervise the itinerary of tour groups and stipulate that water activities can only be carried out 12 hours after tourists disembark.
Thailand Tourism Administration will also establish a real-time travel warning system with China's online travel service platform, such as wind and wave warning, weather forecast, and traffic reminders.
Tourism is a pillar industry in Thailand. China is Thailand’s largest tourist source country. In 2017, there were more than 9.8 million Chinese tourists to Thailand, a year-on-year increase of nearly 12%, bringing Thailand more than 520 billion baht (approximately 104.7 billion yuan) in revenue, an increase of 15.78% year-on-year .