Credit: TAT
FOLLOWING the recent bombing incidents in Thailand, a raft of initiatives were put together by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) in an effort to assure travellers that the nation remains safe and welcoming of visitors.
A Situation Monitoring Centre was immediately opened on August 12, the second day of the attacks, so that government officials could maintain timely and accurate communications. The centre monitors local and international news, collects statistics on tourist arrivals, bookings and cancellations as well as data from airline and tourism-related companies.
A campaign was also launched to galvanize local communities to host tourists and to encourage everyone working in the field of tourism to wear special white-yellow ribbons as symbols of peace and unity.
“We want to show that Thailand and the Thai people genuinely care for the well-being of all tourists. And we want tourists to know that by visiting Thailand, they’ll make memorable travel memories and enjoy experiences that will entice them to return time after time,” said TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn.
Going forward, TAT is also hoping to boost travel arrivals and spending for the rest of the year through several events and festivities.
While the tourism industry in Thailand has proven resilient post-disaster in the past, Yuthasak said in a statement that approximately 100,000 to 200,000 travel cancellations could be resulted due to the incident. “That would cost about 5.08 billion baht (US$146.6 million) to 10.16 billion baht,” he said.
However, Thailand’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports remains confident in reaching its target of 2.4 trillion baht (US$69.3 billion) of tourism revenue in 2016.
Currently, TAT is seeking cabinet approval for a special long-holiday weekend in September to coincide with World Tourism Day held in Bangkok. The ministry hopes that the actual celebration day on September 27 will be declared a public holiday and for the Monday prior on September 26 to be an extra day off.
According to TAT, a four-day break would encourage travel and spending nationwide while boosting confidence among travellers.
In addition, a number of mega events and special tourism promotional campaigns will take place. The Jazz Run Cycling Hua Hin Festival is scheduled for the first week of September, and will comprise a jazz music festival, food fair, marathon, and cycling event. A major golf tournament will also be held, featuring Thailand’s lady golf ambassadors Pornanong Phatlum and Ariya Jutanugarn.
Another large-scale event, titled Magnificent Thailand, will be held in Bangkok, possibly in Lumphini Park, from October 1-7. It will comprise a street food festival, local food fair, city street light decorations, mapping shows, and shopping street.
As well, there will be an ExpatFest held at the end of September to showcase unique Thai culture, traditions, cuisine and tourist attractions to the expatriate community in Thailand with an aim to encourage them to travel more domestically.
TAT has also scheduled to launch a new domestic tourism promotional campaign to encourage locals to travel in Thailand’s southern regions. Named the Cross Regional Travel Challenge, the initiative will start on October 1 featuring the attractions in southern Thailand such as beaches, islands and rainforests.
Also making a return is the Thailand’s Luckiest Visitor campaign which rewards each millionth traveller who enters the country from June to December.
“We believe that all these special measures and initiatives will help stimulate travel during the rest of the year, and allow Thailand to reach the 2016’s revenue target of 2.41 trillion baht,” Yuthasak assured.
