Last year, Thailand received 38 million visitors, an increase of 7%, with tourism spend also rising by 10% to two trillion baht (US$62 billion).
As Thailand’s tourism arrivals continue an upward trend, tourism authorities are careful to further distribute growth through its promotion of 55 secondary cities.
Last year, Thailand received 38 million visitors, an increase of 7%, with tourism spend also rising by 10% to two trillion baht (US$62 billion).
Officials hope to continue growing this figure. Speaking at the ASEAN Tourism Forum in Halong Bay, Tourism Authority of Thailand Deputy Governor for International Marketing (Asia and South Pacific) Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya revealed that it hopes to increase tourism arrivals by 10% to 41 million this year.
But to distribute the growth, TAT has identified less-visited cities, which it defines as those with less than four million domestic and international visitors annually, spread across three tiers.
Examples of cities that will benefit from the promotion include Nan Churu, Chiang Rai, Satun, Phrae and Lampun, which are assessed based on factors such as accessibility and readiness to receive tourists.
According to Chattan, specific cities will be selectively promoted to target markets, for instance Phrae to the Japanese market and Sukothai to the Italian and French markets.
Thailand is also rolling out the welcome mat with the launch of an electronic visa from February 15 in phases. Beijing will be the first Chinese city to benefit from the new visa, followed by other cities over the next three years. The electronic visa will also be extended to the UK and France starting March 1 and April 1 respectively.
On the sustainability front, Thailand has also taken steps towards reducing tourism’s environmental impact. It has introduced a ban on plastic bags and Styrofoam cups in national parks and zoos.
In Phuket, a sustainable tourist blueprint has initiated a “no foam-no plastic” campaign to encourage local shops to switch to paper eco-friendly bags and drinking straws. The move hopes to cut tourist-related waste by up to 50% by 2020.