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Thailand Sees 9 Per Cent Rise in Visitor Traffic from ME

DUBAI — Middle East tourists travelling to Thailand have risen to close to nine per cent amidst three negative factors that lead to the decline of arrivals to this country since late 2008.

Juthaporn Rerngronasa, Thailand’s Deputy Governor for Marketing Communications, told the Press during the five-day Thailand Travel Mart, which ended on Sunday in Bangkok, that three negative factors that caused the decline were the ongoing economic downturn, the country’s political situation and the outbreak of H1N1 flu.

She said that for the first four months this year, Thailand’s tourist arrivals dipped to 3.2 million or 19 per cent over the same period last year. The deputy governor, however, stressed that despite the three prevailing negative factors, Thailand saw a significant increase in arrivals from three regions – the Middle East, which grew by close to nine per cent, visitors from ASEAN, up 13 per cent; and visitors from Oceania, which increased by around 4.5 per cent.

“In 2008, Thailand welcomed around 14.59 million international visitors, which reflected a growth of 0.88 percent. It is estimated that tourism brought about UA$15 billion (505 billion baht at exchange rate of 33.66 bath to 1 US dollar) into the Kingdom last year,” she said.

For 2009, the Tourism Authority of Thailand or TAT initially projected 14 million visitor arrivals. “However, after some recent unfavorable events (political and H1N1 (A), we are in the process of realigning our marketing strategies and revising our target to ensure it’s realistic in light of current market circumstances. While most markets showed varying rates of decline, we saw an increase of almost 11.5 per cent in arrivals from the Middle East and a 3.6 per cent increase in arrivals from South Asia,” she added.

She said that as a result of the global economic downturn, the worldwide travel and tourism sector has declined as people have become more cautious about spending on leisure and business travel. “To reinforce Thailand’s well-entrenched position as a renowned cost-effective destination, TAT has introduced the “Amazing Thailand Amazing Value” campaign. The government has also implemented many measures to enhance Thailand’s tourist infrastructure and strengthen our country’s unique qualities.”

According to the deputy governor, Thailand’s political situation is affecting the tourism industry.

“The government, under Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, is focused on finding a political solution to bring about national reconciliation. Regardless of internal politics, the uniqueness, variety and quality of our tourist attractions, as well as the hospitality of Thai people, have not changed. Thailand continues to welcome visitors to our country with open arms.” She said that the third and final factor influencing global tourism is the Type A (H1N1) flu and Thailand has to use the same experience gained during the SARS outbreak a few years ago.

· lily@khaleejtimes.com