Tourism
Authority of Thailand Middle East office to create exclusive itinerary
for Arab visitors during Thailand Travel Mart 2015
(Dubai, 1 June 2015)
- Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) in cooperation with the Tourism
Council of Thailand, Thai Hotels Association, Association of Thai Travel
Agents, Thailand Incentive and Convention Association, Thai Eco Tourism
and Adventure Travel Association, and tourism business sectors will
organize Thailand Travel Mart Plus Amazing Gateway to the Greater Mekong
Subregion (TTM+) 2015, the country’s largest annual B2B tourism and
travel trade event from 3 – 5 June, 2015 at IMPACT Muang Thong Thani Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Tourism Authority of Thailand will invite nine
journalists from UAE, Oman and Iran to participate on TTM+ followed by a
post tour highlighting Thailand as a muslim-friendly destination
visiting halal friendly hotels, restaurants, spa and wellness centres,
hospitals, shopping centres and key attractions in Bangkok and Hua Hin.
On June 5,
All journalists attending the fam trip will be able to interact with
key officials of Tourism Authority of Thailand to discuss issues on
welcoming Muslim travellers to Thailand. A part of the program are key
lectures from Professor Dr.Pakorn Priyakorn, President The Foundation of Islamic Centre of Thailand tackling Thailand as Muslim Friendly Destination, Mr. Imtiaz Muqbil, Executive Editor of Travel, Impact Newswire talking about ‘Readiness
of Thailand to Welcome the Muslim Tourists’ and a presentation on
“Halal Application” lead by Information Technology Office, Tourism
Authority of Thailand.
Thailand
remains a popular destination to many Arab travelers as it is named as
one of the Top 10 Muslim friendly tourism destination in the world by
Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2015. The recent hosting of
first ever Thailand Halal Assembly in Bangkok further strengthen
Thailand’s position to cater to Muslim travelers by providing Arabic
speaking staffs, halal food options, prayer facilities in the airport
and Muslim-friendly hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions
throughout the country.
Mr. Chalermsak Suranant, Director – Tourism Authority of Thailand Dubai and Middle East office said, “Middle
Eastern market has remained an important source market for us with an
increase in total number of arrival by 33.74% during first quarter 2015.
The Discover Thainess Campaign 2015 with highlights on Muslim-Friendly
tours and activities is an attempt to attract first time and repeat
visitors to explore Thailand’s new destinations including Thailand’s 12
hidden gems cities namely: Lampang, Phetchabun, Nan, Buriram, Loei,
Samut Songkhram, Ratchaburi, Trat, Chanthaburi, Trang, Chumphon and
Nakhon Si Thammarat, and to discover Thainess; Thai way of life through
people and culture.”
Accessibility
to Thailand continues to grow from Middle East region with Qatar
Airways boosted flights to Bangkok to four times a day as of December
2014 and Etihad Airways will add a fourth daily service from Abu Dhabi
to Bangkok from 1st July 2015
as well. The ‘Airports of Thailand’ plan to expand Suvarnabhumi Airport
in order to enhance the capacity of 45 million people per year to 60
million people per year. Phuket International Airport will also expand
its capacity from 6.5 million to 12.5 million people per year.
“Visitors
from the UAE, Qatar and Kuwait already comprise the highest spending
category of visitors to Thailand. They also play a major role in helping
to fill up hotel rooms in the “Green Season”, the monsoon months
(July-August) when visitors from the traditional markets of Europe and
North America experience a slight dip”, Mr. Suranant added
In
2015, TAT has set the target of 28 million visitors generating an
estimated 41 billion US Dollars from international visitors, and 151
million trips generating an estimated 25 billion US Dollars from
domestic visitors. Source markets that are indicating positive growth
trends are China, India, the Philippines, Hong Kong, the UAE, Singapore,
France, Italy, the UK, Brazil and East Europe.
Throughout
the remainder of 2015, TAT Dubai & Middle East office will be
implementing a range of marketing strategies to attract Middle East
tourists through the ‘Discover Thainess 2015’ campaign which includes
‘Thai Experience’, ‘Thai Way of Life’ and ‘Thai Culture’. TAT Dubai
& Middle East office recently concluded a series of road shows in
Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain as part of its promotional strategy to focus
on niche segments such as Wedding and Honeymoons, Medical Tourism, Green
Tourism, Gastronomy Tourism, Shopping, and Sports Tourism.
