Thailand reveals plan to raise tourism revenue | World

Tourists on a breach in Phuket Island of Thailand. (Photo: AFP/VNA)

Bangkok (VNA) – The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has revealed a plan
to boost its revenue from foreign tourists and the “Thais
Travelling in Thailand” campaign.

As part of the
recently announced “Direction for Promoting the Tourism Market in 2023”, the
authority aims to gain 1.92 trillion THB (nearly 55 billion USD) from 35
million foreign tourists and another 1.08 trillion THB from the “Thais
Travelling in Thailand” campaign that targets 200 million local trips.

TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn said the agency hopes to generate
3 trillion THB in income this year, much like the amount generated in 2019
before the outbreak of COVID-19.

However,
if the international market only recovers to 94% of the pre-pandemic level, TAT
will have to stimulate the domestic market to achieve its target of 3 trillion THB
in revenue.

The tourism
sector is currently facing several challenges, such as the global economic
recession, inflation, rising interest rates, the Russia – Ukraine conflict,
high oil prices leading to expensive airfares, and most importantly,
international flights having resumed only 70%.

The Civil
Aviation Authority of Thailand estimates that international flight numbers will
recover a bit more in the fourth quarter of 2024 and should return to 100% in
2025, Yuthasak said.

TAT estimates Thailand can expect 25.8 million
foreigners to take short-haul fights next year, including 12.48 million tourists from
East Asia, 10.51 million from ASEAN countries, 2.1 million from South Asia, and
787,000 from Oceania.

Meanwhile, the Southeast Asian country is expected to draw 9.2 million
visitors from long-haul markets like Europe, Africa, Central and North America./.