Tourism help sought ahead of Songkran

Tourism operators expect dull sentiment for the Songkran festival next month and are urging the government to offer more tourism stimulus plans in addition to a continuation of the existing subsidy programme.

Thanapol Cheewarattanaporn, president of the Association of Domestic Travel (ADT), said most people are planning visits to meet up with family members during Songkran rather than taking leisure trips because there is not a tourism measure to support weak purchasing power.

Moreover, the prohibition of activities such as water splashing and the use of powder paste are likely to erode spending sentiment, he said.

Mr Thanapol said the government must speed up the approval process for new tourism measures, especially the co-payment scheme that…