TAT in bid to tackle problems faced by Chinese tourists

The number of Chinese tourists to Thailand has been rapidly growing. In 2012, the number is expected to reach 2 million, up from 1.76 million last year. In 2011, it grew 56.88 per cent from 1.12 million in 2010, even as the country was faced with the flood crisis.
In the first four months of this year, it increased 23.55 per cent to 757,275 people. Currently, Chinese are the biggest group to travel to Thailand by air.
Sansern Ngaorungsi, TAT’s deputy governor for Asia and the South Pacific market, said that there were problems encountered by the tourists, especially in Pattaya city. Pattaya has become a major leisure destination for Chinese tourists, but some of them have lodged complaints over unfair services and cheating.
In 2011, 1.23 million Chinese visited Pattaya, an increase from 785,553 in 2010. The total number of foreign tourists coming to the resort city reached 7 million last year, pouring Bt70 billion into its local economy. The number of Russians stayed on top, followed by Chinese, Europeans, and Indians.
Yesterday, the TAT, the authorities from Chinese Embassy, and local business operators discussed ways of improving regulations and service standardisation to make it more convenient and safe for Chinese tourists. Also, a committee was set up to work on the issues six months ago and its results have been satisfying.
Guan Mu, China’s ambassador to Thailand, welcomed the move. He said the number of Chinese tourists to Thailand has been on the rise because of bilateral trade and investment agreements, as well as the high-speed train project. However, he was not sure whether the country has enough facilities and operations to take care of such a big number.
Mu said Chinese travellers to Thailand made up 0.13 per cent of its total population of 1.3 billion. If it increases to 1 per cent, that means 13-14 million Chinese will visit here. It is a big market for the tourism industry.