TAT: Operators must lift service levels to woo more guests

Those two markets are important to Thailand’s tourism industry. This year, it is projected that the number of Japanese tourists will reach 1.5 million, up from 1.34 million in 2012. South Korean visitors will number about 1.3 million, up from 1.2 million last year. As long as the current political rallies do not turn violent, this rising trend should continue. 

Nittaya Aumbithaya, director of TAT’s Tokyo office, said that if tourism operators want to attract more Japanese travellers, especially by establishing a service network there, they should work harder on lifting the quality of their services to Japanese standards.

Last year, 18 million Japanese travelled outside their nation, up from 16 million in 2011. 

This year, Thailand is their sixth-favourite destination, behind South Korea, mainland China, the United States mainland, Hawaii and Taiwan. Thailand’s ranking was unchanged from 2012. 

Of the 1.34 million Japanese who visited Thailand last year, about 800,000 were from Tokyo. Overall Japanese liked to go Krabi, Khao Lak, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Sukhothai, Bangkok, Phuket and Ayutthaya. 

Nitida Prayong, director of TAT’s Seoul office, said service and safety standards were among concerns among Korean tourists to Thailand. In fact, the standards of tourism services in their own nation are higher than in Thailand. Especially for Koreans coming with travel agents, Thai operators should take care of them fully and consistently. 

 

Independent Koreans

Also, there is a rising number of independent travellers from South Korea. This group may pose a risk to the overall industry if something goes wrong for them. 

News will spread quickly and end up hurting the tourism industry. Therefore, all parties should work together to save the country from problems, he said.

At present, Korean visitors to Thailand are 20-50 years old, with the 30-40 age bracket the biggest group. Overall, they like to go to Pattaya, Phuket, Bangkok, Chang Mai and Samui. Khao Lak and Krabi are new destinations for Koreans. For the most part, they come here for leisure, honeymoons and golf.

In the honeymoon market, Thailand is facing higher competition, especially from Hawaii. Also, newlyweds are increasingly choosing Europe for their honeymoons, even though trip packages cost more than coming to Thailand. 

They take the view that it is worth paying more for a trip to Europe because it would be more rewarding. Therefore, Thai operators should recognise this reality and start designing special packages to attract more of this group in 2014, TAT says.