Provinces put out welcome mat for older tourists
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Nan province in the Northern region has been picked as a pilot town for a project on developing tourism for the elderly. Other provinces will be chosen for studies on providing medical and long staying services for aged tourists.
Aged tourism is part of a one-year national tourism development plan unveiled by Tourism and Sports Ministry.
Minister KobKarn Wattanavrangkul said the agency would begin to promote Nan province as eco-tourism friendly, focused on ageing tourism. Tourists over 50 years are the main target for the province as it is “a quiet town that enriches with natural beauty and also [offers an] easy life.
“Thirty per cent of the 500,000 visitors to Nan are foreign - mostly from Europe, Korea, and Japan. We want to increase the number of long-stay tourists in the province,” she added.
If the project in Nan succeeds, the official will promote other provinces including Nong Khai, Chiang Mai, Phetchaburi, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Phuket, and Bangkok for long-staying as well as medical treatment. Both locals and foreigners aged over 50 are direct targets. Last year, the average tourist’s length of stay in Thailand was 9.8 days, the highest rate among Asean nations. Spending per head per trip was also at the top level in the region with US$1,400 or Bt42,000.
Kobkarn said the government would work with hospitals and health care centres across the country, especially in major tourist destinations to prepare for an ageing society.
This year, 9.4 million or 14.5 per cent out of a total 64.5 million people were already aged over 60. The number of aged people in Thailand is expected to climb to 14 million or 25 per cent of population by 2025.
To cope with the trend, many hospitals focusing on medical care are shifting towards private health care, under-served health care demand upcountry, and focus on the ageing population.
Several high-end hospitals such as Bangkok Dusit Medical Services and Bumrungrad Hospital are aiming for international patients based on costs 25-70 per cent lower than in Singapore. It is estimated that international patients in Thailand will double to five million by 2024.
A study on “Healthy ageing tourism for the ASEAN Community in 2015” conducted by Sombat Karnjanakit, found Thailand needed to develop a standard training curriculum for administrators in order to promote healthy ageing tourism and to build a network of aged tourism management at national and ASEAN levels.
He also proposed models for healthy ageing tourism as in JBRIC (Japan, Brazil, Russia, India, and China) and ASEAN could be adapted and adopted into the development of Thailand’s model as a hub for healthy ageing tourism among ASEAN countries.
The Ministry of Social Development and Human Security now serves as the core agency in organising activities to enhance the potential of senior citizens and provide them with occupational training, as well as looking after their well-being and welfare.
