Stimulus schemes expected to help domestic tourism gain momentum

“The third phase of “Rao Tiew Duay Kan” [We Travel Together] travel subsidy campaign will start on May 7, while the “Tour Tiew Thai” package tour scheme will kick-off on May 27. Both should help encourage more people to travel domestically,” he said.

Under Rao Tiew Duay Kan, eligible registrants can receive up to 40 per cent discount on hotel rooms and restaurants. They also will receive an e-voucher when checking into a hotel as well as a 40 per cent flight refund when they check out. The subsidy is capped at 2 million room nights whereas registrants must reserve the room at least 7 days in advance.

The new Tour Tiew Thai co-payment scheme will see the government covering up to 40 per cent of tour package cost for a maximum of one million people. The subsidy is capped at Bt5,000 per trip. Eligible people can reserve the trips starting May until August.

Thai citizens aged above 18 years are eligible for the two schemes.

Yutthasak added that due to the new wave of Covid-19, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports had reduced tourism growth estimates to 1.5 to 2 per cent for the year compared to 2020, down from the 4 per cent year-on-year expansion it had predicted at the start of 2021.

“Tourism revenue for 2021 is estimated at Bt850 billion, down from the original Bt1.2 trillion forecast,” he said. “Of these, Bt550 billion will come from domestic tourists and Bt300 billion will come from foreigners, especially after the Phuket Tourism Sandbox campaign is launched in July.”

Under this scheme, tourists who can verify that they have been inoculated against Covid-19 and test negative can fly into Phuket and move around freely without having to quarantine. Similar schemes will be applied later to other destinations such as Pattaya, Chiang Mai, Krabi, Phang Nga and Surat Thani, once more people have been vaccinated and preventive measures are put in place.