TAT backs key services to reach B2-trn goal
Big push for supportive products overseas toward revenue target
The Tourism Authority of Thailand is aggressively promoting medical, golfing, honeymoon-and-wedding, and eco-tourism services to become the country’s major products to attract foreign tourists.
The move is aimed at helping the government achieve its 2015 goal of Bt2 trillion in tourism revenue.
The services are mainly included as supportive products in tourism packages sold to foreign tourists, but in fact they can be stand-alone products marketed overseas.
Pongsathorn Kessasamli, deputy governor for policy and planning, said yesterday that barriers remain in promoting the services. Clearly, TAT cannot operate those services by itself. State and private agencies have to get involved. Then, it finds it even harder to promote the services in an integrated fashion in order to make a big impact on foreign tourists. To achieve this ambition, all parties should work together cohesively.
After presenting a study on the market potential and size of foreign tourist groups for these services, he said these services would become major tourism products in the near future. The issue would be put on the agenda for a meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, to find ways to promote tourism.
All four services can draw about Bt130.97 billion from 7.98 million foreign tourists. Some use a service more than once.
Of the total, eco-tourism would contribute the most earnings at Bt54.68 billion, followed by honeymoon and wedding with Bt34.62 billion, medical service with Bt31.12 billion and golfing with Bt10.54 billion.
The research study was conducted by GfK from April of last year to March, with 30,000 samples, at least 15 years old, who arrived in Suvarnabhumi and Phuket airports. Those groups had decision-making power and part of their decision was on the services used here.
Golfing
The survey results did not surprise TAT, but there was some new information, especially on the golfing market, which showed a good outlook. The TAT will collect all data in order to define a marketing strategy to drive all the services.
All the services would continue growing 15 per cent next year in terms of income. In recent years, growth was more than 10 per cent annually.
Only 12 per cent of the respondents came to Thailand with the specific purpose to use those four services, while 32 per cent chose to use the services as part of their trips here.
Visitors from the Middle East, especially the UAE and Oman, were the biggest group to use medical services at 32 per cent, followed by Asean (24 per cent) led by Myanmar, Malaysia and Singapore, and Europe (14 per cent) including France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
About 67 per cent chose Thailand for medical services because of impressive reception and services, followed by period of waiting (46 per cent) and global recognition (45 per cent).
For golfing, tourists from North East Asia, especially Japan and South Korea, were the biggest market at 46 per cent, followed by Asean (25 per cent) including Malaysia and Singapore, and Europe (15 per cent) especially the UK.
Tourists from North East Asia were also the biggest market for honeymoons and weddings at 29 per cent, driven by South Korea, China, and Hong Kong, then Europe (28 per cent) led by the UK, France and Germany, and Asean (15 per cent).
Europe was the biggest market for eco-tourism with 49 per cent led by France, Germany and the UK, followed by North East Asia (19 per cent) and Asean (14 per cent).
