Thailand Government ministers said on Monday (July 4), “Thailand’s hotels, businesses, and private hospitals should refrain from offering big discounts to lure tourists and focus instead on raising the country’s value as a premium travel destination.”
Thailand has received almost 2 million foreign visitors in the first six months of this year.
“We cannot let people come to Thailand and say because it’s cheap,” Deputy PM Anutin Charnvirakul said at an event at Bangkok’s main international airport to promote tourism. “Instead they should say ‘because it works, it’s reasonable, that’s where we can increase value,” he said, echoing remarks by the country’s tourism minister. Anutin likened the approach to that of luxury fashion brand Louis Vuitton. “Hold your ground. Sell premium. The more expensive, the more customers,” he said. “Otherwise Louis Vuitton wouldn’t have any sales.”
Thailand welcomed a record of nearly 40 million visitors in pre-pandemic 2019, who spent 1.91 trillion baht ($53.53 billion), equivalent to 11 per cent of gross domestic product. Arrivals slumped to 6.7 million the following year, and down to 428,000 in 2021. It is forecasting 10 million foreign arrivals in 2022.
Thailand launched a long-term visa programme earlier this year for wealthy foreigners and skilled workers, sticking to its plan to lure high-spending visitors, despite major jobs and business losses in tourism during the pandemic.
