BY RAYNALD C RIVERA
DOHA: Qatar is emerging as a very important tourism generating market for Thailand, says a Thai tourism official.
“Qatar has a very high potential as a market for tourism. In 2012, Thailand received 37,718 tourists from Qatar, which has increased 36 percent compared the previous year. This number is very big considering Qatar’s population,” said Chalermsak Suranant, Director of Tourism Authority of Thailand Dubai and Middle East office.
Suranant was speaking to local media at a pre-Arabian Travel Market roadshow at the Oryx Rotana Hotel yesterday. The Thai tourism Middle East roadshow was held in Qatar and Kuwait, two very promising Middle Eastern tourism source markets for Thailand. Aside from the popular tourist destinations in the Southeast Asian country, the roadshow was primarily aimed at promoting new tourism destinations in Thailand.
“Apart from the usual destinations in Thailand, like Phuket, Bangkok and Chiang Mai, we want Qatari people to know more of other destinations which offer beaches, mountains and forests for trekking,” said Thai Ambassador Panyarak Poolthup, adding aside from Bangkok other destinations also have hospitals for medical tourism.
The roadshow was an opportunity to widely promote other destinations in Thailand to people in Qatar by focusing on family-friendly destinations, value-for-money and medical tourism.
Thailand, said Suranant, has started implementing a number of strategies to further promote the country as a leading destination, one of which is focused on increasing revenue from tourism.
Travel website TripAdvisor ranked Bangkok one of the top cities in terms of best value for money, he said.
Another strategy is establishing niche markets on medical and wellness, wedding, golf, culture and green tourism.
“We have very romantic areas in the south and north that are excellent wedding destinations while Chiang Mai is a major culture destination. Since green activities are now becoming a trend to tourists, we are also promoting green tourism destinations,” he explained.
With almost 200 golf courses in the country and golf tournaments held, they are also looking into golf as a niche market.
For tourists to spend more time in Thailand, another strategy is offering courses on Thai cooking and popular sports such as Thai boxing, he added. The Thai delegation who came for the roadshow included hotels, travel agents, amusement and theme parks as well as the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau.
The Peninsula
