BANGKOK, 29 October 2014 – The Ministry of Tourism and Sports has advised the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) to bring in more quality tourists in an effort to achieve the tourism income target of 2.2 trillion baht per year.
Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul revealed that she has instructed the TAT to look for a strategy to penetrate high-quality markets and increase the number of visitors with high purchasing power. She said the ministry is targeting to boost tourist spending per head in order for the national income from the tourism sector to reach 2.2 trillion baht in 2015 as planned.
Ms Kobkarn stated that she is scheduled to travel to the northeastern region to listen to local authorities about problems they face in the promotion of tourist attractions in their respective areas. The minister noted that the Northeast is abundant in natural resources and historical heritage and has unique arts and culture. Moreover, it also serves as the country’s gateway to neighboring Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.
The minister affirmed all of such outstanding features could be used as selling points for the region. The target markets include ASEAN, Japan, Europe as well as Thailand itself.
