Pattaya was chosen a top-10 destination for Chinese tourists and five Chonburi attractions were picked favorites in an online survey by a large Chinese website.
Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul was joined by Tourism Authority of Thailand officials, representatives of the Association of Private Tourism, and Chinese embassy at an awards presentation at the Thailand Post headquarters on June 3.
TAT cooperated with duty-free retailer King Power International Co., SINA Corp. Jiaranai Entertainment Co. and Weibo, a Chinese website with more than 600 million members for the contest, which asked travelers to vote on 17 categories of products and services for its “Best of Thailand Awards Voted by Chinese Tourists” survey.
Ornwara Kornrapin (right), operations director for the Pattaya Tourism Office, accepts the certificates for the city’s rankings from Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul (center).
Travelers were asked to vote on hotels, restaurants, department stores, Thai fruits, spas, golf courses and other attractions. People could vote daily and 35.7 million votes were cast.
Pattaya placed in the Top 10 for best destination, won the overall best tourist attraction (Pattaya Floating Market) and was a Top 10 winner for best medical service (Bangkok Hospital Pattaya).
Furthermore, four Chonburi attractions ranked in the top 10: the Alcazar Show, Tiffany Show, Nong Nooch Tropical Garden, and Sriracha Tiger Zoo.
Ornwara Kornrapin, operations director for the Pattaya Tourism Office accepted the certificates for the city’s rankings.
In 2014, 4.6 million Chinese visited Thailand generating 190 billion baht in revenue, almost the same as 2013. This year, however, tourism officials have seen a 37 percent increase in Chinese visitors and expect revenue will grow 47 percent.
With the votes in, TAT now plans to create tours encompassing voters’ favorite attractions, shopping malls and hotels.
Other category winners were:
* Best Luxury Hotel: W Hotel Bangkok
* Best Boutique Hotel: Koh Chang Kanha Resort and Spa
* Best Resort: Patong Resort Hotel Phuket
* Best Value Hotel: De Lamma Hotel Chiang Mai
* Best Destination: Chiang Mai
* Best Attraction: Pattaya Floating Market
* Best Restaurant: Sirocco (Bangkok)
* Best Thai Dish: Tom Yum Kung
* Best Thai Fruit: Durian
* Best Thai Spa: Let’s Relax (Phuket)
* Best Golf Course: Gassan Khuntan Golf and Resort (Lamphun)
* Best Shopping Mall: Siam Center (Bangkok)
* Best Shopping Area: Siam Square
* Best Airline: Thai Air Asia
* Best Thai Show: Muay Thai Live – the Legend Lives
* Best Festival: Songkran
* Best Medical Service: Bangkok Hospital Phuket
