BANGKOK, 22 October 2014 – Most Europeans who have plans to visit Thailand do not rethink their visits after the murders of the two British tourists on Koh Tao, according to consumer research firm Envirosell.
The New York-based firm carried out a survey of European tourists’ opinions about visits to Thailand, during October 13 and 16. 1,835 would-be visitors to Thailand were surveyed; 618 were British and the remaining 1,217 were from eight other countries in Europe. 61 percent of the respondents said they would not reconsider their planned visits to Thailand whereas the remaining 39 percent indicated they might review their plan, depending on the developments of the murder case on Koh Tao. 74 percent of the tourists did not doubt the investigation into the murders; 26% cast doubts about the case because they had heard about lack of transparency in the investigation from the media. 85 percent of respondents said they still liked Thailand despite recent developments.
Asked what improvements they would like to see most, the respondents indicated they wanted to see improved tourist safety and more assistance centers for tourists, harsher penalties for exploiters of tourists, and better regulation of tours and taxis.
