The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) announced the winners of the Responsible Thailand Awards 2022 – the 15th edition of the much-valued accolades which recognize the kingdom’s champions of sustainable tourism in the categories of Animal Welfare, Community Based Tourism, Eco Lodge/Eco Hotel, Hotel, Marine, Nature and Heritage, and Green Steps.
The Awards were presented at the World Travel Market (WTM) in London on 7 November, 2022, in a ceremony presided over by the Minister of Tourism and Sports, H.E. Mr. Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn. The award ceremony was held as part of Thailand’s participation at WTM 2022.
The winners are Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai (Animal Welfare), Laem Sak Community Tourism Enterprise in Krabi (Community Based Tourism), Tongsai Bay on Ko Samui, Surat Thani (Eco Lodge/Eco Hotel), The Sarojin in Khao Lak, Phang-nga (Hotel), Big Blue Conservation in on Ko Tao, Surat Thani (Marine, Nature and Heritage), and Gentle Giants (Green Steps).
Since their launch, the Responsible Thailand Awards have steadily gained more interest each year. The 2022 awards saw 1,602 Thai tourism businesses nominated, nearly three times the number of nominations in the 2020 awards which was the last time they were held.
This shows the increasing commitment of both travellers and Thai tourism businesses towards more sustainable, more responsible and more environment-friendly travel – the direction Thailand is increasingly heading in with the ‘Visit Thailand Year 2022-2023: Amazing New Chapters’ marketing campaign and the adoption of the Thai government’s Bio-Circular-Green (BCG) Economy Model in transforming the industry.
Mr. Yuthasak Supasorn, TAT Governor, said “It is wonderful to see more and more interest in the Responsible Thailand Awards each year they are held, and I would like to express my warmest thanks and congratulations to the 2022 winners. More sustainable, more responsible and more inclusive travel is now more important and more relevant than ever, and through these awards we seek to recognize the fantastic efforts of not just the winners but the wider tourism industry as well as the travellers who embrace the experiences on offer.”
The criteria the judges followed included the sustainability of each organisation, their demonstrable successes and legacy benefits for both the Kingdom and visitors to it. This year’s winners were again selected by the judging panel comprising some of the leading lights of the travel world, namely Mr. Derek Moore, Chairman of AITO – The Specialist Travel Association; Mr. Martin Symington, award-winning travel journalist; Ms. Lyn Hughes, Founder and Editor in Chief of Wanderlust magazine; and Mr. Mark Stratton, travel writer and broacaster. (TAT)
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