NEW-MARKET BUYERS ARE HIGHLIGHT OF THAI TRAVEL MART

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NEW-MARKET BUYERS ARE HIGHLIGHT OF THAI TRAVEL MART

Dr Suvit Yodmani, Thailand’s Minister of Tourism and Sports, presided at the official opening ceremony of Thailand Travel Mart (TTM) 2007 Plus Amazing Gateway to Greater Mekong Subregion and Thailand Tourism Festival 2007 (TTF 2007). Tourism Authority of Thailand Governor, Mrs Phornsiri Manoharn, looks on.

As part of its strategy to broaden the sources of visitor arrivals, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) organised this year’s annual travel mart with a strong contingent of “new” buyers from countries and regions that are expected to deliver promising results in the future.

The presence of 508 buyers and trade visitors from around the world made last week’s Thailand Travel Mart (TTM) 2007 Plus Amazing Gateway to Greater Mekong Subregion and Thailand Tourism Festival 2007 (TTF 2007), the biggest such event to be ever held.

Although most of the buyers were from the traditional visitor-generating markets such as the UK, Germany, Russia, Scandinavia, and the Americas, this year’s buyers contingent included Russia/CIS/Baltic countries (30), Kazakhstan (10), Morocco (10), Tunisia (5), Ukraine (3), Brazil (2), and one each from Turkey, Argentina, and Estonia.

There were 22 buyers from Vietnam, Cambodia, Lao PDR. and Myanmar.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand Governor Mrs Phornsiri Manoharn said, “We are trying to raise the Thai profile in new regions like North Africa, Russia/CIS/Baltic regions, and South America. Over time, as airline contacts grow, there is little doubt these countries will become good sources of visitor arrivals.”

Altogether, the buyers and trade visitors included 256 hosted buyers, 84 non-hosted buyers, 16 on-site buyers, and 158 trade visitors.

The 325 seller organisations this year included 231 hotels, 5 airlines, 8 ecotourism and adventure operators, 16 other services, 6 NTOs and other services, 30 travel agents and tour operators, and 29 companies from the Greater Mekong Subregion.

The Thailand Tourism Festival 2007 (TTF 2007), the annual travel and tourism showcase event targetting Thai and expatriate residents, was held in Challenger Hall 1 and 2 of the Impact Muang Thong Thani Exhibition Centre.

Over 300 exhibitors at the Festival included tour operators, travel agents, diving schools and equipment, spas, hotels and accommodation, airlines, golf courses, car rentals, suppliers of souvenirs, local handicrafts, local foods, and entertainment services.

The Festival included many activities relating to Thai culture, traditions, and local lifestyles. Special traditional parades from each of the four regions were held, along with stage performances of local folklore, plays, Thai puppet performances, the Khon dance, etc.

By combining the trade and consumer components, the sellers got an opportunity to expand their business prospects by reaching out to both the international trade as well as the growing number of Thai travelling consumers. In turn, the buyers got an opportunity to do business as well as to see some of the fun and festivities that are an inherent part of the Thai and Mekong tourism product.

This is the first year that TTM+ 2007 was opened for online registration. Buyers and sellers could make their pre-appointments online. The official hotels were Sofitel Central Hotel, Rama Gardens Hotel, and Siam City Hotel.

Siam Paragon hosted a welcome reception dinner for buyers on 6 June, 2007 at the Royal Paragon Hall. Thai Airways International and Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau hosted lunch for buyers on 7 and 8 June. Eleven programmes of Post Tour and Complimentary Tours were also provided for buyers and media interested to explore Thailand.

Mrs Phornsiri said, “In 2006, we met the target of 13.8 million visitor arrivals through continued emphasis on our traditional marketing activities and the active support of our many industry partners, including the airlines and the private sector.”

“In January – April 2007, international visitor arrivals at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi International Airport totalled 3,413,197, an increase of 2.61% over the same period of 2006.

“These figures only include those who arrived in Bangkok as the first point of entry and not those who flew directly to other points in Thailand, such as the popular beach resort island of Phuket, or those who crossed over through the overland border checkpoints.”

TAT has set a target of 14.8 million international visitor arrivals in 2007 which will help generate estimated revenues of 547.5 billion baht (about US$ 14.5 billion). The domestic tourism target is for 82 million domestic trips with a projected revenue of 377.8 billion baht (about US$ 10 billion).

In 2008. the Thailand Travel Mart Plus Amazing Gateway to Greater Mekong Subregion will be held between 5-8 June, also at the Impact Exhibition Centre.

International PR Division
Tourism Authority of Thailand
1600 Petchaburi Road, Makkasan, Rajatevee
Bangkok 10400
Thailand
Tel: 66 (0) 2250 5500 ext.4545-4548
Fax: 66 (0) 2253 7419
E-mail: prdiv3@tat.or.th

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