German tourism panel kicks off Thai mission
A German parliamentary committee in charge of tourism is trying to convince the soccer-mad Thais to visit the country during the upcoming World Cup.
"With the opening of the FIFA World Cup 2006, hosted by Germany, I would like to invite all of you to travel to Germany. The country is beautiful and there are many destinations worth visiting. And I hope the German national team can make it to the finals," said Holger Michael, a member of tourism committee of the German Bundestag.Michael visited Thailand yesterday after leaving the Maldives and Sri Lanka on a mission to drum up tourist interest. She said at a reception party on Tuesday night that the main purpose for coming to Thailand is to follow up on the tsunami recovery in the southern region, especially in Phuket and Phi Phi Island. The committee will visit relief projects sponsored by the German government and Federal agencies. German tourists spend ¤40 billion (Bt1.8 trillion) a year during their travels around the world. "We found that [the number of] retired German tourists travelling abroad are increasing every year," Michael said. "This group can be considered a new tourist market for Thailand. They can spend more time at each destination and they have more disposable income that they are willing to spend on travel. Health-awareness tourism is also another target market as spa and health-related tourism is a current trend around the world." Germans comprise the second-largest inbound tourist market in Thailand. Michael suggested that Thailand should offer new tourism products, as she has discussed earlier with Jutamas Siriwan, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand. It's important to promote quality tourism instead of quantity tourism, which tend to ruin the image of the country, she said. Thailand has beautiful and diverse cultural and natural tourism destinations. "I travelled to Chiang Mai two years ago," she said. "Your country is very beautiful. You have many things to offer. Sex tourism is not necessary for the country. Sex tourism is our major concern. And the federal government has established regulations prohibiting sexual commerce in third countries." Phafun Musickaratthamrong The Nation
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