'Zero-dollar tourism' warning
So-called "zero-dollar tourism" could come back to haunt the Kingdom if the government pays more attention to the number of tourists rather than their quality, Prakit Chin-amournphong, vice chairman of the Thai Hotels Association, said yesterday.
Zero-dollar tourism is a term used to describe cheap packages for visitors. The packages attract foreign tourists, but in the end, they are so cheap that there is little or no benefit for hotels or other tourism operators. Prakit made the comment after caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak instructed the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) earlier this week to increase the number of tourists by an annual 25 per cent and the amount of their spending by 40 per cent - the goal being to reduce the current-account deficit through higher tourism income. "The private sector is now worried that this policy could affect quality tourists, who are the major contributors of income to the tourism industry," he said. He said the key problem hitting the industry right now was insufficient measures to screen tourists. "Look at the Chinese and Korean markets," he said. "We have been experiencing the zero-dollar tour problem from these markets but there is no solution yet." Since China and South Korea are now among the seven key markets that the TAT will focus on, there should be clear measures on how to prevent the problem from intensifying, he said. Other key markets are Japan, Malaysia, the United States, Australia and the Middle East. "We expect that the TAT will invite us for a discussion on how to formulate tourism stimulus measures for the latter half of this year," Prakit said.
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