MICE arrivals in Kingdom should double by 2009
Thailand is expected to become a regional hub for the Meeting, Incentive, Convention and Exhibition (MICE) industry by 2009, with which it is estimated that 10 per cent of all visitors to the Kingdom will be associated.
Malinee Kitaphanich, director for meetings and incentives at the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), said MICE visitors to Thailand were expected to reach 750,000 this year, or 5 per cent of total visitors, which represents growth of about 30 per cent over last year. The TCEB expects continued growth to result in a doubling of the number of MICE visitors to Thailand by 2009. The bureau says it will play a key role in generating this growth through activities like setting up a MICE Information Centre. The centre will consolidate information related to the industry in Thailand and provide a range of services, including linking MICE providers with both international and domestic companies. Moreover, the TCEB will also establish a MICE Capability Centre, which will provide training and capacity-building services to enhance the standards and diversity of industry players. The bureau will also draft a marketing policy for meetings and incentives. "By 2009, Thailand is set to be a regional hub for MICE activities in Southeast Asia," said Malinee, citing the opening of Suvarnabhumi Airport, the Kingdom's many tourist attractions and established MICE venues as the main factors that will bring about growth in the industry. Next year, the TCEB's market coverage will extend to 17 countries worldwide. The bureau will maintain a direct presence through representative offices in seven of those countries, with the remainder serviced through its partnership with foreign branches of the Tourism Authority of Thailand. Thailand's embassies abroad are also providing increased levels of support and will assist the industry in penetrating existing key markets like Japan, India, China and Germany through more intensive market promotion. Meanwhile, the TCEB and TTG Asia Media Pty Ltd are currently hosting an event in Pattaya called IT&CMA and CTW 2006, which ends tomorrow. The 14th IT&CMA (Incentive Travel and Conventions Meetings Asia) and 9th CTW (Corporate Travel World) Asia-Pacific double-bill event began yesterday, with 1,300 business leaders from the MICE and corporate-travel sectors of 40 countries attending to discuss the future of their industries in the Asia-Pacific region. The event is expected to generate Bt100 million in revenues. The seaside town of Pattaya has been transformed through an Bt18-billion waterfront- and city-rejuvenation program. With its improved infrastructure, new hotels and state-of-the-art convention facilities, Pattaya is considered a premier MICE destination.
Suchat Sritama The Nation Pattaya
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