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The plan was outlined last week at a seminar in Pattaya organised by Krungthep Turakij and called "Restore Pattaya Tourism".

Pattaya's deputy mayor, Ronakit Ekasingh, told the seminar that the number of international visitors had fallen significantly because of the global economic crisis and domestic political uncertainty.

However, Pattaya is now ready to restore its tourism industry, and has prepared a special budget of Bt20 million to do the job.

He said the city was planning to host the Asean Parliamentary Summit at the Royal Cliff Beach Resort, where an attempt to hold the summit in April collapsed because of political protests. He said the new summit should restore overseas confidence. The city was also planning measures to help its tourism industry through various activities and events as well as improving its infrastructure.

"We will approach new emerging markets like Russia, China and India because tourists from those countries usually spend more money than [those from] other nations," Ronakit said, adding that tourism operators in Pattaya were planning their own overseas roadshows in Russia and India.

One hundred couples from China will soon celebrate a massed wedding at the Dusit Thani Resort Hotel in Pattaya. Originally, organisers hoped 10,000 Chinese couples would be married at the resort this year, but found that the Chinese government was not allowing its people to travel overseas, he said.

 To attract international tourists, hotels, tour operators and related operators are offering discounts to any visitors to Pattaya. Hotels alone are giving 20,000 free room-nights to visitors, Ronakit said.

Moreover, the city is preparing to host events such as Pattaya International Pop Music Festival, the Pattaya Marathon, the Thai Hotels Association's Food and Hotelier Expo and an International Orchid Festival.

Ronakit urged the government to develop U-tapao Airport to international standards so it could bring in more tourists.

He said Koh Pai should also be opened as a new tourist attraction and more roads should be built in Pattaya to ease local traffic problems. He pointed out that more than 6.5 million local and foreign tourists visited Pattaya every year, generating between Bt70 billion and Bt80 billion in revenue.

Thai Alangkarn Theatre's managing director Suttikorn Jearpaitoon said the number of visitors to the theatre had fallen by 80 per cent. However, some tourists from countries such as Vietnam and India were still visiting.

"I'm calling on the government to lead the private sector to host big events to draw tourists back to Pattaya," he said, adding that support should also be given for meetings and conferences at eco-tourism destinations and recreational places, instead of hotels.

The managing director of submarine operator Vimantaitalay, Sathorn Sriruk, said his business had lost 40 to 50 per cent of its customers, especially those from South Korea, who were badly worried about issues such as swine flu.

"Tourism in Pattaya is suffering, so the government should be promoting domestic travel to fill up hotels and related businesses," he said.

Sathorn said small- and medium-sized businesses in Pattaya needed loan support from government funds, but it was too difficult for them to access this money because conditions were tough.

Sunshine Hotels and Resorts executive director Thanet Supornsahasrungsi said hotel operators were still suffering from last November's airport closure in Bangkok and from the more recent violence in Pattaya in April. Tourists were heading to other countries because they had lost their confidence in Thailand.

He urged the government to restore confidence as soon as possible and to attract tourists back to Thailand. "All parties should be talking about how we can rebuild the tourism sector so we can prepare for the coming high season," Thanet said.

The Board of Investment's director for eastern region investment and economic centre office, Jesada Sornsurk, said the office was promoting new investment in Pattaya, including a yacht pier and water activities, culture, motor racing, a convention hall, hospital and rehabilitation houses.

"I still believe in the words: 'Pattaya never dies'," Jesada said. "The city can still attract tourists from all over the world because it now consists of many tourism products and services."

The chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries' Chonburi chapter, Prayote Attatorn, urged all operators and officials to improve the tourism industry's human skills, as well as enhancing safety and developing the standards of products and services.