Pattaya :
Thailand has many tourism problems that need fixing, the Skål Thailand President, Andrew J Wood, said in a speech this week.
Andrew Wood, President of Skal Thailand.
He warned that Thailand risks losing tourists to other destinations if it cannot improve its infrastructure. In particular, he warned that Malaysia will take away lucrative retirees because of its more welcoming attitude to them.
Speaking at an industry function in Pattaya, Mr Wood – who has been in Thailand for 22 years and is General Manager of Chaophya Park Hotel & Resorts – recalled a recent visit he made to China, which now provides the largest number of tourists to Thailand.
Much of what he said has direct implications for Phuket’s tourism industry.
“During my recent visit to Shanghai I was briefed by the tourism office that Thailand expects to welcome 6.09 million Chinese visitors in 2014.
“During a meeting in Bangkok with TAT Governor Suraphon Svetasreni I asked if this figure was a problem being such a high proportion of 28 million arrivals next year?
“Like me, he was worried about [having] too many eggs in one basket, and whether it was sustainable both statistically and environmentally.
“My personal observation … is that we need more infrastructure development … fast trains, efficient public transportation – buses, trams, bicycle lanes, subways.
“In Bangkok we have to bite the bullet and introduce car-free areas and charge for bringing private cars into the central business district. Reducing traffic in this area of the metropolis is essential if we are ever to tackle chronic congestion.
“It’s not just transport – [it’s] tourist safety too; at every touch-point it is vital; safe taxis; fire fighting equipment in hotels and guest houses; 3rd-party insurance for tourists and comprehensive hospital/medical care, especially in up-country locations.
“In addition [we should] eliminate double pricing; provide efficient high speed free WiFi; increase policing to control scams by jet-ski operators, jewellery shops, taxis, tuk-tuks and mafia controlled businesses.
“Malaysia has an excellent attitude to retirees including Malaysia My Second Home. MM2H is an initiative promoted and supported by the government to allow long stays with a multiple entry visa. The MM2H visa is initially for a period of 10 years and is renewable.
“Thailand could learn from this programme for visitors who wish to retire or semi-retire. MM2H allows applicants many benefits currently not available in Thailand. As a result Thailand is losing out to this lucrative niche.
“Tackling the shortage of tourism personnel has to be a national agenda item. The industry needs 10,000 hospitality graduates per year, however our universities and colleges are pumping out less than half of that.”
He saw one bright spot among all the criticisms: “We have seen medical tourism grow from almost nothing to an industry that adds millions of visitors per annum. Thailand will attract 2.4m foreign patients this year.
“According to a recent study by VISA, Thailand ranks number nine among the world’s top destinations for medical tourists. As long as Thailand continues to offer high-quality medical services at an affordable price, it is most likely that the title of ASEAN’s top medical tourism destination will go to the Land of Smiles.”
Source : http://www.thephuketnews.com/ The Phuket News / Home / Saturday, July 20th, 2013
