Insiders claim that budget travelers will be welcomed in the Kingdom.

[ASEAN NOW]

 

When Cambodia reopens its borders, the airports will be ready, and the airlines will have capacity, but will there still be a demand for inexpensive travelers? Costs of quarantine motels, Covid-19 PCR tests, health insurance, and a shortage of low-cost lodging due to a prolonged downturn may limit backpackers' alternatives. However, industry experts claim that the Kingdom of Wonder will nonetheless accept less well-heeled visitors.

Concerns over the future of low-cost travel were raised when Indonesian officials announced that budget travelers will be screened upon arrival on the tourist island of Bali.

 

“We don't want backpackers to come to Bali because it's clean. Luhut Panjaitan, Indonesia's Maritime Coordinating Minister, stated, "We want excellent guests."

As the outgoing Executive Director of the Mekong Tourism Office, Jens Thraenhart advises the tourism ministries of countries in the region, he believes it would be political suicide for Cambodia to follow suit.

 

“The only way to deter [backpackers] is to establish a policy framework that states whether you are allowed to enter the nation and whether you must provide a bank statement or other documentation. Thraenhart, who is also the founder of Destination Mekong, a company that promotes travel to Cambodia, China, Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos as a single destination, does not believe that will happen.

 

“I could see the industry reacting negatively. How would you feel if you own a pub or hostel that caters to that demographic and you pay taxes, but the government says it won't let your target market in any longer? Everyone wants high-yield visitors, such as the Bhutan model, in which visitors pay a certain fee and remain for a set period of time. Consultants can say that, but if you're a minister or prime minister, you're looking for votes. If you cut off stakeholders that cater to that market, they won't vote for you,” he warned.

 

While the business has been impacted hard by local lockdowns and a lack of foreign visitors, according to Chhay Sivlin, head of the Cambodia Association of Travel Agents, the industry has the resilience to bounce back.

 

“The sector has been impacted over the past two years,” she said. “More than 3,000 destinations have shuttered, including hotels, spas, massage parlors, discos, and beer gardens, employing more than 60,000 people. We commend the government for setting the circumstances for this new normal to stimulate tourism during and after Covid-19... The private sector has been mobilized to cooperate and collaborate with the Royal Government of Cambodia as a result of this.”

 

Thraenhart claims that even if mainstream hotel options are unavailable, house shares and homestays will still provide low-cost lodging, and that backpackers will not be scared off by a lack of options at big resorts.

 

“It appeals to them because they like to travel places where no one has gone before. There are several low-cost alternatives, such as Airbnb and other sharing services. “There will always be an option like a $5 to $10 homestay in countries like Cambodia, and that will not go away,” he said.

 

Because Indonesia is focusing on high-end travelers and Thailand's sandbox program on the island of Phuket forces tourists to stay in a variety of hotels, the cheapest of which costs $14 per night, Cambodia may prosper as a backpacker destination.

 

That may not seem like a lot of money, but a seaview bungalow on Koh Rong can be had for as little as $9 a night on Airbnb, leaving enough money for a lunch or a few beers.

 

[BritManToo]

1 hour ago, ASEAN NOW said:

Costs of quarantine motels, Covid-19 PCR tests, health insurance, and a shortage of low-cost lodging due to a prolonged downturn may limit backpackers' alternatives.

If the country requires any of these for entry there will be few tourists.

Edited September 27, 2021 by BritManToo