PM discusses tourism boost with airlines

[webfact]

    
BANGKOK (NNT) - Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has met with representatives from the aviation sector to prepare for the high tourism season which is expected to peak in the last quarter of 2023. Mr. Srettha said his administration once in office will first prioritize tourism rejuvenation.

 

The meeting saw representatives from the Airports of Thailand (AOT), operators of key international airports in the country, and CEOs of 8 air carriers in attendance. Prior to the meeting, the Prime Minister introduced to participants key candidates for the ministerial positions in his Cabinet, who would be responsible for the country’s economy.

 

The PM said he would immediately start working on tourism upon his inauguration, as the final quarter is considered an important time for economic push and a peak travel season.

 

AOT President Kerati Kijmanawat said the AOT had discussed with delegates from other organizations, following his Friday meeting with the PM, particularly regarding the shortage of flights serving airports in Bangkok and Phuket. The sector needs to prepare flight slots for future flights from China and other countries at 6 airports in Thailand.

 

Mr. Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth, CEO and President at Bangkok Airways and President of the Airlines Association of Thailand, expressed his willingness to cooperate and reaffirmed that his airline was well prepared for the upcoming peak travel season.

 

by Tanakorn Sangiam

 

 

Source: https://thainews.prd.go.th/en/news/detail/TCATG230829094432596

 

-- NNT 2023-08-29

 

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[sammieuk1]

And with that TAT threw out their abacus and bought a lottery number generator ???? 

[retarius]

I don't think the tourism numbers being down has much to do with Thai owned airlines. Cost of flights, crappy immigration rules, scams all over the place even by the government with dual pricing for everything from hospital costs to price of admissions to parks. I don't think there are too many returnees from the West. Maybe should focus on Korea and Japan instead of India and the muslim world. At leats these folk have money.

[LivingNThailand]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

The sector needs to prepare flight slots for future flights from China

Hasn't anyone told them about the Chinese economy falling apart, Chinese unemployment, Chinese real estate sector in shambles and the Chinese government discouraging their people to travel internationally.   Here in Phuket I have seen very few Chinese tourists and I think the ones I have seen are Taiwanese, Hong Kong or Singapore.  They are too quiet.

[RichardColeman]

Drop the flights 30-40% and you may get somewhere, otherwise you are just moving the deckchairs about on the T.A.T. Titanic

[jacko45k]

Just now, RichardColeman said:

Drop the flights 30-40% and you may get somewhere, otherwise you are just moving the deckchairs about on the T.A.T. Titanic

Put them up,,, far too busy in Pattaya today!

[MangoKorat]

I've noticed some easing in flight prices but nowhere near enough to persuade me to return to my previous travel patterns.

 

Comparative flight prices I've paid:

 

Manchester - Bangkok economy return September 2019 (pre covid) £459) on Etihad.

 

Manchester - Bangkok economy return September 2023 £657 on Qatar

 

(The above with sensible total durations)

 

That's almost exactly a 45% increase (Etihad and Qatar's prices are usually very similar).

 

I was planning my usual July/August flight but decided against that as prices were around £1500. Yes, that's school holiday time when the airlines always try to extract as much as possible from parents trapped by their kids holiday times but I've never seen it that expensive. As I've pointed out in other threads a family of 4 looking to travel to Thailand would have been faced with a £6000 bill for the flights alone - pretty sure most parents took their kids elsewhere.

 

Fuel prices are up what? Around 20%? No justification for these rip offs at all - most of us lost money during covid in one way or another and we've just had to swallow that. I can't put up my fees by 45% to cover my losses.

 

It was worse last year though when I had to pay £1677 in August - had my reasons to travel at that time otherwise no way I would have accepted that price.

 

 

[Adumbration]

4 hours ago, LivingNThailand said:

Hasn't anyone told them about the Chinese economy falling apart, Chinese unemployment, Chinese real estate sector in shambles and the Chinese government discouraging their people to travel internationally.   Here in Phuket I have seen very few Chinese tourists and I think the ones I have seen are Taiwanese, Hong Kong or Singapore.  They are too quiet.

LOL

Let's see him rejuvenate tourism when China moves on Taiwan.

[observer90210]

Having hoards of tourists sweating in a 1 hour or 2 hour long queue before passing immigration on arrival and perhaps on departure, seems more of a challenge.

[StayinThailand2much]

10 hours ago, retarius said:

I don't think the tourism numbers being down has much to do with Thai owned airlines. Cost of flights, crappy immigration rules, scams all over the place even by the government with dual pricing for everything from hospital costs to price of admissions to parks. I don't think there are too many returnees from the West.

True. Back home the brand 'Thailand' lost appeal years ago, and high living and flight costs don't help either. The country seems to become popular with single Indians and Russians (for very different reasons) though, so, if they are smart and don't just bet on China, they might get lucky with short-haul tourists.