We Must Protect Tourism Sites In A Sustainable Way: Thai Opinion

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EDITORIAL

We must protect tourism sites in a sustainable way

The Nation

Neglect and exploitation seems to be the mantra of government agencies rather than careful protection and nurturing of our national attractions

The tourism industry is one of the hardest-hit sectors in the flooding crisis. It turns out that natural disasters are taking a toll on tourism more frequently than street protests or any other form of political instability these days. Blame it on climate change, deforestation or watershed destruction, but natural disasters, flooding in particular, will wreak havoc on the industry much more frequently. The tourism sector thus needs a regime of sound preventative and rehabilitation measures to cope with disasters and recover disaster-ravaged tourist sites faster.

Thailand's tourism industry employs more than 2 million people or about 15 per cent of the workforce, and accounts for roughly 6 per cent of GDP. Due to the flooding, the number of tourist arrivals at Suvarnabhumi Airport dropped from an average of 130,000 a day to about 100,000. The old Don Mueang Airport still remains closed for another month due to flooding.

According to the Minister for Tourism and Sport, Chumpol Silapa-Archa, tourist arrivals may reach between 18 million and 19 million this year (compared to 15 million last year) while total revenue from overseas tourists will total Bt600 billion in 2012. He said the floods won't have any more impact on Thailand than the political unrest of 2010. His statement came amidst heavy rain that has caused flooding in the central plains as well as six provinces in Thailand's South, which has seen some of the Kingdom's tourist attractions inundated.

Some industry observers are already complaining about the authorities' lack of preparation for rehabilitation and restoration of not just tourist sites, but also facilities like the old Bangkok airport, out of which at least four airlines are operating. What's true is that our tourist sites tend to be disaster prone, and still nothing is being done to prevent disasters repeating.

Take the ancient capital of Ayutthaya for instance. This Unesco-designated World Heritage Site has always been a cash cow. Last year, 6.53 million people visited the ancient city, generating revenue of Bt9.9 billion. About 1.3 foreign tourists visited and spent Bt2.8 billion. Yet, even without this year's large-scale flooding disaster, our ancient city is inundated almost every year anyway. Half of more than 200 monasteries, fortresses and other monuments have been damaged by water that rises up to three metres in places. Ayutthaya is bidding to host the World Expo in 2020, but experts doubt the city will win, given that it's prone to seasonal flooding and that no preventative measures are in place to keep floods at bay.

Our tourism authorities like to daydream that Thailand is the most popular destination in this region, given that it's on some travel magazines' top-10 list of ideal destinations favoured by foreign tourists. They need to wake up and understand that Malaysia boasts more tourist arrivals than Thailand annually and its airports have never been seized by anti-government protesters or inundated by floods. People think of Singapore - not Bangkok - when they want to see Dali masterpieces, the Bolshoi ballet, world class exhibitions, operas, concerts and other cultural shows.

What do we have to lure tourists? Thailand boasts ancient temples, elephant camps and beaches, but they are neglected annually. And we are happy to see them inundated again and again without resorting to any long-term prevention plan to keep tourist attractions safe from natural disaster or at least to minimise damage.

What's frustrating is that just as the flood waters are receding, the Tourism Authority of Thailand plans a string of celebrations to promote tourism in Ayutthaya. This may be a very good idea. But it also reminds us of a familiar cycle that this country seems happy with: we want more tourists to come and spend time and money in Ayutthaya so that we can make a lot of money and live well and care about little else. Then the monsoon comes, the ancient city will be inundated again, and we will wait until the water recedes and will promote Ayutthaya again. Ayutthaya could be just any tourist site in the country.

That's an exploitation, not a promotion of tourist attractions. The TAT, the Fine Arts Department and other government bodies involved in the tourism industry need a long-term, sustainable, holistic approach to maintaining and promoting tourist sites. It seems the authorities are eager about spending a lot of money on promoting our tourist sites in foreign magazines and bringing in foreign journalists to write nice things about Thailand. But what they should do is spend as much money as possible on protecting, maintaining and restoring our tourist attractions so they become sustainable in the longer term. Tourism will play a much more significant role in our economy in the future. Who will come to our rescue if panicking investors ultimately decide to move their production bases and take their holidays elsewhere?

-- The Nation 2011-11-30

[katasyd]

Money flows in but never back out to preserve the environment.

They will just keep squeezing every last baht out of it until it's all gone.

[DisainaM]

to do something for tourism in this high season,

realize that the supply situation has top priority.

Thai Forums are full of topics, no beer, no coke zero, no ...

Tourist with diabetis didn`t know, if they could have a nice holiday in Koh Samui, Phuket, Pattaya.

some touristic marketing management would be nice.

[pauljones]

Unfortunately, those in charge of Thailands resources use their position to exploit the situation for personal profits.

There is no hope.

[cup-O-coffee]

Blaming the politicians and agencies without demonstrating in this article that the reporter made any attempts to personally interview these people removes any sincerity.

Maybe the tourism industry is satisfied with the current numbers and the projected numbers, and negative statistics and articles like this be damned? Yes? No?

We'll never know until The Nation takes the time to write responsible articles, by interviewing directly people like the Minister for Tourism and Sport, Chumpol Silapa-Archa, instead of merely quoting them.

This is lazy journalism that provides filler for the empty spaces on the news page.

[h90]

to do something for tourism in this high season,

realize that the supply situation has top priority.

Thai Forums are full of topics, no beer, no coke zero, no ...

Tourist with diabetis didn`t know, if they could have a nice holiday in Koh Samui, Phuket, Pattaya.

some touristic marketing management would be nice.

And it would have been extreme simply to fly in these goods from Malaysia.

Oh I forgot that all that business is owned by a few super rich families.....

[elgato]

"Take the ancient capital of Ayutthaya for instance. This Unesco-designated World Heritage Site has always been a cash cow. Last year, 6.53 million people visited the ancient city, generating revenue of Bt9.9 billion."

Of the Bt9.9 billion from this 'cash cow' , how much was spent on flood prevention?

[noitom]

The editorial uses the term "lure" as in "what do we have to "lure" tourists? Reading this and seeing this question made me think that the editors already know what the secret sauce of Thailand is very well. We all know what most money spending tourists come to Thailand for and its not elephant camps and temples. They come chasing the "lures." - A lure, a decoy for catching animals or some bait used for catching "fish." Lure ended up being the right word for the wrong reason. It must have been a coded message by the editors for the business class profiteers all around Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, and Chiang Mai to keep funding the bars and massage parlors as well as the freelance four and five star "clubs" in hotels. Cheers for "real backbone" of the Thai economy. Hats off to the girls.

[Oberkommando]

Their rice bowl might be broken, that's the only concern they have.

tourist arrivals may reach between 18 million and 19 million this year (compared to 15 million last year)

They will be nothing like that number. Apparently last years figures (of 14m previously, now 15m according to this article) were a record, despite no-one being here for three months of the year during the red shirt protests.

Wishful thinking, they will be lucky to get 10-12m this year.

[blackthorn2005]

Amazing Thailand, come to beautiful Phuket, get ripped off by tuk tuks, taxis and jet skis, who will then beat you senseless, or try being drugged and robbed in a bar by one of many repeat offenders. Plenty of cash to spare? Some ATM's will separate you and your cash faster that a Las Vegas casino. Get back to nature, get crushed by a stampeding elephant. Truly amazing!

[Dibbler]

What Thailand lacks in strategic planning and maintenance of its tourist sites it makes up for by being a much cheaper, friendlier and accommodating place to travel to. Every tried to get a late check out in a hotel in Singapore, or ask a Malaysian taxi driver to take an alternative route around a traffic jam? There may be more tourists travelling to Malaysia but the quality of the tourist experience in Thailand is what brings back people here year after year. What could be improved in Thailand is to get the Tourist Authority of Thailand and other state agencies to focus on improving the quality of the tourist experience, and promoting the sustainable management of tourist destinations, rather than its current focus on maximizing numbers of tourists into the country, and maximizing gate sales at zoos, theme parks, national parks and other scenic attractions.