Indian tour company seeks more Thai visitors after a big decrease last year

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Indian tour company seeks more Thai visitors after a big decrease last year
SUCHAT SRITAMA
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- INDIA'S SHASHI Travels and Tours is strengthening its marketing in Thailand to reclaim two-way traffic after a huge drop trips to Thailand last year.

Ran Vijay Singh, chairman and managing director, said yesterday that Thailand had been one of the most popular destinations for Indians in the past few years and would continue to be popular in the future.

"There's quite a large number of Indian tourist arrivals in Thailand. We hope this will be a major role in the Thai tourism industry. In turn, the group aims to increase tourists from Thailand to India this year," he said.

Last year, 946,269 Indians visited Thailand, a drop of 9.9 per cent from 1.0 million in 2013. In March, Indian arrivals recovered 6.6 per cent to 78,014 from the same month last year.

Thailand is one of the nearest destinations for Indians. Hotels and transport facilities are very good. Indian tourists love the nightlife and dining here while culture is claimed as one of the main points.

"Airline connectivity to Gaya International Airport is improving every year, so in the coming season, meaning October 2015 to March 2016, it will be more. One million foreign tourists arrived in Gaya and the number of Thai tourist is quite good," he said.

Gaya Airport, in the northeastern state of Bihar, is near the temple city of Bodhgaya, the Buddha's place of enlightenment. The group is promoting tours by Thai Buddhists to the city.

Last year, the group chartered 30 flights from Thailand to India. It expects to charter 32 flights this year.

In 2014, about 9,500 Thais visited India. The group hopes arrivals will rise this year as there are more flights.

"The group plans to reopen an office in Bangkok this year after a temporary closure. This will help increase Thai tourists," Singh said.

Shashi Travels and Tours offers Buddhist and Hindu pilgrimage trips, ethnic, meditation and wellness tours, and handling of charter flights.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/business/Indian-tour-company-seeks-more-Thai-visitors-after-30264046.html

-- The Nation 2015-07-09