Thailand set to extend free visa offer in bid to lure more foreign tourists

Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, Minister for Tourism and Sports  

 

Thailand’s Tourism and Sports Minister has announced plans to extend the current free visa incentives for foreign tourists by another three months.

 

The move is aimed at giving Thailand’s tourism industry a much needed boost as it heads into what is traditionally the low season, as well as helping the industry cope with the sudden decrease in arrivals from China following last year’s crackdown on zero dollar tours.

 

Speaking at the Asean Tourism Forum 2017 in Singapore, Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, said she would propose extending the visa offer at a Cabinet meeting next Tuesday.

 

In September, Thailand launched its crackdown on zero dollar tours, which resulted in a huge drop in tourist arrivals from China.

 

Previous figures released from TAT for November revealed that the number of Chinese tourists visiting Thailand had plummeted by 30 percent. The situation is said to have improved slightly but Chinese arrivals are still expected to be down by 13 percent for January.

 

In order to try and make up the shortfall left by visitors from China, the cabinet announced in November that the visa on arrival fee would be halved to 1,000 baht for the 19 eligible nations from December 1st to February 28th 2017.

 

During the same period, Thailand also announced it was waiving 1,000 baht fee for a single entry tourist visa for all nationalities.

 

Mrs Kobkarn told the Bangkok Post the visa incentive had helped to boost tourist arrivals in December and that between January 1st to 20th, 1.8 million international tourists arrived in Thailand, which is a 6 percent increase compared to the same period last year.

 

Meanwhile, TAT Governor Dr Yuthasak Supasorn said he expects more visitors from ASEAN as Thailand is promoted as a weekend or short trip tourist destination to independent travellers within the region.

Dr Yuthasak added that these tourists spend an average 5,244 baht per person per day or 29,580 baht per trip, Daily News reported.

 

 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2017-01-21

That word again, Lure! smacks of robbery and deception.

32 minutes ago, clockman said:

That word again, Lure! smacks of robbery and deception.

Why?

Quote

lure1

l(j)ʊə/

verb

1.

tempt (a person or animal) to do something or to go somewhere, especially by offering some form of reward.

 

If someone can't afford to pay 1000b or $28.25US for a single entry tourist visa why would you want those quality tourists here in the first place. I just don't see how this will bring in more tourists. I do however see that it will likely continue to have Savannakhet refuse tourist visas.

In my view it is not the free visa which can atract people, it may be a visa free entry at the border that can.

It is not the fees that are the problem when people apply for visas it is the physical logistic delay of sending pasports to get them and the waiting, not so bad if you are in the city where the visa is issued but a pain if not.

1 minute ago, ldiablo72 said:

If someone can't afford to pay 1000b or $28.25US for a single entry tourist visa why would you want those quality tourists here in the first place. I just don't see how this will bring in more tourists. I do however see that it will likely continue to have Savannakhet refuse tourist visas.

It is a marketing strategy. The trick is to try to entice potential tourists into action in the same way that shops and businesses claim, "Special offer, 50% off, offer ends this weekend...." The TAT has to raise the profile of Thailand as a destination, sow the seed in people's minds. You are looking at it too simply.

Better to offer them in the low season, not that I think visa prices affect tourism to Thailand one iota.

35 minutes ago, harrry said:

In my view it is not the free visa which can atract people, it may be a visa free entry at the border that can.

It is not the fees that are the problem when people apply for visas it is the physical logistic delay of sending pasports to get them and the waiting, not so bad if you are in the city where the visa is issued but a pain if not.

I think their main target is for those that have to get a visa for entry not those that get visa exempt entries. Instead of just targeting those countries like they have done in past they have decided to offer free visas for everybody again.

Harrry,  you are so right !!

This woman should hav a career change.

She looks more like a house maid than Tourism Minister.  ?

Better they should be offering to pay people to come if they keep up the absolute shambles that was immigration recently 

4.5 hours to clear at swampy on the 20th at 8am.

It was almost getting to a state of riot people were so pissed off 

2 hours ago, rooster59 said:

Meanwhile, TAT Governor Dr Yuthasak Supasorn said he expects more visitors from ASEAN as Thailand is promoted as a weekend or short trip tourist destination to independent travellers within the region.

Last week I applied for a Myanmar tourist visa at a cost of 2.800 Thb for same day delivery. The queue of applicants at the embassy in Bangkok was more than 100 m long. The queue of applicants at the Thai embassy in Yangon consisted of 3 people and none of them were "weekend" or long stay tourists...

3 minutes ago, dutchweller said:

Better they should be offering to pay people to come if they keep up the absolute shambles that was immigration recently 

4.5 hours to clear at swampy on the 20th at 8am.

It was almost getting to a state of riot people were so pissed off 

That's the problem with the "farrangs" they don't understand the Thai way. Compare this ineffective procedure with immigration handling at JFK, Heathrow, Narita, Schiphol or Frankfurt.

58 minutes ago, flyingdoc said:

Harrry,  you are so right !!

 

Edited January 21, 20179 yr by BangkokTony
ref Harry not seen

So they charge Falangs in nieghboring Countries like me, 5000 baht every 6 months to enable me to go shopping and make my regular Hospital visits at border crossings and make up the difference in tourist fee losses ...

 Hmmmmm !

Some off topic posts and replies to them have been removed. From now on they will be removed without further notice.

Do the consulates in the UK know? They seem to be doing a 50% discount special

So we have saved tourists who need a Visa  2,000Bht.

If this amount of money is so important to these tourists, ask yourself Ms Minister, do you really want them?????.

All they do is clog up the immigration lines which like much of the infrastructure is hopelessly overloaded

& piss off the real quality tourist

12 minutes ago, alant said:

Do the consulates in the UK know? They seem to be doing a 50% discount special

Those are honorary Thai consulates the only revenue they get is from visa fees so they are charging a service fee to issue the visas.

If you want a free one you will need to apply at the embassy in London in person or by post.

But we keep getting told tourism is on the up. 

 

Total b...st reporting everyday. Can anyone believe a word of this,

Grasping at straws again as they say.

Thailand is just not value for money anymore.

But they just don't get it

In Australia we have 6 consuls one in each state.  The requirement to obtain 60+30 day Tourist visa are vastly different at each Consulate.  The tourist visa I got in Perth took 18 days to do it by post.  Express delivery each way.  Yes 18 days.  The Perth Consul  will only issue a tourist visa if you have a E-ticket showing your exact flight of arrival and departure.  Proof that you have Aus$800 in a bank account, that is a current copy of a bank statement showing this amount (crazy $800 for a 3 months stay?) and definite booking at a hotel upon arrival.  Strangely once you get the visa you the have 3 months to make up your mind if and when you want to go.  The Thai Tourist Minister needs to find out quick whats going on in the many overseas Embassies and Consulates.  There all different. Crazy, crazy, crazy....55555 

Edited January 21, 20179 yr by David Walden

in recent days I have spoken to a relative of a Consular staff, for obvious reason I will not name the place . To boost tourism and easy travel he voiced the idea to have countries under visa exempt free , to unlimited entries at air and land border again. Visa fee for Tourist Visa should remain unchanged, around THB1,000.-, the visa on arrival fee, should be reduced to THB1,000.-, the stay extended to 30days.  He is aware that some people claim that people work illegally, but he is the opinion that the benefit for economy far exceeds the damage, he also said if these people would cause a problem let Immigration due their job.   He is also aware that all recent changes in visa rulings, etc has actually damaged the way many people see Thailand, including within ASEAN.  

3 minutes ago, David Walden said:

In Australia we have 6 consuls one in each state.  The requirement to obtain 60+30 day Tourist visa are vastly different at each Consulate.  The tourist visa I got in Perth took 18 days to do it by post.  Express delivery each way.  Yes 18 days.  The Perth Consul  will only issue a tourist visa if you have a E-ticket showing your exact flight of arrival and departure.  Proof that you have Aus$800 in a bank account, that is a current copy of a bank statement showing this amount (crazy $800 for a 3 months stay?) and definite booking at a hotel upon arrival.  Strangely once you get the visa you the have 3 months to make up your mind if and when you want to go.  The Thai Tourist Minister needs to find out quick whats going on in the many overseas Embassies and Consulates.  Ther e all different. Crazy, crazy, crazy....55555 

Sounds OK to me but I  admit pathecicaly beauratic as are most a..e protecting states.

Zero Dollar Tours in the USA are called ALL INCLUSIVE 

 

Clearly not working then.

10 minutes ago, David Walden said:

In Australia we have 6 consuls one in each state.  The requirement to obtain 60+30 day Tourist visa are vastly different at each Consulate.  The tourist visa I got in Perth took 18 days to do it by post.  Express delivery each way.  Yes 18 days.  The Perth Consul  will only issue a tourist visa if you have a E-ticket showing your exact flight of arrival and departure.  Proof that you have Aus$800 in a bank account, that is a current copy of a bank statement showing this amount (crazy $800 for a 3 months stay?) and definite booking at a hotel upon arrival.  Strangely once you get the visa you the have 3 months to make up your mind if and when you want to go.  The Thai Tourist Minister needs to find out quick whats going on in the many overseas Embassies and Consulates.  There all different. Crazy, crazy, crazy....55555 

 

Yep, the so often experienced & mentioned 'left hand vs. right hand' thing eg. do as they please.

One certainly's wondering how that makes any sense ...?! 

8 minutes ago, realenglish1 said:

Zero Dollar Tours in the USA are called ALL INCLUSIVE 

 

 

Thats not what 'zero dollar' means in this case.  Zero dollar tours from china are a bait and switch where they offer super cheap tours then slug them with hidden extras and pressure tactics to pay for gifts etc.  

http://pattayatoday.net/news/thailand-news/china-eyes-zero-dollar-tours-5/

35 minutes ago, maoro2013 said:

But we keep getting told tourism is on the up. 

 

Total b...st reporting everyday. Can anyone believe a word of this,

 

You're so right! The amazing thing is that so many people do believe it!

 

(And what colour is black today?)

What about more constructive measures such as reducing the tremendous burden from the visa process on most long-stay tourists, many of whom would qualify as "quality tourists". My home Country of Canada issues 5-year tourist visas with a maximum stay period of 6-months. If someone wants to stay longer, simply submit a short form that is usually approved. So, why doesn't Thailand reciprocate in kind? Good question. Perhaps someone is preventing the Minister from knowing about this. There certainly would be a lobby group out there ... consisting of airlines, ferries, buses, trains and taxis and more .... let's hope the Minister gets the message.