Thailand reveals the secret to attracting Vietnamese tourists

By the end of June, the number of Vietnamese visitors to Thailand can reach 500,000 - a positive number thanks to the way tourism of the land of the Golden Temple.

Ms. Sukanya Sirikanjanakul - Regional Director for Southeast Asia, South Asia and South Pacific under the Tourism Authority of Thailand - commented that Vietnam is a potential market. Only in the first 5 months of the year, there were about 400,000 Vietnamese visitors to Thailand and this number could increase to 500,000 by the end of June.

Speaking to VnExpress on June 24, Ms. Sukanya Sirikanjanakul highly appreciated the work results of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) office in Ho Chi Minh City in promoting the destination and attracting Vietnamese tourists over the past time. Besides traditional destinations like Bangkok, Vietnamese tourists are also tending to Chiang Mai more. Reports from Chiang Mai sent to TAT show "very positive" visitor signals.

"I really thank Vietnamese tourists for their love for Thailand," said Ms. Sukanya Sirikanjanakul.

According to Ms. Sukanya Sirikanjanakul, one of the ways to help Thailand attract international visitors is the arrangement of TAT offices in many parts of the world. This way of working shows that Thailand really considers tourism as a spearhead economic sector.

Up to now, Thailand has 29 TAT offices in many countries. These units have the task of "covering", promoting the image of Thai tourism. At the same time, they are also the ones who research and monitor the travel behavior of international tourists to help Thailand launch separate promotion programs for each market.

Besides Phuket, Chiang Mai, the ancient capital of Ayutthaya is also a place that TAT wants to promote to Vietnamese guests. Photo: KKDay

For example, tourists in the Southeast Asian market have a preference for shopping, but visitors in Europe are more interested in exploring and experiencing tourism. Therefore, the presence of TAT offices around the world is a way for Thailand to "right and hit" each market.

During the two days of June 24-25, Thailand also held the Amazing Thailand Festival 2023 event in Hanoi with many art, culinary, informational, and tourism activities. This is an event organized with the purpose of gratitude to Vietnamese tourists who have loved and chosen tourism in Thailand for many years. In this event, two famous tourist cities, Chiang Mai and Phuket, will be the main promotional targets of Thailand.

Through the campaign "Visit Thailand Year 2023 - Amazing New Chapters" (Tourism Thailand 2023 - Amazing New Chapters) and Soft Power (Soft Power), visitors love, want to learn about Thai tourism can explore all aspects through the campaign's 5F content, including: Food - Film - Festival - Fight (Art of Martial Arts) - Fashion (Fashion) .

Talking about the new slogan "New Chapters", Ms. Sukanya Sirikanjanakul said that the slogans that change from year to year are also the result of the work of TAT offices around the world. Each year, representatives of the offices will return to Thailand to discuss, come up with appropriate slogans and attract tourists from all over the world. In July, TAT will officially inform the whole world about what's new in Thailand next year.

The representative of TAT said that Thailand is a destination that is really no stranger to many people, some tourists have come here a few times. However, they come back because Thailand always innovates to retain tourists. TAT statistics in 2019 show that 60% of total international visitors are people who have gone and returned. The remaining 40% are first-time visitors. After the epidemic, the number changed with 70% returning guests and 30% being first time visitors.

According to Ms. Sukanya Sirikanjanakul, this number shows that Thailand is an attractive destination even for those who have been. After the epidemic, the behavior of tourists has changed and many people consider safety when choosing a new destination. As a result, the number of new visitors decreased from 40% to 30%. However, the number of return visitors up to 70% shows the attractiveness of this country and the trust of visitors for them.

As of May 27, Thailand has welcomed about 10.3 million international visitors, earning 428 billion baht (more than 12 billion USD). The top five tourism markets are Malaysia (1.6 million), China (over 1 million), Russia (734,995), South Korea (627,760) and India (583,319).