27 May 2010

TAT names new date for trade show

The Tourism Authority of Thailand has rescheduled Thailand Travel Mart 2010 to September 8-10.

Originally, TTM+ 2010 was scheduled for June 2-4 but TAT was forced to postpone the event due to numerous cancellations by hosted buyers, scared off by the recent political upheaval in the Thai capital.

The rescheduled event will be held at Impact Muang Thong Thani in the northern suburbs of Bangkok.

TAT governor, Suraphon Svetasreni, confirmed that after "intense consultations and discussions with the private sector", stakeholders decided that there had been too many buyer cancellations to justify hosting the event as scheduled.

"September is the soonest suitable period because July and August are traditional vacation months for Europeans," the TAT governor explained.

"Also, the new dates are convenient for mid and long- haul market buyers because they can combine a visit to Bangkok and the TTM with a visit to the PATA Travel Mart that will be held the following week, 14 to 17 September in Macau."

He noted that TTM stood a better chance of attracting more international buyers particularly those who attend the annual PATA Travel Mart.

TAT is considering a proposal to assist 400 registered sellers at TTM by offering them a discount if they reconfirm for September.