Phuket eyes sports tourism niche
Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is stepping up its pursuit of niche markets, such as sports and wellness tourism.
"Sports tourism is already growing with the Phuket Triathlon, Quicksilver Surf Competition and next May we will host an event under the International Triathlon Union," said TAT’s Phuket office director, Chanchai Duangjit.
Chanchai said mainstream tourism on the island was at the saturation point. "The way forward is to concentrate on niche markets and high spend visitors," he said.
"Phuket must move on from mass tourism to become a destination that relies on various upmarket niches such as sports tourism, but it is also important to promote the island as a gateway to other Andaman Sea coast destinations," he added.
The Absolute Phuket ITU LD World Series Triathlon will take place over the weekend of May 4-5, 2013, and consist of three disciplines – a swim, bike and run.
There will be a number of distances and race formats including a ‘sprint’, ‘Olympic Distance’, ‘team relay’, ‘celebrity relay’ and ‘ITU Kids’ divisions.
The courses will take in much of the island’s southwest coast, with the open water swimming off Patong, the bike course heading south through Karon to the hills around Kata, and the running leg back at the beachfront in Patong.
Ian Jarrett
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive
Euromonitor International unveils world’s top 100 city destinations for 2025