Thailand tourism minister calls for improvements
BANGKOK – Thailand’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports has issued a wish list of improvements to the country’s aviation and immigration sectors to help boost tourist arrival numbers.
Tourism Minister Dr.Suvit Yodmani said that a few changes in the management and processing of visitor arrivals could eliminate bottlenecks and help Thailand meet its arrivals target of 14 million this year.
He told public and private sector delegates at a tourism summit that Thailand was facing tremendous competition on the global stage and that it was more cost-effective to make the necessary improvements at home rather than spend more marketing money abroad.
His list of suggestions and included:
Air Transport
– There is a shortage of scheduled flights to Thailand during the high season particularly from major markets such as the UK, Scandinavia, Russia and CIS countries, Australia, Japan and Africa. Thai Airways International was asked to consider adding more cities, depending on availability of aircraft and the financial feasibility of the routes.
– There is a shortage of direct flights from strong potential markets such as Korea, Hong Kong, Japan (Fukuoka), and Australia to popular Thai destinations like Phuket, Chiang Mai, Krabi and Samui.
– As Bangkok remains a popular destination, special charters could also be operated to the Thai capital from new source market cities like Shenyang, Brisbane, Perth, Chicago and Manchester.
Ground Services
– Improvement could be made at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport by boosting the number of manned immigration counters, especially during peak arrival and departure hours, improving signage, and adding more pick-up tourist points.
– It was also felt to be necessary to boost the processing time for visa-on-arrival by upgrading the technology to check passports. A proposal was also made to boost the number of countries being given visa exemption, initiating an e-visa application system over the Internet or consider a transit passenger visa for 72 hours (without visa).
-In Phuket, the minister cited a shortage of public transportation to the city from Phuket International Airport.
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 
France prepares for a massive strike across all transports on September 18
Turkish tourism stalls due to soaring prices for accommodation and food
CCS Insight: eSIMs ready to take the travel world by storm
Germany new European Entry/Exit System limited to a single airport on October 12, 2025
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt