TOURISM

As the country's largest earner of foreign exchange, tourism is given every encouragement by the Royal Thai Government, including full support to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) in order to carry out its mission and objectives.

In 1998, the country welcomed 7.7 million overseas visitors, an increase of 7.5% over 1997. During the year, Japan was Thailand's largest market for arrivals, followed by Malaysia and China. The average length of stay for all tourists was around eight days. In another promotion of the Thai tourist industry, Thai citizens are themselves being encouraged to take more trips within the country and discover the excitement of Thailand.

Thailand's outstanding tourism performance is due to several factors, including the economic stability of its main markets, the increased number of flights to Thailand, the opening of the new airport terminal in Bangkok, bigger financial support from the government and greater cooperation from the private sector.

An important factor in the recent increase of tourist arrivals resulted from the 50th Anniversary (Golden Jubilee) Celebrations of His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej's Accession to the Throne, which was held from January 1995 to December 1996 and featured many special events. The promotion of Amazing Thailand Years 1998-1999, gave a further boost and established the country as a major tourist destination in Asia.

Thailand is well equipped to handle this increased tourist and business traffic. It is blessed with many excellent hotels, not just in Bangkok but in every major business and tourist destination throughout the country. Recent years have seen numerous first-class properties built in Bangkok. A number of hotel projects have been completed, including several along the Chao Phraya River, as well as major extension and expansion programs by existing hotels.

Thailand has more than 2,500 hotels and other types of accommodation, with over 100,000 rooms in major tourist destinations. The hotels range in quality from deluxe and first-class, with swimming pools, sports centers, conference facilities, and ballrooms, to low budget guesthouses and hotels providing just the basics in comfort and security.

Bangkok alone has over 73,000 rooms of all sorts. Pattaya, the country's second most popular tourist destination after Bangkok, boasts about 24,000 hotel rooms. The northern provincial capital of Chiang Mai is also well endowed with quality hotels while Phuket's popularity in recent years has drawn many hotel developers to this southern island. In the South, the cities of Songkhla and Hat Yai both boast many four-star hotels. Equally good accommodations can be found in all major towns of the Northeast, the West and in towns like Chanthaburi, Rayong and Trat in the East.
Most visitors to Thailand arrive by air through Bangkok's International Airport. Bangkok is a commercial air hub for Southeast Asia and is served by 84 scheduled airlines. Travel to Thailand from any continent is thus fast and convenient. Moreover, many new routes have been opened, while flight frequencies have also been increased. An entire new terminal was added at Bangkok International Airport at the end of 1995, increasing its efficiency and convenience for air travelers. Other facilities include duty-free shops, restaurants, closed circuit television, foreign exchange counters, and both pay and toll-free telephones. Both limousine and taxi services are available, while bus and train services to the airport will be improved. There is ample parking for private cars.

From Bangkok, visitors fan out to all major provinces either by air, rail, car, or coach. The country has a modern system of highways stretching in every direction. Popular resorts and other tourist destinations are served by regular and reliable coach and bus services from the capital. Travel between provinces is also safe and comfortable, as there are good connecting highways.

The State Railway of Thailand operates in all regions of the country: the northern line to Chiang Mai; two northeastern lines, to Ubon Ratchathani and Nong Khai; the eastern line to Aranyaprathet; and the southern line which goes to Hat Yai, where it connects with the Malaysian rail system and continues on to Penang and Singapore. For visitors with limited time, travel by air is also convenient since there are scheduled flights from Bangkok to more than 30 provinces. Visitors, therefore, have a wide choice of transportation alternatives, and can plan their itineraries accordingly.

Most local tour agents have connections with overseas agents in major markets; therefore, visitors can plan their itineraries and book their hotels before they leave home. Thai tour agents provide a friendly and professional service, and most also offer good tour coaches and multi-lingual guides.

The country's future directions are clear. Thailand is going to play a major role in the development of tourism within Indochina. A number of cooperative marketing agreements have already been signed with the governments of Vietnam, China, Cambodia and Laos. In addition, the Tourism Authority of Thailand is also working closely with its counterparts in the ASEAN countries to attract more visitors to the region. The development of the policy that has made Thailand the aviation hub of Asia is also expected to go a long way towards promoting more airlines to fly to Thailand. Thai Airways International, the national carrier, has signed a series of marketing alliances with foreign airlines like Lufthansa, United Airlines, Japan Airlines, and Ansett Australia, all of which increase Thailand's penetration into the key tourism markets.

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