Greed: Calls for return to Thai values

Greed: Calls for return to Thai values

The face of Thai tourism, a once blossoming, glowing, beautiful young lady, is today that of a wrinkly, middle-aged matron who is probably undergoing a midlife crisis, slow and slightly frail.

And yet, despite the years, she has managed to remain a stunning attraction, a striking star among Asean countries and across the world.

Foreign tourists get laid back at Patong Beach, Phuket. (Bangkok Post file photo)

According to the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO), in 2012 and 2013, Thailand was one of the top 10 global tourism destinations by arrivals, with international tourist arrivals of 22.4 million and 26.5 million, respectively. The country ranked 7th in global tourism destinations by revenue hitting US$33.8 billion and $42 billion in 2012 and 2013, respectively.

Obviously the charm is still irresistible. But with all the recent dramas of political unrest, months of protests, a coup, martial law which is still in place, plus a series of tourist murders, how long the lucrative industry can continue to seduce visitors and keep its slice of the tourism cake is open to question. The question is even more pertinent in the face of rising competition from neighbouring Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar, the latter emerging as the belle of the ball in the region.

Thailand needs a good facelift to move forward.

However, tourism experts say the industry needs more than just a superficial facelift. It needs a top-to-bottom restructuring from the ministry level down to related departments and the private sector and local communities.

Political and economic stability is a prerequisite for the industry to continue to prosper. The newly-appointed Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul has a tough job ahead.

Uncertain future?

Sugree Sithivanich, the deputy governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), is not confident about the future of the country's tourism.

"Thailand's tourism trade will remain a leader in the region for now but the future is quite doubtful. The key reason is that the quality and morality of Thais these days are terrible," he claims.

Over the past few decades, Thais and Thainess have changed for the worse. The litany of troubles, frauds and crimes has grown as a result of increasing greed of the people, business operators and government officials.

Many ask whether the "land of smiles" slogan is still valid when increasing numbers of international tourists are cheated, harassed, abused or murdered.

"Thailand's tourism won't be able to move forward if Thais don't improve their mindset," says Mr Sugree.

"A number of tourism operators take advantage of tourists, noticeable from the increase in tourism frauds. Thainess in terms of food and culture has not really changed but Thais' morality and integrity have changed for the worse," he adds.

Natural resources, he adds, are one thing. But Thais and Thainess are also the country's strong selling points.

"So Thais shouldn't kill the goose that lays the golden eggs. That's not clever," he says.

Sumet Sudasna, president of the Thailand Incentive and Convention Association, concurs, saying many tourism operators are greedy while the police and authorities turn a blind eye.

Thailand, he continues, has its dark side with fraudulent and illegal practices.

"If we go down this road and overlook these problems, the country will lose its tourism confidence in next the five years," he says. (Story continues below)

Emerging competitors

According to the TAT, the people of Myanmar and Bali, Indonesia, have developed friendliness and a welcoming attitude towards international tourists - the very traits that Thais are apparently losing, particularly the mindset of locals at several major destinations including Phuket, Krabi and Koh Samui.

A key reason is that many destinations have been tainted and exploited by profit-obsessed business operators, or sometimes mafia types, who dominate local businesses.

Today, Mr Sugree continues, many beaches in Myanmar are still unspoilt and undiscovered while the white sand beach of Boracay in the Philippines and the spectacular Halong Bay in Vietnam are very appealing.

"If these countries can offer more convenient transportation and tourism facilities in the near future, then Thailand will face fierce competitors," warns Mr Sugree.

However, Glenn De Souza, vice-president for International Operations at Best Western Asia, thinks otherwise. Even though Thai tourism has seen a downturn this year, arrivals have started to rebound.

"And the drop in arrivals is less when compared with an increase of about 90% over the past five years," he says.

Judging success in terms of global popularity, he continues, Thailand is a very successful destination ranking among the top 10 most-visited countries in the world.

Meanwhile, he admits that there are an increasing number of destinations competing for Thailand's slice of the pie. Vietnam is developing in many areas such as beach tourism and golf tourism which are very popular with Russian and Chinese visitors, while Myanmar is becoming Southeast Asia's new hot destination especially among Japanese and Korean tourists.

"But Thailand really is the only country, at present, that has everything as a whole: international resorts, a well-developed tourism infrastructure, excellent service, connectivity, stunning natural scenery and world-class shopping. Thailand really does have it all. And this is why the country always seems to recover so quickly from its setbacks," Mr De Souza explains.

Due mainly to the prolonged political unrest, in the first eight months of this year, the number of international tourist arrivals dropped by 10% year-on-year to 15.7 million. In 2013, total international arrivals stood at 26.7 million, rising by 19% from a year earlier.

Last year Malaysia welcomed 25.72 million visitors, up from 25.03 million in 2012. Rising star Myanmar posted 2.04 million foreign visitors, a rise of 93% year-on-year, while Vietnam welcomed 7.6 million visitors, a growth of 110% year-on-year.

Lack of coordination

Not only has the prolonged political uncertainty dragged down tourism since the end of 2008, but the lack of continuity in policies and limited cooperation among the ministry, tourism-related organisations and parties and the private sector has also hindered the industry's sustainable growth, says Mr Sugree.

Another obstacle is that the Tourism and Sports Ministry has often been viewed as a secondary ministry receiving less attention from the government, Mr Sumet contends.

According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, in 2013 travel and tourism generated 17% of the country's GDP, coming in at US$66 billion.

"We hope that the government will view the Tourism and Sports Ministry as an 'A-class' ministry. The industry needs sustainable and long-term planning. Issuing laws and orders isn't enough. The government should have a long-term solution to ensure this industry survives in the long-run," Mr Sumet says.

Mr De Souza expresses understanding of the challenges Thailand is facing, saying it is difficult to retain continuity of policies when the country has undergone many changes in leadership.

"But the TAT is a constant force, trying to maintain the momentum of the industry and I think it has done an excellent job in difficult circumstances," Mr de Souza says.

Turning a page

The private sector today hopes to see a new page of the tourism industry under a new government and a new minister. According to sources, the Tourism and Sports Ministry has long been under the influence of the Chartpattana Party.

After taking the position, Ms Kobkarn vowed to make concrete changes: Creating transparency; reducing redundant duties and tasks among the ministry, departments and associations; and laying proactive policies to create sustainable tourism.

She targets tourism revenue of 2 trillion baht from an expected 25.5 million tourist arrivals this year. Next year she plans to achieve revenue totalling 2.2 trillion baht.

Based on a recent roadmap, the ministry plans to promote 12 secondary tourism sites including Lampang, Phetchabun, Buri Ram, Chanthaburi and Trat. Additionally it also plans to revamp three major islands - Koh Tao, Koh Samui and Koh Phangan - as "green islands" by limiting party times and preventing drink-driving. The move follows the recent murders of two British tourists in Koh Tao.

Ms Kobkarn will also strengthen cooperation between tourism agencies, operators and local communities in order to develop sustainable tourism. She says all parties in the sector including local communities must understand the real value of tourism - that it generates huge revenue for the country while distributing income to local people.

"We will no longer solve problems only at the surface level but also at the root so there won't be a a recurrence of what happened in Koh Tao. In such cases we need to strengthen the communities and educate them about the actual value of the tourism business. If people want to make revenue from it, they need to take good care of business and the tourists. And don't be greedy," she says.

What operators say

Ultimately, tourism operators and all Thais need to restore the genuine hospitality and welcoming attitude of a good host to sustain tourism's growth and competitiveness. Additionally, according to Mr Sumet, the authorities should not focus only on the volume of tourists but the quality of the trade for a long-term strategy.

Mr Sumet says operators want to see genuine tourism statistics and figures derived from thorough surveys and comprehensive data-gathering by authorities so they can tailor their marketing strategies based on actual data.

Mr De Souza expresses solid confidence in the future of Thailand's tourism, saying international operators such as airlines and travel agents have retained faith in the country. He also believes the coming Asean Economic Community (AEC) will offer strong opportunities for Thailand.

"The AEC will enhance intra-regional leisure travel by Asean citizens which will boost tourist arrivals here," he says.

Meanwhile, little can be achieved without political stability and long-term sustainable plans.

"All the key ingredients are already in place for Thailand's tourism to succeed. We just need a period of political and economic stability to ensure continued growth," Mr De Souza says.

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