Baht may fuel tourism to Japan

Baht may fuel tourism to Japan

The strong baht has helped steady the prices of overseas tour packages, which otherwise would have increased by at least 10% this year.

The baht hit its strongest level in 16 months _ below 30 baht per dollar since last week _ which has affected many sectors including exports, but outbound tourism has flourished.

This will help travel agents keep overseas tour package prices static. Charoen Wangananont, the former president of the Thai Travel Agents Association (TTAA), thinks tourism to Japan will benefit this year as a result.

He said the higher minimum wage of 300 baht a day and inflation have pressured outbound tour operators to increase tour prices this year.

Mr Charoen believes the stronger baht will help increase the number of outbound tourists this summer by at least 5% compared to the same period last year. A 5% gain would mean 6.3 million outbound tourists.

Mr Charoen, who is also managing director of Kangwal Holiday, added the baht stood at 40-41 per 100 yen late last year, but now sits at 33-34 per 100 yen.

The number of Thai tourists visiting Japan this year is estimated at 350,000, beating the previous high of 300,000 in 2010.

Kangwal Holiday will focus on promoting Japan this year, especially secondary cities. Mr Charoen said Thais want to touch the real lifestyle of the Japanese and their culture. The National Tourism Organization of Japan is also aggressively promoting the country's secondary cities, so it expects many package tours to these cities this year.

While Tokyo and Osaka always draw crowds, tour agents and promotion organisations are pushing Hokkaido, Honshu, Akita, and Aomori.

He also feels South Korea will continue to be popular for a few more years. Package tours there are selling well with high competition. The price of a package tour to South Korea starts at 15,000 baht for 4 days and 2 nights, similar to Singapore and Hong Kong.

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