The minimum prices for tour packages to deal with growing price wars and substandard travel operators are slated to be applied next year, says the Tourism Department.
Issued under the Tourism Business and Guide Act of 2008, the minimum price initiative was approved by the Tourism Business and Guide Committee on Nov 14, said Taweesak Wanichcharoen, director-general of the department.
Mr Taweesak said the committee is working on some details, but they agreed to set the lowest prices for a three-day, two-night outbound tour package at 1,600 to 9,000 baht per person, excluding air tickets.
For inbound tour packages, minimum prices will vary based on the market and the operating costs of travel agencies. The minimum charge for a tour to a short-haul market or from Southeast Asian countries is set at 800 baht per person per night, rising to 1,000 baht and 1,500 baht for those from Asian and other countries, respectively.
Minimum prices for a one-day domestic tour package are set at 300 baht/person and 600 baht/night for overnight trips.
Tassanee Kiatkamchornchai, honorary secretary general of the Thai Travel Agents Association, said the moves are likely to raise the standard of the travel industry but may not ease the price war or prevent malpractice by tour operators.
Taweesak: Ironing out the details
Some crooked operators offer cut-rate tour prices to attract clients and then abandon them, she said.
Ms Tassanee said tourists should consider higher-quality tour packages rather than cheap tour packages, enabling operators to add value to services.
The number of Thais taking overseas trips is on the rise. From January to September, some 9.85 million Thais took outbound trips, up 10.1% from the same period of last year, according to the Immigration Bureau.
Vichit Prakobgosol, president of the Association of Thai Travel Agents (Atta), voiced support for the minimum price rule, saying it would assure foreign travellers of quality and reasonable tourism services in Thailand.
Standardising the prices for tour packages is the first step in dealing with the zero-dollar tours that have damaged Thai tourism, Mr Vichit said.
He suggested state agencies support tour operators who comply with the rule, which would eventually help improve the current tepid tourism climate.
Tourists who travel with Atta members dropped in all markets as of Nov 20 to 4.78 million, a 4.2% decline year-on-year.
Arrivals from China totalled 2.76 million down 3.4%, followed by Vietnam with 300,168 (-1.8%), South Korea with 193,708 (-10.5%) and Japan with 156,865 (-4.3%). Meanwhile, the India market grew by 5.1% to 252,022 tourists.
Phuriwat Limthavornrat, president of the Association of Domestic Travel, said domestic tourism is the least affected by scammers. But standardising prices will help tourists verify and avoid being cheated by illegal tour agents who offer prices at lower-than-minimum rates, as well as promote operators who provide quality tourism products.