'We Travel Together' stimulus package launched

More than 3.5 million people have registered for the government's latest tourism stimulus campaign known as Rao Tiew Duay Kan (We Travel Together).

Lavaron Sangsnit, director-general of the Fiscal Policy Office, said that of the total 3.5 million who signed up on the website which came online on Wednesday, 2.2 million people had received a confirmation SMS and the other 1.1 million were currently being verified.

About 200,000 applications had not been completed properly and Mr Lavaron asked those people to go through the process again.

Participants must be Thai nationals with a valid ID card; aged 18 or above on the date of registration; must choose to travel, eat and stay in a province other than the one they are registered as living in; and must have a smartphone to download the Pao Tang application.

The government will subsidise five million nights of hotel accommodation at 40% of normal room rates, with the subsidy limited to 3,000 baht per night for up to five nights. Tourists will be responsible for the other 60%.

Subsidies for other services, including food, are capped at 600 baht per room per night. The subsidised tourist facilities must be outside the tourists' home provinces to qualify and are limited to 40% of actual expenses, with tourists paying the rest.

The subsidy will be transferred into the Pao Tang application accounts by 5pm every day after registrants check into the registered hotel accommodation.

When tourists travel by airline, the government will refund 40% of the ticket price, but no more than 1,000 baht per seat and the quota is limited to 2 million seats.

Travellers must pay the full ticket price through the airline's website first.

The government will later issue refunds on the 15th and the 30th of the month.