The Phuket Tourist Association will arrange tourist promotion roadshows in Saudi Arabia and Oman after impressive recent growth in tourist numbers from those areas, PTA president Thanet Tantipiriyakit said on Tuesday.
The roadshows would be sponsored by the Phuket Provincial Administration Office as part of PTA’s overseas market promotion plan.
Mr Thanet said similar roadshows arranged during this year’s low season targeted mainly Russian and Middle Eastern visitors.
The growth in Saudi Arabian tourists in Phuket was significant, said Mr Thanet. It was up "thousands of percent" since earlier this year.
Two other markets in which the PTA had strong interest were Kazakhstan and India.
Mr Thanet said at least 70% of Kazakhstani visitors to Thailand headed to Phuket, which had led to an increase in the number of direct flights from Kazakhstan to the island.
The visa-free scheme offered to Chinese and Kazakhstani visitors in September was a major factor in the 300–400% growth in the number of Kazakh tourists, he said.
Growth was also expected in the Indian market, given its huge population, rapidly recovering economy, and the fact it is only a four-hour flight from Phuket.
Some overlap in Thai and Indian cuisine and other familiar facets of the two cultures also contributed to the close relationship, Mr Thanet said.
Eyeing the future, Mr Thanet said PTA planned promotions in Taiwan, Hong Kong and mainland China.
He said Chinese tourists now tended to prefer longer stays, but it was not expected their numbers would soon rebound to pre-pandemic levels. It was currently around 30%. He expected this to climb to 60% to 70%.
