Tourism trade braces for more headwinds
published : 1 Dec 2022 at 09:07
writer: Gary Boyle
ORIGINAL SOURCE/WRITER: Narumon Kasemsuk
The tourism industry has to brace for uncertainties from domestic politics, world conflicts and higher competition next year.
The Phuket Tourist Association said high competition will make it difficult for Thailand.
Some Scandinavian groups -- one of the established markets of Phuket for decades -- have shifted to Bali during the winter.
Looking ahead to next year, the association said there are still domestic factors, such as concerns about political tension as the general election is expected to take place in 2023.
Moreover, surging energy prices and the Russia-Ukraine conflict are also affecting tourism spending.
The mass demonstrations against Covid-19 curbs in China will make travel restrictions more unpredictable as nobody can guess how Beijing will react to this situation.
At present, there are very few direct flights to Phuket operated by Thai Airways, despite other international airlines continuing to increase flights.
The Thai Spa Association said the flow of tourists hasn't resumed to the normal level, while tensions from the recession and geopolitics will continue to affect tourism until next year.
Learn from listening
Vocabulary
- association: an official group of people who have joined together for a particular purpose - สมาคม
- brace: to get ready for something unpleasant - เตรียม
- competition: a situation in which people or organizations compete, i.e., try to be more successful or better than somebody else who is trying to do the same as you - การแข่งขัน
- conflict: angry disagreement between people or groups - การต่อสู้, ความขัดแย้ง
- curb (noun): something that controls and puts limits on something - สิ่งควบคุม, สิ่งจำกัด, สิ่งระงับ
- demonstration: an occasion when a large group of people protest about something - การชุมนุมประท้วง
- domestic: inside the country being talked about - ภายในประเทศ
- established: be in a successful position over a long period of time - มีตำแหน่งที่มั่นคง
- general election (noun): an election in which all or most members of a given political body are chosen. The term is usually used to refer to elections held for a nation's primary legislative body, as distinguished from by-elections and local elections (Source: Wikipedia) - การเลือกตั้งทั่วไป
- geopolitical (adj): connected with the political relations between countries and groups of countries in the world or with the study of these relations -
- guess: to try and give an answer or make a judgement about something without being sure of all the facts - เดา
- headwinds: winds that blow in the opposite direction to the direction you are moving in -
- recession: a period when trade and industry are not successful and there is a lot of unemployment - ภาวะเศรษฐกิจถดถอย
- resume: to start something again after stopping temporarily - กลับมาอีกครั้ง
- surge: a sudden increase in something - การเพิ่มขึ้นอย่างรวดเร็ว
- tension: the feeling caused by a lack of trust between people, groups or countries - ความตึงเครียด
