The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) says the country should promote “ghost tourism” for international visitors interested in horror-themed sites, a move that could further boost “soft power”.
Thai ghosts are soft power assets and films about them have helped spread Thailand’s culture around the world, said Siripakorn Cheawsamoot, deputy TAT governor for Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the United States.
Speaking after meeting the Spanish ambassador to Thailand, he said Spanish tourists were interested in exploring haunted sites with intriguing stories.
The TAT has not officially promoted this aspect of tourism, although there are many potential sites in the country.
TAT governor Thapanee Kiatphaibool on Saturday said the promotion of Thailand’s soft power has been a success as many foreign film and television production companies are looking at working in the country lately.
Ms Thapanee cited the filming of the third season of White Lotus, a hit HBO TV series being shot in Bangkok, Phuket and Koh Samui, and the Hollywood blockbuster Jurassic World 4, which is scheduled to begin shooting next week in Krabi and Trang.
The latter, she said, is expected to generate over 650 million baht in revenue during the one-month filming period.
In another development, the TAT said it is working with French supermarket giant Carrefour to launch a Thailand tourism package during the 2024 Olympic Games, scheduled from July 22 to Aug 11 in France.
Under the “Olympic Getaway” slogan, the campaign aims to attract French people who might be seeking to escape the influx of visitors to their home country during the period to come to Thailand.
About 2,000 tour packages are being offered to French tourists, Mr Siripakorn said, adding that the agency is preparing to cooperate with airlines to enable direct flights from Paris and transit flights from other airports within the country.
