History of Thailand as a destination
In International tourist arrivals, Thailand has achieved the position of eighth, globally among all the other tourist destinations in the world. The 2019 figures for tourism growth in Thailand are very significant and rich in terms of profitability. After this period, the growth moves into retrogression solely because of the emergence of COVID. The tourism-related aspects are run by the Thailand pass system, which every visitor goes through. It is a tracing system that is imposed on the people, who are willing to visit the country. This system was estimated to be put in place in the year 2021.
Data about the visitor spending, population, and visitation
In the year 2019, Thailand as a travel destination acquired 40 million visitors. It is found significantly that there are three specific categories in which spending is generated. The visitors spend significantly on the spending categories of food and beverages, accommodation, and shopping. For example, shopping spending went to 24 % on accommodation, 28 % spending and on food and beverages, and 21 % . In the below figure, the tourism value of Thailand is depicted.
It is also found that after the reopening of all the tourism segments in Thailand, spending has again accelerated in many countries. For example, tourist attractions that come in great numbers are from regions of France, UAE, Russia, Japan, the UK, the US, Germany, Switzerland, and Sweden to a great extent.
Significance of tourism in Thailand
The Thai tourism sector is known for creating millions of jobs for new people, who have just graduated from college. Between the years 2014 to 2019, job creation has been seen in large numbers in Thailand. Over these year periods, around 36 million jobs were created single-handedly by this sector. The GDP of the country is dependent majorly upon foreign tourism, and the more growth that is seen in this segment, the better it is for the economy of the country. The domestic tourism segment of Thailand is absolutely incapable of bringing the revenue back into a successful ratio. To increase the revenue back at its place, international travel is really required. Hence, it is quite presumable that the country’s economy, as well as the significance of the country, is truly reliant on the impact of tourism. It is identified that Thailand has numerous strengths, which can impact Thai tourism in various ways as the country has a high amount of biodiversity. At the same time, they are known as one of the technology-savvy countries as most of the young minds are involved in the technological sector which focuses on developing cybersecurity. Also, the country has a low rate of unemployment, and the country gets the maximum number of tourists who visit the nation just to get medical treatment such as plastic or cosmetic surgery. However, the country faces political disputes which impact the tourism business, and so is the economy of the country. It is seen that due to the climatic changes, biodiversity is affected negatively, and the country is facing a water shortage. The country faces an opportunity as the government has introduced numerous bills that permit international investors to invest and start a business in the country.
Trend driving change and the inclusion of triple bottom line trend
The existing triple bottom line trend that is followed in Thailand is related to focus on people and their safety to a great extent. For example, in southwest Thailand, Six Senses, Koh Yao Noi is a place where the hotel experience is amalgamated with luxury and leafy gardens. An unadulterated view of wild seascapes, fishing villages, rice fields, and small rubber plantations can be found in the areas of Yao Noi Island.
The community work units are the place where sustainable development is planned in this hotel segment. On the other hand, in the jungle area, a hotel business called the Four Seasons Chiang Mai is situated. In their hotel business, people who visit the place would certainly get an experience of the excellent kitchen, wine cellar, butlers, and pools. On the other hand, they can get to hear the sounds of mini waterfalls, monkeys, and birds to a great extent. From these examples, this is quite apparent that the tourism business has not completely annihilated the aspects of nature for the sake of building a business but they have used it for their own benefits.
Advantages and disadvantages that Thailand faced regarding the integration of trends
The Bangkok restaurants and tourism segments have recently implemented trendy restaurants and facilities such as modern shopping centers and galleries . A lot of predictions have been made that the travel segment can reach a great extent. The imports and export initiatives are blocked in great quantity and this is due to fewer activities regarding the ease of travel restriction. The insurance measures are one of the factors that the government of Thailand has applied, which have no relevance as everyone visiting the country has already gone through the process of full vaccination. This is the main reason why the sustainable practice regarding the idea of triple bottom-line trends is not utilized properly in Thailand. This is why the economy has contracted to 6.1 % in the year 2020 because of fewer activities led by the government.
Probable consequences of not adapting to change
The probable issues that can be issued in the near future regarding less change in practice are many. On the other hand, there are issues regarding the facets of reality behind the importance of travel in Thailand. The Thailand government must apply certain changes regarding fewer traveler restrictions in place for international travelers. The other issues that can be increased to a large extent are revenue retrogression, sales growth slump, and poor level of travel attractions in the area of Thailand travel.
Activities that they implemented
The inclusion of Phuket Sandbox has been initiated by the tourism sectors of Thailand so that they can meet international tourism demands. This approach is nothing but a solution for fully vaccinated travelers in the Thailand region. Moreover, after the safety precautions made by the Safety & Health Administration of the Thai government, visitors can plan for travel-related activities in the country. Hence, by viewing these specific measures, the travel revenue might increase in the upcoming years. On the other hand, for securing or sustaining the tourism sector of Thailand, insurance coverage for Covid-19, Thailand Pass, and RT-PCR test on day five of arrival are implemented.
Identification of key stakeholders in the tourism industry
The hotel groups are also one of the important stakeholders in Thailand’s tourism that counts. According to the Forbes Travel Guide, the Mandarin Hotel, for instance, has been awarded five stars for its specialization in the spa segments. These hotel segment stakeholders are excellent revenue generators for the travel industry of Thailand. Furthermore, with both modern Chinese and colonial Thai styles, Peninsula is a hotel business situated in Bangkok that provides excellent services. Real estate giants and CEOs of big companies are the key external stakeholders who have implemented business plans for the growth of Thailand's tourism . For instance, the real estate business company Asset World Corp has invested a lot of money to recover the travel revenue back at its former pace.
The AWC has also shown great interest and concern over the facts of contractions that have been made by the pandemic. As a consequence of these tragic scenarios, the company owners along with key members have invested 3.2 million dollars as a growth plan for the travel sector of Thailand.
Sustainable development and conservation of Thailand
Animal enthusiasts regard the place of Thailand as one of the greatest attractions. There are fascinating species to be encountered while traveling in Thailand. On the other hand, Kui Buri is the place where the biggest elephants can be found. Similarly, in Thailand, wild cattle species and tapirs, gibbons, golden jackals, and even leopards are found as well. Over-tourism is an issue in Thailand that is making the people of Thailand conscious as well. In rural tourism, 70 % of the Thai population is showing a great level of interest. A pilot project called “Appear” is also applied by six Thailand communities in travel to a great extent as well. Since this type of rural tourism area has not been discovered before, they are showing a new direction to tourism sectors as well. Help to the communities of people is generated by people who visit Thailand and this is one of the great sustainable travel considerations. Tourist dollars are invested in the rural communities of Thailand as well.
Ways in which stakeholders apply educative executions for sustainability
The sustainability of the tourism sector in Thailand is restored greatly by the reputation business. For instance, the business of Asset World Corp. (AWC), has added value to the tourism of Thailand to a great extent. From the year 2019, before the pandemic time, they have tried their stances in growing the travel sector to its deserving potential. At the same time, since the pandemic situation has created a lot of revenue slump in the industry, the CEO of AWC has made four new hotels with 1,600 rooms.
On the other hand, they have added 17 hotels that have nearly 5,000 rooms. This real estate business company also acquired rooms of Sigma Jomtien Pattaya Hotel for 550 million baht.
