Thai authority predicts more tourists from Macau

Titiporn Manenate

Director Titiporn Manenate from the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s (TAT) Hong Kong Office estimates that there will be a 12 percent year-on-year growth in the number of Macau tourists to Thailand in 2015, following the increasingly stable political situation in the country and TAT’s plan to strengthen its promotional campaign.
Ms Manenate said on the sidelines of a tourism presentation yesterday afternoon that Macau is a market with potential.
“Last year, we had 70,000 Macau tourists who traveled to Thailand. This means that around 12 percent [of the Macau population] has gone to Thailand. It’s a big number. That’s why we come here, wanting to promote more about new destinations in Thailand,” she said. The director also suggested that they would like to promote more of Thailand’s secondary cities, such as Chiang Rai, to local residents .
Due to the recent political incidents in Thailand, including the coup d’état in May, the number of Macau citizens traveling to Thailand this year has dropped. However, she is optimistic about the situation in 2015, calling it a “bright year.”
“Tourism in Thailand now is back in full swing. Business is back to the usual. We’re ready to welcome Macau people to Thailand again,” she said.
“Next year, I think [the number of Macau tourists to Thailand will be] a little bit higher. Since we have the political stability. That’s why we’re supposed to have 12 percent more,” she said.
The director added that the number of local tourists in Thailand this year has dropped to around 55,000. But she estimates that it will surge to 75,000 in 2015.
Andy Wu, president of the Travel Industry Council of Macau, echoes the TAT director’s comments. He said that Thailand is a favorite travel destination among local residents. Although the number of Macau residents to Thailand dropped this year due to political instability, Mr Wu thinks that the number has risen back to 70 percent of the level at regular times.
Wu also observed that there was a significant fall in the number of Thai travellers to Macau due to political conditions. However, he thinks that a rebound will happen soon.
Meanwhile, representatives from both Air Macau and Thai Smile Airlines (a subsidiary of Thai Airways) who attended yesterday’s presentation have indicated that their companies will increase the frequency of flights between Macau and Bangkok.
Winston Ma Sze Lok, Air Macau’s South China general manager  said that Bangkok has always been one of the most popular destinations for residents of Macau and Hong Kong. Therefore, the airline has always treated the Macau –
Bangkok route as one of its prime routes.
Currently, Air Macau has two flights to Bangkok daily. Mr Ma said that the airline is looking into the feasibility of scheduling one more daily flight to Bangkok, starting April next year. It is also conducting a preliminary study on opening operations for a flight route between Macau and Koh Samui in Thailand.
On the other hand, Thai Smile Air CEO Woranate Laprabang said that they are going to schedule one more flight between Bangkok and Macau, starting October 26, making it two flights per day. He said that Macau has a good combination of origin and destination passengers. The fact that Macau is only two and a half hours from Bangkok, coupled with the inexpensive ticket price of the Macau – Bangkok flight, he thinks that Macau is a good destination point for Thai Smile, compared to many cities in China.

Chinese visitors to Angkor Wat up 21 pct in 9 months

The number of Chinese tourists to Cambodia’s Angkor Wat temple, a world heritage site, reached 243,750 in the first nine months of 2014, a 21 percent increase over the same period last year.
The data provided by the tourism department in Siem Reap province, where the 12th century temple is located, stated that China was the second largest source of foreign tourists to the site after South Korea.
Chhoeuy Chhorn, deputy director of the tourism department in Siem Reap province, said the remarkable growth of Chinese tourists was thanks to the temple’s world heritage status and excellent ties between Cambodia and China.
“In addition, there are many direct flights between cities in China and Cambodia, so that Chinese travelers can easily visit Cambodia,” he told Xinhua.