Thailand to stimulate tourism in 2015

BANGKOK, September 4 (TNA) - Thailand will further stimulate tourism-related businesses next year in order to earn the Kingdom about 2.2 trillion baht as targeted. Permanent Secretary for Tourism and Sports Suwat Sidthilaw told journalists of the move on Thursday, acknowledging that, in order to meet the targeted national tourism revenue in 2015, his ministry will promote domestic tourism in all dimensions, including the sector of meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE), while also addressing legal and other obstacles to the domestic tourism. Suwat assessed that the number of international visitors to Thailand is likely to total 25.5 million by the end of this year, earning the Kingdom about 1.8 trillion baht of tourism-related revenues, lower than his ministry's earlier targets of 28 million international visitors and 2-trillion-baht tourism-related revenues, due to impacts from domestic political problems in the first half of this year. Meanwhile, Nopparat Maythaveekulchai, President of Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), told reporters that MICE visitors to the Kingdom should reach over 880,000 by the end of this year, generating over 87.2 billion baht national income in the sector alone. Nopparat said TCEB will increase its promotion of Thailand as a world outstanding destination for incentive trips and international conferences next year. (TNA)