The Tourism and Sports Minister is poised to enhance the tourism subsidy for local travelers to 50% in the upcoming stimulus initiative. Additionally, there is a push to revise criteria for online travel agents, requiring them to register in Thailand to retain tourism revenue within the country.
In exciting news, the internationally acclaimed Thai pop star will perform at the Amazing Thailand Countdown 2025 event at ICONSIAM.
According to Tourism and Sports Minister Sorawong Thienthong, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is currently formulating guidelines for a new co-payment scheme that aims to subsidize tourism expenses for locals, with an expected economic impact increase of 5-10% compared to previous versions of the initiative.
The earlier five phases of the subsidy under the prior administration generated an economic boost of approximately 58.6 billion baht.
The ministry aims to launch the program during the low season next year, though an earlier start in early 2025 is under consideration, following input from the private sector.
The minister plans to review TAT’s proposal next month and aims to present the initiative to the cabinet in January 2025.
“I personally advocate raising the government subsidy from 40% in the previous phases to 50%. If feasible, we’d like to implement this sooner to revitalize the economy through tourism spending. However, we must first await feedback from the Finance Ministry regarding the budget,” stated Mr. Sorawong.
The ministry has tasked the TAT with developing strategies to reduce dependency on foreign online travel agents (OTAs).
“Discussions with hotel operators revealed that the past programs favoring foreign OTAs led to inequitable practices harming local businesses, as many are unregistered in Thailand. The substantial commissions taken from hotels, ranging from 25-30%, have been lost to overseas companies,” he noted.
The TAT will also continue its support for countdown festivals throughout Thailand this year, with performances, including the confirmed show by the pop star.
In a recent seminar focused on soft power and Thailand’s opportunities, TAT governor emphasized that leveraging soft power can significantly contribute to the tourism sector, potentially benefiting 7,000 local communities across the nation and helping the industry account for 30% of GDP by 2030.
She stressed the importance of driving tourism supply, particularly through the One Family One Soft Power project, which aims to develop a more skilled workforce.
