Thailand is considered to be one of the most developed tourism industries in Asia. It is also known as the “Land of Smiles” due to its generous hospitality and welcoming nature towards the tourists. Thailand is popular for its beautiful beaches, famous cuisines, historical places, good infrastructure, economical attractions and affordable accommodations all around the world. Thailand tourism industry was successful in making a record in the year 2017 when it welcomed around 35 million tourists from all around the world. Looking at the current scenario, the number is only expected to rise in the years to come as Thailand is hoping to become the prime tourists’ location shortly. They are planning to take the number up to 40 million by the year 2020. The majority of the tourists are from the Pacific region of Asia and then come the European tourists.
The capital of Thailand, i.e., Bangkok comes in the list of the World’s ten topmost attractive cities. The major number of tourists visiting the city either belongs to the USA, China, India or the Middle East. Two airports are located in the city, that is Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi Airports. It has one underground rail system, a Sky train and also some riverboat services. Some other developed tourist destinations in Thailand are Pattaya, Phuket and Chiang Mai.
Thailand even eases its visa procedures due to the immense competition that it has been facing from Myanmar and Vietnam for some recent years. The government has introduced various new policies for the tourists’ community. The visa-on-arrival charges for Indian and Chinese visitors have been decreased to a great extent and a multiple entry visa for six months has also been introduced. Tourists from around 52 countries are allowed to stay in Thailand up to 30 days when entering the country through an international airport. Visitors entering Thailand from land border checkpoints can stay up to 15 days. This ease in visa policies would have made any country attractive to the tourists while talking about Thailand; it is already such a beautiful country that these lenient visa policies have only added up. Thailand has become the epitome of short-term as well as long-term tourism. Its geographical location is ideal as it is located in the center of Southeast Asia and its developed infrastructure adds up to tourists’ attraction. A major part of Thailand’s economy depends on its tourism industry (Netherlands Embassy in Bangkok, 2017).
The country did a business of around 2.5 trillion from this particular industry in the year 2016. Thailand reported a 6 percent rise in the number of visitors this year. Tourism has become the major reason for Thailand’s economic growth. International tourists were recorded at 35.38 million last year, which is almost half of the total population of Thailand. Chinese tourists are reported to increase by 12 percent, and they are mostly found doing shopping at malls, or at beaches and temples. The revenue generated by this industry has also gone up a notch by 12 percent. With all these achievements being made every year, there is still a lot of room for improvement (Thakral & Sriring).
Thailand’s rich culture has also been one of the major attractions for visitors. Numerous colorful and fun festivals are held in the country every year that tourists are delighted to visit such as the water festival, Thai New Year, Loy Krathong and the one festival which is famous all over the world is the festival of lights where LED balloons are released on the river. Thai’s artistic heritage is also very rich. Tourists are most attracted towards the Thai silk, the wooden handicrafts and amazing jewel-studded souvenirs (Thaiembassy.Org).
Thailand is also the World’s most important medical hub. High-quality treatments are being provided in the country at relatively low costs. New hospitals are being developed at a rapid speed; they are well-equipped and well maintained. Numerous foreigners turn to Thailand every year for medical treatment. The numbers of visitors for this particular purpose are recorded to be 1.5 million in the past year. Medical tourism is also proving to be an important factor in the economic growth of the country. The majority of these patients belong to the less developed countries of Southeast Asia, where advanced medical treatment and technology is still not available.
Thailand’s well-developed hotel industry has also proven to be an important attraction for the tourists’ community. All the visitors are accommodated in these luxurious hotels. Thus, it has developed the investors’ interest. Some major names in the Thai’s hotel industry are Intercontinental, Marriott, Accor, and Starwood. Tourism is Thailand’s’ major industry that earns from foreign exchange. It has been facing some issues lately due to the lack of political leadership. The country is under a lot of pressure to achieve its targets of boosting the number of tourists. It results in overloaded public projects and the risk of losing environmental sustainability. In spite of that, the number of visitors has been increasing rapidly in the past years. Mass tourism can have a bad impact on the country and cause various damage.
The natural heritage must be protected from the greed of development and the pressure of building beautiful spots. Such places are a treasure of one’s culture and must not be exploited. There exists a lot of threats to such historical places from vested interest groups. Spain faced a similar situation and suffered from overbuilding. Thus, mass tourism is a sensitive thing that must be dealt with intelligently. Otherwise, it has the capability of destroying the country’s culture and natural heritage. Traditional ways of life, scenic retreats, beautiful coastlines, and villages are a few things that must be protected and saved for the future generations (Bangkokpost.Com).
References
Bangkokpost.Com. (2012, October 27). Challenge of Mass Tourism. Retrieved from https://www.bangkokpost.com/opinion/
opinion/318408/challenge-of-mass-tourism
Netherlands Embassy in Bangkok. (2017, March). Tourism industry in Thailand. Retrieved from https://www.rvo.nl/sites/default/files/2017/
06/factsheet-toerisme-in-thailand.pdf
Thaiembassy.Org. (2018). Thailand Tourism. Retrieved from http://www.thaiembassy.org/chennai/en/
services/45720-Travel-&-Tourism-in-Thailand.html
Thakral, S., & Sriring, O. (2018, January 16). Thailand plans for even more tourists as numbers top 35 million. Retrieved from https://www.reuters.com/article/thailand-tourism/thailand-plans-for-even-more-tourists-as-numbers-top-35-million-idINKBN1F50CF
+447462439809