During this year’s Songkran festival, Visa warmly welcomed Ms. Anna Soon Kee Oo (Left) and Ms. Yann Ying Chan (Right) from Malaysia. Ms. Oo is the lucky winner of “Travel 365 days in Thailand” Grand Prize package, a promotion that ran during last year’s Amazing Thailand Grand Sale for international Visa cardholders. The prize package entitles Ms. Oo to bring a friend to visit Thailand for up to 10 days in each month of the entire year, with round-trip tickets from Thai Airways and hotel accommodation provided by Centara Hotel & Resort. The campaign will continue this year.
Buoyed by increased spending from Chinese and German visitors and strong domestic travel, last year’s Amazing Thailand Grand Sale yielded better than expected results – significant growths were witnessed in both total spend volume and domestic spending through Visa cards at 15 percent and 22 percent respectively. These positive developments continue to fuel this year’s campaign, which will run from 15 June to 30 September 2015. This year’s campaign also marks the 17th anniversary of partnership between Visa and Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).
Despite the varying global recovery rates across key economic markets, the decline of the Russian Rouble and other political trends that have affected Thailand tourist arrivals, Thai tourism has shown great resilience, evident in the fast recovery in the last quarter. Figures from The Department of Tourism show that since the surge in December tourist arrivals, increasing by 11.8 percent from the same period in the previous year[1], the country is on path to a robust fourth quarter in 2015. According to Tourism Authority of Thailand Intelligence Center, the number of inbound tourists has increased during Songkran holiday period in April, as measured by the rises in international arrivals at Suvarnabhumi and Dong Mueang airports at 25.3 percent and 66.8 percent respectively from last year.[2]
“The travel and tourism industry is one of the main drivers of Thailand’s economy and one of the main revenue generators for Visa. It is therefore encouraging to see that Thailand remains an attractive tourist destination in spite of the global challenges, with visitor arrivals looking strong so far this year. By making Thailand a more appealing tourist destination, we believe that it is a win-win situation for the local economy and Visa. With millions of cardholders worldwide, Visa is able to help spur tourism growth. And like the past years, Visa together with Tourism Authority of Thailand look forward to welcoming more visitors to Thailand,” said Somboon Krobteeranon, Visa Country Manager, Thailand.
Highest contributors of inbound tourist spending in 2014 were the Chinese and German travelers, seeing increases in volumes of 14 percent and 13 percent respectively. Coupled with these high spenders, domestic tourists also played a part in boosting the travel scene, with domestic spending volume up by 22 percent from the previous year. This can be attributed to the government’s drive to promote domestic tourism and the favourable policy that allows businesses and private individuals to be eligible for tax rebate on local travel expenses, namely airfare and accommodation.
Travelers from different parts of the world have pronounced preferences for how they spend their budget – Japanese travelers spend the most on restaurants, with this category taking up 16 percent of their total spending, while American, Australian and Emirati travelers are most interested in medical tourism, taking up 11 percent, 17 percent and 18 percent of total spend respectively. Russian and Chinese travelers spend the most on luxury items, reaching 10 percent of total spending for both nationalities.
As compared to Asian travelers, Americans and Europeans have a greater inclination to use cash for purchases despite coming from markets where card usage is more established. Singaporeans and Japanese are the least reliant on cash and are heavy card users, taking up 2 percent and 5 percent of total ATM cash withdrawals respectively. In contrast, the British and Americans are the most heavily dependent on cash and cash withdrawals, representing 14 percent and 12 percent of total ATM cash withdrawals respectively
Besides distinct spend categories, travelers also favored specific cities in Thailand – the majority of Japanese tourists visited Bangkok and Pattaya, whereas American and Chinese travelers had their eye on Chiang Mai as their preferred destination. Other popular destinations include Phuket, frequented by the Australian tourists, and Koh Samui, often visited by French and British travelers.
“Visa has an established presence across a wide range of merchants and cities in Thailand and is continuing efforts to expand access, allowing more cardholders to enjoy the convenience of electronic payments. Visa can leverage on its position as a popular payment option with travelers and is well-poised to cater to diverse spend preferences among the different nationalities.
“As with previous years, we will continue to play an integral role in connecting Thai tourism to tourists from both around the world as well as within the country. With more attractive privileges for cardholders, we hope to give visitors and fellow Thais a better reason to shop with their Visa cards at this year’s Amazing Thailand Grand Sale,” said Mr. Krobteeranon.