Since last year's launch in June, the campaign has amassed more than 40,000 photographs from residents of Thailand offering unique, unconventional and inspiring glimpses to the little seen sides of Thailand on Instagram and Facebook, through the hashtags #notatourist and #VisaThailand. The best 15 photographs have been made into 100,000 postcards.
"I hope these photographs will inspire and encourage travelers to experience popular local activities, food, and hang-outs – living like locals instead of just visiting," said Suripong Tantiyanon, Visa Country Manager, Thailand.
The photo submission sheds interesting light on Thais' favorite destinations: Bangkok came out top, accounting for more than 23 percent of submission, followed by Chiang Mai (9 percent) and Phuket (6 percent).
Unsurprisingly, one out of every ten photos was about food. Popular images included traditional Thai snacks, Ayutthaya grilled river prawns, roadside noodles and sweetened drinks.
"The ongoing #notatourist campaign will help foster a sense of togetherness among those who share their photos, hopefully turning this pride and awareness into care for the country. The tourism industry can play an important part on sustainability," said Mr. Suripong.
The #notatourist campaign is just the latest in a long line of collaborations between Visa and the TAT, who have worked together on a number of joint-campaigns throughout their 20-year partnership. Complementing TAT's "Unique Thai Local Experience" campaign for 2017 perfectly, #notatourist aims to provide valuable information to travelers and tourists to enable them to experience the local culture and customs, and perhaps discover new aspects of Thailand they never knew existed.