Another 10 days another millionth tourist for Thailand as 2015 sets to be another great year

BANGKOK - The Thai tourism industry hosted a grand welcoming ceremony for the 27 millionth tourist, Ms. Chelsea Raeann Graham from the United States of America, who is also one of the kingdom’s Luckiest Visitors for 2015, at Suvarnabhumi Airport. She arrived in Bangkok in just 10 days after the 26 millionth tourist, Mr. Tommy Jeppsson from the Kingdom of Norway, who landed in Phuket on 20 November.

Mr. Sugree Sithivanich, Deputy Governor for Marketing Communications, Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) said, “Thailand now enters the high tourist season, welcoming one million arrivals for every 10 days. This is testament to the confidence of international visitors and the global community in Thailand as a safe tourist destination. We sincerely thank all tourists for choosing Thailand as the destination to enjoy their vacation and have a memorable travel experience. Moreover, in rewarding our special visitor is our way of saying thanks to them for selecting Thailand as their holiday destination.”

Ms. Chelsea Raeann Graham was pleasantly surprised to receive the great welcome presided over by TAT’s Deputy Governor for Marketing Communications and joined by representatives from leading tourism organisations and businesses. She received two economy-class return tickets from her original destination to Thailand, valid for one year, a voucher for a five-night stay at luxury accommodation, a mobile phone with a 4G sim-card and seven-day Internet usage for use during the trip, as well as the “Thailand’s Luckiest Visitor” certificate from the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), Airports of Thailand, the Immigration Bureau, Thai Airways International and True Corporation.

Ms. Chelsea, the 27 millionth tourist said, “I have chosen Thailand as the travel destination for the 2015 holiday season to enjoy the unique Thai culture, abundant natural beauty and remarkable variety of activities. This is my first time in this lovely country.”

The “Thailand’s Luckiest Visitor” activity, launched in June this year, is in conjunction with the “2015 Discover Thainess” campaign that aims to encourage the number of international tourists to visit Thailand in order to explore the endless charm of Thailand, the diversity of destinations, full flavours of Thai cuisine, fascinating uniqueness of the traditions and culture, as well as the friendliness of its people, which brings about a memorable journey that sets the travelling experience apart from other countries.

According to the preliminary figures released by the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Thailand welcomed a total of 24.36 million visitors in the first 10 months of 2015, up 24.75% year-on-year. TAT is on track to cross the projected 28.8 million tourists with 1.4 trillion Baht revenue for the entire 2015.

From January to October 2015, Thailand recorded 677,198 arrivals from the USA, representing a 12.9 per cent increase year-on-year. The total number for the entire year is estimated at 826,000 or a 12.46 per cent growth over 2014.

In 2014, Thailand welcomed a total of 734,514 visitors from the United States according to statistics tabulated by the Ministry of Tourism and Sports (MoTS). The data indicated that US travellers spent 4,956 Baht per day with an average stay of about 14 days per person travelling in the kingdom.

sourced:traveldailynews.asia