Skal’s confidence in Bangkok high

BANGKOK Tourism and hospitality professionals in Bangkok received a boost Wednesday with the news that the city has been shortlisted to host the Skal International World Congress in 2017.
Skal Club Bangkok submitted a bid to host the popular annual event in the face of stiff competition from five other Skal clubs in Hyderabad, Stavanger, Toronto, Miami and Copenhagen.
Hyderabad is also shortlisted and the final decision will be made in a secret ballot of all Skal voting members attending the 2015 World Congress in Torremolinos, Spain in late October.
Skal members in Bangkok estimate that up to 1,000 delegates could visit Thailand for the 2017 World Congress if Bangkok wins the vote in Spain.
inside no 5Skal International Bangkok president, Dale Lawrence said: “The decision to shortlist Bangkok reinforces our belief that the city is a first class destination for business and leisure travellers and it is a timely confidence booster for all those working in Thailand’s tourism industry in the wake of Erawan Shrine bombing, 17 August, that killed 20 and injured 125 people.
The dead included six Thais, five Malaysians, five mainland Chinese, two Hong Kong residents (including one British national living in Hong Kong), one Indonesian, and one Singaporean. In addition, citizens of Japan, Malaysia, the Maldives, Oman, the Philippines, Qatar and Taiwan were among those injured.”
The scale of the bomb attack and the death toll was unprecedented in the country’s history.
The news that Skal International short-listed Bangkok for selection of its 2017 congress venue serves to illustrate that travel confidence remains robust.
“Our bid to host the World Congress has enjoyed the enthusiastic support of the country’s Tourism Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul and I have no doubt that she will welcome the news with great enthusiasm,” Lawrence noted.
The bid by Skal Bangkok is also supported by the Tourism Authority of Thailand, the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau and by Bangkok Metropolitan Administration.

sourced:ttrweekly.com