Tourism needs more "friends" than ambassadors

The “Friends of Thailand Awards 2013” ceremony, held last week in Thailand, has illustrated a more effective way to develop the tourism industry than an ambassador.

Initiated by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) in 1996, the Friends of Thailand Awards are held biennially to recognize and reward the efforts of the award winners, who are travel agencies around the world, to maintain a positive image for Thailand and ensure a steady flow of visitor arrivals.

This year’s ceremony, honoring 38 individuals, institutions, companies and organizations from 24 countries, marks an important event as “Thai tourism is generating record-breaking arrivals, a clear result of the successful contributions of the Friends of Thailand,” announced TAT.

According to Juthaporn Rerngronasa, Deputy Governor of TAT’s International Marketing, in 2012, Thailand attracted 22 millions international visitors. Only in the first four months of this year, the number of foreign visitors to the country increased 19% compared with the same period last year. At the event, Ms. Rerngronasa also confidently announced the target of welcoming 24.14 million international visitors in 2013, with revenue of more than USD37billion.

On the other hand, in nearby Vietnam, the number of international visitors to the country in May was only 558,000, a 9% decrease compared with the previous month. This was also the third month this year that tourism numbers in Vietnam have dropped. Moreover, in the first five months, 2.9 million international tourists visiting Vietnam, a 1.4% drop compared to last year.

Commenting on why the two quite similar countries have such different visitor numbers some experienced travel operators explained that the two countries promote tourism differently.

In recent years, Vietnam has found and tried many ways to improve the image of local tourism. Choosing an ambassador has been counted as part of this effort. However, this has also led to many scandals for the local tourism industry, thanks to the ambassador title and the person who presented the title last year, actress Ly Nha Ky.

Though the beauty was very dedicated to the job, as she spent time and her own money promoting Ha Long Bay and helping Vietnam win a bid to host the  Asian Games (ASIAD) in 2019, Ky has also received public criticism for her scandalous lifestyle. This mostly stemmed from shocking recent public statements and scandals, including showing too much skin and showing off her wealth and deluxe costumes on the internet.

“Voting for tourism ambassador was a meaningless game,” Deputy Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son once stated.

Meanwhile, over the last 16 years, Thai tourism has recognized and appreciated the importance of their “international friends”. Those “friends” year by year bring more and more tourists to the country. Thailand currently has nearly 550 “friends” from over 80 countries. The positive results of this policy are obvious.

“They hold the ceremony in a deeply formal way,” Cong Khanh, director of Caravan Angkor Tours, which offers tours to Thailand from Cambodia, exclaimed after receiving a Friends of Thailand Award.

“The TAT realizes and appreciates the efforts of both Thai and foreign organizations and individuals which have generated many benefits for our tourism industry, including economic development, job creation and preservation of our culture and heritage,” TAT Governor Suraphon Svetasreni stated.