MICE specialists are calling on relevant authorities to do more to restore confidence in Thailand as a meetings destination after the country’s recent coup d’etat devastated the sector.
Incentive travel has been hit hardest and although the previously nationwide curfew has been eased in key tourist destinations Phuket, Pattaya and Koh Samui, trade sources are reporting cancellation rates as high as 50 per cent with new bookings falling off the cliff.
Stephen McEvoy, managing director of Asia World Enterprise, called on the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) to take substantive measures to restore confidence in the nation.
“With past disasters TCEB has always come up with an initiative to market the destination,” he said.
“This normally involves a major fam trip which brings over top buyers from around the world… It really works. We get to do what we do best and show that the destination is safe.”
Thanwa Phongpreeda, product manager at Discovery Holidays, said the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) needs to do more to promote the country as a MICE destination to complement efforts made by TCEB.
He said: “When I travel overseas I’m shocked to discover than many buyers still don’t see Thailand as a MICE destination. They know about Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia, but they still don’t know about us. TAT must do more.”
TCEB has a number of ongoing promotions targeting the MICE market, but currently has no plans to hold an ad hoc fam trip. Its major corporate and media event, Connections+, has been postponed from mid-year to October.
