Ctrip has partnered Centara Hotels & Resorts, one of Thailand’s largest hotel groups, as it seeks to strengthen its presence in South-east Asia and offer products from a broader range of geographical locations.
The Chinese OTA giant will work with Centara on issues of supply support, online marketing, user rights protection and system direct connection, said deputy general manager of Ctrip hotel business, Xiao Yuan.
Ctrip is also expected to seize the opportunity from the cooperation to create more travel package deals in Thailand.
“Thailand is one of the most popular destinations for Chinese tourists, and will remain so for a long time. Therefore, through closer cooperation (with Centara), Ctrip’s overseas presence in Thailand will continue to deepen and will extend elsewhere in South-east Asia, better serving customers,” Xiao added.
Thomas Russell, Centara’s vice president, added: “Ctrip is Chinese tourists’ preferred website for booking outbound travel. With the support of Ctrip’s site traffic, we have a great opportunity for exposure, which will further enhance public awareness of our brand.”
According to data from Thailand’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports, nearly 8.8 million Chinese travellers visited Thailand in 2016. Among them, 2.5 million (+91 per cent y-o-y) had used Ctrip, meaning that almost one in three Chinese tourists to Thailand booked through the OTA.
Xiao also noted that Ctrip will accelerate the pace of its overseas expansion this year. In addition to Thailand, Ctrip will also focus on Japan, Singapore, Australia, Indonesia, Vietnam and eight other countries.
