The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has signed a Letter of Intent with B2B travel technology group Dida to promote the Trusted Thailand initiative in the Chinese market.
Signed at Dusit Thani Bangkok, the agreement aims to rebuild travel confidence while driving demand towards emerging destinations across the kingdom.
To execute the campaign, Dida will leverage its B2B distribution network across platforms including Xiaohongshu and WeChat to capture traveller inspiration early in the digital discovery phase. Darryl Lee, group CEO of Dida Holdings, announced an immediate financial injection to fund content development alongside experience-led product creation.
“Trusted Thailand is not just the right message; it is the right commercial strategy. We’re committing a minimum of 2.5 million yuan (US$367,000) over the next 90 days, starting immediately, into this programme,” said Lee.
The investment directly addresses shifting sentiment among Chinese tourists, where external news cycles have heavily influenced outbound booking momentum. Lee emphasised that managing destination perception is critical when dealing with travellers seeking certainty prior to departure.
“When incidents make the news in China, travellers do not stop traveling, but their evaluation process changes. They ask if a destination is safe, and whether they can trust what they see online,” Lee emphasised.
He noted that addressing these hesitations directly is a business imperative for the Thai hospitality sector to secure bookings.
To reinforce the Trusted Thailand campaign, TAT is backing its marketing messaging with concrete operational infrastructure designed to reassure hesitant Chinese travellers, such as a dedicated tourist police presence alongside a 24-hour multilingual hotline and real-time support systems integrated directly into the travel journey.
Dida’s role involves communicating this safety infrastructure to the Chinese market before tourists finalise their booking decisions. Lee pointed out that publicising TAT’s support systems provides a distinct competitive advantage over rival destinations.
“This is infrastructure that many destinations talk about, but Thailand has actually built it. In today’s environment, feeling confident about a destination prior to arrival is just as important as the on-the-ground experience,” he concluded.
