More Vietnamese tourists return to Thailand

Local travel firms are busy catering to a large number of local tourists traveling to Thailand following a quiet period due to political instability in the neighboring country in previous months.
Nguyen Minh Man, manager of Vietravel Marketing and Tourist Company, told the Daily on Tuesday on the phone that Thailand is appealing to more Vietnamese tourists again. “This is a happy signal for summer tourism,” he said.
In June alone, Vietravel sent 2,500 guests to Thailand, while Ben Thanh Tourist is receiving nearly 100 tourists booking tours to Thailand every week.
Fiditour Tourist Company in June received 240 registrations for Thai tours as planned and the travel agency had to open two more five-day tours to Bangkok-Pattaya in order to meet the rising demands.
Thailand’s tourism market has improved after the down time caused by political unrests.
“Thailand’s tourism has the advantage of low prices, plenty of and tourist attractions and entertainments. So, we don’t have to offer promotion to draw tourists,” said Nguyen Thi Tuyet Mai, head of PR and communications of Fiditour.
Every week, Youth Tourist Joint Stock Company hosts trips to Thailand for nearly 120 tourists, compared to only some 50 guests a week in the same period last year, said Phan Thanh Tam in charge of retail ticket of outbound section of Youth Tourist Joint Stock Company.
The number of tourists to Thailand is forecast to go up 15% year-on-year, Tran Thi Thuy Phuong, sales manger of Asia market of TST Tourist Co., added.
The representative office of Tourism Authority of Thailand in HCMC said Thailand has launched a short-term campaign called “Thailand Today” in order to speed up travel recovery in a concerted effort to match last year’s 14 million arrivals.
Tourism Authority of Thailand this month plans to host familiarization trips to promote tourism, targeting media and tourist agencies in Asia.