South-bound tourists may get visa break

[Expat]

Visa fee waivers for Chinese and Taiwanese tourists flying to Phuket are among a series of proposals to help revive tourism in tsunami-affected southern Thailand.

At the same time, Airports of Thailand Plc is considering landing fee waivers for Phuket and Krabi, and airport tax exemptions for foreign tourists at the two sites, according to Juthamas Siriwan, governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

Currently, Chinese and Taiwanese tourists are charged visa fees of 1,000 baht and 1,200 baht respectively. The cabinet is expected to consider waiving the fees when it meets on Tuesday.

Landing fees at Phuket and Krabi range between 60,000 and 120,000 baht, depending on the size of the aircraft.

Since the Dec 26 tsunami struck, the TAT has invested considerable effort and money in promotions and overseas marketing to persuade foreign tourists to return to the beaches of southern Thailand. To date, though, the effort has not been as successful as hoped.

Although some recovery was seen in February and March, a series of earthquakes and aftershocks on Nias Island in Indonesia conspired to drive visitors away. Tourist arrivals dropped in April and the trend has continued since.

A recent report by Visa Asia Pacific. Based on tourist spending through credit cards, said tourism in the region remained fragile. It said credit card spending in Phuket for the week ending May 8 was 37% lower than in the same week in 2004, despite being up by 6% in March.

Since the tsunami hit Phuket in December, the number of flights has nosedived to 35 per week, compared with 192 during the last low season. Ten charter companies have stopped servicing the island.

During last year's peak season, Phuket airport welcomed 365 scheduled flights a week from five international and six domestic airlines, as well as 24 charter flights a month. In the low season, regular flight frequencies are half that total.

Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak, discussing the the tourism outlook yesterday with various agencies, said Thai Airways International should act as the core agency in partnership with tourism organisations to offer more attractive tour packages and discounted tickets.

''Thai Airways should quickly come up with the package to help boost tourism in the affected areas. The government is ready to offer it a financial subsidy if necessary,'' he said.

Over the next three months, the industry should be able to persuade at least 750,000 foreign tourists to travel to Thailand.

Mingkwan Sangsuwan, the president of the broadcasting state enterprise MCOT Plc, suggested that all businesses on the island participate in the package.

''The entire island has to be offered at a discount, otherwise the new package would not yield fruit,'' said Mr Mingkwan.

--Bangkok Post 2005-06-11