The Thailand Hotels Association (THA) will be bringing a few proposals to the Ministry of Tourism and Sports (MOTS) this week but will anything be accomplished?

The Thailand Government does not play well with others, especially the private sector, so I am afraid that the proposals will, once again, fall on deaf ears.

Water Buffaloes

The Thailand Hotels Association has come with three priorities that need Thailand Government support.

THA president Prakit Chinamourphong said yesterday that the group would propose at least three priorities to the ministry – limiting new hotel investment, improving tourism services and products, and ending the tourist scams at airports.

I don’t think anything will come of any of the three priorities.  Thailand should be looking for foreign investors especially with the ASEAN Economic Community looming in the near future (2015).  Otherwise, investment dollars will go to the other 9 ASEAN countries.

Improving tourism services and products should be an ongoing campaign but has not received the attention it deserves.  Again, jobs in Thailand will be lost once people from other countries can freely work across the ASEAN Community.  English and Chinese language skills need to be greatly improved and offering something(s) new to attract tourists to Thailand doesn’t seem to be on anyone’s agenda.  Watch as the numbers of tourism arrivals increase in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos and decrease in Thailand (though the Tourism Authority of Thailand will still say Thailand tourist arrivals are up, up, up).

Getting rid of tourist scams at the airport would be a great start, but complaints about scams generally fall on deaf ears.  The taxi scams have been running at the airports for years as have the “The Grand Palace is closed today” scam.  Jet ski scams in Phuket and Pattaya run rampant despite video evidence and meetings with local European Consuls threatening to warn constituents in Europe on official Embassy web sites to avoid the jet skis and to avoid the areas.  Thailand is the Land of Scams.

The article in  The Nation, THA to offer measures for improvements of hospitality industry, makes valid points about illegal hotels, but again, nothing will be done.

About 500,000 hotel rooms are available nationwide, but more half are operating illegally.

In Bangkok alone, 362 hotels are running legally while more than 380 properties are running without hotel permits.

“For years, unlawful hotels have cheated tourists and caused damage to the entire industry,” Prakit said.

So, if this has been going on for yeas, what makes Khun Prakit think anything or anyone will cause it to change?

“If there were no such problem, our tourism image would be very good in international markets, so good management may be needed at all tourist attractions,” he said.

Good management may be needed?  I would hope that good management is a top priority for any tourist venue.

The government should help the industry prepare for the implementation of the Asean Economic Community by pro-viding language training for hotel staff especially in the kitchen, food and beverage, front office and housekeeping departments.

Too late.  Should have started about 5 years ago when the AEC was born.  Thailand will attempt to play catch-up, point fingers at others, and watch as jobs, investment dollars, and tourists all go to the other 9 ASEAN countries.

So, good luck to the THA in pitching your ideas to a Minister whose main focus is on having 1,820 stadiums built in Thailand and doesn’t really care about tourism at all.

Tags: airport Ministry of Tourism and Sports mots scams TAT thailand hotel association tourism authority of thailand tourists