SET-listed property and retail operator Central Pattana Plc (CPN) has joined hands with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and partners from the tourism industry to boost Thailand's tourism sector and economy this year.
In partnership with 23 partners covering hotels, retailers, finance firms and tourism platforms, CPN has rolled out "The Great Collaboration for Thailand's Tourism Ecosystem" campaign nationwide from now until the end of the year, aiming to help stimulate Thailand's tourism revenue to over 800 billion baht this year.
Under the campaign, shops in Central's shopping centres and Central Group will launch the "Welcome Package", which includes special discounts from Central Department Store, Tops Market, Tops Online, Central Food Hall and over 5,000 baht discounts from shops and restaurants in Central shopping centres.
The company is also collaborating with partner hotels to offer the Welcome Package to customers who stay at hotels near its shopping centres.
Meanwhile, financial institutions and credit cards, including online payment platforms such as Mastercard offer a free premium and cash back, while JCB, UnionPay, Alipay and WeChat Pay will offer special privileges and full discount programmes.
True Corporation supports a free SIM card and WiFi for all foreign tourists who visit Central shopping centres.
Nattakit Tangpoonsinthana, CPN's executive vice-president of marketing, said people are travelling again and international travel measures have been eased in many countries.
Meanwhile, customer traffic at Central shopping centres has returned to 80% in Bangkok and 90% in upcountry branches, with the figure expected to reach 100% nationwide by the end of this year.
According to Mr Nattakit, customer traffic for hotels and food courts has also clearly recovered.
Mr Nattakit said the company had set three strategies to push Thailand to become a global preferred destination. They include plans to stimulate spending and recontribute income by promoting shopping centres as a connection hub for the retail and tourism ecosystem.
The company is also committed to helping complement the tourism sector by organising tourism promotional events, hotel fairs, Otop markets and cross-region community tourism programmes such as the Southern Tourism Fair at CentralWorld or in Phuket.
Mr Nattakit said the company will expand tourism promotional projects to secondary provinces alongside major provinces.
In addition, it vows to promote Bangkok and Phuket as world-class shopping cities.
TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn said the tourism situation in the country has returned to normal with the easing of various measures and the full reopening of the country.
All of these factors help contribute to the continued overall recovery of the Thai economy, especially retail businesses, hotels, airlines and partners from all fields in the tourism industry, which are all important mechanisms to drive the economy.
In addition to this campaign, Mr Yuthasak said the TAT has introduced proactive tourism stimulus measures for domestic tourism and is rebuilding the international tourism market.
Mr Yuthasak said he is confident that the number of foreign tourists will exceed 10 million this year and increase to 25 million next year, with income from the tourism business in 2022 expected to reach 1.5 trillion baht and hit 2.4 trillion baht in 2023.
