Arrivals Jump In Phuket

[george]

Arrivals jump in Phuket

PHUKET: -- The number of visitors arriving at Phuket International Airport is up by 27 per cent on the year so far, astonishing and delighting tourism industry players.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Phuket office predicted late last week that the number of passengers – foreign and Thai – arriving in Phuket would increase by 10 per cent this year compared with 2003. But instead, arrivals have risen by 27 per cent.

Napasorn Kakai, deputy director of TAT’s Phuket office, said: “For the green [low] season, we successfully focused on tourists from Asia and the Middle East. We arranged road shows and invited them to travel to Phuket. We have many charter flights to Phuket from the Middle East because people there want to experience the rain.”

Napasorn added that Phuket had become more popular as a “short-haul” destination for people in Asia, partly because of terrorist attacks elsewhere.

Visitor numbers could be boosted still further if an Australian Airlines Boeing 767 charter flight between Sydney and Phuket, which is being tested this month, becomes a regular feature of the green season.

However, said Napasorn, not all the passengers who arrive at Phuket airport actually spend their vacations on the island – some go direct to destinations such as Khao Lak or Krabi.

Government figures (based on the fiscal year running from October 1 to September 30, as compared with TAT figures, which are based on the calendar year) show that between October 1 last year and August 31 this year, 4.17 million passengers passed through Phuket International Airport, a rise of 30.41 per cent compared with the same period in the previous 12 months. The number of flights to and from Phuket during the same period also rose by 21.89 per cent, to 27,392.

-- The Nation 2004-09-27

[sriracha john]

Before TAT starts doing cartwheels, they should consider that Malaysia's tourism numbers (68% increase) were more than double the increase that Phuket had. That just might indicate that ALL tourism is up over last year and that actually Phuket is only attracting scraps while the big boosts have occured elsewheres.

[Phil Conners]

Arrivals jump in Phuket ?

From where? Balconies?

[damnaam]

Before TAT starts doing cartwheels, they should consider...

...also that these figures are year on year and, as far as I'm aware, the last couple of years Phuket has been struggling in the High season, based on what I've heard having spoken to various business owners there. The terror alert two winters ago, naming Phuket specifically, didn't help. So, perhaps they're getting back to the levels they were at a few years ago???

[Khun Larry]

Arrivals jump in Phuket

PHUKET: -- The number of visitors arriving at Phuket International Airport is up by 27 per cent on the year so far, astonishing and delighting tourism industry players.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Phuket office predicted late last week that the number of passengers – foreign and Thai – arriving in Phuket would increase by 10 per cent this year compared with 2003. But instead, arrivals have risen by 27 per cent. No Basis for the prediction was available.

Nothing like more money to bring out those THAI SMILES