Tourism Min to propose curfew lifting in more vacation spots

BANGKOK, 5 June 2014 (NNT) – The Ministry of Tourism and Sports is planning to request the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to withdraw the curfew in eight additional places in order to ease public concerns and restore tourism.

Permanent Secretary for Tourism and Sports Suwat Sitthilor disclosed a plan to ask the NCPO to consider deactivating the curfew in more areas next week after Phuket, Pattaya and Koh Samui were cleared of the restrictions recently. The additional areas consist of Krabi, Phang Nga, Trang, Hat Yai district of Songkhla, Koh Chang of Trat, Cha-am district of Phetchaburi, Hua Hin district of Prachuap Khiri Khan and Chiang Mai.

The Tourism and Sports Ministry viewed that the eight places were some of the country’s most famous destinations where visitors were usually offered a vibrant nightlife. Furthermore, it was considered unlikely for political violence to take place in those areas.

Since the number of foreign tourists during the first five months of this year posted a decline of 5-6 percent from last year, the ministry expects the number for the entire year to reach 26.5 million persons, rather than the previous projection of 28.02 million. The targeted revenue has also been lowered from 2.2 trillion baht to 1.8 trillion.


-- NNT 2014-06-05