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Despite suffering from minor tremors due to April 20 earthquake on Sumatra Northern Coast, travellers seem to now avoid the resort island of Phuket in Thailand. The island experienced a 4.3 magnitude earthquake following Sumatra tremors but according to the Meteorological Department’s Seismological Bureau detected a total of 18 small aftershocks. Rumours at the end of April of the Island’s possible sink into the sea were deemed by many as unfounded and impossible. However, it already deterred some tourists to come to the Southern resort Island with some hoteliers that occupancy is down by over ten points compared to last year.
The island is however well equipped to handle any tsunami or earthquake signals. Following the giant tsunami of 2004, the island has been equipped with 19 watching towers. The province’s administration is also speeding up a project to set up an integrated information system to better coordinate emergency response efforts throughout the Andaman coast provinces in disaster situations. Last week a seminar on earthquake was organized by Phuket Architectural society. One of Thailand’s leading authority on earthquake research, Prof. Amorn Pimanmas, Professor of the Project Committee at the Engineering Institute of Thailand. He reassured locals by explaining that Phuket was in a low-risk area for earthquakes. Some 200 real estate owners as well as Phuket Vice Governor attended the seminar.
Phuket represents 30% of all revenues generated from tourism in Thailand. Some 38% of all Phuket visitors come from Europe. In total, Phuket international airport recorded in 2011 over 2.18 million disembarking passengers on international flights, up by 30% over 2010. Upscale hotels had a total of close to 13,000 rooms in 2011, up by 7% over 2010. Another 6,400 rooms are due to open shortly.
According to CBRE Thailand, they should 19,300 rooms available in the upscale hotel segment by 2014 in Phuket.
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
