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The three-day TTM+ 2019 is being held under the theme of ‘New Shades of Emerging Destinations’ as part of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) strategy to promote 55 provincial destinations.
Chonburi, Thailand – New buyers from new markets had the opportunity to match with sellers from emerging new Thai destinations and learn about new travel products during the Thailand Travel Mart Plus. Thailand’s leading B2B travel show, held 5 to 7 June 2019 at the Ocean Marina, in Pattaya.
The three-day TTM+ 2019 is being held under the theme of ‘New Shades of Emerging Destinations’ as part of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) strategy to promote 55 provincial destinations which are already popular with domestic tourists and now seen as being ready for an influx of foreign visitors. The objective is to create jobs and distribute revenue countrywide, from major cities to local communities, while creating sustainability by balancing the number of visitors to the destinations.
Mrs. Srisuda Wanapinyosak, TAT Deputy Governor of International Marketing (Europe, Africa, Middle East and Americas) said that this year’s TTM Plus features some important changes in the trade show component to ensure enhanced business opportunities for both buyers and sellers.
She said “The total of 340 buyers from 51 countries is up 18.47% over 2018. Meanwhile, the TAT is seeking to step up its profile in the long-staying, high-spending Latin American market. For the first time, the buyers list includes 13 companies from Brazil along with new buyers from Chile, Argentina and Colombia.
First time buyers have also been invited from other new source-markets; such as, Lebanon, Latvia, Estonia, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Slovakia, Ukraine and Israel.
The sellers list includes 370 exhibitors, mainly from the Southern and Central regions of Thailand. In order to help buyers home in on the emerging destinations, the directory of sellers includes a special listing of the 20 exhibitors from this segment”.
Mrs. Srisuda said, “We recognise that in this era of constant change in everything from customer segments to technology and demographic profiles, the value of travel trade shows needs to be constantly refreshed and enhanced to justify the investment in time and money by both buyers and sellers.
We also have to marry the business objectives of the private sector with our national objectives to create jobs, reduce income disparities and better distribute visitors around the country. At the TTM Plus, all these objectives have been merged. It takes time and effort for emerging destination cities to be recognised and chosen by travellers, and this year’s TTM Plus has set the ball rolling.”
As the trade show opened on World Environment Day, it also included some major environmental protection features.
All the printed materials, including the trade directory and press releases, are on-line, minimising paper distribution. Water coolers are placed around the hall, with delegates being encouraged to bring along their own water containers. There are no plastic bags in sight anywhere.
The line-up of TTM Plus talks also included an all-Thai cast of 10 speakers covering a broad range of cultural, environmental, technological and historic topics under the theme “Making the World a Better Place through Travel”.
In 2018, the Thai tourism industry recorded a total of 38 million international arrivals, up by 7.54%, generating an estimated US$62 billion in earnings, up by 9.63% over 2017. This year, TAT has set a growth target of twelve percent in tourism revenue from the international market.
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