TAT, eyeing China’s luxury markets, invites 30 medical facilitators and travel agencies on FAM trip to showcase Thailand’s health and wellness services.
BANGKOK – More than 30 medical facilitators and travel agencies specialising in health and wellness travel from 10 countries visited Thailand between 12-18 August, 2013, for the second annual fam trip of its kind organised by the Tourism Authority of Thailand.
The Thailand Medical and Wellness Tourism Trade and Media FAM Trip 2013 has been designed to showcase the market potential of Thailand’s health and wellness services, with a special focus on opportunities to tap the luxury Chinese market.
Mr. Suraphon Svetasreni, TAT Governor, said “Because we received a good response to last year’s event, we decided to repeat it this year for buyers from the US, Australia, Russia, United Arab Emirates, and Oman. The most important new potential high-end market is from mainland China where there is great demand for high-end luxury health tour programmes.”
The TAT Governor noted, “The invited participants will have had a good chance to see the full range of our unique health and wellness facilities. Currently, 28 Thai hospitals are JCI-accredited, the highest number of this prestigious international standard in Asia. Furthermore, Thailand is widely recognised by various international institutes as the spa capital of Asia.”
The fam trip included a conference on 13 August at which well-known Thai physicians have discussed trends and advanced medical treatments. They include Dr. Sanguan Kunaporn, a famous plastic surgeon from Phuket International Hospital, Dr. Somjate Manipalviratn, M.D., a well-known fertility treatment expert from Superior A.R.T., and Dr. Buncha Dangnium, M.D., a famous anti-aging physician from Villa Medica.
Another activity of the event was a business-matching meeting open to 58 Thai sellers from hospitals, clinics, and spas to meet with buyers for business opportunities, discussions, and to introduce their products and services. After the trade event, the fam trip participants will visit health and wellness medical facilities in Bangkok, Phuket, and Hua Hin.
Mr. Suraphon said, “This trade event will have been an excellent opportunity for Thai health and wellness providers to meet buyers from new markets. It will have also emphasised on Thailand’s reputation as “The World Leader in Medical and Wellness Tourism.”
The Thai health and wellness tourism sector is expected to be a major contributor to the total projected revenue earnings of two trillion Baht in 2014, from both foreign and domestic tourism.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
