The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) joined forces with global marketplace WebBeds to hold the inaugural Impact Summit, held at Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld on February 8.
The high-level event saw senior executives from the TAT and WebBeds present industry updates – including Thailand’s strategic direction and the current booking data and trends.
More than 500 hoteliers attended in person while over 400 other partners live-streamed the summit from around the world.
The TAT’s deputy governor of international marketing for Europe, Africa, Middle East & Americas, Siripakorn Cheawsamoot, and executive director for the East Asia Region, Chuwit Sirivajjakul, spoke at the even to help delegates understand the tourism environment and how to align their own business plans with the actions of the TAT.
Providing insights on industry trends, consumer habits, key markets, trends and opportunities were WebBeds’ CEO Daryl Lee and president for Asia-Pacific KS Sun, along with other commercial presidents from around the world.
During the summit, Cheawsamoot shared the TAT’s vision for its longhaul markets, which includes a focus on high value and sustainable tourism, as well as its action plan which focuses on attracting more flights and greater capacity with airlines, expanding Thailand’s source markets to more major urban centres around the world, working with new strategic partners, including airlines, airports, tour operators and travel agencies, and making Thailand an all-year-round destination for a wider variety of market segments.
Sirivajjakul also shared information about the TAT’s 2023 marketing campaigns and activations for East Asia, with a focus on the reopening of mainland China, as well as South Korea, Japan, Taiwan and Hong Kong. He also revealed how consumer behaviour has changed over the years and what opportunities lie ahead for hoteliers targeting these important markets.
Daryl Lee, CEO of WebBeds, commented: “This event marked our first Impact Summit and the fact that we chose Bangkok as the host city reflects the importance of Thailand as a global tourism powerhouse.
“This was the first of many Impact Summits and we look forward to collaborating with our esteemed partners in the months and years to come, to help forge a strong and sustainable future for the entire industry.”
