Tourism - Cultural Bridge for Vietnam and Thailand

Vietnam and Thailand have many similarities in culture and the process of tourism-based communications brings the two peoples closer to each other and boosts the mutual understanding. This is reflected in the openness of tourism policies of the two countries and efforts to create attractive elements to attract large number of tourists wishing to explore cultural and historical values, landscape, ecology and other characteristics of the two countries.

 

The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism said the number of Vietnamese tourists crossing border gates rose 30 percent year on year to 485,368 arrivals in the first six months of 2011. Up to 244,882 tourists travelled to Thailand in the period, 37 percent year on year.

 

At present, the two countries have planned promotion programmes for the coming time and agreed to organise familiarization trips for marketing managers of large travel companies, news reporters from leading US newspapers to survey, study, write and create new products and services suitable for the American market, coordinate in building package interconnected tours, organise workshops to introduce and popularise destinations via online media. This reflects a trend in bilateral tourism ties.

 

Notably, Thailand’s experience in building tourism promotion policies is worth for Vietnam to learn. The first is the consistency between overall development with specific orientations with just only slogan “Amazing Thailand.”  This slogan draw attention to an exciting Thailand from most simple images like floating market to green beaches, resorts facing the sea and bustling night life. It makes Thailand worth discovering. Vietnam does not lack those factors but there is a wide differential in the number of tourists travelling from Vietnam to Thailand and vice versa. Tourist data show that outbound tours, particularly Thailand and Cambodia, are competing with Vietnamese places of interest with their pricing policies and attractiveness of destinations. Prices are the most important factor for tourists at the present time.

 

Promotion programmes strengthen the attractiveness of Vietnam - Thailand tours. Mr Pichai Raktashinha, Director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand in HCM City, said: Thailand has launched tourism in combination with shopping and other interests six years ago and enjoyed very satisfactory results. Shopping accounts for 30 percent of visitors’ total expenditures in Thailand. The country usually launches big sales programmes from June to August (low tourism season) with discounts from 10 to 80 percent.

 

Vietravel, a leading travel firm of Vietnam, said: This is a good time to combine travelling with shopping in Thailand. With just VND4.5 - 5.5 million for a five-day tour departing from HCM City and VND8 million from Hanoi, tourists can go shopping at trade centres in Thailand. According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand, in 2011, Thailand will launch a series of tourist-catching events like Amazing Thailand Grand Sales 2011 from July 28 - 31, 2011 held by Visa and the Tourism Authority of Thailand. Tourists will have the opportunity to buy with special discounts from 10 percent to 80 percent.

 

In addition, the One Tambon One Product (OTOP) programme allows all Thai villages to produce local products to supports to sell to tourists under the support for promotion and distribution from the Royal Government of Thailand. This programme helps create jobs and reduce poverty in many localities.