WHEN the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) talks about becoming the “tourism capital of Asia” by 2008, it is generally assumed it is talking about the whole country. But even a brief glance at the statistics on visitors to Bangkok show Thailand’s capital is already one of the frontrunners for the title.
The figures supplied by TAT show that last year some 95 per cent of all visitors to the kingdom passed through Bangkok at some stage of their visit, leaving only about 520,000 who bypassed the capital altogether.
They entered the country through direct flights to Phuket, Chiang Mai or Pattaya, or were among the small band of backpackers and motorists who trickled into the country by train or bus or on foot.
But just under 10 million foreigners piled into the bustling metropolis and stayed overnight. For many it was just a one-night stay before moving on to the beach destinations; and for some it was a stay of a fortnight or more to attend a film festival or an educational course or to have medical treatment.
The average length of stay by overseas visitors last year was 3.5 days, a considerable advance on the 2.8-day average in 2002 and 2001.
Bangkok Tourist Bureau director, Mr Supojn Chirapant, said the increase in average length of stay encouraged him to believe the world was beginning to acknowledge the capital was a good place to spend quality time.
“Bangkok has changed. In my view, the single most important new element is the SkyTrain which is now about five years old. Bangkokians who own cars like to use them and many of them still shun the SkyTrain. But tourists don’t have cars and are happy to use mass transport,” Mr Supojn explained.
He said prior to the opening of the SkyTrain in 1999, tourists would spend the absolute minimum of time in the capital because getting around the city was an ordeal rather than
a pleasure.
“Tourists are travelling for fun. They want to have a nice time. Everyone knows big cities have traffic, people accept that, but prior to the opening of the SkyTrain, visitors were spending too much of their holiday getting around and not enough time having fun,” Mr Supojn said.
The opening of the subway in July has also had an impact on visitors. If the SkyTrain is in an L shape, or two sides of a square, the subway provides the other two sides and enables tourists to get to places they simply would not have bothered with previously.
“When we look back, I think the subway will prove to be as important as the SkyTrain. It has 18 stations and complements the SkyTrain very nicely. In fact, it intersects at a couple of points so visitors can more or less view the two mass transport systems as one,” Mr Supojn said.
Many tourist attractions can now be reached in a few minutes from almost anywhere in Bangkok. Places such as the Thailand Cultural Center, where an amazing variety of shows are staged, are keeping visitors in the capital for longer.
“Another example is the BEC Tero Hall which regularly hosts major events. For example, at the beginning of August, it held the World Snooker Championships. And right next door to the hall is the Joe Louis Puppet Theatre. Both are now accessible because of the subway,” Mr Supojn said.
Many good hotels that were previously considered inaccessible now find themselves served by a subway station. “This puts them on the map. Hotels such as Emerald, Fortune and Merchant Court are suddenly at the heart of things; the subway has made them more central,” Mr Supojn explained.
There is also more for tourists to do in Bankgok. Mr Supojn said he believed events such as the several film festivals that were now staged annually had made the capital more attractive and were beginning to establish a following, particularly from within the region.
But he added that although festivals and events did indeed attract people to the capital or keep them in Bangkok longer, people had to want to be here before they would come.
“And I believe one of the most important factors bringing people here is they know Bangkok is fantastic for shopping. Word has got around. There was a time when Thai people used to travel to other regional centres to go shopping. Now it’s much more the other way round,” Mr Supojn said.
The Emporium and Gaysorn Plaza are two landmark shopping centres that have helped to establish Bangkok’s reputation as Asia’s premier shopping capital, and the massive Paragon retail complex scheduled to open at Siam Square next year will give an additional boost to the capital’s reputation.
Looking further ahead, Mr Supojn predicted Bangkok would move to a new plateau of tourism with the opening of the new airport in September 2005 or soon thereafter. “The new airport is central to the longer term plan to achieve arrivals of 20 million by 2008. Airline seat capacity will increase as a result of increased demand created by the TAT.”
He added that by 2008, more hotels would open. “There are of course famous new hotel names under construction. Hotels such as Crowne Plaza, Kempinski and Holiday Inn will be open, but people forget that many smaller hotels with Thai management are also opening to meet demand for three-star accommodation.”
