Bangkok Post
Cambodia could lose 30 to 40 billion baht in tourism income as the latest conflict with Thailand is driving Thai and foreign tourists away, Apichart Sangka-aree, an adviser to the Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA), said on Tuesday.
“On the tourism front, Cambodia will face stronger negative impact from the dispute than Thailand.
''European tourists are now refraining from visiting Cambodia’s Angkor Wat and are instead visiting the Northeast of Thailand, which has a similar culture and tourist attractions,'' Mr Apichart said.
Charoen Wang-ananont, chairman of the Thai Travel Agents Association (TTAA), took the same tone, saying 95 per cent of Thai tourists who had booked tour packages to Cambodia in advance have now cancelled or delayed their trip.
“We found that 20 per cent of them changed their destination to Laos and another 10 per cent to Burma,” Mr Charoen said. The tourist attractions that coincidently gained benefits from the conflict included Luang Prabang, Vientiane, Savannakhet and Champasak.
More than 600, 000 Thais visited Cambodia last year and they spent about 7,000 baht each, while only 60,000 Cambodian traveled to Thailand, according to the TTAA chairman.
“On the tourism front, Cambodia will face stronger negative impact from the dispute than Thailand.
''European tourists are now refraining from visiting Cambodia’s Angkor Wat and are instead visiting the Northeast of Thailand, which has a similar culture and tourist attractions,'' Mr Apichart said.
Charoen Wang-ananont, chairman of the Thai Travel Agents Association (TTAA), took the same tone, saying 95 per cent of Thai tourists who had booked tour packages to Cambodia in advance have now cancelled or delayed their trip.
“We found that 20 per cent of them changed their destination to Laos and another 10 per cent to Burma,” Mr Charoen said. The tourist attractions that coincidently gained benefits from the conflict included Luang Prabang, Vientiane, Savannakhet and Champasak.
More than 600, 000 Thais visited Cambodia last year and they spent about 7,000 baht each, while only 60,000 Cambodian traveled to Thailand, according to the TTAA chairman.
14 comments:
oh how pathetic you SIEMS people!
DO THEY (THAIS) KNOW HOW MUCH WILL THEY LOSE? There media is too much bias. The tourist visit Thailand in conjunction with Cambodia attractive tourist sites such as Angkor Wat. That is why Thais loan Cambodia to build road number 5 from Poipet to Siem Reap. So if you close the border the foreign toursts may chose to vist Thailand or Cambodia through other countries. Thai tourism is very famous with sex tourism.
This is the PAD THAI mouth piece with no creditability. They can run their mouths all they want...
Tricks with the war and every things to keep the tourists in Thailand and not to visit Cambodia.
It sound Thai has the new system to attract the tourist.
Scare tac-tic...so pathetic...it's time Bang-COCK post write an article about Thailand should build a full-scale replica of Angkor Wat just like Preah Vihear temple in Meuang Boran...that way so can cash in some tourist money from the current Khmer-Thai conflict!
Hi guys,
If you support SRP, please don't insult Thailand's government and PAD. You guys should aware that SRP has signed alliance agreement with Democrat party of current Thai's PM. So, we should support each other and attack to Hun Sen and Thaksin.
SRP (Candle Light)
Better read the replica of Angkor Wat from the National Geographic, than to visit the replica of Angkor Wat at Wat Preah Keo in Bangkok.
It's really interesting the CPP supports Thaksin and Puer Thai Party while SRP supports Democrat party and PAD in Thailand.
That's ridiculous. How can they say Cambodia will lose more tourist just because of this disagreement? Cambodia is not at war or having threats of civil war. This appointment does not cause social unrest in Cambodia as it does in Thailand so why would foreign people have any reserves about visiting Cambodia?
Unless what you are implying is that Thailand will soon invade Cambodia! In that case both country would lose all tourists!
unfounded assumptions.
On tourist front, anybody wish to come to Cambodia can travel to Saigon and enter from Vietnam. And now Cambodia and Vietnam has a joint airway? So it look like Thailand is just attempting desperately to scare Cambodia that's all.
I think, economically, this does't need to feed Cambodia in the long term. 40B baht just worth nothing for Cambodia. We are the land of ownder and the national of temple builder, we can attract only in one or two year(s) to get this mount by ourselves. The RGC should strategize for tourism sector in the short coming while thailand is becoming the land of cry now, thus no tourist wish to go the land of cry any more. The RGC should increase open direct flies to Cambodia in order to reduce dependency tourism from Siam...
2:14 you're making a hasty generalization, based on your own perception and standing. You may support CPP and support Thaksin's appointment, but having that stance due to party-line support, you should not project your way thinking on other people, specifically that SRP supporters support Democrat party and PAD.
You think just like Hun Sen, black, white. People who think aren't like that.
I for one, don't care for Thai politic, why would I need to support either the Democrat party or PAD of Thailand when they are Thai people's politic? However, Thaksin is a different story, he has meddled into Cambodian politic now so this warrants our Khmer opinion on him.
And my opinion is I am against Thaksin using Cambodia as a based and pawn in his game.
At the same time, I remained neutral or rather apathetic towards PAD or Democrat party, contrary to your assertion that if I am opposed to Thaksin, I must also be SRP supporter and also support PAD.
If anything, I and most thinking Khmer resent PAD because of their amazing ignorance of Khmer history and their desire to get Preah Vihear.
Some people like to make generalization because it's easier for them to cluster people together as those "for" them and those "oppose" to them. A convenient way to shut up all opinions.
"Thailand exported $1bn worth of goods to Cambodia in the first eight months of this year, compared with Cambodian exports of just $39m to Thailand."-
November 10 2009
By Tim Johnston in Bangkok
Financial Times (UK)
Look, who stands to lose, Thailand or Cambodia? Pls look at the quote posted by 4:34pm above.
It's sad that Apichart Sangka-aree made such half-bakedand FALSE assumption.
I don't know which country, Cambodia or Thailand, hurts the most as far as border closing is concerned. But I do know the border closure in 2003, Cambodia hurted the most and that's why Hun Sen made a concession to Thai by paying them $50 Millions just for the Thai to reopen the border.
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