The Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT) plans to invite 10,000 mostly Chinese visitors to Thailand in January to take part in an event to revive the country's tourism.
Chairat Triratanajarasporn, newly elected president of the TCT, said the council is working with groups such as the Thai Hotels Association, the Association of Thai Travel Agents, the Thai-Chinese Tourism Business Association, various airlines and the Tourism Authority of Thailand to host the event on Jan 20.
Guests are owners of travel agencies, individual travellers and tourism service operators. Targeted guests will receive invitations soon, and reservations will be granted on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Mr Chairat said organising the event will help restore tourist confidence and strengthen the industry, especially for Chinese tourists after arrivals dropped the past several months.
"The event is aimed at the Chinese market, but we will invite operators from other countries too," he said.
In addition, the TCT plans to invite Thai singer Mimi Lee, who is popular in China, to join the event.
"Mimi Lee is a famous singer and celebrity in China," Mr Chairat said. "If she accepts our invitation, it should help popularise Thailand among her fans and hopefully lure more Chinese to return here."
He said the TCT and alliances will also suggest visitors travel to other destinations in the country before and after the event.
The council already reserved millions of baht to host the event but will also raise funds from both government and private sector alliances to cover the event cost, Mr Chairat said.
The TCT held a board meeting yesterday and appointed new board members.
The council also announced strategies to drive the industry towards further collaboration among association members and government bodies.
One plan is to invite tourism experts from 13 areas across the country to join the council.
A representative from each of the areas will propose what their areas need and a specific module to boost business.
