Thailand has low number of COVID-19 infections, but had always put safety over tourism. Starting in October the Kingdom sees a realistic chance to reopen tourism to its southern resort destinations for vaccinated visitors.
- Vaccinated Tourists may be able to visit Phuket and Koh Samui without restrictions
- SKAL Koh Samui supports easy travel for vaccinated visitors
- The Rediscover Samui campaign launched in October has been a trend setter for SKAL clubs around the world.
Phuket and Koh Samui in Southern Thailand are two of the most known and dependent tourism regions in Thailand.
Organizations such as SKAL Koh Samui are applauding and supporting the governments plan to allow vaccinated tourists in without additional quarantine requirements to arrive at this Thai gateways.
With both regions having their own international airport, the tourist regions are ideal gateways able to observe tourism bubbles.
SKÅL International Koh Samui [SKÅL Samui] believes that the proposed plan to vaccinate local Samuians, together with the testing and vaccination of incoming travelers to Thailand, is the correct way forward following a year of economic turmoil on the island, which is heavily dependent on international visitors.
“The advantage that Samui has as an island is that sufficient controls can be effectively put in place to allow the lifting of quarantine regulations, enabling travellers to return under a programme currently being referred to as the Travel Pass,” said SKÅL Samui President, American hotelier James McManaman.
Meanwhile, McManaman and his new Executive Committee are committed to regenerating business through their dynamic tourism recovery campaign, #ReDiscoverSamui which launched in October 2020 and has received plaudits from Skål clubs around the world. The campaign is designed to showcase the very best of the paradise island in the Gulf of Thailand.
The #ReDiscoverSamui campaign was created to bring immediate help and ongoing support to the island’s Covid-embattled travel and hospitality sector. It encompasses a series of initiatives to raise awareness of the island’s appeal to domestic tourism while Thailand’s borders, for the most part, remain closed.
Among them are a new video showcasing the stunning natural beauty and lifestyle highlights of Samui and surrounding islands. There is a successful media outreach programme of customised island experiences for key social local media bloggers. Once the borders open, key regional and international feeder markets will be targeted.
To date, #ReDiscoverSamui social media campaign has attracted more than 10 million viewers (and rising) and created a significant spike in room sales as reported by some members.
To help equip members with “best practice’ business skills, SKÅL Samui has also launched a series of seminars aimed at helping its members through the recovery process.
“As the world enters its second year of the Covid pandemic and with the prospects of a slow path to recovery, SKÅL is proud to be at the forefront of tourism recovery where it’s needed most.” said McManaman, “In this case, we are helping our members and their companies to review and refresh their marketing strategies for what is now a vastly different world of travel and hospitality.
“Our campaign underscores the organisation’s overall mission of ‘Connecting Global Tourism’” and reinforces the global motto of SKÅL Int’l, “Doing Business Among Friends”, he added.
SKÅL Samui is collaborating closely with the Tourist Authority of Thailand (TAT), Tourist Association of Koh Samui (TAKS) and the Thai Hotels Association in rolling out the #ReDiscoverSamui campaign.
