Wrong message being sent abroad

Tourist confusion rampant, say hoteliers

The government needs to do a better job of communicating to protect the country's tourism image, as reports of current flooding in foreign media are creating confusion abroad, say executives of Centara Hotels & Resorts.

Many international tourists misunderstand current conditions in Bangkok because of frequent media reports saying Bangkok's airport is flooded.

They are not aware that the flooding affects only Don Mueang and not Suvarnabhumi, prompting Asian tourists shift to other countries and European tourists to postpone trips to unaffected areas including Phuket, Samui, Krabi and Chiang Mai.

"We're disappointed with international news footage. Some reports are not true at all," said Chris Bailey, senior vice-president for sales and marketing of Centara Hotels & Resorts.

"The problem is ineffective communications by the government, the Tourism Authority of Thailand and the Ministry of Tourism and Sports. They always said the flooding problem won't affect tourism."

Updating the situation on websites is not enough, he said. Authorities need to start proactive communication right now before tourism operators lose another high season, he added.

Suthikiati Chirathivat, chairman of Central Plaza Hotel Plc (Centel), said the tourism sector had faced negative conditions time and again, most recently the airport seizures by protesters in late 2008 and the escalating red-shirt unrest of 2009-10.

Centel had been hoping to see tourism clearly rebound in this high season but the floods are causing those hopes to fade, he said.

Mr Bailey said that that if people search for "Thailand flooding" online, they will see mostly negative news in international media.

"You don't see explanations of the situation by the TAT or the tourism ministry. If you want to check on updates on some overseas websites of the TAT, you will see it at the bottom of the web page and have to click three times to reach the information."

"Where is the minister of Tourism and Sports? We haven't seen him to working or helping tourism," added Centara president Gerd Steeb.

The chain says it has lost 70 million baht from guest cancellations and event postponements at the Centara Grand Hotel & Resort at CentralWorld since the beginning of October.

Around 16,000 room nights at the group's properties have been cancelled, including 5,000 from Asian travellers, with 35% of the total at its hotels outside Bangkok. Forward bookings for the December-February period have dropped by 30% from expected high-season levels.

What is happening with Centara reflects the overall tourism sector because the group has hotels nationwide, said Mr Bailey. Normally, revenues generated in the first quarter are around 40% of Centara's total for the year.

Although the current average occupancy rate is quite high in Bangkok now, it reflects bookings from Bangkok residents who have fled flood-threatened homes.

"The problem is what will happen after the floods recede. Many hotels should lower room rates or offer special deals to attract clients," said Mr Bailey.