Holiday travel: Poll finds most don’t have New Year’s plans
A new survey by Suan Dusit Rajabhat University finds that most people do not have plans to travel over the New Year’s holiday, citing costs and worries of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 as the main reason to stay put. The Suan Dusit Poll was conducted from December 6 to December 9 and interviewed 1,304 people across all locations, ages, occupations and educational backgrounds about their holiday plans. Averaging the planned holiday spending for each respondent finds that each traveller will inject on average 12,858 baht into the tourism economy.
A researcher at Suan Dusit University said that Chiang Mai has been a top travel destination during the past 2 years as it offers a lot for travellers seeking a vacation lifestyle. She suggested that the popularity of Chiang Mai could be capitalised on with government tourism focusing on promoting the “new normal” style of tourism, advocating for the health safety of the province and others and advertising the popular workation travel and work trend.
Some highlights of the poll data:
Will you travel over the New Year’s holiday?
- 41% – will not travel
- 34% – will definitely go somewhere
- 25% – have not decided about travel yet
If you aren’t planning to travel, why not?
- 81% – concerned about the Omicron variant of Covid-19
- 47% – money troubles prevent them from travelling
- 39% – worried about tourist attractions having too much traffic congestion.
If you are planning to travel, why do you feel confident to take a holiday?
- 85% – they are fully inoculated
- 64% – they want to take a break
- 48% – they already have travel plans they are committed to.
What will you do to be safe from Covid-19 while travelling?
- 86% – travel in their own cars
- 57% – seek tourist attractions that have less congestion and good air circulation
- 52% – choose destinations with good Covid-19 safety while taking protective measures themselves
Where would you like to travel to for the New Year’s holiday? [Top 5 responses.]
- 41.22% – Chiang Mai
- 25.68% – Chiang Rai
- 25% – Prachuap Khiri Khan
- 23.65% – Nan
- 20.27% – Chon Buri
SOURCE: Thai PBS World
