Tourism officials push for “One Night, One Dollar” campaign in Phuket

“…have been suffering from the pandemic for 15 months now. Only mass tourism will save us.”

A night at a Phuket resort could drop down to just $1 USD. Tourism officials are pushing for a proposed campaign they call “One Night, One Dollar” to help draw travellers back to the popular tourist island as locals prepare for its July 1 reopening to vaccinated foreign tourists.

Rooms that are normally priced between 1,000 baht to 3,000 baht, around US$30 to $90 would be offered for $1 USD for a night under the plan. The costs would be subsidised by the government, according to president of the Tourism Council of Thailand, Chamnan Srisawat.

“TCT also discussed the idea with major wholesalers and online travel agents to prepare for the reopening of Phuket. And they are ready to help.”

Phuket is preparing reopening amid a wave of infections hitting record highs with 100,000 Covid-19 cases since April 1. Local officials in Phuket have set tight restrictions to combat the spread of the virus, even prohibiting small gatherings with friends, and have been accelerating the rollout of vaccines to reach herd immunity by the end of next month.

Before the pandemic back in 2019, Thailand welcomed around 40 million visitors from overseas and generated 190 billion baht in revenue. Last year, Phuket welcomed 6.7 million visitors, which was mostly during the first quarter before most of the travel restrictions were set.

This year, the island province is expected to welcome 500,000 visitors. With the proposed One Night, One Dollar campaign, Chamnan says that potentially 70,000 rooms on the island could generate 40 billion baht.

“However, the current wave of Covid-19 infection could (impact the) final decision. But we have been suffering from the pandemic for 15 months now. Only mass tourism will save us.”

The Tourism Authority of Thailand and the Ministry of Tourism and Sports will review the proposal before it is sent to the Cabinet for approval.

SOURCE: TTG Asia