Thailand drops in the World Economic Forum’s travel and tourism development index, from 36th place to 47th. Tourism operators express disappointment in the government for not improving the country’s position.
- Thailand’s tourism industry has dropped to 47th place in the World Economic Forum index, with a significant decline from 36th place in the previous year.
- The country’s tourist services and infrastructure received low scores, highlighting the need for improvement in these areas to support post-pandemic tourism rebound.
- Tourism operators are urging the government to focus on long-term planning, collaboration, and infrastructure development to prevent further decline in the global tourism ranking.
Tourism operators criticize the lack of progress in infrastructure and services, attributing the decline to a focus on existing selling points rather than development. The Association of Thai Travel Agents plans to submit a white paper outlining threats and obstacles to the Tourism Minister, emphasizing the need for a concrete long-term plan and collaboration between public and private sectors.
They also criticize the government’s focus on visiting provinces instead of addressing core responsibilities. Concerns are expressed that without expedited development and resolution of obstacles, Thailand’s ranking in the index could further decline.
The decline was more significant compared to the decrease in the 2021 index, when Thailand fell from 35th to 36th place due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Among Southeast Asian nations, three countries outperformed Thailand – Singapore (ranked 13th), Indonesia (ranked 22nd), and Malaysia (ranked 35th). In comparison to 2019, Thailand also dropped by six spots and fell behind the global average of 117 countries by 3.9%.
Among Southeast Asian nations, three countries outperformed Thailand – Singapore, which was ranked 13th, followed by Indonesia (22nd) and Malaysia (35th). Compared to 2019, Thailand also fell by six spots and lagged the global average of 117 countries by 3.9%.
Thailand, classified as an upper-middle-income country in this index, received the lowest score for tourist services and infrastructure at 2.18 out of 7, and the overall index for infrastructure and services also recorded a low average score of 3.61.
