Travel
Positioning Chiang Rai for MICE
Efforts are underway to promote Chiang Rai as a meetings and events destination focusing initially on the China market.
The initial promotion to showcase Chiang Rai’s potential in the meetings market was undertaken at the recent IBTM CHINA 2016, held in Beijing.
The objective was to introduce the far-north province to China’s meeting planners for small meetings with a green tourism branding.
It follows comments made by the Tourism Authority of Thailand governor, Yuthasak Supasorn. earlier in the year. He said Chiang Rai province had been designated a business model for sustainable tourism development in 2017, that would position the province as a green tourism destination.
Part of the Golden Triangle where Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet, Chiang Rai is the closest Thai province to China. Initially, events would be sourced in China’s Yunnan province, possibly related to investment opportunities in the Mekong Region.
Tourism officials believe Chiang Rai offers a range of facilities that can serve the needs of business event travellers from Asia.
The province’s travel sector would point out that it is still some distance behind Chiang Mai in offering MICE facilities even for regional markets.
One bright spot, however, is the opening of the province’s convention centre in early September, that can cater for events of up to 3,000 delegates, according to the Tourism Authority Chiang Rai’s director, Lerdchai Wangtrakoondee.
He surveyed the brand new convention centre shortly before it hosted its first event the Lanna Hilltribe and…
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