For the 11th year running, Thailand has won “the most popular tourist destination in Asia” award conferred by the German travel industry group Go Asia. Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Mr. Thawatchai Arunyik received the award on behalf of the Thai tourism industry at a ceremony organised during ITB Berlin. The Go Asia Awards ceremony has been held annually since 2003, with the cooperation of the magazine Reise and Preise and Go Asia Group. Mr. Thawatchai said, “It is a source of great pride that we continue to be recognised as a popular tourist destination in the German market in spite of the political unrest during the past few months.
On behalf of the entire Thai travel and tourism industry, especially the millions of people who work in it, I would like to thank all those who voted for us. We look forward to welcoming you all in Thailand, now that everything is back to normal.” Germany is Thailand’s third largest source of visitor arrivals from Europe. It was previously the top source market, but has been overtaken by stronger growth from Russia and the UK. For 2014, TAT is targeting 768,500 German visitors. The most popular tourist attractions of the German market are Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi, Hua Hin, Ko Phangan and Cha-am.
