Thailand proposes ‘Thai Thiao Thai Plus’ tourism stimulus

Thailand's Minister of Tourism and Sports, Surasak Phancharoenworakul, announced that the ‘Thai Thiao Thai Plus’ project is scheduled to be submitted to the Cabinet on September 22. The initiative aims to stimulate the economy during the fourth quarter of this year and the first quarter of next year through domestic travel support.

The program will utilize a 4 billion baht loan budget to provide 1 million rights. Key features include a flat-rate accommodation subsidy of up to 2,000 baht per right and a co-payment coupon system where the government covers 50% of costs. Coupons will be valued at 1,500 baht in major cities and 2,000 baht in secondary cities, applicable to various services including spas, souvenir shops, and travel packages.

Registration is expected to begin in October, with usage periods spanning from November to mid-December, and resuming from mid-January to late February. The project is projected to generate an economic circulation of over 20 billion baht. To prevent price gouging, the Ministry of Finance has designed a system requiring hotels to display prices compared to the previous year.