by James Ruggia
Last updated: 4:30 PM ET, Tue January 14, 2014
Even as its capital finds itself paralyzed by the second day of demonstrations against the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, the latest in a series of civil unrests that began in November, Thailand's tourism has continued to perform abundantly.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) announced its 2013 numbers yesterday, numbers that showed a record 26.7 million arrivals coming into the kingdom and a 19.6 percent growth over the previous year. Originally a buoyant TAT had set a goal of 26.1 million, which they managed to exceed by 600,000.
In Bangkok, new TAT Governor Thawatchai Arunyik said, "These statistics are invaluable as evidence that despite the challenging factors including the ongoing political demonstrations in Bangkok, Thailand remains a popular and welcoming tourist destination."
On Jan. 13, the massive demonstrations called for by former Deputy Prime Minister Suthep Thuegsuban, the de facto leader of the People's Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC), came together and they continue into today Jan. 14. Sources in Bangkok attest that the protests have so far been peaceful (at times even party-like) and are basically restricted to eight areas in the city.
Destination Asia reports that the gatherings are restricted to core downtown areas. "Despite the blockades, some tourist vehicles and all emergency vehicles are being allowed to pass freely." According to those reports public transport systems are operating normally as are both airports, which are being given an extra level of protection by government security forces.
Shops, restaurants, bars and shopping malls are all functioning as are Thailand's other tourist destinations such as Phuket, Samui, Hua Hin, Pattaya and Chiang Mai.
The Bangkok disruptions are driving business to other Thai destinations as direct international flights bypassing Bangkok are increasingly connecting Thailand's secondary destinations to markets abroad.
Consider Krabi, a beach resort destination on the Andaman coast just listed as one of the "52 Places to Go in 2014" by the New York Times.
Arunyik cited the "increasing number of flights through Krabi Airport." These include connections to other Southeast Asian cities in Thailand and beyond as well as direct flights to Europe.
According to surveys by the TAT Krabi Office, accommodation at various beach destinations both on the mainland and several popular islands of Krabi are reporting an average room rate of 95 percent during this week. Krabi and other destinations are connected directly to important source markets. TAT reports show that Thailand's tourism vitality despite the demonstrations is largely based on those international connections.
In 2013, six Asia-Pacific countries contributed more than one million visitor arrivals. China led all markets with 4.7 million arrivals (a 68.83 percent jump), followed by Malaysia at 2.99 million tourists (up 17.29 percent), Russia at 1.73 million arrivals (a 31.93 percent growth), Japan at 1.53 million tourists (an 11.96 percent increase), South Korea at 1.29 million arrivals (up 11.48 percent), and India at 1.04 million visitors (a 3.61 increase).
If the demonstrations continue Thailand's other destinations in both the mountainous north and the tropical islands of the south will continue to prosper, but Bangkok could lose its standing as the country's top attraction.
Even though Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang International Airports reached a total of 16,989, 458 in 2013, a 16.65 percent growth over 2012, that growth margin got paper thin after the demonstrations began and by December were down to a 1.99 percent growth over December 2012. In 2014, TAT set a goal of 28.01 million international tourist arrivals.
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