The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has appointed Thai pop star Mario Maurer to promote the kingdom in China, under the ‘Tour Thailand with Mario Maurer’ project, as part of its plan to attract more Chinese tourists to the country during the year of “Discover Thainess” in 2015.
“China is one of Thailand’s main tourist markets. One of the contributing factors that attract Chinese tourists to Thailand is Thai films and television series, as well as Thai pop stars. This is why TAT is launching a celebrity marketing campaign, appointing Mario Maurer who is very famous in China, to help promote Thailand to his Chinese fans and followers,” Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, Minister of Tourism and Sports, Govt of Thailand, said
Maurer is also scheduled to lead a Meet & Greet activity in Shanghai, Kunming and Chengdu, give interviews to Chinese media and participate in online and on air games to seek the lucky 10 winners from his fan club to attend an exclusive dinner with Mario in Shanghai. In addition, he will be sharing his travel experiences in Thailand to his Chinese fans via social media; such as, Weibo and WeChat, throughout 2015.
In 2015, TAT expects Thailand to welcome 5.1 million Chinese tourists and generate 219 billion Baht in revenue. Last year, the kingdom recorded 4.6 million visitors from China, generating 188 billion Baht in revenue. Between January and October of this year, there were a total of 3,598,479 Chinese tourists to Thailand. In October this year, the number of Chinese arrivals was up by 67.02 % to 501, 043 over the same period in 2013.
