TAT draws in school trips from Japan

BANGKOK, December 6 (TNA) - The state-run Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is joining forces with Japan-based JTB Corporate to attract young travellers, grouped school trips, to visit the Thai Kingdom. Speaking to journalists of the update, TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn said under the agreed cooperation, TAT and JTB Corporate have jointly launched a contest on proposed travelling routes in Thailand among school and university students, as well as vocational trainees in Japan who are grouped as school trips, especially those who have never visited the Thai Kingdom. Yuthasak stated that the joint initiative is aimed to attract the young tourists to have their "school trips" in Thailand, where they can learn on the Thai history, culture and people's ways of life. Yuthasak acknowledged that recent surveys by TAT offices in Japan found young tourists, grouped "school trips", were keen to visit the Thai Kingdom for the purpose of arts and cultural exchanges and the joint TAT-JTB contest program should inspire the Japanese youth to become an active group of visitors to Thailand in the near future. According to the TAT governor, there has been a drop in the number of young Japanese visitors, grouped school trips, to Thailand over the past four years, but the joint TAT-JTB contest program has attracted a number of younger Japanese generations to participate with their over 500 routes proposed so far. The TAT governor revealed that the winners of five proposed routes will be awarded with their "school trips" in Thailand sponsored and taken care by TAT as of their arrivals at any Thai airport. The TAT governor noted that the Japan-based Toyota Group, a world giant car manufacturer, has also expressed its interest in reorganizing its "school trips", 40-50 travellers each, for their trainees in Thailand, where the political situation has now become stable. (TNA)