Muslim Friendly Tourism:

Developing and Marketing MFT Products and Services

In the OIC Member Countries

101

4.7

Thailand

Type/focus area for case study

Desk case study/Marketing MFT Products and Services

Reasoning behind focus area choice

Thailand is among the top 10 global tourism receipts

263

. It ranked fourth in the

State of the

Global Islamic Economy 2015/16

report’s Halal Travel Indicator which rated countries based

on the health of the Muslim-friendly travel ecosystem of the country. According to UNWTO,

Thailand ranked 9

in terms of tourism receipts. In 2014 tourism receipts were $38.4 billion

and there were 24.8 million arrivals.

264

5% of the population of Thailand is Muslim

265

with a higher percentage of Muslims in the

South of Thailand in provinces such as Phuket and Krabi. There are a total of 3,405 mosques

located in 61 of its 76 provinces.

266

This case study has a marketing focus as the government is actively promoting Thailand as a

Muslim-friendly destination.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand also launched a Discover Thainess campaign, focusing on

attracting Middle Eastern travelers, and organized FAM trips for travel agents from Islamic

countries. Also, last year Thailand launched a Muslim-friendly tourist app.

Background

Table 9: Thailand – Tourism Figures

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

CAGR

Total Inbound Tourist

Arrivals (Mil)

24.8

27.21

29.84

32.74

35.92

39.40

43.22

9.70%

Total Inbound

Expenditure ($ Bil)

38.4

42.12

46.21

50.69

55.61

61.00

66.92

9.70%

Total Outbound

Expenditure ($ Bil)

8.54

8.94

9.49

10.01

10.58

11.15

11.74

6.58%

Muslim Tourist

Arrivals (Mil)

2.37

2.60

2.85

3.13

3.43

3.76

4.13

9.70%

Source: UNWTO; DinarStandard synthesis and analysis; Government Statistics.

Thailand’s Muslim tourist arrivals have been estimated to grow by 9.7 percent CAGR from 2.6

million arrivals in 2015 to 4.1 million arrivals in 2020. The CAGR mirrors total inbound

tourist arrivals and total inbound expenditure, which is estimated to grow from 27.2 million

263

“UNWTO Tourism Highlights: 2015 edition.” UNWTO. 18 Jun. 2015. Web.

264

Ibid.

265

“The World Factbook”. CIA. Web.

266

“The Contribution of Islamic Culture and its Impact on the Asian Tourism Market”

UNWTO

. In: Regional Seminar on the

Contribution of Islamic Culture and its Impact on the Asian Tourism Market (16-17 November 2015), Brunei Darussalam.