Thailand Hotels and Travel Guide

The Thailand Grand Sale 2006 is a strategy to promote Thailand as a shopping paradise, as well as, to attract tourists to travel and do shopping during the low tourism season in Thailand. In accordance with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT)’s data, approximately 30% of income from international tourists coming to the country each year is from shopping, being equivalent to more than 100,000 million Bath a year. TAT has invited many department stores and shops both in Bangkok and other main tourist cities such as Chiang Mai, Hat Yai, Phuket, Pattaya and Nakhon Ratchasima to participate in the project. Moreover, cooperation has been created with the Visa International Thailand to organise the promotion programmes for the domestic and international cardholders throughout the project.

Objectives
1. To attract tourists to travel and purchase tourism products and services during the period outside of Thailand’s main tourism season.
2. To create Thailand’s image as the shopping centre of Asia, uniquely considered as a Shopping Paradise among tourists.
3. To encourage the circulation of money within the country and the generation of income to the provinces.
4. To promote an increase of foreign currency circulation within the country.
5. To respond to the governmental policy in tourism, emphasizing on an increase of tourists’ expenditure per person per day.

Targets of the Project
1. To increase the amount of products purchased by tourists travelling into the country during the low season.
2. To increase the number of international tourists from Asia and nearby to travel in Thailand.
3. To create the image of Thailand’s Shopping Street among international tourists.
4. To encourage Thai people to purchase products in Thailand instead of travelling to other countries to do shopping for those whose quality is of a similar standard.
5. To create the annual grand sale season during these two months to be widely acknowledged among domestic and international tourists.

Categories of Shops in the Project (Noticing from the sign of the Thailand Grand Sale 2006)
1. Shops offering consumer products (shopping) : Department stores, shopping centres, retail shops and stores.
2. Shops offering local merchandise or One Tambon One Product (OTOP).
3. Shops providing services such as hotels, restaurants, spas, etc.

Patterns of Programme for the Department Stores and Shopping Complexes
1. 10-50% reduction in shops participating in the project for domestic tourists.
2. 10-50% reduction in shops participating in the project and a lucky draw for special packages (hotels and airlines) for international tourists.
3. As for both domestic and international tourists, from making a payment through a Visa card, they can write their name and address at the back of the sell slip and put it in the box at the participating shops to win the prizes of 5 Chevrolet Estate for Bangkok and 2 Chevrolet Optras for the other provinces, totaling 15 cars. Lucky draw will be done at the same period of time throughout the country on September 20, 2006. The list of the lucky winners will be announced at the participating shops during October 10-20, 2006.

Areas of Operation
Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hat Yai, Phuket, Pattaya and Nakhon Ratchasima.

Period of Operation
16 June – 15 August, 2006.