Thailand's tourism industry should pick up in the second half of 2010 if 'no negative factors occur' to erode tourist confidence, according to a senior official of the Bank of Thailand (BoT).

Mr Paiboon said Thailand's domestic politics and debt crisis in European countries caused a sharp drop in foreign arrivals to the kingdom in April, while the whole year 2010 revenue from tourism will decrease as tourism operators must lower prices to attract visitors.
However the eased political turmoil and the recently relaxed travel warnings by several countries have restored the tourist confidence, said the BoT assistant governor. This can be seen an increase number of tourists from China, Hong Kong and other Southeast Asian countries in June.

Meanwhile, a survey conducted among operators of tourism-related businesses has found that they want the government to help solve problems now facing them, especially on restoring confidence among local and foreign tourists, according to National Statistics Office director-general Jirawan Boonperm.

The survey was conducted on 638 tourism-related operators between March and May when they said they wanted the government to quickly promote public relations campaigns for tourism, boosting tourism image, improving tourism spots and provide safety to tourists, Mrs Jirawan said.Most operators surveyed said their businesses had been affected by domestic politics, economy and widespread diseases, and high oil prices, she said.However, 41.2 per cent of the respondents said that the tourism business in Thailand improved in 2010 compared to 2009 while 26.1 per cent said it remained unchanged and 32.7 per cent said it has worsened.