TravTalk India Online Magazine
The Royal Thai Embassy organised Namaste Thailand Festival 2017, in association with Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), to celebrate the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Thailand and India.
NISHA VERMA
The three-day Namaste Thailand Festival, organised at the Bridge, Ambience Mall and DLF Promenade Mall, Vasant Kunj, in New Delhi, offered visitors an opportunity to sample Thai food, Thai products, Thai cultural performances and fun activities. Speaking on the sidelines of the festival, Apirat Sugondhabhirom, Chargé d’Affaires, The Royal Thai Embassy, New Delhi, said, “This year marks the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relationship between India and Thailand. The government of Thailand was among the first nations to establish relations with the newly independent Republic of India. Last year when the Prime Ministers of the two countries met in New Delhi, they agreed to celebrate this important landmark of history together. Hence, the Embassy of Thailand in India has organised the Namaste Thailand Festival and Embassy of India in Bangkok will also organise the Indian festival there in the same year, which will be called Sawadhee India.”
Isra Stapanaseth, Director, TAT, New Delhi, said that these activities would increase awareness of Thailand in India, which in turn would also help tourism between the two countries. “We’d mainly like to focus on our way of life. The cultures of both India and Thailand have some proximities, and thus we have more people going to Thailand and Thai people are also now travelling to India, especially for the Buddhist circuit,” he added. While Thailand is already popular among Indian tourists, Stapanaseth said that they are focusing to promote new destinations and local experiences.
“We received almost 1.2 million tourists from India to Thailand last year, which is about 10 per cent increase from the year before. We are looking for a similar increase in 2017 as well. People already know Bangkok and Pattaya, but we are trying to create awareness for new attractions, products and services. We are focusing on east coast of Thailand, especially Koh Chang as well as South of Thailand, where we would like to share local experiences. People can go and explore local village and learn Batik, handicrafts, cooking, etc. Other destinations like Krabi and Khao Lak are also coming up well,” he informed.
Key attractions:
– TAT is focusing on east coast of Thailand, especially Koh Chang as well as South of Thailand
