Gov Chamroen Tipayapongtada, along with Vice Governor, Chokdee Amornwat; chief of Phuket Provincial Administrative Office (OrBorJor), Mr Saranyu Saema, and representatives from Phuket Provincial Public Health Office, Tourism Authority Thailand Phuket office, Phuket International Hospital and the private sector were all on hand to welcome Hainan V/Gov Lu Junhua and his team at Provincial Hall.
Phuket Governor Chamroen revealed that the Chinese delegation came to Phuket to seek support in medical tourism, cruise tourism development, and to propose having direct flights from Haikou, Poao and Sanya in China to Phuket.
Gov Chamroen said, “ V/Gov Lu Junhua explained to us that Hainan and Phuket have been in a long-standing relationship and both provinces are well known for their tourism industries. He said that the majority of Chinese, especially lovers, are now choosing Phuket as the main choice for their honeymoon destination, while a large number are also coming for medical services.
“V/Gov Lu also said that China has a policy of promoting medical tourism at Poao City in the Hainan prefecture,” he said.
“Hospitals in Phuket, both government and private, are ready to provide the best quality services to residents and tourists, and many Chinese people are now wanting flights from alternative prefectures which will come direct to Phuket so they can receive medical treatment.
“In view of this, we will propose the idea of having more direct flights from China to relevant officials within the government. This will also ensure that our relationship with Hainan, our Sister City, is kept strong,” he added.
“Last year we had meeting with the yacht associations from Hainan, Jeju in South Korea, Phuket, Bali and Miami in an attempt to push for ideas which will help support cruise business and develop the yacht associations.
“Hainan and Phuket are both members of the Inter-Island Tourism Policy (ITOP) Forum, and as part of this forum last month I visited Jeju and attended the Asia Cruise Forum 2016 where representatives from China, Korea and Japan discussed the idea of expanding cruise routes in the area.
“Phuket already has a plan to develop its deep sea port into a marina hub for big cruise liners. In addition, our government has a policy of promoting Phuket as a marina hub in an attempt to attract tourists and investors from around the world,” he concluded.