Thai media Manager painted a grim picture of tourism in Phuket in an article in which they quoted leading industry figures and analysts.
They said that tourism on the holiday island needed a "big injection" - and the private sector was demanding action from the government in delivering the medicine.
Expectations are that tourism in Phuket will see a 20% decline in 2020. Without government help, it could be worse still.
In thirty years of Phuket tourism the island had faced many challenges, they said. And pulled through.
But this was the worst. Experts said that the root cause was the strong baht that showed no signs of weakening any time soon.
There was also a massive oversupply of hotel accommodation. For this year it is expected that the hotel industry will see 50% occupancy if they are lucky.
They think that the low season will be very low - 20% occupancy only contributing to the year round malaise.
Other factors are increasing competition from neighboring countries offering environmental holidays at new destinations. For many tourists the likes of Vietnam are both cheaper and more appealing as well as new.
Manager said that Phuket has enjoyed 14 million visitors annually in the past and they spend 44 billion baht a year.
But all this is now under threat.
Source: Manager Online
