The Tourism and Sports Ministry has unveiled a new web portal connecting online services from the public sector, including the new electronic travel authorisation (ETA) system and the 300-baht fee collection from foreign tourists in the future.
Mongkon Wimonrat, deputy permanent secretary at the ministry, said the website named "Entry Thailand" is a central platform that features helpful information and travel services from suppliers, seeking to engage tourists throughout their trips.
He said the portal collaborates with more than 12 organisations, such as the Interior Ministry and Airports of Thailand, offering updated information such as flight and train schedules, an event calendar, and local attractions.
The portal connects with external services from other public and private organisations, such as accommodation booking in the national parks across Thailand, Muay Thai class booking, tourist police contacts, the tourist VAT refund system, and electronic visa applications.
Mr Mongkon said the platform has been developed from the screening system during the pandemic, which inbound visitors used for booking quarantine accommodation before entering Thailand.
The project aligns with the public development trend of e-services, targeting improvement of the country's travel and tourism competitive index ranking, which could support the government's "Ignite Tourism Thailand" policy, he said.
The ministry expects to integrate more services into the system in the future, including the mandatory ETA system for visa-exempted travellers, which will be implemented soon by the Foreign Affairs Ministry, and the pending 300-baht tourism fee collection.
Mr Mongkon said that if a new pandemic erupted, the travel screening system could also be recalled on this web portal.
As new Tourism and Sports Minister Sorawong Thienthong has agreed to restart the tourism tax for tourist insurance and supply development, Mr Mongkon said the online Thailand Travel Safety platform has started a trial run.
Whenever the government decides to activate it, it needs only six months to start collecting fees, which will also offer online payments on the platform.
As the 50-million-baht insurance programme for foreign tourists has already expired, Mr Mongkon said only 10 million baht was spent on subsidies.
On Wednesday, the ministry headed by Mr Sorawong also met 20 tourism operators to discuss current issues and strategies.
As of Sept 15, the number of foreign arrivals tallied 24.8 million, led by 5 million Chinese travellers.
