Future looks good for Chiang Mai

Chiang Mai is among the top 10 destinations in Asia that have witnessed the biggest increases in positive traveller feedback and traveller interest, year-over-year, according to the TripAdvisor 2012 Traveller’s Choice Destinations on the Rise survey. Released last week, the annual survey showed that Chiang Mai, Thailand’s second largest city, is ranked  eighth on a list of rising destinations determined by TripAdvisor’s clientele. The top five Asian destinations that are on the rise are: Indonesia’ Jakarta; Nepal’s Kathmandu; India’s Kolkata; Philippines’ Manila; and India’s Bangalore. Meanwhile, Thailand’s neighbouring countries gain a mention. Laos’ Luang Prabang and Cambodia’s Phnom Penh were ranked sixth and seventh. Japan’s Kobe and Osaka ranked in ninth and 10th place. TripAdvisor spokesperson, Jean Ow-Yeong, said: “Jakarta topped the list of Asian destinations, beating Osaka, Kathmandu, Chiang Mai and Phnom Penh to name a few.” “These awards are great accolades for the cities as not only are they based on increasing travellerinterest, but also increasing positive feedback about the cities’ hotels, restaurants and things to do.” The feedback and interest is compared to a similar survey in the previous year. Conclusions based on the ratings should take into account that they are the opinions of travellers who take the time to respond to the TripAdvisor survey, a small percentage of active TripAdvisor web site visitors when compared to overall web visits. They also reflect a mix of feedback and interest rather than firm intentions or bookings to visit a destination. In the case of Chiang Mai, whatever the rate of interest, there are not enough direct flights from Asian gateway cities to meet the perceived rise in interest. Travel arrivals to the northern destination indicate that two thirds of all visits are domestic and that the international market is slightly more than 1 million visits a year of the 19 million visits to Thailand. In addition, the data named top 10 world travellers’ destinations on the rise. They are: • Mar del Plata, Argentina; • Sao Paulo, Brazil; • Kiev, Ukraine; • Montevideo, Uruguay; • Perth, Australia; • Mexico City, Mexico; • Hobart, Australia; • Guadalajara, Mexico; • Moscow, Russia; • Turin, Italy.