Reality Check Time for the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Songkran, Thai New Year, kind of started yesterday, and the Tourism Authority of Thailand is predicting that there will be an increase in spending during the holiday.  Who are they trying to kid? Tourism Authority of Thailand Songkran An article in The Nation, Floods dampen Songkran tourism in the South , says the Tourism Authority of Thailand reported that tourists spent 4.1 Billion Baht in 2010 which was a 3 percent increase over 2009.  And, they expect the numbers for 2011 to go up even more to 5 Billion Baht.  Some really creative accounting going on here. First off, no one says what the Tourism Authority of Thailand uses when counting the days of the Songkran festival.  Technically, it is from 13-15 April.  So, we don’t know if TAT is only using those 3 days (NOT) or tacking on 3-5-7 days on either side.  Or, maybe, they just count the entire month of April.  Or, my guess would be, that they just make up the numbers.  There is absolutely no way in hell to accurately tell how much money tourists spend during any given period.

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Tourism Authority Of Thailand Needs To Face Reality