THAILAND - Tourism and Property Investment Surge Drives Phuket's Economy to New Highs

ASIATravelTips.com, 17 January 2007

Thailand’s tropical paradise island Phuket continues to out-perform its Asian rivals in the intense competition for tourists who demand luxury accommodation managed by some of the world’s most prominent hotel organisations.
This in turn, has spurred substantial levels of investor interest in the destination’s every-growing property market and higher than ever interest from international hotel management companies searching from new projects along the Andaman coastline.
Tourist arrivals in Phuket reached 4.7 million in 2006, which in turn produced tourism-related spending of US$1.7 billion, up 87% from 2005, according to research from the Kasikorn Bank’s Research Centre. This year Phuket is predicted to welcome 5.2 million tourists who will spend US$2 billion during their time on the island.

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