Transcript of the above video: 

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing a 5-point plan for tourism in Thailand. What are we talking about here? Well I thought of making this video after reading a recent article from the Pattaya Mail, pattayamail.com, the article is titled: Cambodia and Thailand offer very different marketing strategies. Quoting directly: "Thailand has adopted a 5-point marketing plan according to the Prime Minister. These include providing a positive experience (24-hour help lines for example), encouraging Thai food and culture, exploring secondary provinces rather than the usual Tourist Centres and hosting world class events in sports and music. The fifth strand is a push for seamless travel in the ASEAN region by a "mini Schengen", the idea that a Visa for one country would remove the need to apply for a separate one to visit neighbouring ones."

Yeah, Thailand is really making a push for tourism; I don't blame them. It's good to see the government doing this especially coming off of years in being shut down out here and not having any tourism whatsoever and having to watch, really the heartbreaking ramifications of that. But yeah the notion of an ASEAN Visa as discussed in another video made contemporaneously with this one, I think that's a pretty far out notion. I'm not saying it can't happen but I think it would take a great deal of time and resources in terms of political capital and things to get that done. Most countries pretty zealously guard their prerogatives regarding internal Immigration controls and so seeing a Schengen area in Southeast Asia, while it is something laudable to strive for, I definitely think it's a pretty daunting goal. 

Meanwhile yeah, I do think it's great to see again Thailand is pushing for more tourism. As we have seen, a number of countries have now gone visa-free to come into Thailand that once were not; we are also seeing visa exemption stamps, so to be clear, not visas but exemption stamps - so lawful status when you are exempt from needing a Visa - we're seeing a number of those also on the rise, a number of nationalities able to get that type of status is on the rise. So again, I definitely think overall this is positive. Hopefully it continues to evolve in the same direction and we will certainly keep you updated on this channel as things proceed.