PHUKET: A record number of passengers passed through Phuket International Airport in 2013 with the turnstiles stopping at 11,342,676 arrivals and departures, a remarkable figure for an overcrowded little facility.
So what, you are entitled to say. At least local authorities now seem to be recognising that it's an irrelevant number, unless you happen to be interested in the degradation of Phuket's irreplaceable coral reefs and beaches.
Sadly, there are still local media organisations and even tourism officials who think that bigger is better, that the larger the tally, the greater Phuket's prosperity.
They will take that figure of arrivals and departures and unthinkingly pretend it's the total of overseas tourists for Phuket in 2013.
That misrepresentation will be pounced on with glee by a few rich families in Bangkok who always wanted a resort in Phuket and they will build their resort then wonder why the profit margin is so small.
Until there's a turnstile at Phuket International Airport that can count in advance the amount of money each tourist is going to spend on the island, statistics will be compiled and misused, compiled and misused, over and over again.
The media organisations won't bother to check. The misquoting authorities plainly couldn't care, as long as it's a large, impressive number.
Yet what Phuket needs is a future carefully planned around its so-called carrying capacity - that is, its ability to sustain a balance between nature and nurture.
Too many people have been sucking on Phuket's teats without realising that the island's wonderous ability to sustain so many is drying up and will eventually disappear, without proper care and the renewal of energy.
The hope is that the rebuilt Phuket International Airport will retain a maximum capacity of 12 million arrivals and departures, that the rush for larger numbers without real thought of the consequences will subside, and that Phuket will learn the lessons of history.
The figures, for those who are impressed by them, are that December with 1,036,638 arrivals and departures became the fifth month of 2013 to exceed the magic seven figures.
International arrivals rose by just 10.94 percent in December but 26.02 percent for the year. The overall increase on 2012 was up 18.88 percent. Quarters two and three showed greatest acceleration, at 24.53 percent and 23,16 percent, with Q1 and Q4 quieter at 15.70 percent and 14.10 percent.
If Phuketwan was forced to make a prediction, we'd say that the Phuket boom will continue briefly but that consolidation is called for and Phuket's teats need intensive care.
So what, you are entitled to say. At least local authorities now seem to be recognising that it's an irrelevant number, unless you happen to be interested in the degradation of Phuket's irreplaceable coral reefs and beaches.
Sadly, there are still local media organisations and even tourism officials who think that bigger is better, that the larger the tally, the greater Phuket's prosperity.
They will take that figure of arrivals and departures and unthinkingly pretend it's the total of overseas tourists for Phuket in 2013.
That misrepresentation will be pounced on with glee by a few rich families in Bangkok who always wanted a resort in Phuket and they will build their resort then wonder why the profit margin is so small.
Until there's a turnstile at Phuket International Airport that can count in advance the amount of money each tourist is going to spend on the island, statistics will be compiled and misused, compiled and misused, over and over again.
The media organisations won't bother to check. The misquoting authorities plainly couldn't care, as long as it's a large, impressive number.
Yet what Phuket needs is a future carefully planned around its so-called carrying capacity - that is, its ability to sustain a balance between nature and nurture.
Too many people have been sucking on Phuket's teats without realising that the island's wonderous ability to sustain so many is drying up and will eventually disappear, without proper care and the renewal of energy.
The hope is that the rebuilt Phuket International Airport will retain a maximum capacity of 12 million arrivals and departures, that the rush for larger numbers without real thought of the consequences will subside, and that Phuket will learn the lessons of history.
The figures, for those who are impressed by them, are that December with 1,036,638 arrivals and departures became the fifth month of 2013 to exceed the magic seven figures.
International arrivals rose by just 10.94 percent in December but 26.02 percent for the year. The overall increase on 2012 was up 18.88 percent. Quarters two and three showed greatest acceleration, at 24.53 percent and 23,16 percent, with Q1 and Q4 quieter at 15.70 percent and 14.10 percent.
If Phuketwan was forced to make a prediction, we'd say that the Phuket boom will continue briefly but that consolidation is called for and Phuket's teats need intensive care.
So what?
Posted by Charles on January 8, 2014 18:43