30/07/10, 05:53:21 EDT

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Burma struggles to fulfil tourism potential

ftd.de

Foreign arrivals were already a fraction of those visiting Thailand. Now the outlook is worse.

On its website, Diethelm Travel describes Burma as "truly the land that time forgot". It raves that Burma's three decades of "self-imposed isolation" have left a land of "unspoiled beauty and tranquillity" and an "emerald green''countryside where "time seems to have stood still".

But executives from Bangkok-based Diethelm and other regional travel agencies were two weeks ago busily evacuating their foreign guests from Burma, as the country's less charming side was on full display. Diethelm and other tour operators have temporarily suspended operations in Burma.

And though the tour companies will reassess the situation in mid-October to determine whether it is again safe for tourists, the industry says Burma's revival as a destination will depend on the junta's response to the recent display of public unhappiness, and the deep-rooted problems that triggered such a wellspring of public anger.

The military regime insists it has the security situation under control, and the protests have faded, after the junta arrested thousands and emptied Buddhist monasteries.

"There is a difference between whether you are secure, in terms of safety, and whether you think the country is in a state that it would make sense to go to as a tourist and enjoy yourself", says Maarten Groenveld. The Thailand-based executive at Diethelm Travel previously ran the company's Burma operation. "A lot of people will feel they should not go there now. How long does that take to wear off? It all depends on the solution."

Travelling to Burma has always been controversial. Aung San Suu Kyi, the detained Nobel Prize-winning head of the country's pro-democracy movement, has for years called on foreign holidaymakers to keep away until there are genuine political changes.

But in recent years a growing number of foreign tourists - mainly from continental Europe, especially France and Italy - have made their way to Burma, lured to a country as yet unaffected by the aggressive modernisation and economic development that have changed much of Asia.

Even before the recent events, visitor numbers to Burma were tiny, as poor infrastructure, the high cost of domestic flights and insufficient hotels hindered the industry's expansion.

Foreign arrivals to Rangoon airport were a mere 275,000 a year, people in the industry say, a fraction of the 13m foreigners who visit neighbouring Thailand each year. Foreign admissions to Rangoon's magnificent Shwe Dagon pagoda - which some consider a better gauge of real tourism than airport arrivals - were about 120,000, while foreign visitors to the ancient temple complex at Bagan, north of Rangoon, numbered just half that.

Despite these paltry visitor numbers, travel companies say the growing tourism industry had provided much-needed jobs, helping Burmese families to get by.

Edwin Briels, general manager of Exotissimo Travel Thailand, warns that, "if the situation stays insecure, it's a big loss for thousands of people working in tourism, and their families. That will have a very big impact''.

But prospects for a quick rebound look distant. Tour operators say they have received many cancellations for the months ahead, normally the "high season" for Burma travel. The regime itself has temporarily suspended issuing most visas as it seeks to avoid public scrutiny.

Yet even if Burma's tiny tourism industry does rebound to the level of visitors recorded before the dramatic events of recent weeks, travel companies acknowledge that the tourism industry still operates at a level far short of its potential, considering Burma's diverse and highly appealing sites, both natural and cultural.

Says Mr Groenveld: "Burma as a tourist destination is a fantastic tourism product. We are all convinced that in the right circumstances, it could do very well. But the circumstances are not right, and they never have been."

 Printable Version  | published Oct 09, 2007