Top ranking government officials from the national tourism organizations representing ten key nations from the Southeast Asian region will be meeting later this year in Thailand to work on a road map for the promotion of golf tourism.
The Inaugural ASEAN Golf Tourism Forum is being spearheaded by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).Thailand has been elected to look after the interest of ASEAN Tourism for the next two years under the chairmanship of Mr. Sansern Ngaorungsi, Deputy Governor for TAT.
ASEAN, the acronym for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is a regional political and economic grouping.
Within the ten countries that make up ASEAN, there are nearly 700 golf courses – many of which are world class facilities designed by some of the greats in the business like Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Schmidt, Curley Design and Robert Trent Jones Jr.
The three-day forum will be staged at the beach resort city of Pattaya in Thailand from November 3 – 5. It will be organized in conjunction with the 2011 Asia Pacific Golf Summit.
The ASEAN Golf Tourism Forum will be organized by the Asia Pacific Golf Group and will be hosted by TAT.
Commenting on the forum, Mr. Sansern said, “This is a huge opportunity for all those involved in the promotion of golf tourism –Thailandis perfectly positioned to offer golfers from around the world a truly unmatched experience in golf and the same applies to all the countries of ASEAN.”
“Collectively, the ten countries that make up ASEAN can offer golf facilities that are playable all year round and combined with our unique attractions of sites, cultures, traditions, food etc., we believe that golf tourism is poised to grow exponentially in our region.”
According to the producer of the forum, Mike Sebastian, chief executive officer of the Asia Pacific Golf Group, “The event will be attended by top officials from the national tourist organizations of the ASEAN countries, national golf associations and major travel agencies involved in the promotion and marketing of golf tourism”.
The theme for the forum is “Golf Tourism – The New Engine Of Growth!”
Asia Pacific Golf Summit www.golfconference.org