Dubai : More than 50 media personalities, social media influencers, and bloggers from all over the UAE attended the first-ever “Gastronomic Journey to Thailand” halal food event on Tuesday at the Dusit Thani Dubai.

The event was aimed to highlight Thailand’s culinary and halal-friendly offerings to families and young travellers to further position Thailand as the ultimate gastronomical destination for the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) and the Middle East travelers.

Thai food is known and loved all over the world for its fiery, rich flavour combinations, unique cooking styles and age-old methods of preserving foods, and the use of exotic herbs and spices to enrich the flavours and offer nutrition, The Gulf Today News reported.

Pichaya Saisaengchan, the newly appointed director of the Dubai and the Middle East office of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) said: “Thailand has been known as one of the Middle East region’s most preferred holiday destinations catering for all kinds of travellers; families, wedding and honeymooners, young travellers, MICE, Golf and sports tourists and medical and wellness travelers. These past few years, we have seen an incredible increase in consumer awareness and recognition about Thai food in which we see an incredible opportunity to further deepen the understanding of people regarding Thai food. This event will showcase the world’s top 7 Thai dishes voted by the readers of CNN Travel to highlight the best of the best in the Thai cuisine. ”

“With this event, we would like to show the world the natural hospitality, genuine warmness and friendly faces of Thais that are ready to welcome guests from around the world,” Pichaya added.

Recently, the TAT also launched a Muslim-friendly app to help Muslim visitors find halal restaurants and hotels, mosques and halal tours, as well as providing travel news and a guidebook. Thailand is positioning itself as a Muslim-friendly destination by pushing halal tourism and launching marketing incentives for Muslim-related agencies.

The TAT director further said “that there are also, initiatives to promote halal tourism in Thailand’s southern Muslim provinces bordering Malaysia, as well as incentives for Muslim travel agents and media to survey tourism products and services for Muslim tourists in Pattaya, Hua Hin and Phuket, where Phuket is gearing up to be a halal food centre.”

—SM/IINA