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After missing out on\u00a0Taylor Swift\u2019s world tour, Thailand has sealed deals to host Summer Sonic and Tomorrowland music festivals as it pushes event-driven tourism to propel Southeast Asia\u2019s second-largest economy.<\/p>\n
Summer Sonic<\/a>\u00a0will come to Southeast Asia for the first time in its second venture outside of Japan, with dates set for Aug. 24 and 25 in Bangkok after shows in Tokyo and Osaka, according to Thai government spokesman\u00a0Chai Wacharonke. Thailand will also be hosting dance music festival\u00a0Tomorrowland<\/a>\u00a0in 2026, which may be only the first of 10 consecutive editions, Chai said in a statement on Saturday.<\/p>\n The push came after Thai Prime Minister\u00a0Srettha Thavisin, who took office in September, identified measures such as visa waivers for tourists as \u201cquick wins\u201d to stimulate Thailand\u2019s economy, which he has repeatedly said is in a \u201ccrisis.\u201d Thailand, which has seen an average growth short of 2% in the past decade in a region where a pace upwards of 4% is the norm, has pushed promotional campaigns to extend holidaymakers\u2019 stay and year-round festivals to boost the number of foreign tourists.<\/p>\n Srettha previously\u00a0bemoaned<\/a>\u00a0that Thailand had missed out on Taylor Swift\u2019s record-breaking Eras Tour, which made Singapore its\u00a0only stop<\/a>\u00a0in Southeast Asia due to an exclusive arrangement with the neighboring country.<\/p>\n Tycoon-turned-politician Srettha has called Singapore\u2019s move \u201csmart\u201d and said Thailand should seek to emulate such strategies to bring in tourists and boost its economy.<\/p>\n Thailand\u2019s vital tourism industry accounts for 12% of the country\u2019s gross domestic product. This year, the country\u00a0aims<\/a>\u00a0to welcome 35 to 40 million foreign tourists, edging near a pre-pandemic record of 40 million visitors.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nSubscribe to the new Fortune CEO Weekly Europe newsletter to get corner office insights on the biggest business stories in Europe. Sign up<\/a> for free.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n