The head of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has set a goal of raising the contribution of domestic tourism to 40% of total revenue in the next four years from 30% now.
"Thai tourism businesses will have lower risks if we rely more on domestic tourism," governor Yuthasak Supasorn said.
The push for higher dependence on domestic tourism will serve the government's policy of generating tourism revenue for communities.
Thailand now generates 70% of tourism revenue from foreign tourists.
Last year, tourism revenue reached 1.81 trillion baht from the country's 24.7 million foreign visitors.
To achieve its new target, the TAT is focusing seriously on the domestic market.
Directors of all 35 TAT offices nationwide must work closely with provincial governors to boost local tourism.
In the past, the TAT launched several domestic marketing campaigns without studying capacity in each province, Mr Yuthasak said.
Many attractions are overloaded in the high season. One is the Phu Tub Berk viewpoint in Phetchabun's Khao Kho district, where many new guesthouses are damaging the landscape.
Mr Yuthasak said the TAT was in collaboration with provincial administrative organisations to evaluate capacity before kicking off new campaigns.
Each organisation should design its tourism products and capacity to suit its province.
The government recently approved a budget of 148 million baht to build roadside rest stations for tourists in 148 locations nationwide. Currently, the TAT is working on their design.
Mr Yuthasak said this would help to boost local tourism and trading in line with the government's policy.
The TAT also plans to introduce video clips related to tourism sites in all 77 provinces by year-end.
Each video clip will be about 45 seconds and aired on TV and the internet.
This year, the TAT will generate 750 billion baht from domestic tourism, missing the target of 800 billion.
The international market will generate 1.44 trillion baht, taking its total tourism revenue to 2.19 trillion, slightly lower than the target of 2.2 trillion.
The TAT hopes the roadside station project will help to generate more tourism revenue to meet the 2016 target of 2.3 trillion baht, while tourist arrivals will grow 8%.
For international markets, the TAT has set a new target for its directors at 27 foreign offices. The director position will be evaluated every two years -- if they cannot meet the target, they will be rotated.
On the other hand, the term can be extended to five years from four for outstanding directors, Mr Yuthasak said.
Each international office must have active tourism promotion activities, as tourism is a major driver of the economy while exports are slumping, he added.