Wichit Na Ranong, President of the Tourism Council of Thailand, said: "In a few months there will be a lot of social problems. We need more work for our people. We need the tourists to come back and spend their money, to restore people's livelihoods, otherwise we could be in trouble."

As far as the accommodations and infrastructure are concerned the beaches on the West Coast of Phuket were the most effected by the tsunami. These beaches included Patong, Kata and Karon (Post-tsunami - Damage and Recovery, 2005). Approximately 200 of the hotels were damaged and 3,000 of the island's 32,000 rooms were destroyed. However, the damage created by the waves was limited to less than one kilometre inland (Post-tsunami - Damage and Recovery, 2005).

Although many accommodations are readily available Fresco (2005) points out that many accommodations in Phuket and other islands had only reached 15 per cent of...
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