Thailand to beat tourism target as Indians, Malaysians lead rush
Thailand is on course to surpass its target to attract 10 million foreign visitors this year as Malaysians and Indians lead the return of holidaymakers.
Tourist arrivals totaled 7.56 million as at Oct 30, with at least 1.5 million visitors a month expected during the remainder of the year, government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri said in a statement on Saturday.
Flight bookings from India and Malaysia to Thailand showed a load factor of 85 percent and 68 percent respectively during November and December, he said.
More than one million Malaysians have visited Thailand this year.
It makes them the single-largest group of travelers to the South-east Asian country famous for its beaches, national parks and Buddhist temples.
Almost 600,000 Indians visited Thailand in the first nine months of the year, compared with fewer than 1,000 a year earlier.
Meanwhile, most Chinese travelers, who topped the list before the pandemic, are staying home because of the nation’s Covid-19-zero policy.
South-east Asia’s second-largest economy is counting on tourism revival to offset the hit from high global energy prices and volatile financial markets, which sent its currency to a 16-year low and inflation to a 14-year high earlier this year.
Thailand scrapped all travel curbs in July as local Covid-19 cases fell and most businesses returned to normal operations, helping draw tourists who were mostly absent in the previous two years.
The number of visitors may surge to 18 million next year and generate about 970 billion baht (S$36.6 billion) in tourism revenue, Anucha said, citing a forecast by the Tourism Authority of Thailand.
That’s still a far cry from the year before the pandemic when the nation recorded almost 40 million foreign arrivals and more than US$60 billion (S$84 billion) in tourism revenue.
Domestic travel is forecast to generate 760 billion baht (S$28.6 million) in revenue in 2023, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand.
“Thailand still remains a popular destination that can meet the needs of tourists who want to visit,” Anucha said.
It can compete with other countries seeking to attract tourists, he added.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered relevant agencies to deploy more personnel to handle the surge in tourist arrivals, especially at immigration counters at the airports, as Thailand is vying with other nations to draw visitors, said Anucha.