Travel & Tourism Updates
TAT campaigns to attract more Chinese tourists T
hailand’s major tourism players are scrambling to lure back Chinese visitors in the wake of the Phuket boat disaster in July that claimed 47 lives.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is undertaking a series of tactical promotions to encourage Chinese tourists to visit the Kingdom during the lucrative high season. The Royal Thai government has also responded to pleas for help from travel trade organisations by waiving visa fees nationals from 21 source markets until 31 January 2019.
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The Link
Issue 4/2018
Thailand welcomed 2.71 million visitors in October, down a fraction year-on-year. The downturn reflects the reduced numbers of visitors from mainland China – down by almost 20 percent compared to the same month in 2017. However, the total number of international visitors to Thailand recorded during the first 10 months of 2018 was 31,253,920, up 8.43 percent on the same period in 2017, and the total for this year is expected to be close to 38 million. KResearch, part of Kasikorn Bank,
is predicting that international tourist arrivals will total 37.99 million, up 6.7 percent compared to 2017 with tourism revenues of two trillion baht (up 9.2% on past year). The Royal Thai government has responded to pleas for help from travel trade organisations by waiving visa fees nationals from 21 source markets until 31 January 2019. The move is designed to deliver up to 500,000 additional international arrivals. Cumulative data published by Thailand’s tourism ministry officials
