Thailand sees better tourism arrival in November than estimates but spending remains subdued due to global economic slowdown

[webfact]

 

By Thanaphum Charoensombatpanich

Thailand’s tourism sector was likely to have seen as many as 1.73 million tourists arriving during the month of November although the average spending by tourists have continued to remain weak amid weaker global economic conditions.

 

The better-than-expected arrival for the month of November has prompted economists to adjust their full year 2022 arrival targets and hopes are that the number of tourists entering the kingdom will likely increase in 2023 on the hopes that the large market of China will open its doors to allowing Chinese citizens to be able to travel.

 

Attaphol Tisayukata, analyst at Tisco Securities came out to say that the Ministry of Tourism and Sports has given a guidance that Thailand saw 1.73 million tourist arrivals. Although the official numbers are yet to be announced, the preliminary number in November saw a 17% growth month-on-month (MoM) over October’s reported 1.48 million arrivals.

 

Full story: https://www.thaienquirer.com/46530/thailand-sees-better-tourism-arrival-in-november-than-estimates-but-spending-remains-subdued-due-to-global-economic-slowdown/

 

-- © Copyright Thai Enquirer 2022-12-08

 

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[stoner]

next month....arrivals top 10 to the power of 4 

[RandiRona]

Let's solve this puzzle... More people less spending means ??? THEY ARE NOT DAMN TOURISTS!!!!

[ezzra]

And yet, the government approve phase 3 with a of budget of 36 billions baht!! to expand Don Muang airport to be able to cater for 18 millions more passengers totaling capacity of 40 millions passengers a year, money NOT well spent at time when world's economy is in the type of recession ...

[ThailandRyan]

59 minutes ago, RandiRona said:

Let's solve this puzzle... More people less spending means ??? THEY ARE NOT DAMN TOURISTS!!!!

Migrant workers are now being classed as tourists just like us li g term stayers who go out for a holiday then return here to our homes....crazy.

[nigelforbes]

1 hour ago, RandiRona said:

Let's solve this puzzle... More people less spending means ??? THEY ARE NOT DAMN TOURISTS!!!!

The total number of visitor arrivals for the 1 January-26 October, 2022, period was 7,349,843. The top five source markets were Malaysia with 1,246,242 arrivals, India with 661,751 arrivals, Lao PDR. with 538,789 arrivals, Cambodia with 373,811 arrivals, and Singapore with 365,593 arrivals. Tabulated by the TAT Intelligence Centre based on data from the Immigration Bureau, these totals do not include migrants, United Nations officials, and non-nationalities.

 

https://www.tatnews.org/2022/10/thailand-welcomes-over-7-million-foreign-tourists-from-1-january-to-26-october-2022/#:~:text=The total number of visitor,and Singapore with 365%2C593 arrivals.

[it is what it is]

 

in banglampu many of the larger hotels have yet to open and ones that are open are only using a few floors and/or not opening the restaurant. speaking to local business people this is due to low customer numbers and difficulty in getting staff - many migrant hospitality staff are yet to return.

[BritScot]

3 hours ago, ezzra said:

And yet, the government approve phase 3 with a of budget of 36 billions baht!! to expand Don Muang airport to be able to cater for 18 millions more passengers totaling capacity of 40 millions passengers a year, money NOT well spent at time when world's economy is in the type of recession ...

But there is money to steal....

[petermik]

Wait till the big spending Indians arrive....all will be good

[Isaan sailor]

Good time to let the Baht rise, right Bank of Thailand?  That will bring more tourists here, and spending wildly (Thai logic).

[ourmanflint]

In reality you're not a tourist unless you arrive on a plane. Have we got the numbers for airport arrivals?

[koolkarl]

Can imagine that soon all arriving passengers will be fitted with an electronic

ankle bracelet. I have traveled to many countries but never seen one that is so obsessed

with knowing where you are.  It is a huge invasion of privacy.

[Cake Monster]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

although the average spending by tourists have continued to remain weak amid weaker global economic conditions.

 

Spending is down to the individual Tourist.

Quite a shock to many of them i suspect , to see the huge price rises in Thailand, when Inflation is reported to be  only 6.14 % ( among the Worlds lowest )

There is only so much that is loose change in a Tourists pocket, and Thailand has started to price themselves away from that kind of money in pursuit of the " Dream " arrivals that have money bursting out of every pocket.

Old saying in Business

Its better to have 100 small customers, than just one large one.

[ThailandRyan]

11 minutes ago, Cake Monster said:

Spending is down to the individual Tourist.

Quite a shock to many of them i suspect , to see the huge price rises in Thailand, when Inflation is reported to be  only 6.14 % ( among the Worlds lowest )

There is only so much that is loose change in a Tourists pocket, and Thailand has started to price themselves away from that kind of money in pursuit of the " Dream " arrivals that have money bursting out of every pocket.

Old saying in Business

Its better to have 100 small customers, than just one large one.

Have to charge more for the recent raises all employee's received and then to assist in obtaining more increases for lost revenue, TIT after all...

[CANSIAM]

Does Thailand know that the huge Russian numbers are here for another reason other than the tourist thing ?  On the cheap for longer stays - home means war......... 

[KhaoYai]

Hardly surprising that 'spending is subdued' - given the current cost of flights people probably have very little cash left over. Hopefully the surge in people willing to pay the current ridiculous prices because they haven't been able to travel for so long will decrease next year and the airlines will be forced to return to competitive pricing.

[ozz1]

Typical Thai logic all tourists are millionaires with the baht being high against most currencies they have shot themselves in the foot the Russians might help a bit

[MrJ2U]

Hotel prices certainly have quadrupled.   

[ThailandRyan]

1 hour ago, KhaoYai said:

Hardly surprising that 'spending is subdued' - given the current cost of flights people probably have very little cash left over. Hopefully the surge in people willing to pay the current ridiculous prices because they haven't been able to travel for so long will decrease next year and the airlines will be forced to return to competitive pricing.

Tourists living on Mama noodles comes to mind.

[Onerak]

3 hours ago, koolkarl said:

Can imagine that soon all arriving passengers will be fitted with an electronic

ankle bracelet. I have traveled to many countries but never seen one that is so obsessed

with knowing where you are.  It is a huge invasion of privacy.

But you keep coming. I wonder why? Is it the the lure of finding a bride in brothels fronting a bars or for cheap sex orgy?

[Lancelot01]

38 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

Tourists living on Mama noodles comes to mind.

And booze from a 7/11.

[kinyara]

Barely a coherent and intelligent observation bar two, good news stories about a gradually improving tourist market is clearly the home to the bitter and uneducated to vent their spleen. 

[hotchilli]

22 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand’s tourism sector was likely to have seen as many as 1.73 million tourists arriving during the month of November although the average spending by tourists have continued to remain weak amid weaker global economic conditions.

I guess the billionaires didn't come, just the usual riff-raff.

[ThailandRyan]

8 hours ago, kinyara said:

Barely a coherent and intelligent observation bar two, good news stories about a gradually improving tourist market is clearly the home to the bitter and uneducated to vent their spleen. 

Gradually improving, but not with the numbers being only tourists I am afraid. If you can prove to me beyond a doubt that all nationalities listed came as tourists and not the 4 surrounding countries for just 1 or 2 days to bring in goods and take goods out, I might believe you. I know many from the surrounding countries Cambodia and Laos that enter weekly to do business then return, they are classed as tourists which they are not. Just like I am classed as a tourist with my new LTRWP visa and ME re-entry permit. If I left and arrived every month I would be counted 12 times as a tourist.....

[Damrongsak]

22 hours ago, RandiRona said:

Let's solve this puzzle... More people less spending means ??? THEY ARE NOT DAMN TOURISTS!!!!

My wife and I didn't spend much in September and October.  It was my first time back in about 15 years.  No hotels or bars, only a few meals out.  Mostly gas money driving to parks/mountains (Loei has some nice ones), beer and whatnot.  So I was a "tourist" visiting relatives and staying in our own house over there. 

[Damrongsak]

11 hours ago, Lancelot01 said:

And booze from a 7/11.

I bought more beer from local Mom & Pop stores because they would sell a case of beer any time of the day.  Got some at Bic C if my timing was right.

[Damrongsak]

13 hours ago, ozz1 said:

Typical Thai logic all tourists are millionaires with the baht being high against most currencies they have shot themselves in the foot the Russians might help a bit

I lucked out in Sept/Oct with the exchange rate.  One time was 36-ish, the other time, 37.77 for US$.

[KhaoYai]

12 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

Tourists living on Mama noodles comes to mind.

That may not be so far from the truth.  From memory, the air ticket for my first return after the 're-opening' of Thailand in December 2021 cost me sub £700. This year its just shy of £1500.  For a 2 week stay I usually allow £2000 including air fares. This year, if I stick to the same budget (and I'm likely to) I won't be doing much travelling after I arrive as most of the remaining £500 will be spent on meals and a few nights out.

 

I've also had to half the amount of trips I put in - previously every 2 months, now every 4 months. 

 

Thailand needs tourists to return but to fix the damage the tourist industry suffered during the pandemic, those people need to be spending. At the moment it seems only the airlines are recouping their losses.

[nigelforbes]

16 hours ago, ourmanflint said:

In reality you're not a tourist unless you arrive on a plane. Have we got the numbers for airport arrivals?

I did the math a few years ago, AOT puts out a report showing the number of arrivals and departures by airport in Thailand but it needs to be adjusted for non-AOT regional airports that also handle international traffic. As far as I could tell at the time, the air traffic numbers came extremely close to TAT's arrivals figures. The arrivals by air figures include returning Thai nationals which is known because the Thai government shows (somewhere) the number of Thai's travelling overseas each year. I presumed the difference then equated to foreign tourists arriving via land crossings which some part of government has numbers for.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Airports_of_Thailand

[jacko45k]

16 hours ago, ourmanflint said:

In reality you're not a tourist unless you arrive on a plane. Have we got the numbers for airport arrivals?

So no Malaysian tourists in the South?