Thailand welcomes 20 million tourists in seven months

[webfact]

Thailand experienced a significant surge in tourism, welcoming 20 million foreign tourists in the first seven months of the year, marking about half of the pre-Covid-19 levels.

 

Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin announced on X, formerly Twitter, that from January 1 to July 25, more than 20 million international visitors arrived in Thailand, reflecting a 34% increase from last year.

 

Acknowledging the efforts behind this growth, he expressed gratitude to all parties and sectors involved in implementing measures such as visa-free travel, increased flights, the creation of an aviation hub, and enhancements to tourist attractions.

 

Tourism from Taiwan and India reached unprecedented levels, largely credited to the visa-free scheme. This initiative allows visitors from 93 countries to stay in Thailand for up to 60 days without a visa. Initiated late last year, the scheme has been extended until November 11 and stands as a cornerstone of the government’s tourism strategy.

The Thai premier attributed the robust tourism growth to collaborative efforts.

 

“Now, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is preparing activities to attract tourists from different countries every month. I would like the tourism sector to get ready as Thailand’s big door has opened today.”

 

Foreign tourists

 

Despite the progress, the Tourism and Sports Ministry reported that the forecasted 35 million visitors generating 3 trillion baht (US$83 billion) in revenue for the year is still below the 2019 figures when the country earned 1.91 trillion baht (US$53 billion) with 40 million tourists.

 

Ministry data revealed that between January 1 and July 25, Thailand welcomed 20,001,405 visitors. The majority came from mainland China (3,994,343), followed by Malaysia (2,784,598), India (1,170,419), South Korea (1,053,077), Russia (987,861), Laos (714,564), Taiwan (610,270), Vietnam (597,695), and the United States (575,268).

 

For long-haul arrivals, Russia led the list, followed by the US, the United Kingdom (539,884), Germany (481,733), and France (420,446).

 

Siripakorn Cheawsamoot, TAT Deputy Governor for Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and the Americas, highlighted a positive outlook for the long-haul market.

 

The TAT anticipates that the number of long-haul visitors and the resulting revenue will surpass 2019 levels. Efforts to attract European tourists in the second half of the year are in full swing, with the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris presenting an opportunity to draw French visitors, reported Bangkok Post.

 

Siripakorn mentioned that TAT’s Paris office collaborated with Carrefour Voyages, a French tour company, to promote package trips to Thailand from May 20 to June 16. These packages ranged in price from 1,469 euros to 1,849 euros (US$1,600 to US$2,010).

 

Additionally, TAT has partnered with Malaysian tour companies to promote a scenic journey from Kuala Lumpur to Hat Yai aboard the Special Charter Sawasdee Train. This promotional trip is scheduled for today and tomorrow.

 

by Bright Choomanee
Picture courtesy of Evan Krause, Unsplash

 

Source: The Thaiger 2024-07-29

 

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[ChrisY1]

An add for LEO??

[Liverpool Lou]

15 minutes ago, ChrisY1 said:

An add for LEO??

An ad for LEO only if you disregard all the other businesses that were similarly promoted on the stock photo.

Edited July 29 by Liverpool Lou

[ikke1959]

O h my dear... the computer act must be alerted.. There is an advertising for alcohol in the picture.....And fake news with their 20 million visitors....and all because of the suddenly free 60days visa for the tourists who only stay 3 weeks... and the other longer stayers probably have arranged their visa already some time ago. Westerns don't do like THais everything at the last moment

[Upnotover]

Alcohol not mentioned, nor in the Chang ad on the other side of the street.  There is a good reason why all the beer companies also sell this....

[hotchilli]

21 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand experienced a significant surge in tourism, welcoming 20 million foreign tourists in the first seven months of the year, marking about half of the pre-Covid-19 levels.

Excellent, any other unrelated news?

[newnative]

     Pretty good numbers for the year so far.  For those who claim that western tourists to Thailand have steeply fallen, the numbers seem to indictate more of a maintaining pattern.  UK had 994,000 visitors to Thailand in 2019's banner year.  They are at 540,000 so far, with 5 months left and high season yet to come.  Ditto for Germany, 857,000/482,000 and France, 740,000/420,000.  They may not reach 2019's numbers but shouldn't be too far off.  USA had 1,168,000 in 2019 and is at 575,000 so far this year.  Also might get fairly close to 2019's numbers.  

[StayinThailand2much]

23 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

And fake news with their 20 million visitors....and all because of the suddenly free 60days visa for the tourists who only stay 3 week

 

Suspiciously missing are the numbers for actual expenditures of all these tourists, or per person... (So, did these fall short of expectations?)

Edited July 30 by StayinThailand2much

[JimTripper]

23 hours ago, Upnotover said:

Alcohol not mentioned, nor in the Chang ad on the other side of the street.  There is a good reason why all the beer companies also sell this....

I think water sales here are much bigger then beer and alcohol. Water must be where the big money is.

[MalcolmB]

Good job Thailand, they manage to entertain, feed and accommodate more people in six months than the entire population of many countries and with a low % of incidents. 
 

 A slick well oiled machine. 
 

Probably getting a few extra Brits now from Spain as they have turned nasty on us.

[DonniePeverley]

Disgusting mass cheap tourism.

 

Revenue is down per person too. Which clearly indicates they are getting more cheaper tourists. 

 

What happened to quality tourism ?

[FritsSikkink]

8 minutes ago, DonniePeverley said:

Disgusting mass cheap tourism.

 

Revenue is down per person too. Which clearly indicates they are getting more cheaper tourists. 

 

What happened to quality tourism ?

The Western sexpat, 2 week millionaires? 

Edited July 30 by FritsSikkink