This year, over the Lunar New Year period from February 15 to 21, Chinese tourists are expected to bring in “about 8 billion baht (US$254 million) in revenue”, Santi Chudintra, a deputy governor at the TAT told reporters on Monday.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is expecting some 300,000 visitors from China during the Lunar New Year holidays, a figure that is up nearly 18% from a year ago.
Compared to the same period last year, the number of visitors from Chinese shrunk due to a crackdown on budget tourism and the mourning period for the late king, attracting about 255,000 Chinese tourists, reported Reuters.
This year, over the Lunar New Year period from February 15 to 21, Chinese tourists are expected to bring in “about 8 billion baht (US$254 million) in revenue”, Santi Chudintra, a deputy governor at the TAT told reporters on Monday.
In recent years, the country has become increasingly popular with Chinese tourists who accounted for nearly one-third of last year's record 35 million arrivals. This year, the figure is expected to rise to around 10 million from 9.8 million.
The Tourism Ministry said last month that tourist arrivals this year are expected to hit a record 37.55 million and generate 2.1 trillion baht in spending.
In late 2016, Thailand launched a crackdown against “zero-dollar” package tours, in which tourists pay for all-inclusive packages upfront and in theory spend nothing while in the country. The campaign, which was a success, has since ended in 2017.
The tourism sector is a crucial driver for Thailand, making up about 12% of gross domestic product.