Thailand arrivals flying high

Posted on November 21st, 2017

Category: Absolute Hotels Absolute Resorts

Thailand earned THB142,639.83 million from international tourist visits, January to October, an increase of just under 10%, according to the latest data released by the Ministry of Tourism and Sport.

Reporting on the latest statistics, Permanent Secretary of Tourism and Sports, Pongpanu Svetarundra, said the country welcomed 2,723,971 visits in October alone.

For the 10 months up to the end of October, the country registered 28.8 million visits, a rise of 6.69%, year-on-year.

At the current pace, Thailand is likely to surpass 34 million by the close of the year. Based on optimistic forecasts the figure could just fall short of 35 million if the fourth quarter performs well.

Critics will say the figures do not represent genuine tourists; just arrivals at checkpoints representing a wide range of travel purposes from cross-border trade to labour, educational visits and repeat business trips.

During October, the East Asia market dominated by China, delivered 1,845,045 visits followed by Europe, South Asia, the Americas, Oceania, Middle East and Africa.

Compared with October 2016, visits increased 20.9%. Travel from East Asia grew 29.38%, driven by the recovery in the Chinese market. The crackdown over zero tourism was at its height in October 2016, causing a massive decline in visits from China, which partly explains the substantial growth rate this October.

The top 10 tourist supply markers were China, Malaysia, Laos, Korea, India, Japan, Russia, Cambodia, the United States and the United Kingdom.

In addition, visitor spend in October generated an estimated revenue of THB142,639.83 million, an increase of 24.38% year-on-year.

In terms of tourist receipts, the top 10 supply markets were: China; Russia; Malaysia; Australia; United Kingdom; Korea; USA; Japan; India and Germany.

For the 10 months, January to October, Thailand’s immigration checkpoints registered 28,824,753 visits, an increase of 6.69% year-on-year. Foreign tourist receipts were estimated at THB 1,472,698.81 million, an increase of 9.31%, year-on-year.