Kasikorn Research Center Revised the forecast of foreign tourists traveling in Thailand for the whole year 2566 to 25.5 million people (frame 24-26 million people) from the original expected number of 22 million people (forecast on 9 Dec. July 22). Payment of foreigners traveling in Thailand generate income for the tourism business Expected to be worth about 1.07 trillion baht, with Chinese tourists traveling to Thailand, there will be about 4.65 million people, or about 42% of the number of Chinese tourists in 2019 will return.
part of the higher travel expenses It may affect the spending budget for tourism in Thailand that may decrease compared to 2019. Therefore, it is estimated that the spending of Chinese people traveling in Thailand to the tourism business It may be worth about 1.86 billion baht or 36% of the spending of Chinese people traveling to Thailand in 2019.
However, the revision of such estimates This is a result of the Chinese authorities relaxing quarantine rules for those entering the country. and limiting the number of passengers on international flights Since January 8, 2023, and starting to allow Chinese people to apply for passports And renew the passport (Passport) again, which is good news for the Thai tourism sector.
The research department stated that After the relaxation of such regulations Chinese people have been interested in searching for travel information in Thailand a lot, and this deregulation is certainly quicker than expected. Inevitably affects the direction of the Chinese tourist market traveling to Thailand in 2023, which is expected to increase from the previous forecast. second half Vary according to flight route expansion and the frequency of flights between China and Thailand is likely to increase. It is possible that the number of flights per day from China to Thailand may increase more than 3 times during the year. Compared to about 1,035 flights in the first quarter of 2023 or an average of about 11-15 flights per day. And compared to when China closed the country, an average of 3 flights per week. This will make daily flights in 2023 probably come back around 60-70% from before COVID.
For the second half of the year ’66, when the flight routes resumed to expand. Along with the marketing of travel agencies and operators are increasing. Especially if Thailand is selected as one of the pilot countries. of the revitalization of large group travel would make the Chinese travel in Thailand accelerated from the first half of the year
However, resuming the route until the end of ’66 may still be lower than the average of about 93 flights per day. (Including chartering) in the period before the outbreak of COVID in 2019 due to the increase in the number of Chinese tourists traveling abroad. but may still be limited And the management of supporting resources will take time, such as airplanes, pilots, ground staff, etc.
In addition, the research center also assessed that Chinese people’s spending per trip in Thailand in 2023 may not increase compared to before COVID in 2019 due to Chinese travellers. to prevent higher travel expenses (airfare + health insurance) on the condition of setting a travel budget throughout the same trip from the economic situation and income that did not improve
However, during the next period of the year, if the COVID outbreak subsides and more entrepreneurs come back to market There is a chance that the expenses to be set aside may be reduced. And make Chinese people spend more money while traveling in Thailand. from the beginning of the year and still have to follow the measures to open up to Chinese tourists from foreign countries such as South Korea, Japan, Europe, etc., if the situation does not change much from the present together with long-distance travel have a higher cost The more likely it is that Chinese people want to travel. will choose Thailand as a destination