Last month, foreign arrivals to Thailand surpassed 1 million travellers for the first time since the end of the pandemic, while the number of visitors has also grown by 50.8% since June. Inspired by these positive developments, officials have revised up their expectations for the rest of the year, setting a new target of 10 million arrivals by the end of 2022.
In the first seven months of this year, the Kingdom welcomed 3.15 million travellers, but looks set to surpass this figure in Q3 alone, leaving the way open for a bumper year after all. The Ministry of Tourism and Sports believes the new target can be met, and will continue to grow steadily thereafter.
In August, the Prime Minister stated that the total number of foreign visitors has already reached 4 million and is expected to hit 6 million very soon, meaning that the 10 million target is attainable by the end of the year. He went on to say that this figure is expected to more than triple by 2023, with 19 million annual arrivals forecast by that time.
Cresting the new wave of travellers to Thailand are holidaymakers from the Malaysian market, numbering 425,289 tourists. This is followed by India (333,973), Singapore (183,716), the UK (161,780) and the USA (146,891). Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) are confident they will see 1.5 million arrivals from abroad every month from now until December and are making the necessary preparations to exploit this influx.
“We will discuss with the National Economic and Social Development Council the 1-billion-baht stimulus schemes focusing on travel facilitation for tourists and how to help them save on their travel budget,” said Yuthasak Supasorn, who is the governor of TAT, at the beginning of August.
On 19 August, the Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) declared it will allow foreign tourists to extend their stays, thereby encouraging travel and tourism revenues. Under the new regulations, starting 1 October 2022, the period of stay for nationals of countries exempted from a visa requirement is extended from 30 to 45 days. The stay for those who apply for visa on arrival is extended from 15 to 30 days.
With more tourists arriving and staying for longer than before, Thailand’s tourism sector is looking to finish the year in strong form. Many observers are already looking ahead to 2023, as the Kingdom continues to outperform expectations.
