According to Thai media news, Luo Lan, director of the Shanghai office of the National Tourism Administration of Thailand, recently revealed that Chinese tourists are ready to travel to Thailand, especially tourists from Shanghai, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Hubei, Shandong and Anhui, who account for about 30% of tourists to Thailand.
Due to the high income of tourists in these areas, many Chinese travel agencies have started to plan to sell charter flights to Thailand during the Chinese New Year. But what matters most now is how Thailand can take steps to prevent further negative press, as Chinese tourists always put safety first.
Roland said that from the past data, it can be seen that Chinese tourists are very fond of traveling to Thailand during the Spring Festival, and many travel agencies are currently starting to sell travel packages in Krabi, Phuket and other places, and if the response is good, Songkran travel packages will be sold in the future. What Thailand needs to do is to present as positive an image as possible, because negative news is still the main factor restricting Chinese tourists from visiting Thailand.
In addition, tourist demand in these areas is increasing, but tourist behaviour has changed, with the majority of tourists being independent travellers, as these areas have higher tourist incomes, as evidenced by the fact that 4-5 star hotels are booked at a much higher rate than other hotels. If you are traveling in a group, this group also prefers to travel in small groups, and will also negotiate with travel agencies to develop a tour package that meets individual needs, with the main destinations still being Bangkok and Phuket.
She further said that in 2019, before the pandemic, more than 11 million Chinese tourists visited Thailand, and 4 million left the country from Shanghai and its responsible region. However, due to negative news and other factors, the middle-income tourist group has been affected, and tourists to Thailand have begun to shift to the high-income group, and the quality of tourism is more important than the price.
Thailand remains one of the top destinations for Chinese tourists, and if demand returns to previous levels, the number of Chinese outbound tourists is expected to return to normal levels in 2024. In addition, judging by the number of Chinese tourists visiting foreign countries this year, the potential of Thailand's tourism industry has not declined.