1 November 2013

Unstoppable increase in Chinese tourist numbers

Thanks to the phenomenal success of the Hollywood movie ‘Lost in Thailand’ at the Chinese box office in December 2012, around 4.05 million tourists from the Middle Kingdom visited the Land of Smiles during the first 10 months of 2013.

The number exceeded the three million forecasted by the Tourism and Sports Ministry at the beginning of the year. Chinese tourists had been the biggest group of international travellers to Thailand since 2012, when they numbered 2.7 million.

Arrivals had increased each quarter but dipped slightly during the fourth quarter of 2013. This was both due to the political turmoil in Thailand and the Chinese government’s efforts to eliminate suspicious tourism deals, notably ‘zero-dollar tours’ which offered Chinese travellers cheap packages to Thailand but pressured them to buy overpriced goods and services once they arrived.

1 November 2013

Unstoppable increase in Chinese tourist numbers

Thanks to the phenomenal success of the Hollywood movie ‘Lost in Thailand’ at the Chinese box office in December 2012, around 4.05 million tourists from the Middle Kingdom visited the Land of Smiles during the first 10 months of 2013.

The number exceeded the three million forecasted by the Tourism and Sports Ministry at the beginning of the year. Chinese tourists had been the biggest group of international travellers to Thailand since 2012, when they numbered 2.7 million.

Arrivals had increased each quarter but dipped slightly during the fourth quarter of 2013. This was both due to the political turmoil in Thailand and the Chinese government’s efforts to eliminate suspicious tourism deals, notably ‘zero-dollar tours’ which offered Chinese travellers cheap packages to Thailand but pressured them to buy overpriced goods and services once they arrived.