Starting from September 25, Thailand will waive visa requirements for Chinese and Kazakhstani travelers until February 29, 2024, in a bid to boost its tourism sector.
Under the leadership of the new government of Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, the program is designed to attract 30 percent more travelers and increase revenue for the country, VisaGuide.World reports.
In this regard, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) also revealed that the visa waiver program is expected to bring in an additional 700,000 new arrivals to the country.
Travel platforms in China have already started to experience a surge in searches and inquiries in response to this news. As a result, searches for tour products on the Trip.com Group’s travel platform increased by 800 percent in just 30 minutes. Meanwhile, searches for flight tickets to Thailand also reported a 70 percent increase compared to last week.
As a local media explains, TAT statistics show that approximately three percent of all tourists from mainland China visited Thailand, making it the most popular foreign destination among Chinese travelers. In the first quarter of this year, Chinese tourists ranked in the top five groups of foreign arrivals, alongside visitors from Malaysia, Russia, South Korea, and India.
Further data reveals that from January to August 2023, about two million Chinese tourists and 100,000 Kazakhs visited Thailand.
Commenting on these figures, Government Spokesman Chai Wacharonke noted that with this new policy, Thailand expects to receive 28 million foreign arrivals this year, earning over 1.4 trillion baht in income from inbound visitors.
He also added that the country’s inbound tourists are expected to reach 40 million in 2024, with 3.1 trillion baht in total tourism revenue. During the period before COVID-19, Chinese tourists accounted for about 28 percent of the nearly 40 million foreign tourists in Thailand.
Previously, the Thai authorities also eased visa rules for visitors from India. This decision was in line with the aspirations of the new Prime Minister, Srettha Thavis, who aims to raise Thailand’s tourism industry to a value of around 100 billion dollars in the coming year.
Prime Minister Thavisin said that until now, tourists from India were required to pay 2,000 baht for a 15-day visa upon their arrival to Thailand.
Moreover, he has proposed implementing 15-day or 30-day restrictions on stays for travelers from different countries. These measures are part of a wider strategy to promote tourism and boost Thailand’s economy.