Thailand Top Choice for Chinese New Year
The Chinese New Year festival saw a spike in the number of tourist arrivals to Thailand, according to reports by The Bangkok Post and asia.nikkei.com. Leading up to the festival, visiting numbers of Chinese were expected to top previous record levels. A total of 6.5 million Chinese people were predicted to head overseas for the long weekend over the festival.
Thanks to the lure of nature, culture and shopping, Thailand was one of the most popular destinations this year. In fact, the kingdom has always been a popular spot for the lunar New Year celebrations. Bangkok’s Chinatown in particular is the site of various processions and parades, and many visitors flock to the area each year to enjoy the spectacular New Year decorations.
Chinese visitors form the largest segment of overseas travellers in Thailand’s tourism sector.
According to The Bangkok Post, Thailand was set to welcome more than 300,000 visitors from China over the course of the whole celebration, marking a 20 percent increase year-on-year. According to asia.nikkei.com, one travel agent estimated that the festival would generate THB20 billion (US$634 million) in revenue.
Thailand’s Immigration Bureau increased staff levels in order to cope with the extra demand at airport immigration desks. Regular and chartered airlines also increased the frequency of flights between Thailand to Mainland China to 20,677 during the key seven-day period from February 15th – 21st.
Airports of Thailand Plc, as well as pier operators and shopping malls also responded to the prediction of high visitors numbers by increasing services and security levels. Many major attractions also decided to increase staff levels, employing Chinese-speaking staff to communicate with visitors.
Chinese New Year is one of Thailand’s peak tourism periods, according to Suparek Soorangura, president of the Thai Travel Agents Association (TTAA). “Key national tourism organisations, airlines and travel operators are promoting Thailand in their sales kits throughout the year,” he said. “This is expected to boost two-way travel between Thailand and popular destinations, including China, Japan and Korea.
Weerasak Kowsurat, minister for tourism and sports, and Tang Zhijin, the Chinese deputy minister of culture, held a joint celebration for Chinese New Year on 15th February. Highlights of the event included Chinese music and dance, martial arts and acrobatic performances. Major Thai retailer, Central Group, also launched an event to celebrate the holiday, welcoming guests with traditional Chinese lion and dragon dances.