More than 12 million foreign arrivals expected before end of year
Tourists from East Asia, South Asia and Europe expected to boost visitor numbers and revenue, TAT says
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) estimates that 12.22 million foreign tourists will visit Thailand in the last four months of 2024, pushing the total for the year to nearly 36 million, surpassing the target of at least 35 million. Revenue from international markets is expected to reach 1.8 trillion baht.
TAT governor Thapanee Kiatphaibool says the foreign tourism market in the last four months of 2024 is showing signs of improvement compared to the same period last year. It is expected that 12,226,500 foreign tourists will visit, a 20% increase and generating 652.826 billion baht in revenue, 29% more than the same period in 2023. This figure is close to the target set for the last four months of 2024, achieving 97% of the revenue target of 673.738 billion baht.
The projected foreign tourists for the last four months are expected to be primarily from key markets in East Asia, followed by Europe and South Asia. The top 10 countries sending tourists to Thailand are China (2.03 million), Malaysia (1.83 million), India (707,000), South Korea (740,000), Russia (698,000), Laos (434,000), Singapore (428,000), Taiwan (377,000), Japan (346,000), and the United States (341,000).
“The outlook for 2024 anticipates 35.99 million foreign tourists visiting Thailand, an increase of 28%, in line with the TAT’s target of at least 35 million. Tourism revenue is expected to be around 1.818 trillion baht, a 32% increase from the previous year,” she said.
Positive factors for the tourism sector include policies that promote travel through Thailand’s ease of travelling measures, such as relaxing tourist visa requirements, extending the length of stay, and waiving the TM.6 form at land border checkpoints nationwide.
Other factors include seat capacity on international routes, totalling 46 million seats, representing an 82% recovery of international seat capacity compared to 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic.
This aligns with the growing demand for travel, including during key festivals and events such as China’s National Day (October 1), Christmas and New Year celebrations, and travel inspired by influencers and famous artists from Thailand and abroad, through content creation, filming locations for series, concerts, or fan meetings with Thai and international artists.
Challenges expected to impact Thai tourism include aggressive market promotion by competitors in the Asia-Pacific region, such as Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam, which are offering promotions to attract the same tourist groups as Thailand, as well as economic uncertainty and the risk of a slowdown in major economies.
Prolonged international conflicts, including the Israel-Palestine war, Iran-Israel tensions, and the Russia-Ukraine war, could drive up airfares.
