Few Thais plan to travel locally in Q3, TCT survey finds
Rising cost of living, high household debts cited as reason for staying home, Tourism Council of Thailand says
A recent survey shows that only 57% of Thais plan to travel domestically in the 3rd quarter of this year, down from 64% in the 2nd quarter and 74% in the 1st quarter.
The Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT) survey covered 450 Thai nationals with an income of over 10,000 baht monthly. It found that they spent an average of 2,683 baht per person per domestic trip in the 2nd quarter, significantly lower than the 6,856 baht per person per trip spent in the 1st quarter.
Average hotel overnight stays per person per quarter rose to 4.79 nights in the 2nd quarter, compared to 3.38 nights in the 1st quarter. Respondents said they expected to spend an average of 4.55 nights in the 3rd quarter, the survey showed.
For overseas travel, 16% said they planned to fly out of the country in the 3rd quarter, roughly the same as in the 2nd quarter, but far lower than the 23% in the 1st quarter.
As for why they are not travelling, 80% said they were burdened by a higher cost of living and debts, while 58% said the cost of travelling has increased compared to before the pandemic.
TCT president Chamnan Srisawat said on Wednesday that the survey results are in line with the confidence index of tourism businesses in the 2nd quarter, which fell to 79 from 81 in the first quarter, but is still better than 72 during the same period of the previous year.
He said the main reason behind the falling index is that the 2nd quarter coincides with low tourism season, despite the grand Songkran Festival in April. Plus, he said, most of the government’s economic stimulus campaigns have yet to make a significant impact during the 2nd quarter.
TCT expects the confidence index to drop further in the 3rd quarter, possibly to 75, as it is still within the low season and there are not many festivals during this period to attract visitors.
“The Thai economy is also suffering from contracting purchasing power and unemployment caused by the closure of factories. This will further push up household debts and NPLs, and affect the domestic tourism industry,” Chamnan said.
