Tourists flood Phi Phi on Jan 1 as Thailand ups 2023 forecast to 25m visitors
Phi Phi Islands National Park in Krabi province was flooded by over 5,000 tourists per day on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, said a park official on Sunday.
Authorities deployed extra staff to oversee parking and increased the number of ticket booths to prevent crowding, as visitors poured in all day to witness the crystal-clear waters and white-sand islands of the 388-square-kilometre marine sanctuary, officially known as Hat Nappharat Thara-Mu Ko National Park.
Large crowds of tourists were seen at Railay Beach, Thale Waek (Separated Sea), Ko Poda and Pi Leh Bay.
Krabi logged a total of 62,927 tourists – 39,331 foreigners and 23,596 Thais – from December 30 to January 2, according to the local Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) office. The TAT estimated tourism revenue for Krabi during the New Year holidays was 908.73 million baht.
The first 11 months of the year (January to November) saw over 1.52 million tourists visit Krabi, generating total revenue of 14.3 billion baht. Most of them were Thais (1.27 million).
The TAT expects Krabi’s tourism revenue for the whole year to exceed the target of 1.5 billion baht.
Thailand received around 11 million foreign tourists in 2022. The TAT last week revised its forecast for 2023 to 25 million visitors after news that China will reopen on January 8.
