Japan top destination as Thais travel overseas during New Year break
A record number of Thai tourists are expected to travel overseas during the New Year holidays (December 21-31), with Japan being their favourite destination.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) puts this surge in international travel on the lifting of Covid-related restrictions for the first time in three years. Japan is also a favourite destination for Thais because it has lifted visa requirements and there are more direct flights to the country.
The number of Thais travelling overseas has jumped from approximately 28,000 people per day from October 1-November 31 to 33,400 daily since December 21, TAT governor Yutthasak Supasorn said, citing statistics from the Immigration Bureau.
“According to Booking .com, Japan is most popular among Thais with the most hotel bookings, followed by bookings in South Korea, Singapore and Laos,” Yutthasak said, adding that this exodus may affect domestic tourism.
TAT has also projected that few people will travel locally during the holiday season due to high household debt, fluctuating oil prices and an unstable economy.
Some 3.14 million people are expected to travel during the New Year break, generating 11.20 billion baht in revenue, TAT said.
According to the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), the number of Thai travellers entering Japan has risen by more than four-fold from 7,622 in September to 52,100 people in November, with total Thai arrivals rising to 115,000.
Santisuk Klongchaiya, Air Asia CEO, said at least 80% of the passengers on Bangkok-Fukuoka flights since October 12 have been Thai nationals.
The price of flights from Thailand to Japan is now soaring as the tourism sector has bounced back, though it is still lower than in the pre-Covid era, Santisuk said.
Natcha Thonghor, operations manager of the Season Holiday Booking Centre travel agent, said Thais prefer travelling to Japan rather than Europe because they no longer need a visa.
Kwanchaya Kritraksa, operations manager for Jubilee Travel, believes Japan will be a top destination for Thai travellers until March or April, during the Songkran break.
“Social media has had a huge impact as people have been getting lured by travel content provided by YouTubers and influencers,” she said.
