TAT to organise October festival to draw Chinese tourists to Thailand

October 1-8 is considered China’s ‘National Day Golden Week’, a time when millions of Chinese travel to their hometowns as well as internationally.

Thapanee said the Nihao Festival will feature events in Bangkok’s Chinatown or Yaowarat to celebrate Chinese National Day. The TAT has tasked its branch offices in provinces that are popular among Chinese tourists, such as Chiang Mai and Phuket, to submit plans for events to be organised during October to welcome Chinese arrivals and create a positive impression.

Thapanee added that the TAT would urge tour agencies to offer promotions on tour packages, discounts on airfares, as well as special gifts for Chinese tourists during October, which will help boost the number of foreign arrivals.

The TAT also reported that from January 1 to April 14, a total of 2.03 million Chinese nationals entered Thailand, topping the chart of foreign arrivals.

The agency has set a target of welcoming 8 million Chinese tourists this year, who will help generate income of around 350 billion baht. The TAT expects to welcome at least 35 million foreign arrivals this year, generating 2.3 trillion baht in tourism revenue.

Thapanee said the TAT planned to use events and festivals to attract foreign arrivals during the second half of the year to achieve this target, including the Summer Sonic Bangkok music festival in August and the International Food Festival in November.

The TAT governor also said that the organisation of Maha Songkran World Water Festival 2024 from April 11-15 at Bangkok’s Sanam Luang was a massive success with higher-than-expected participation from Thai and foreign tourists. The TAT estimates that from April 1-21, some 20 million tourists will be travelling across Thailand, about 2 million of them foreign visitors.

The Songkran Festival alone would generate tourism income of around 150 billion baht, she said.