The tourism industry expanded by 12% in the 3rd quarter as Thailand remains a hotspot for Chinese tourists.
Minister for Tourism and Sports Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul announced the country’s tourism revenue in the 3rd quarter of 2016 totaled 620 billion baht, representing a 12.22 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
Out of total tourism income, 410.7 billion baht came from foreign visitors. The number accounted for an increase of 14.77% year on year.
During the period, 2.42 million Chinese tourists visited Thailand, generating 123.6 billion baht.
In the meantime, the number of domestic tourists grew 5.55% as they generated 216.2 billion baht in total.
The minister remains optimistic about the rest of 2016, saying tourism growth in the 4th quarter during which Thailand is expected to see nearly 610,000 tourists will drive this year’s tourism revenue to 2.4 trillion baht.
