BANGKOK – The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has predicted that growth in the tourism sector during this Songkran Festival will be hindered by several negative factors.
Giving his projection of the tourism performance during the Songkran holiday from April 13-17, TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn voiced belief that around 2.14 million domestic trips will be made by Thai travelers, an increase of 2 percent year-on-year, while the total revenue to be generated will likely reach 6.98 billion baht.
However, Mr Yuthasak pointed out that the overall tourism atmosphere this year will not be as lively as last year due mainly to people’s worries over the delayed recovery of the world economy, the drought crisis and the smoke haze problem in some areas.
As for foreign tourist arrivals, Mr Yuthasak estimated that nearly 500,000 incoming travelers will be seen during Songkran, increasing 26 percent from last year and generating over 8 billion baht for the country. There will be around 94 chartered flights coming to Thailand, mostly from China, during the holiday period; however, the number is lower than that of last year.
