More than a million Malaysian tourists have made holidays in Thailand so far this year. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) now hopes to bank on the tourism high season and raise this figure to 1.8 million by year’s end.
TAT deputy governor Tanes Petsuwan indicated Malaysia is a high-potential market due to tourists being able to enter Thailand by land as well as by air. He said most Malaysian tourists drive into Thailand through various border points. Unlike in the past, Malaysian tourists no longer remain solely in Hat Yai City during their holiday in Thailand. Instead, they now visit other provinces such as Krabi, Phatthalung, Phuket, Satun, Chiang Mai, and Chiang Rai. 1,041,293 Malaysian tourists visited Thailand from January 1 to October 7 this year. These visitors are expected to have contributed about 26.575 billion baht of tourism income to Thailand.
Mr. Tanes, who is in charge of International Marketing in Asia and South Pacific, said the number of Malaysian tourists will increase as Thailand has entered the high season. Additionally, the tourism high season coincides with the school break in Malaysia, as well as the Diwali, Christmas, and New Year’s festivals. Mr. Tanes said the TAT will continually hold tourism promotion activities with an aim of attracting 1.8 million Malaysian tourists to Thailand this year.
The TAT deputy governor said cooperation between his agency and partners in Malaysia has contributed to the revival of the tourism industry. This is illustrated by the resumption of international flights between Malaysia and Thailand, of which there are now 23 per day. (NNT)
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