Thailand recorded 2.14 million foreign arrivals in January, slightly lower than the previous month by around a hundred thousand, mainly due to a decline in Indian travellers, data from the tourism ministry showed.
Despite the decline, Thai tourism saw a significant rebound from the period ravaged by Covid-19 pandemic as the number of Chinese tourist arrivals, which was once a main contributor to the sector, started to pick up after the termination of zero-Covid policy in China.
Thailand welcomed 2.14 million tourists in January, a slight drop from 2.24 million in December 2022. In the meantime, Chinese tourists visited Thailand almost doubled in January, recording 91,841 people, up from 54,146 in December when strict Covid measures were still in place.
Tourism is one of the main drivers of Thailand’s economic growth, accounting for 12% of its annual gross domestic product in the pre-pandemic era.
The kingdom recorded a little over 11 million of foreign arrivals last year, a positive sign for the sector after witnessing zero tourists during the peak of Covid. Still, the figure was shorter than its pre-pandemic number of nearly 40 million.
