After Covid, Thailand struggles to attract Chinese tourists

Mark O'Neill December 18, 2023 11:45

In 2019, 11 million Chinese visited Thailand, the largest group in the country’s most important industry. But this year the number will only reach 3.5 million – it has set off alarm bells within the government.

To turn the tide, in September it announced a five-month visa-free period for visitors from China – as well as India, Russia, India, Taiwan and Kazakhstan – more flights and simpler arrival procedures at airport. In addition, night events can go on until 0400.

The official target for visitors from Hong Kong this year is 700,000, down from one million in 2019. In the first four months, the number was 220,000.

“We miss our friends from China,” said Sorayuth Somluck, a taxi driver in Bangkok. “We welcome them. Thailand relies on the tourist industry. Unfortunately, bad people have spread misleading information on social media which has affected people in China and persuaded them not to come.”

For example, Wang Ziyu, 28, walked around the Soi Nana district of Bangkok wearing very little at 2330 on December 5 and doing a livestream of herself. She said the district was unsafe for women and 99 per cent of its people were bad. She was also selling goods online.

Police arrested her and accused her of making inaccurate statements about Thailand and working illegally – those on tourist visas may not work.
Longer reports on China’s social media have described cyber-crime and people smuggling, most of it based in Myanmar and Cambodia but connecting them to Thailand.

On September 3, in the Siam Paragon shopping mall, one of the best known in Bangkok, a Chinese and a Myanmar national were killed by a 14-year-old Thai teenager with mental issues. He used a modified handgun. At the time, the mall was packed with Chinese tourists who made social media posts of the event.

An analysis in the October issue of Chinese-language Southern Window gave the following reasons for this year’s drop in visitors – the difficulties of obtaining a visa, more expensive air tickets and fewer flights after Covid, especially from second-tier cities, the slowdown in China’s economy and lower consumer spending that makes people take holidays at home, not overseas.

Fears over security were another reason, based in part on inaccurate news on the Internet. It said that the Thai government had set up for the first time an office to manage information on the Net.

Sisdivachr Cheewarattanaporn, president of the Association of Thai Travel Agents, said that the situation remained challenging as Thailand was competing with domestic tourism in China and other countries that had mutual visa agreements with China. “In China, some people still have high spending power in key and secondary cities, but young adults have been severely affected by unemployment. The challenge is how to attract those who can still afford to pay,” he said.

One government initiative, in November, was to invite Chinese police to operate in Thai cities popular with China visitors. But this was quickly dropped after strong domestic and foreign protests. A Western diplomat in Bangkok said that this plan had been reported before the government had fully considered it. “Thais felt offended that their own police could not control law and order here, as well as fears that such police would monitor Chinese citizens and, in some cases, might kidnap them,” he said. “The motive was to get help in controlling Chinese criminal gangs operating here, in fraud and people-smuggling.”

Before Covid, China was the biggest source of tourists, averaging almost one million a month, and accounting for 25 per cent of total arrivals. They spent an average of 20,000 baht (HK$4,400). In 2019, foreign tourists contributed 11.5 per cent of Thailand’s GDP. The government’s target for Chinese visitors next year is 8.2 million.

In 2024, it plans to hold 3,000 events, including sports, aimed at foreign visitors, and night activities, with the aim of persuading tourists to stay longer and spend more.

Tourists are not the only Chinese coming here. With a visa regime favourable to Chinese, Thailand is also attracting retirees and middle aged professionals who want a different lifestyle to that at home.

“In China, work is competitive and high-pressure and the hours are long,” said Wang Li, a professor in his 40s. “What I like about Thailand is the courtesy and laid-back attitude. People are more relaxed about life. Many young and educated Chinese are not happy at the direction their country is taking.”

He said that he was looking for a job in one of Thailand’s many international schools. “Since many of their students are Chinese, I think that they will want to hire Chinese like me,” he said.

Chinese demand is also an important part of the Thai property market. In the first half of 2023, apartments bought by foreigners accounted for almost 15 per cent of the total volume and a quarter of total value, up 11 per cent and 20.5 per cent respectively from a year earlier. Buyers from Hong Kong and mainland China purchased 3,488 units, out of the 7,388 bought by foreigners.

Some buy for investment and some for their own use.

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Mark O'Neill

A Hong Kong-based writer, teacher and speaker.