Thai popularity plummets in China

Thailand has dropped from Chinese tourists’ top five preferred destinations, prompting the Association of Thai Travel Agents (Atta) to ask the government to invest 320 million baht to host 1,000 chartered flights from 20 second-tier cities in China for three months, hoping to create word-of-mouth buzz to restore declining confidence.

- MOLPASORN SHOOWONG

According to a China Trading Desk study in the first quarter, which polled 15,082 Chinese travellers on outbound trips, Thailand’s popularity fell to seventh place from fourth in the fourth quarter of 2024.

Atta president Thanapol Cheewarattanaporn said Thailand must urgently address the slowdown in the Chinese market, which he compared to a comatose patient, in stark contrast to other markets that continue to show stable growth.

Since the kidnapping of Chinese actor Wang Xing and the recent earthquake that rocked Myanmar and Thailand, the number of chartered flights has fallen by more than 20%.