Strengthening baht adds to woes of ailing travel sector

The strengthening baht is beginning to weigh on the fragile tourism sector, which is plagued by recurring security issues, leaving tourists feeling their visits aren't worth the cost.

- NARUMON KASEMSUK

The private sector has called for efforts to restore confidence ahead of the high season.

The Tourism and Sports Ministry reported this week foreign tourism receipts of 938 billion baht from 20 million visitors between Jan 1 and Aug 10, below the 2025 target of 1.77 trillion baht.

Thanet Supornsahasrungsi, president of the Association of Chonburi Tourism Federation, said the baht rallying against the US dollar by 5-6% this year is a negative factor that already affected short-haul markets such as China, which now flocks to Japan due to the weak yen.

He said even though Thailand secured a larger number of long-haul arrivals over the past seven months, if tourists perceive the country as unappealing in terms of value for money, they might pivot to other destinations.