Foreign Tourist Arrivals Slow to 439,000 Per Week
Foreign tourist arrivals in Thailand dropped 7.15% to 439,069 for the week of September 6-12, as regional travelers from Malaysia, Japan, and South Korea postponed trips ahead of major holidays.
Thailand's Ministry of Tourism and Sports reported that foreign tourist arrivals reached 439,069 for the week of September 6-12, averaging 62,724 visitors per day and representing a 7.15% decrease from the previous week. Near-market tourism, which accounted for 299,114 arrivals, fell 9.64% as travelers from neighboring countries postponed trips ahead of upcoming holidays including Malaysia Day (September 16), Japan's Silver Week (September 19-23), South Korea's Chuseok festival (September 24-26), and China's National Day Golden Week (October 1-7). Long-haul markets brought 139,955 visitors, down just 1.34%, following normal seasonal trends ahead of peak tourism season in October.
The top five source countries were China with 65,380 arrivals (down 19.42%), Malaysia with 53,638 (down 27.96%), India with 39,857 (up 1.88%), Japan with 19,628 (up 4.91%), and Russia with 18,154 (up 4.03%). For the current week (September 13-19), arrivals are expected to rise slightly, with Malaysian visitors supported by mid-week holiday travel.
Year-to-date figures through September 12 show cumulative foreign tourist arrivals of 21.72 million, down 3.38% compared to the same period last year, generating 1.061 trillion baht in tourism revenue (down 1.85% year-on-year). Domestic tourism posted stronger results with 142.04 million visits, up 1.97%, and 824.587 billion baht in spending, up 1.92% year-on-year.
