Tourism Council Expects Over 12 Million Tourists in Thailand for 2022

The Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT) projected Thailand to reach 12 to 16 million foreign visits this year, according to TCT President Chamnan Srisawat in a report from The Nation Thailand on Aug. 17.

The figures are only 30% to 40% (40 million) of the total visitors prior to the emergence of COVID-19 pandemic in 2019. Srisawat expressed his optimism that the number of international tourists will exceed the government's prediction of 10 million, reaching at least 12 million for this year. The estimated numbers are based on comparisons between the first half of the year, which reached two million international arrivals, and July with one million visitors.

Srisawat expects that the number of tourists will surpass the one million-mark in August and September, and will exceed two million from October to December for each month.

Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Governor Yuthasak Supasorn, on the other hand, believes that the number of tourists will reach 4.5 million by the end of the month as Thailand’s daily average arrivals range from 35,000 to 40,000. For domestic travel, TAT logged 60 million trips in the first six months of 2022.

The tourism sector is expecting a THB1.03 billion budget from the government, which will serve as a “booster shot” for the survival and recovery of the industry.

TAT added it is considerably more concerned about rising fuel prices than the increasing cost of interest rates, surmising that tourists would still travel, albeit with less expenses, despite the latter.