Thailand draws 4.6 million tourists in first eight months before high season; Malaysia tops with over 640,000 visitors

Artwork from The Nation Thailand/ANN

More than 4.6 million tourists visited Thailand in the first eight months of the year, with the largest groups coming from neighbouring countries, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).

However, the number is still less than half of the 10 million arrivals targeted by TAT this year, with only four months left.

The TAT has placed its hope on a tourist surge in the last three months of the year, Thailand’s high season, aiming to draw at least 1 million visitors per month.

TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn said on Friday that Thailand saw 4,635,418 international arrivals between January 1 and August 31.

The top contributor of tourists over the first eight months was Thailand’s southern neighbour Malaysia, with 647,648 arrivals.

Second is India, with 449,236 arrivals, followed by Laos (276,924), Singapore (242,220), and Cambodia (228,846).

The United Kingdom is the sixth on the list, with 211,016 tourists, followed by Vietnam (205,687), the United States (191,404), South Korea (187,792), and Germany (159,639), according to the TAT.

Most visitors arrived through the country’s three major airports — Suvarnabhumi (2,596,319 arrivals), Phuket (719,886), and Bangkok’s Don Mueang (313,520).

The list of popular land entry points is topped by seven immigration checkpoints in the South, Northeast and East.

They are Sadao, with 223,776 tourists, followed by Nong Khai (129,699), Sa Kaeo (101,031), Sungai Kolok (75,238), Padang Besar (73,055), Betong (70,182), and Mukdahan (51,803). - 

*Source: The Nation Thailand/ANN