Chinese tourists are returning – but not to Thailand

Written by Jonathan Head

Bangkok

For Chinese tourists Bangkok, 76 Garage, an open-air restaurant on the northern outskirts of the Thai capital, has long been near the top of the list of places to visit.

They visit the staff there rather than the foods.

There is a swimming pool in the middle of the diner. The chefs, all fit young men, strip off their shorts and wade into the lake, offering to take the diners in exchange for a photo opportunity and tip. This is when the evening reaches its zenith.

When 76 Door was so well-known, reservations had to be made a month in advance. These time, half of the chairs are bare.

The Chinese are not among Thailand’s most popular tourists, which is a problem.

Thailand had higher expectations when China’s zero-Covid restrictions were finally lifted in January, allowing its residents to go abroad. It anticipated a firm boost that may aid in the recovery of much of the lost ground caused by the Covid crisis for its tourism industry.

By the end of the year, the government estimated that up to five million Taiwanese tourists would have arrived. However, the positive outlook is overly cheerful.

In the first nine weeks of 2023, significantly fewer than 2.5 million Chinese tourists visited Thailand. This is still a significant improvement over the nearly 11 million visitors who arrived in 2019, when there were only 270, 000.

“Our tourism ministry said visitor numbers would recover quickly after the pandemic,” said Anucha Liangruangreongkit, a Chinese-speaking tour guide at the Grand Palace Bangkok who has been working there for 42 years.

However, they’re dreaming. I’m a manual, so I ought to know. It would be packed if it were normal, like in the history, correct? Look at it right then. Are there many individuals present? No.

A lack of low-cost planes after Covid and a sluggish Taiwanese market are both contributing to the issue.

The news of a five-month card exemption by the new Thai government was intended to draw in more visitors. A Foreign mother of two children was killed in a shooting at Bangkok’s most well-known shopping center on October 3, which added to Thailand and other South East Asian nations’ photo issues.

They are now viewed as dangerous by a large portion of Chinese citizens.

A fresh movie called No More Bets debuted in China in August and quickly made tens of millions of dollars. It portrayed a Taiwanese model and an unknown South East Asian nation’s computer programmer being lured by the promise of high-paying jobs into swindling centers and being made to work in conditions resembling slaves.

No More Bets rode on the back of worrying reports over the previous two to three years about thousands of people — many of them Chinese — being held captive in such conglomerates in Cambodia and along Thailand’s lawless borders with Myanmar and Laos. Horrifying records of abuse and misuse by those who have escaped have also appeared in Chinese social media.

Abby, a Chinese scholar in Thailand who enjoys praising locations like 76 Garage on social media, has observed how remarks on her TikTok pull have changed the public’s perception of Thailand.

She claims that” The feedback on my supply used to be very beneficial.” ” Many people expressed a strong desire to visit Thailand after watching my videos ,”

However, she claims that now people are even more concerned that the naked waiters in the pool may be a ploy to persuade unwary diners to donate their kidneys.” People would ask me ,” she asks,” Are you running an” kid harvesting” scam?” Are citizens from Thailand being sent to Myanmar by you?

Foreign tourists in Thailand used to have a bad reputation. They were perceived as pushy and rude and frequently traveled in sizable, loud organizations. There were concerns about so-called” zero dollars tourism ,” where they came on all-inclusive deals with the majority of the money going to users ago in China, and there was open discussion about the dangers of relying too heavily on the Chinese.

The Thai tourism industry has been concentrating its efforts on other areas like Russia and India as security issues are currently keeping many of them away.

However, a nation as dependent on tourism as Thailand never afford to ignore the largest market in the world. Chinese tourists spend an average of$ 180(£ 148 ) per day, making them one of Thailand’s biggest spenders.

Tirawan Taechaubol, whose family owns a sizable ring of opulent hotels and serviced apartments as part of their Kaseko Group, said,” Basically, travelers from China to Thailand straight today are at the higher end of the market.”

They spend a lot of money on healthy meals and activities, and we’ve noticed that they’re more receptive to new experiences. We have Chinese clients who purchase the entire island for birthday or ceremonies, even just for marriage ideas, just like at Cape Fahn, our location on a private area with 24 villas.

She claimed that in contrast to the noisy, bargain-seeking Foreign crowds of famous folklore, Thai tourism is beginning to attract a different type of visitor.

Chinese real estate agent Owen is waiting to meet Lincoln and Wonson, two new users who arrived from Shanghai the previous night for their first-ever trip to Thailand, at the entrance to a newly constructed, 55-story apartment building in the heart of Bangkok.

They claim that as a gay couple, they want to take in Thailand’s wide range of LGBTQ pleasure. However, they serve a more important function. They are looking for a prospective home because they want to start families, which is much more difficult for gay people in China.

According to Owen, Thailand is the top travel destination for Chinese LGBTQ people, and two-thirds of his clients are now looking to settle here.

We saw a lot of transgender people, gays, and gay people around, Lincoln remarked. So yes, I believe that this is a really free and open state. We felt somewhat freed when we arrived.

” Wonson continued,” I think the most important thing is the atmosphere here.

” The independence, because you are aware that it is difficult for us to live in China while dealing with social pressure from family and standard society. Perhaps these we can live a life similar to the one in our mind that can not only meet our own needs but also those of our children. And from this point on, we may reassure our kids that we are perfectly ordinary, just like everyone else.

According to Gary Bowerman, whose business Check – in Asia monitors travel trends in the area, for visitors will account for an increasing percentage of Foreign travelers.

” When you have these rumors of schemes and robberies, it will have an impact on people’s opinions ,” he continued.” Three times stuck in a very safe country during the pandemic has probably changed their perceptions of safety and safety.” However, one thing I did suggest about the younger Chinese travelers is that they are open to trying new things.

And he claims that” that aspect of adventure and, let’s say, reasonable risk” is what draws people to Thailand the most.