BANGKOK (Bloomberg): Thailand saw foreign tourist arrivals jump 21% since the start of the year as visitors largely ignored safety concerns following the high-profile trafficking of a Chinese actor to work in an illegal call center in neighboring Myanmar.
A total of 3.97 million tourists visited the Southeast Asian nation as of Feb. 2 with Chinese visitors totaling 710,687, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports said Tuesday. Arrivals in January surged 22% to 3.7 million from a year earlier, it said.
Tourist arrivals during the Lunar new year holidays last week were 946,958, up 7.5% from a week earlier, the ministry said.
While Chinese tourists led the tally during the week, down 0.5% from a week earlier, arrivals from Malaysia soared 80% to 170,797, the ministry said.
Thailand had stepped up safety measures for tourists after reports of Chinese tour groups canceling trips following the viral abduction and subsequent return the actor near the Thai border with Myanmar earlier last month.
China is the biggest source of tourists for Thailand, with arrivals accounting for 6.7 million out of 35.5 million travelers in 2024
The country generated 195.1 billion baht ($5.8 billion) from the travelers so far this year, the ministry said.
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