BANGKOK, November 24. /TASS/: Thailand expects up to 1.6 mln tourists from Russia next year, whereas by the end of this year a total of 1.4 mln Russians are expected to visit the kingdom, Deputy Governor for International Marketing of Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Americas Markets at the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Siripakorn Cheawsamoot who is responsible for issues of European countries’ tourism markets, said in an interview with TASS.
According to the recent statistics, the number of Russian tourists who visited Thailand from January 1 until November 19, 2023 exceeded 1.2 mln people. "We are expecting 1.3-1.4 million Russian tourists up to the end of this year. We are expecting an increase in the number of Russian tourists visiting Thailand next year up to 1.5-1.6 million persons. Of course, it depends on the situation in the world and economic stability in the Russian Federation," he said.
Russian citizens have been allowed to stay in Thailand without visa for 90 days since November 1. The decision taken by the country’s government unilaterally on October 16, will be in force until April 30, 2024. The move is aimed at boosting the revenues of the kingdom’s travel industry and driving its economic growth. "During pre and after Covid period we received a lot of messages from Russian travel companies and individual tourists with request for extension of visa-free stay in Thailand. These requests were connected with the rising number of long stay tourists <…>. That’s why the Thai government made a decision to extend the visa-free period for Russian tourists up to 90 days. We hope that this measure will increase expenditures of Russian tourists in Thailand and give them more possibility to visit more tourist destinations and attractions of our country. We are sure that this governmental decision will give tourists more opportunities to join a lot of activities in Thailand, such as Health and Wellness tourism products, visits of orchid and fruits farms, join Muay Thai boxings camps," the official explained.
In 2019, Russia was the seventh-biggest tourist market for Thailand (1.5 mln). That same year, a record 40 mln foreign tourists visited the country, with the tourism sector accounting for 12% of GDP.
