Entrepreneurs on Phuket Island are anticipating the long-awaited return of Chinese tourists with bated breath, hoping that China’s openness and removal of its severe economic controls will help their faltering companies.
In the year preceding the epidemic, about a third of Thailand’s visitors were Chinese tourists, who used to account for a quarter of a trillion dollars in yearly worldwide travel spending.
Watersports enterprises that provide paragliding, water skiing, and other activities incurred significant losses during the epidemic, when rigorous entrance requirements and lengthy required quarantine periods kept visitors at bay.
With pent-up demand and the elimination of most travel restrictions, Asia’s holiday destinations are welcome the return of Chinese visitors who are celebrating the Lunar New Year.
The administration anticipates at least five million Chinese tourists this year, with 300,000 arriving in the first quarter.
Phuket is projected to benefit greatly from a Chinese migration, since the island generally attracts one-quarter of Thailand’s yearly tourists.
Many Phuket companies were damaged by the outbreak since the island’s economy is nearly completely based on tourism.
