Bangkok – The Thai government targets 400 billion baht (11 billion USD) in tourism revenue in the second half of 2022, as COVID-19 restrictions ease in the country.

Illustrative image (Photo: businesstimes.com.)

The Southeast Asian nation has seen a rebound in tourism numbers in the first eight months, registering more than 4 million foreign tourists.

The foreign arrivals, mainly from Malaysia, India and Singapore, have so far generated revenues of 176 billion baht (4.93 billion USD).

According to the Thai government’s spokeswoman Rachada Dhnadirek, the country is aiming for 10 million visitors this year.

Citing statistics from the Ministry of Commerce, Rachada said the return of international tourists have resulted in the registration of 549 new tourism businesses in the first seven months of the year, up 169% year-on-year.

The Thai government has recently announced that it will extend one of its most popular tourist visas from 15 days to 30 days starting in October, to further boost the sector.

Last year, foreign arrivals plummeted to just 428,000 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, compared with a record of nearly 40 million arrivals in 2019 when tourism made up 12% of the country’s GDP.