Border conflict tarnishes tourists' perceptions of Thailand

Bangkok Post

a day ago

The Thai-Cambodian border conflict has damaged the image of Thai tourism, though the economic impact remains limited, with estimated losses of around 3 billion baht, mostly in the affected border provinces.
Tourism and Sports Minister Sorawong Thienthong said the seven provinces along the border were severely affected by the clashes between the two countries, while other nationwide reported some cancellations.
Hotel room cancellations totalled more than 5,000 nationwide, with estimated losses of around 3 billion baht.
Mr Sorawong said that in the week from July 21-27, Thailand welcomed around 618,000 foreign tourists, an increase of 1% from the week before. The figure for the July 24-27 period when the clashes took place was 372,000, roughly the same as from July 17-20.
'There was no significant surge in cancellations nationwide, except among Cambodian tourists, whose numbers dropped by 53% since the clashes began,' he said.
Four countries — Japan, Australia, the Netherlands and the US — upgraded their travel advisories for Thailand from July 24-28, but none issued actual warnings against visiting the country.
A total of 21 countries issued general advisories, urging travellers to stay informed, exercise caution or avoid unnecessary travel near the border.
Mr Sorawong said the ministry and the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) would continue to monitor tourism sentiment for a while, particularly perceptions on social media.
He said the social listening survey on the TAT's Amazing Thailand online platform found the clashes have already affected the country's image, with negative posts about Thailand increasing from 6.8% to 11.3%, while positive posts decreased from 33.3% to 21.3%.
The country's image declined among foreigners, and foreign investors and tourists may delay their decisions to travel or invest in Thailand due to the increase in negative content and tensions along the border, said Mr Sorawong.
He said short-haul markets require more attention as these visitors are sensitive to security issues, particularly families and meeting or conference groups eager to travel during the summer school holidays.
The markets to watch include China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore, Vietnam and Malaysia, the minister said.
Rungroj Santadvanit, president of the lower northeastern chapter of the Thai Hotels Association, said that while some tourists have returned to travel in the border provinces, they are still avoiding Surin, Ubon Ratchathani and Buri Ram due to safety concerns.
He said the tourism recovery rate across the lower northeastern portion of the country is at only half of the normal volume, with hotels reporting occupancy rates of only 10-15%.