Why did the price of travel to Thailand increase so much overnight?

Chinese tourists’ enthusiasm for outbound travel continues to grow. Faced with the continued increase in prices for Thailand tours, I may not go there again.

Recent data provided by Hanglv Zongheng shows that since the outbound group tour pilot was restarted on February 6, the number of inbound and outbound civil aviation passengers of domestic airlines has exceeded 276,000, an increase of nearly 4.4 times compared with the same period last year. Shanghai, Guangzhou, Beijing, Xiamen and Chengdu are the top five cities with the largest number of outbound tourists.

For the first time in a long time, long queues have begun to form in the entry-exit certificate halls in various places. Data shows that from January 9 to February 8, the first month after the resumption of certificate applications, the Shanghai Exit-Entry Administration Department accepted 100% of Chinese citizens’ entry and exit applications. More than 380,000 entry documents were issued, a record high.

From the perspective of outbound travel routes, Southeast Asian countries, led by Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, etc., are still the most popular overseas destinations for Chinese tourists. Airport officials in Thailand recently stated that approximately 161,000 Chinese tourists have visited Thailand since January 8, and it is estimated that this number is expected to exceed 1 million by August this year.

However, after three years of absence, when a large number of Chinese people poured into Southeast Asia again, they all lamented that "Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand are not so fun anymore" and "Thailand is no longer the Thailand it was three years ago."

"I spent three times as much money on my trip to Thailand this year, and I may go less often in the future." Chinese tourist Wang Xin told Times Finance.

The cost of a trip to Thailand is three times more than three years ago

Due to the increase in flight supply, air ticket prices in Southeast Asia have fallen slightly, but they are still at a high level compared with before 2020. However, this still cannot stop Chinese tourists from flocking to Southeast Asia.

Three years later, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand are no longer as cost-effective as I thought. "As soon as I landed in Thailand, I spent almost 1,000 yuan. Are things in Thailand so expensive?" Chinese tourist Li Meng said that after landing at the Thai airport, she spent 2,200 baht on visa fees, 700 baht on phone cards, 500 baht on taxis, and pineapples. Fried rice and Tom Yum Goong cost 600 baht, totaling ***4,000 baht (1 baht is approximately equal to 0.196 RMB, and the total is equivalent to approximately 800 RMB). Li Meng laughed at herself, "It has been three years since the epidemic, but my income has not kept up with the price increase in Thailand!"

Li Meng told Times Finance that the cost of taking a taxi in Thailand has increased a lot. Regardless of whether it is a motorcycle, tuk-tuk or taxi, the starting price is 200 baht (about 40 yuan). After asking the locals, Li Meng switched to taxi-hailing apps for travel. "It took a long time to go from the airport to the hotel on the first day after landing." 500 baht, but the return trip using taxi-hailing software only cost less than 200 baht. "

However, Li Meng also said that the mainstream taxi-hailing software in Thailand is not convenient to use, and the estimated cost is less than 100 baht. There are often no drivers willing to pick up the taxis, and there are also very few taxis that accept metered fares.

As the "bulk" in tourism consumption, Thailand's accommodation costs have also increased significantly. Wang Xin, who traveled to Thailand almost every Spring Festival season before the epidemic, told Times Finance that in the past, staying at the Hilton Hotel in Chiang Mai cost 400 to 500 yuan a night, but this year the price has risen to 1,500 yuan. "Consumption in all aspects has indeed increased." "

Wang Xin gave an example. In the past, freshly squeezed juice on the roadside only cost 10-20 baht (about 2-4 yuan). This year, it costs 60 baht (about 12 yuan), which is the same as in China. Second-tier cities are almost the same. "The restaurants I used to frequent have increased their prices to some extent, and some have closed. The owner of a small restaurant I frequented said that Chinese people have not come to travel in the past few years, and colleagues in the industry cannot support it."

The Wang Xin family, who likes diving and sea fishing, also discovered that the price of going overseas in Thailand has doubled. Wang Xin said that in the past, they chartered a boat to go out to sea, and the price was about 30,000 baht (about 6,000 yuan). "This year it was too expensive. The boss of the boat quoted 100,000 baht (about 20,000 yuan). In the end, we had to choose to go with the sea fishing group." Going overseas. "

"It cost three times more to go to Thailand this year than before," Wang Xin lamented. She used to travel to Thailand because of its close location and high cost performance. "Now it's much more expensive. If Thailand is not available. With the price advantage, I will reduce the number of visits to Thailand, or move to other places. "

In 2019, 11 million Chinese tourists poured into Thailand, becoming the largest source of tourists in the Thai tourism market. According to recent estimates from the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Thailand will receive 30 million international tourists in 2023, of which 7 to 8 million will be Chinese tourists.

Not only Thailand, but also Singapore, Malaysia, Maldives and other countries that have been popular with Chinese tourists in the past have seen an increase in tourism consumption.

Overseas Chinese-speaking tour guides have changed careers, and tourism product quotations have increased.

"The price of tourism is more expensive now than three years ago. This is an indisputable fact." Many people in the tourism industry have expressed doubts about the products. The price increase is not surprising.

Data from Tongcheng Research Institute shows that the current overall average price of group tour products has risen significantly compared with before the epidemic, with an increase of about 30%.

Yang Yang, general manager of Beijing Spring and Autumn Tourism, pointed out to Times Finance that the main factor affecting outbound travel prices is still flight supply. Although international routes have recovered to about 15% of the pre-epidemic levels since mid-February, the There is still not much flight capacity to serve tourist groups.

"For example, in the past there were two flights a day to Bangkok from a certain place, but now there is only one flight a week. Then the tour group schedule may be extended from five or six days to seven or eight days, and the total cost of food and accommodation will increase."< /p>

In addition, Yang Yang pointed out that after three years of epidemic, the current overseas reception system for Chinese tourists has actually disappeared and needs to be re-established. For example, many local Chinese-speaking tour guides in Thailand have changed careers or returned to China, and Chinese-speaking shopping malls, restaurants and other facilities are also facing closure or not fully open, which in itself has pushed up costs accordingly.

In fact, on January 12 this year, the Tourism Authority of Thailand pointed out that due to market supply exceeding demand, the prices of Thai tourism products for Chinese tourists have increased by an average of 20% compared to before the epidemic. In addition, on February 14, Thailand announced that it would impose entry fees for foreign tourists from June.

Domestic tourism companies have also noticed an increase in product quotations when contacting overseas suppliers and local travel agencies.

Jia Jianqiang, CEO of "6 Travel", an outbound customized travel company, said that in contact with suppliers from various Southeast Asian countries, accommodation, transportation, and tour guide fees have increased to varying degrees. For example, in the ground transfer link, Thailand In terms of prices, prices rose by 5% and in Singapore by 20%.

"The global tourism market was unstable during the epidemic, and all aspects of tourism also hope to make up for the losses during the epidemic through price increases after opening up."

In addition to external reasons, Jia Jianqiang believes that since China's tourism market has not yet fully recovered, overseas suppliers are also waiting to see the market and are short of manpower in the short term. "Tour operators do not dare to expand their teams all at once, for fear that the market will be unstable later and the costs will naturally increase." "

Yang Yang also pointed out that at present, Chinese tourists' outbound travel has not yet achieved large-scale effects. Everything is slowly being reconstructed and restored, so there are not many suppliers with the best cost to choose from. It has not yet achieved process optimization and cost optimization.

It is worth mentioning that in addition to changes in the tourism market itself, rising consumer costs may be related to rising local prices. Since last year, prices in Thailand have continued to rise due to rising global energy prices and shortages of raw materials caused by the Russia-Ukraine conflict. In June of that year, the inflation rate rose to the highest level in 14 years.

"In recent years, the world has been flooded with water and prices have been high, so markets including Europe, the United States, and Southeast Asia will be affected." Yang Yang said.

However, according to Thailand’s latest data, its inflation rate in January 2023 was the lowest in nine months. As the global energy price situation eases compared with 2022, inflation may further improve in the coming period.

Based on various factors, Yang Yang frankly told Times Finance that it will still take at least half a year, or even one to two years, for the Southeast Asian tourism market to truly recover from reconstruction and reach the original tourism supply level.