In a bid to boost tourism, the Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA) is intending to urge Thailand's junta chief General, Prayuth Chan-ocha to expand the visa fee waiver program for Chinese and Taiwanese travelers.
Upon request of the president of ATTA, Sisdivachr Cheewarattanaporn, Prayuth has agreed to extend the visa fee regime for a 90-day period. Nevertheless, Sisdivachr was thinking over to request for scheme extension for another six to twelve months.
It is expected that this visa fee waiver program will help to entice 400,000 to 500,000 tourists instead of 200,000 to 300,000 each month. ATTA anticipates that the scheme will attract more visitors especially during China's National Day Golden Week holiday, which will be held in October.
Budget airline, Thai AirAsia has swiftly responded to the scheme by introducing 13 routes to ten places in China. In addition to this, the airline is planning to initiate daily flights from Thailand’s provincial airport to Guangzhou, southern China. However, currently the service is under the process of approval. It aims to help 12.6 million travelers over this year.