9.7 MILLION TOURISTS, INCLUDING 150K FOREIGNERS, VISITED PRACHUAP KHIRI KHAN IN 2022

two years. This indicates that travel demand in Prachuap Khiri Khan province is steadily increasing.

The data showed that more than ten times the amount of foreign tourists visited Prachuap Khiri Khan in December than in January of 2022.

The data also shows that arrivals spiked from October when Thailand moved to its ‘fully reopened’ strategy after it dropped its requirement for foreign tourists to show proof of vaccination or ATK test results prior to departure.

At the same time, Thailand also announced longer length of stays for tourists extending the length of stay possible in the kingdom to 45 days (from 30 days) for tourists from countries and territories entitled for visa exemption, and to 30 days (from 15 days) for those eligible for a Visa on Arrival (VOA).

However, despite the increase in the number of tourists visiting Prachuap Khiri Khan overall, the province is still some way short of reaching the pre-pandemic levels of visitors from overseas.

In 2022, Prachuap Khiri Khan saw a significant increase in tourist numbers, making it a popular destination for both domestic and international travelers.

Data released by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), has revealed a massive increase in the number of tourists visiting Prachuap Khiri Khan in 2022, compared to the previous year.

The data, which compares the number of domestic and international tourists visiting the province between January and December of 2021 and 2022, shows an almost five fold increase in the number of tourists visiting the province.

In 2022, a total of 9,747,884 tourists visited Prachuap Khiri Khan, the TAT said. Of which, 9,597,432 were domestic tourists, with 150,452 tourists from overseas.

By comparison, the province received a total of 2.6 million visitors in 2021.

This growth can be attributed to several factors, but mainly the easing of travel restrictions and the improved COVID-19 situation in the country.

TAT said the number of Thai and foreign tourists visiting the province in December 2022 was the highest than in the previous

TAT said that in the year prior to the pandemic the province welcomed 7,168,424 tourists, with 5,924,708 Thai tourists and 1,243,443 foreigners.

It said that Prachuap Khiri Khan is one of the provinces in Thailand which would expect to welcome over one million foreign tourists annually.

TAT also said the average hotel occupancy rate throughout the province in 2022 was 60.46 percent compared to just 21.22 percent hotel occupancy in 2021.

There is a trend that the number of tourists staying overnight in Prachuap Khiri Khan is much higher than in 2021 and that foreign tourists who come to the area stay for a longer period of time, TAT said.