Major jump in Thailand Airbnb searches

There’s been a major jump in searches for Airbnb accommodation in Thailand, according to the latest Airbnb data. The data shows that between January and March this year, the number of searches for Airbnb accommodation in the kingdom shot up by 180% compared to the same time frame last year.

Both Thai and international travellers especially searched for Airbnb accommodations in hotspots including Bangkok, Phuket, Pattaya, Chiang Mai, and Koh Samui.

This news comes after the Thai Hotels Association said last week that South Thailand’s hotel occupancy is expected to rise during ‘high season’ from October to December. About 80% of hotels in Songkhla province have reopened after ‘Thailand Pass’ was scrapped on July 1, according to the Songkhla Tourism Industry Council.

The council’s president, Somphol Cheewawattanapong, said Songkhla expects about 800,000 foreign visitors in 2022, or “about 40% of the two million visitors per year before the pandemic.”

Thailand has drawn 3.3 million foreign tourists between January and July this year, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand. In July, the Tourism and Sports Ministry said it expected about 9.3 million foreign visitors to arrive in the ‘Land of Smiles’ in 2022.

It remains to be seen just how many foreign visitors will make their way to the ‘Land of Smiles’ this year. But with the major jump this year in Airbnb searches from both Thai and international travellers, it seems that tourism in Thailand is slowly but surely making a comeback.

SOURCE: Pattaya Mail