Confirming what many suspected, Bangkok was among the world’s most popular destination among global travellers looking for a place to celebrate the New Year holiday. According to TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel website, Bangkok ranked in the 10th spot, the only Asian destination making the top 10, thanks primarily to its attractive costs and high value for money. (London, New York and Paris were the top three favourite destinations, in that order.)
Meanwhile, Chiang Mai commanded the top spot among Thais as the destination for their New Year celebration, followed by Hua Hin and Bangkok, respectively.
Such rankings were based on TripAdvisor searches for the holiday period, from 27 December to 4 January. Also, the company revealed that Thai travellers favoured local destinations over international ones, with seven Thai locations in their top 10.
Cooler weather, lower oil prices and the extended New Year holiday period helped boost domestic tourism. “Predictions are that revenue from domestic tourism will be at least THB 6.5 billion baht during the five-day weekend,” said Anupharp Thirarath, deputy governor for domestic tourism at the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). The agency also estimated that 1.7 million domestic trips would take place from 31 December to 4 January, with average hotel occupancy rates at 70 to 80 percent nationwide.
Falling oil prices, in particular, has encourage more locals to take to the roads, with automobile travel within a 300-kilometre radius from Bangkok a popular choice this year. Mr Anupharp said the most visited destinations included Rayong, Chanthaburi, Trat, Hua Hin, Chumphon, Nakhon Sawan and Khao Yai.