Issue #123 - The Big Numbers From This Week’s Top Tourism Stories in Asia Pacific
6 visa waivers in China, 20 million visitors to Japan and 11 Thai tourism 'soft powers'
Welcome to issue 123 of Asia Travel Re:Set.
Thailand is South East Asia’s most-visited country. It is also struggling to meet its own expectation for tourism arrivals.
It set targets of 28 million visitors in 2023, and 40 million for 2024 but has been hit the hardest by a slow outbound recovery from China. Thailand’s 2023 forecast for Chinese arrivals has recently been slashed from 5 million to 4 million, and, now, 3.5 million.
As we near year-end, stats, figures and percentages gain extra cachet. They create headlines and form the basis of travel industry planning for 2024 - which is likely to be ultra competitive across Asia Pacific.
So let’s follow that train of thought…
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- “IN THE NEWS”
- The Big Numbers From This Week’s Top Tourism Stories in Asia Pacific
6 visa waivers in China, 20 million visitors to Japan and 11 Thai tourism 'soft powers'
- Top 8 Statistical Talking Points in Travel & Tourism in South East Asia
From Thailand to Vietnam, Indonesia to Macau & Singapore to the Philippines
“IN THE NEWS”
Malaysia's medical-wellness tourism market is dominated by neighbouring Indonesia. But with heavy investment in medical tech spanning the segment spectrum, future growth is focusing on one market: China. “Many Chinese patients seeking medical care in Malaysia required 'very niche and very specific' treatments, many of which were focused on fertility.” Interesting SCMP piece about the shifting direction of medical tourism in Penang by Randy Mulyanto. Click HERE to read.
The Big Numbers From This Week’s Top Tourism Stories in Asia Pacific
The dramatic tourism recovery of Japan is Asia Pacific’s biggest story of 2023. From January to October, it received 19.9 million arrivals despite only 9.3% hailing from China. In the same 2019 period, the ratio was 30%. With 1.9 million visitors, China is Japan’s 3rd-largest inbound market this year after South Korea and Taiwan, but only just ahead of the US (4th) and Hong Kong (5th). Among Japan’s Top 15 markets, the highest growth rates in 2023 vs 2019 are Singapore (20%), US (18%) and Vietnam (16%). Meanwhile, Japan recorded 2.5 million arrivals in October, beating the same 2019 month by 0.8%.
6 is the magic number in China, as the government announced visa-free entry for stays of up to 15 days for citizens of 5 European nations, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands and Spain, plus one Asian nation, Malaysia. Visits for tourism, business, VFR and transit are all included. The pilot scheme runs from 1 December to 31 November 2024, Cue plentiful media speculation about the Why Now? Energising foreign investment and inbound tourism are popular takes. Both are plausible given China recently expanded its visa-free transit policy to 54 countries.
But, it’s worth noting the use of the term “unilateral.” None of the 6 nations (5 of which are part of the Schengen visa system, which has backlogged badly for Chinese applications this year) currently offers visa-free access for Chinese citizens. Malaysian media yesterday reported that is about to change for stays of up to 30 days. Could this be a bargaining chip to push for EU visa reform driven by Schengen’s lead players?
4 trillion is this week’s standout statistic from the tourism policy machine that is Thailand. By promoting “11 Soft Powers,” the governing Pheu Thai party believes it can generate THB4 trillion in tourism spend over the next four years. It’s largely a consolidation of previous campaigns, bringing together 11 sub-themes, such as food, sports, music, festivals and movies, to promote Thai tourism. It also borrows liberally from South Korea’s success as a regional ‘soft power’. A proposed budget of THB10 billion “follows the model of the Korea Creative Content Agency,” reports The Nation.
Next to Hong Kong, where 17 million is the takeaway stat. By 24 November, ridership on the Hong Kong-Shenzhen-Guangzhou high-speed rail link (which opened in 2018) had reached 17 million passengers in 2023, surpassing the 2019 level.
Aviation intrigue is gripping Malaysia, where the fallout continues from the collapse of the nation’s 4th-largest carrier, MyAirline. The LCC took to the skies in 2022, but suspended operations abruptly on 17 October and the co-founder was arrested. Latest reports suggest the carrier will pay the RM4.3 million owed to staff in unpaid salaries, but pressure is being placed on the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia, which renewed MyAirline’s operating certification for 2 years just 3 days before its collapse citing financial stresses.
Laos features all too rarely in this newsletter, but as host of the 2024 ASEAN Tourism Forum in January it this week launched a new campaign to entice 2.7 million visitors in 2024, and 2.9 million in 2025. At the launch of Visit Laos Year 2024, it was announced that the services sector, including tourism, contributes more than one-third (37%) of GDP.
And finally, back to Japan, where the nation’s tallest skyscraper, rising 330 metres in height, opened this week in Tokyo. The key number is 30. “Some 30 million people are expected to visit the Azabudai Hills Mori JP Tower each year,” reports Kyodo News. The tower complex features “Japan’s highest luxury residences” by Aman.
Top 8 Statistical Talking Points in Travel & Tourism in South East Asia
South East Asia its awash with stats as the travel industry prepares for 2024. On this week's The South East Asia Travel Show, we go behind the scenes of statistical storytelling, and uncover some fascinating travel talking points across the region.
En route, we travel to Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam via Singapore, the Philippines, China and Japan. Topics of discussion range from the numerical state of ASEAN's aviation recovery to big domestic travel figures in Indonesia and Vietnam. Plus, how much is being invested in non-casino attractions in Singapore and Macau?
Listen to The Top 8 Statistical Talking Points in Travel & Tourism in South East Asia, here:
Or search for The South East Asia Travel Show on any podcast platform
And, that’s a wrap for Issue 123.
The Asia Travel Re:Set newsletter will be back for a year-end finale on 10 December.
Until then, find me at LinkedIn and The South East Asia Travel Show.
Happy travels,
Gary