Fears are growing that the influx of Chinese visitors will lead to the return of questionable or illegal tourist practices.

Thailand expects to welcome at least 25 million foreigners this year, with roughly 5 million from China.
         
However, this has triggered concerns over the return of so-called “zero-dollar tours”, known for their unusually low prices.

Tour agencies seek to earn a profit by sending groups to local Thai agencies without paying any tour fees, with the tourists then forced to visit places and spend their money on goods and services at a higher price than the market rate.

In the worst-case scenario, tourists could be left behind if operators are unable to make a profit or tourists refuse to spend money.

This scenario occurred many times before the pandemic, with tourists seeking help from the authorities. There were also reports of tourists being injured by their tour guides.

Similarly unwanted “kickback tours” are when Thai agencies pay a fee per person to Chinese tour operators in exchange for sending large groups to them.

Local tour operators earn a profit by taking tourists to visit pre-arranged shops or attractions.

In many cases, these operators are also involved with nominee businesses, referring to companies legally owned by Thai nationals that have foreign operators, including Chinese, funding them or directing them behind the scenes.

Many operators are worried shady businesses will return and have a greater impact, with even larger crimes, which the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has dubbed “closed-circuit tours”.

A closed-circuit tour is run exclusively among a network served by specific nationalities.

For example, tour agencies can take groups to eat at their own restaurants and shop at stores run by operators of the same nationality, using only imported tour guides.

In 2016, the government imposed strict regulations to crack down on zero-dollar tours, such as imposing a minimum price for tour fees of at least 1,000 baht per person per day, and an optional tour of no more than 3,000 baht per trip to prevent overcharging.

This year the Tourism Department plans to sign a memorandum of understanding with China’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism to address these issues on a long-term basis.