Grab Thailand is partnering with Alipay and Kakao Pay platforms to provide additional payment options for Chinese and South Korean tourists.
The company said the Thai tourism industry remains vibrant, and Grab considers Chinese tourists to be a strategic target market this year.
"To better serve the Chinese market, Grab is joining forces with China's most popular digital wallet and payment system, Alipay, which is used by more than 1 billion Chinese consumers. This collaboration aims to enable seamless payments via Alipay when using Grab services," said Worachat Luxkanalode, country head of Grab Thailand.
The company is also partnering with Kakao Pay to facilitate payments for South Korean tourists visiting Thailand, he said.
The two payment options will be progressively rolled out to wallet users and are expected to be fully operational by the third quarter of this year.
Mr Worachat said the Thai tourism industry has shown promising signs of recovery since the country's reopening, with over 12 million visitors during the first half of this year.
The number of Chinese tourists, in particular, has significantly increased, reaching over 1.4 million people in the first six months. This aligns with the upward trend of Grab's foreign users, particularly in mobility services, where the number of rides by Chinese users grew by 38% in the second quarter of this year, compared with the previous quarter.
Grab recently conducted a survey of 3,000 Chinese people living in major cities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen to discover their plans to travel to Southeast Asian countries in the next six months.
Thailand (71%) was the most popular destination in Southeast Asia among Chinese people, followed by Singapore (66%) and Malaysia (53%).
The majority of Chinese tourists (97%) are interested in visiting Thailand for sightseeing or leisure, while the next most popular reason for visiting the country is to take a business trip (2%), followed by visiting friends and family (1%).
The majority of Chinese tourists (81%) prefer travelling in small groups of 2-4 people. Travelling in groups of more than four was preferred by 10% of respondents, while 9% said they preferred to travel solo.
Bangkok, Phuket, Chiang Mai, Pattaya and Koh Samui are the leading five destinations in Thailand. Chinese tourists typically plan an average stay of seven days in Thailand and budget roughly 103,060 baht for expenses.
"Chinese tourists are the key focus and one of the strategic target markets for Grab this year. Our platform is well-known among Chinese tourists because it offers a wide range of services, from ride-hailing to delivery services, with high safety standards, pricing transparency, and easy brand recognition," said Mr Worachat.
Grab provides extensive service coverage across many countries, helping to build credibility among tourists and leading to positive word-of-mouth recommendations, he said.
In the past two quarters, Grab implemented several initiatives to target Chinese tourists, include conducting online marketing campaigns in collaboration with key partners.