The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has played down concerns about Chinese tourism businesses and zero-dollar tours.

TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn said his office in China would continue to monitor these issues, ensuring only Chinese tour companies certified by the Chinese government are allowed to send tour groups to Thailand.

Moreover, the increased overall tour package prices, due to high airfares, have helped prevent these issues. Most Chinese are preferring to become independent travelers, he said.

"The foreign tourism business network has started coming back, as Thai tourism has been recovering, making some income flow out of Thailand. Therefore, we need to continue to closely monitor this issue to prevent an impact on Thai operators," said Mr Yuthasak.

As of March 29, foreign tourists tallied more than 6.2 million. Top markets included Malaysia, Russia, China, South Korea and India.

The Thai Hotels Association said Phuket has not yet seen zero-dollar tours, and restaurants or accommodation that focus solely on the Chinese market are not yet back in operation.

The association expects Chinese would be the top foreign tourists in Phuket in April, with India following closely behind, while long-haul markets such as Russia remain in a slowdown.