The sharp drop in the number of Chinese tourists visiting Thailand in recent months has become a cause for concern for the Thai government. This is mainly because tourists from China have been the largest revenue contributors to the Thai tourism industry.
The government has come up with the idea to waive visa-on-arrival fees for tourists from 21 nations, particularly China, as a means to attract more visitors, and in particular, deal with a sharp decline in Chinese tourist numbers since July this year.
Soonruth Bunyamanee is editor, Bangkok Post.
After consecutive increases in the number of Chinese visitors to Thailand in the first six months, both the number of tourists and revenue generated in the industry have dropped since July.
In July, the number of Chinese tourists dropped by 0.87% on the same period last year while revenue still grew 4.4%. But in August, tourist numbers plunged by 12% and revenue declined by 7.2%.
Last month, tourist numbers decreased drastically by 15% year-on-year while revenue dropped 11.5%.
It is expected this trend will continue throughout the rest of the year, a period which is considered the high season for tourism.
The decline in numbers may also extend into next year as well.
It is believed the falling numbers were triggered by the deadly boat accident off Phuket in July that killed 47 Chinese nationals.
The knee-jerk reaction to the accident by the Thai government was heavily criticised by China when Deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon piled the blame on a Chinese tour operator who arranged the trip.
If that wasn't enough, an incident occurred late last month at Don Mueang airport which also failed to show Thailand in a good light.
A video clip of a security guard at the airport trying to assault a Chinese tourist went viral on social media in China.
Netizens there said the Chinese man was nearly hit because he refused to pay 300-baht tea money to officials on top of the 2,000-baht visa-on-arrival fee.
One reason why the government is deeply worried over the falling number of Chinese tourists is because it had expected an increase in numbers, not the other way round.
Over the entire year, the government had expected at least 11 million Chinese visitors, or about 30% of the total foreign tourist arrivals.
However, this is not the first time Thailand has seen a drop in the number of Chinese tourists.
In August 2015, the Erawan Shrine bombing at Ratchaprasong intersection in downtown Bangkok, killed 20 people and injured 125, with most of the victims being Chinese tourists. Chinese tourist numbers dropped off sharply for the rest of the year but recovered at the start of 2016.
In August 2016, Chinese tourist numbers declined sharply again after Thai authorities launched a crackdown on so-called zero dollar tours from China.
The situation improved early last year after the Thai government reduced visa and visa-on-arrival fees for Chinese tourists.
Still, there are doubts over the government's current plan to waive visa-on-arrival fees as to whether it would effectively help revive the falling number of Chinese tourists.
In addition to the negative incidents in Thailand, it can't be denied that the tourist decline also has something to do with the Chinese economy, which has been affected by the trade war with the United States.
Sentiment over China's economic outlook is not good due to concerns over a prolonged trade war, potentially putting the brakes on the world's second-largest economy.
This will definitely affect the spending sentiment of people, including holidaymakers.
Whether or not there is a reversal of falling Chinese tourist numbers soon, the government should take this opportunity to review tourism promotion policies and improve tourism management standards.
High standards are very important for tourism.
Some of the negative incidents which have caused drops in Chinese tourist numbers were the result of poor standards, particularly safety measures.
It has been reported that at least 77 Chinese tourists have died in water-related tragedies in Thailand this year, including the 47 fatalities in the Phuket boat accident in July. Others have involved drowning on beaches.
This shows a lack of proper safety measures in tourist destinations.
The attack on the Chinese tourist at Don Mueang airport was another example of poor standards.
According to the Airports of Thailand, the tourist arrived at the airport on a flight from Indonesia and was prevented from entering the country because he failed to show a document proving he had accommodation in Thailand. He was asked to go to the passenger waiting room to await deportation, but he objected.
If the airport officials followed international standard in politely dealing with his objections, instead of intimidating him, the situation would not have escalated.
In terms of general tourism policy, the government should concentrate more on tourism quality and less on quantity even though the number of visitors is still important.
Thailand has suffered many cases of visitors overcrowding tourist attractions, which have caused damage to national resources and the environment.
Also, spending by Chinese tourists has not contributed to the local economy on the scale that it should because many travelled to Thailand on "zero dollar" tour packages offered by Chinese tour companies.
That means they are usually herded by tour operators into shopping, dining and buying goods and services at places run by the operators' business networks -- both legal and illegal.
Given that about one-third of inbound tourist arrivals were from China last year, we can't deny that Chinese tourists are very important to Thailand's economy, especially since the government expects impressive economic growth amid challenging global economic circumstances.
Still, it is time the government revised its strategies and policies to ensure the best standards are followed in the country's tourism industry.