CHIANG MAI: The number of Chinese flying into Chiang Mai to celebrate their annual Golden Week holiday, from Oct 1-7, is expected to show an increase of 9.1% this year over 2018.
Chiang Mai airport director Amornrak Xumsai Na Ayudhaya said on Friday there were no special flights or an increase in flights from China to Chiang Mai during the long holiday this year. Airlines operating on this route now had enough regular flights to handle the influx.
Chiang Mai airport now had 28 international services, of which 17 were with important towns in China. A total of 17 Chinese airlines now had flights into Chiang Mai.
He foresaw 23,000 Chinese tourists visiting Chiang Mai between Oct 1 and Oct 7, a 9.1% increase on Golden Week last year.
However, numbers were still down comparatively. In 2017 Chinese arrivals for Golden Week were up 17.1% on last year's figure.
Mr Amornrak expected the total number of Chinese arrivals at Chiang Mai airport this year to exceed one million. Last year, 890,000 Chinese tourists arrived through Chiang Mai airport.