Thailand to hold tourism festival during Chinese New Year

Thailand is staging a tourism festival with fascinating attractions in central Bangkok for Chinese New Year 2017, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) disclosed on Friday.

The festival to be held on Jan. 25 to 29 in Bangkok's Lumpini Park will showcase unique local experiences and attractions in all parts of the Kingdom. Activities will be organized with 10 zones that highlight Thainess from main regions of the country.

Visitors can enjoy cuisines and local culture demonstrated in every zone, which will be a warming-up and reference before they choose where to travel in the country.

Yuthasak Supasorn, governor of TAT, said that the festival is expected to attract over 650,000 visitors with 90 percent of these visitors predicted to travel in Thailand in 2017. These trips could generate up to 400 million Baht in revenue.

Lucky draws and merit making activities will be included to liven the atmosphere of Chinese Spring Festival up. Visitors are welcome with free admission.

Tourist arrivals to Thailand rose 8.9 percent to 32.6 million in 2016, generating 1.6 trillion baht in revenue, up 12.6 percent, according to Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul.

From Dec. 31 to Jan. 3, foreign and local tourists generated revenue of 30.2 billion baht, up 8.7 percent from the same period in the previous year.

It's believed that the Thai authorities are looking forward to boosting tourism arrivals through another widely celebrated festival, which leads them target the Chinese New Year.