The Thai government has agreed to extend a waiver on hotel operating fees for another 2 years, to allow the sector to fully recover. The extension was agreed by the Cabinet yesterday, June 25, according to a Reuters report.
(We admit we didn’t even know there was a ‘hotel operating fee’).
Losing the annual fee of 40 baht per hotel room for another two years is expected to cost the government 54 million baht, according to deputy spokesman Karom Phonphonklang.
The exemption will run until June 2026, in a bid to help Thailand’s tourism sector in its ongoing recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Karom says temporarily waiving the fee will reduce expenses for hotels and give them time to recover financially.
The Thai economy is currently lagging behind others in the region, with factors such as high household debt and borrowing costs coupled with weak exports. The government is aiming for 3% growth this year, after last year’s 1.9%, and Karom says tourism will continue to play a key role in this growth.
In the first 6 months of this year, the kingdom has welcomed 16.84 million foreign visitors, a 36% increase on the same period last year. Data from the tourism ministry shows tourist spending of 795 billion baht in that period.
The biggest tourism market was China, with 3.31 arrivals between the start of the year and June 23.
SOURCE: Reuters
