China's magnificent natural and cultural attractions that are showcased at the 30th Thai International Travel Fair in Bangkok attracted tourists from Southeast Asian countries to explore the charm of this ancient oriental country.

The Thai International Travel Fair 2025, which kicked off on Thursday afternoon, saw participants from more than 500 worldwide tourism-related enterprises. China is invited as the guest country of honor to the fair as Thailand and China celebrate their 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

"There are various booths from famous tourism destinations in China during the fair, which help us preview and plan our trip. It's a fantastic experience. You can even try some local food and see handicrafts before you go," said Nam Sitanant, a 51-year-old Thai resident.

She has been to China twice and visited the capital city, Beijing, as well as Southwest Yunnan province. "Those two places impressed me a lot with totally different cultures and landscapes. As China and Thailand are close neighbors, I hope to explore the country more," she said.

China was the top source of foreign tourists to Thailand last year, with a total of more than 6.73 million arrivals and a total revenue of 378 billion baht ($10.93 billion), according to statistics from the Thai tourism authorities.

"The same growing trend has also been witnessed in terms of Thai tourists who visited China over the past year. China is now one of the most popular travel destinations among Thais," said Han Zhiqiang, the Chinese ambassador to Thailand.

In the past year, China has fully optimized its visa policies for foreign tourists. A variety of convenient measures have been introduced to facilitate travel to China. So far, China has implemented full visa exemptions with 25 countries, is trialing unilateral visa exemptions with 38 countries, and has transit visa exemptions with 54 countries.

Significant surge

At the end of last year, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China announced a significant surge in inbound tourism, with the total number of inbound tourists reaching 94.62 million in the first three quarters of 2024, marking a 78.8 percent increase year-on-year.

Speaking at the opening ceremony of the fair, Han revealed that the number of Thai tourists who traveled to China in the first three quarters of this year had nearly tripled compared to the same period in 2023.

"The mutual exchanges between the peoples of China and Thailand have injected vitality into both the social and economic development of the two nations, driving the construction of a China-Thailand community with a shared future," Han said.

Organized by the Thai Travel Agents Association, or TTAA, the four-day fair gathered 12 Chinese airlines, several financial institutions such as UnionPay, and also tourism service providers from six provincial areas, offering the latest high-quality tourism products, services, as well as presenting excellent travel routes to overseas travelers.

Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand Thapanee Kiatphaibool said Thailand has been recognized as one of the world's top travel destinations. With the participation of Chinese representatives, this year's fair will help to boost exchanges and cooperation worldwide.

Charoen Wangananont, president of TTAA, said the participation of various Chinese enterprises reflected the long and historical friendship between China and Thailand. He estimated that the fair will attract more than 300,000 visitors, bringing a total of $9 million.