BANGKOK — Thailand’s landmark same-sex marriage law could generate $2 billion in annual tourism revenue and attract 4 million additional international visitors, according to projections released by digital travel platform Agoda.
The legislation, set to take effect January 22, 2025, will make Thailand the first ASEAN nation and third country in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage. The tourism boost is expected within two years of implementation, representing a 10% increase in international arrivals.
The economic impact extends beyond tourism, with forecasts predicting 152,000 new permanent jobs – split equally between the tourism sector and other industries. The marriage equality law is also projected to increase Thailand’s GDP by 0.3%.
Deputy spokesperson of the Prime Minister’s Office, Sasikan Watthanajan, announced that Thailand is also pursuing a bid to host World Pride 2030. She cited Sydney’s successful 2023 event, which generated AU$185.6 million (approximately 4 billion baht) in economic benefits.
“The government is determined to promote gender equality and diversity to strengthen Thailand’s tourism strategy,” said Watthanajan. Revenue from the marriage equality initiative is expected to benefit multiple sectors, including accommodation, dining, retail, and domestic travel.
Thailand’s tourism sector has shown strong recovery in 2024, with the Ministry of Tourism and Sports reporting 31,313,787 international visitors from January 1 to November 24, generating approximately 1.47 trillion baht ($42 billion) in tourism revenue.
Chinese tourists led the arrivals with 6.09 million visitors, followed by Malaysia (4.44 million), India (1.87 million), South Korea (1.65 million), and Russia (1.46 million), establishing these nations as the top five source markets for Thailand’s tourism industry.
Surawong Thientong, Minister of Tourism and Sports stated that the week of November 18-24 saw particularly strong performance from short-haul markets, especially China, which has now exceeded 6 million visitors. South Korean arrivals showed impressive growth, increasing by 14.28% compared to the previous week. The period recorded 749,306 international arrivals, averaging 107,044 visitors daily.
While long-haul market arrivals have temporarily slowed – a typical seasonal pattern – numbers are expected to rebound in December 2024. The tourism ministry anticipates increased visitor numbers in the coming weeks, driven by several factors including:
- The onset of the high season for long-haul markets, particularly from Europe
- A 10% increase in seat capacity to Thailand since July
- Government initiatives to ease travel restrictions, including the elimination of TM6 cards at land borders
- Continued efforts to encourage airlines to increase flight frequencies
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