BLOCKBUSTER "Lost in Thailand" has helped boost the number of Chinese travelers to the southeast Asian country, Thai tourism officials said today.
Last year, Thailand received 63,955 Chinese visitors for meeting, incentive, conference and exhibition (MICE) events, said Parichat Svetasreni, Marketing Communications Director of the Thailand's Convention and Exhibition Bureau.
This was an increase of 31.6 percent on the 2011 figure.
"We should thank the Chinese movie 'Lost in Thailand' for bringing a lot of Chinese travelers to Thailand," Svetasreni told a press conference in Shanghai.
Part of the comedy was filmed on location in Chiang Mai in northern Thailand.
She said last year was a buoyant year for Thailand's MICE industry, with 895,224 MICE visitors and 7,382 events - 6.84 percent up from 2011, and exceeding the bureau's annual target.
"We can be confident that Thailand's MICE industry is most definitely on the rise.
"In 2013, we anticipate a boost in MICE industry earnings to reach US$ 2.93 billion," she added.
According to Kasian Watanachaopisut, president of the Thai-Chinese Tourism Alliance Association, "Lost in Thailand" took 700 million yuan (USD113m) at the box office in China within a month of premiering last December.
The 30 million yuan comedy starring Xu Zheng, looks set to become China's most-viewed comedy.
"With the help of 'Lost in Thailand,' featuring Chiang Mai as a beautiful tourist spot, we hope that the number of Chinese tourists will continue to increase," he said.
According to a local tourism official, Chinese tourists spend an average of 3,750 baht (US$125) each in Chiang Mai per day.
Meanwhile, Svetasreni said the outbreak of H7N9 bird flu has led to a fall in numbers of Thai travelers to China.
