Minor Is Bullish on Thailand

Minor International said they expect foreign tourist arrivals to Thailand to exceed 34 million, ahead of the government’s forecast. Minor is expecting a bigger increase in Chinese arrivals, boosting the results past the government’s 33.5 million foreign arrivals target. The government is forecasting 8 million Chinese arrivals in 2024, up from 3.5 million in 2023. Last year Thailand registered 28 million foreign visitors who spent 1.2 trillion baht. In 2019 there were 39.9 million foreign arrivals generating 1.9 trillion baht.

Macau registered 2.94 million visitors in December, up 13.9% from November. 1,962,223 of them came from Mainland China. For all of 2023, Macau was 28.21 million visitors. For 2024, the Macao Government Tourism Office is expecting 33 million visitors.

Choice Hotels Asia Pacific said they are expanding their presence in Australia with the acquisition of the City Edge Apartment Hotels franchise. The new additions double Choice Hotels Asia-Pac’s portfolio in the inner city Melbourne market, adding 271 apartment-style rooms across five prime locations near key business hubs – South Melbourne, North Melbourne, Melbourne CBD, East Melbourne, and Box Hill. The acquisition includes CityEdge’s