The number of arrivals and revenue from the Malaysian tourism market can increase by 20-30% if bribery at the border is resolved and the new government extends the operating hours of border checkpoints, according to Hat Yai tourism operators.
To enhance the economy, the cabinet on Tuesday proposed extending the opening hours at Thailand-Malaysia border checkpoints in response to a request from the tourism and sports minister.
Songchai Mungprasitthichai, president of the Songkhla Tourism Promotion Association, said the move should ease congestion at the border, particularly at the Sadao checkpoint.
He said during Malaysia’s national holiday last month, tourist cars and buses faced queues of 3-4 hours to pass through the Sadao checkpoint when entering and leaving Thailand.
As the checkpoint closed around midnight, hundreds of Malaysian tourists were unable to return in time and had to stay in hotels or sleep in their cars.
This situation created an opportunity for some border officials to extort 500-1,000 baht per car from Malaysian tourists who wanted to cross during closing hours, said Mr Songchai.
If the opening hours were extended, this leverage for bribery would be eliminated, he said.
Mr Songchai said the government should consider opening the Sadao checkpoint 24 hours a day, similar to the Malaysia-Singapore border.
The government could implement a six-month trial period for all Thailand-Malaysia checkpoints, he said.
A 24-hour operation should ease late-night traffic congestion and allow tourists to plan their trips more flexibly.
There are roughly 4,000-5,000 Malaysian arrivals daily on weekdays via the Sadao checkpoint, and 20,000 on weekends and holidays.
The number could increase by 20-30% if the opening hours were extended, he said.
Regarding concerns over increased security breaches and drug trafficking from extended border hours, Mr Songchai said the government should deploy more officers to patrol the area.
Suspicious vehicles involved in drug trafficking are often trucks, not tourist buses, and can be targeted with stricter inspection measures, he said.
According to the Tourism Ministry, during the first eight months, Songkhla welcomed over 5 million Thai and foreign visitors, a 0.67% year-on-year decrease, generating 35.2 billion baht in revenue.
As of Sept 28, Thailand had welcomed over 23.9 million foreign tourists, a 7.52% year-on-year drop.
Malaysia was the largest inbound market with 3.46 million arrivals, surpassing China, which recorded 3.38 million arrivals.
Mr Songchai said the tourism outlook for Hat Yai and Songkhla in the fourth quarter should remain on par with last year.
He said the government’s “Khon La Khrueng” co-payment scheme should at least help stimulate sluggish domestic spending in the coming months.