Last year, Chinese tourists spent as much as Bt20 billion in Chiang Mai. This has encouraged Chinese investors to get more involved in the tourism business in the province, Chiang Mai Tourism Business Association president Pornchai Jitnavasathien said.

He said the Chinese were investing in long-term leasing of apartments and hostels that are converted into daily accommodations for the rising numbers of Chinese tour groups visiting Chiang Mai. They operate without permits and are located outside the typical hotel and shopping zones popular with foreign tourists, and are managed solely by Chinese staff.

Moreover, the Chinese currency is accepted for the convenience of visitors who are tricked into buying overpriced tour packages by Chinese tour agencies. This type of business is referred to by the media as “zero-dollar” tours.

According to the Chiang Mai Tourism Business Association, there are currently 12 locations where Chinese investors lease apartments or hostels to accommodate Chinese tourists. Three of them inChiang Mai‘s Muang district are believed to be operating illegally without permits.

Authorities are in the process of checking their documents and financial transactions and will take legal action if justified to set a precedent to deter other Chinese investors who are keen to tap this type of business opportunity in Chiang Mai.

The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) has met with local tourism business operators to brief them about the potential adverse impacts of Chinese-operated “zero dollar” schemes on traditional culture-oriented tourism in Chiang Mai. Locals must stay on the alert and inform authorities if they come across such illegal Chinese business activities in their communities.

Illegal tour guide woes tackled

The number of illegal tour guides, which was a big problem a few years ago, has declined after theChiang Mai Tourism Business Association, the Rak Lanna Guides Association and legitimate tourism businesses worked together to tackle the problem seriously. However, some Chinese exchange students still moonlight as guides for Chinese tourists to earn extra money.

Pornchai said that even though Chinese investors had yet to engage in the restaurant business, authorities were closely monitoring the 1,000 local restaurants that have added Chinese signs, menus, and so forth to accommodate Chinese tour groups, as this could encourage Chinese investors to tap into this lucrative business opportunity in the future. The authorities must keep an eye on such activities before they become widespread and difficult to tackle.

Last year, about a million Chinese tourists came to Chiang Mai, and the money they put into circulation was estimated at around Bt10 billion, or even double that. It is projected that the number of Chinese tourists this year will grow by 7-9 per cent, with tour groups accounting for 60 per cent. However, the number of individual Chinese visiting Thailand is expected to rise in the near future as many younger Chinese who can speak some English prefer not to use the services of Chinese tour agencies.

In the past few years, Chinese tourists have seemed to take an interest in visiting property-development projects, such as condominiums. Some Chinese investors bought condos that were converted into daily accommodations for the huge influx of Chinese tourists to earn income from their assets, according to the Tourism Council of Thailand Region 1 (upper North).

Representatives from the Thai Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade of Thailand, the Tourism Council of Thailand, the DSI, Tourism Police and the Office of Business Registration are to set up a committee to investigate this situation. Their targeted provinces are Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phuket, Pattaya and Krabi.