According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand, the Songkran holiday this week is anticipated to generate 18.5 billion baht and draw over 300,000 foreign visitors. (TAT).

During the extended holiday break, more than 3.8 million Thais and roughly 305,000 foreign visitors are anticipated to visit the nation, TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn said on Thursday. (April 13).

After three years of Covid-19, which saw Songkran festivities and parties postponed or severely restricted, full-scale Thai New Year celebrations have resumed.

In 2019, the TAT predicts that the Thai tourism industry will have returned to 60% of its pre- Covid level. Large numbers of visitors are again coming back to the nation, especially from South-East and East Asian nations.

This year's Songkran event in Thailand has attracted enormous numbers of visitors from India, Taiwan, Japan, China, South Korea, France, and Russia. It is billed as the largest water fight in the world. Border checkpoints with adjacent Laos and Malaysia are also seeing an increase in travelers in preparation for the long weekend.

In the southern border province of Songkhla, a large number of visitors from Malaysia and Singapore participated in the "Hatyai Midnight Songkran" celebration. Meanwhile, Laotian tourists increased their attendance at the northeastern province of Udon Thani's Udon Songkran Festival.

From Thursday to Saturday, the TAT will hold the "Water Festival 2023" in five of the nation's major regions. "Defining Your Thainess" is the festival's theme for this year.

Songkran has gained international recognition, according to Yuthasak, in addition to drawing tourists from other countries.

Thailand's request for the traditional Thai New Year to be recognized as a Global Intangible Cultural Heritage is now being considered by Unesco.

He further stated that Songkran was being promoted by Thailand as part of its soft power strategy.

The TAT governor was speaking at the "International Amazing Splash 2023" inauguration event on Bangkok's Centenary Park Road (Soi Chulalongkorn 5).