Thailand tailors its China tourism campaigns to eastern, western and northern travellers

On 18 August the Tourism Authority of Thailand said it is running a region-by-region strategy for the Chinese market in 2026, with separate campaigns for eastern, western and northern China. The work is led by TAT offices in Shanghai, Chengdu and Beijing, each matching a part of China to the Thai experiences most likely to appeal there.

TAT Governor Thapanee Kiatphaibool said Chinese travellers have grown more varied in how they choose destinations and experiences, so the agency is matching Thailand's strengths to what each market wants. She named wellness, sport, culture, communities and emerging destinations as the core of the approach, with the aim of drawing quality visitors and spreading tourism income more widely across the country.

In eastern China, the Shanghai office is going after premium travellers with wellness and experiential trips. Under the "Healing Is the New Luxury" banner, TAT has teamed up with LANN Space, a Chinese mindfulness and wellness platform, and the online travel agency Tuniu.com to promote restful trips to Saraburi and Khao Yai. The campaign also ran more than 2,500 promotional video screenings at five cinemas in Shanghai over the summer. In nearby Jiangsu, a live Nanjing television programme presented trips around Rayong and Hua Hin to more than five million viewers.

In western China, the Chengdu office is focusing on sport and creator-led content. With Zx-tour, a Chinese company that packages marathon travel, TAT held an offline session in Chengdu for running fans from Sichuan and Chongqing, promoting races in Sukhothai, Kamphaeng Phet, Buri Ram, Hua Hin and Songkhla. It also hosted Chinese content creators on a trip through Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, part of the groundwork for future direct flights between western China and northern Thailand.

In the north, the Beijing office is aiming at families and smaller provincial cities. In Changchun, TAT and partners in Jilin Province staged "Cool Summer Breeze", an event built around Thai culture, food, handicrafts and performances, including Songkran-themed activities. It drew more than 80,000 participants, and direct airline seat capacity between Jilin and Thailand is up seven per cent from 2025.

China is still Thailand's largest source of visitors, with 3,149,889 arrivals between 1 January and 5 August 2026. Backed by the Trusted Thailand programme, which sets safety and service standards across the tourism experience, TAT expects Chinese arrivals to pass five million for the full year. Much of the plan is meant to send visitors beyond the best-known spots, toward provinces such as Saraburi, Buri Ram and Songkhla.

For travellers heading to those quieter provinces, getting around is a large part of the trip. Public transport thins out once you leave the main cities, and a bike, scooter or car is often what makes a place like Khao Yai or Chiang Rai easy to explore. This is where Balm Rentals fits in. The marketplace shows the full price, deposit and rental terms before payment, and presents them in the traveller's own language, so a visitor from Shanghai or Chengdu can read the conditions in Chinese instead of guessing.

Balm works with legal, checked rental providers and gathers them in one iOS and Android app, sitting alongside local operators and the wider industry effort rather than competing with it. As Thailand guides more Chinese guests toward emerging destinations, clear and localised rental options are one practical way to make those trips easier, in step with the quality-first tone that TAT and the Trusted Thailand mark are setting.