Malaysia, Thailand among most visited by Chinese tourists during New Year: report

By Hoang Phong February 28, 2024 | 10:10 pm PT

Travelers disembark from an airplane at Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2 in Selangor, Malaysia, April 1, 2022. Photo by Reuters

Thailand was the fourth most popular destination among Chinese tourists during the Chinese New Year and Malaysia fifth, according to a report.

They came after Hong Kong, Japan, Macao, according to the report published by leading digital payment platform Alipay+ and Paynet.

The money spent by Chinese tourists during the first seven days of the holidays doubled from the same period in 2019 and was 10 times the amount in 2023, it said, adding that new visa-free policies at major Southeast Asian destinations "are critical enablers" of the travel boom.

Malaysia and Thailand started waiving visas for Chinese tourists in December last year.

Other preferred destinations for Chinese tourists were Singapore, South Korea, France, Australia, and Canada.

Malaysia received 100,000 Chinese visitors during the New Year holidays, a 50% increase from last year, Sin Chew Daily reported.

They spent an estimated RM1.5 billion (US$312.66 million) in the country.