KOTA BARU: An average of 15,000 to 20,000 Malaysian tourists are expected to enter Thailand in a day in conjunction with the coming Malaysia Day and school holidays.
Malaysian consul-general in Songkhla Ahmad Fahmi Ahmad Sarkawi said Hatyai and Songkhla were the favourite spots for Malaysian tourists.
"After the Covid-19 pandemic, the southern part of Thailand became a popular tourist destination for Malaysians.
"This could be seen with the latest number of Malaysians visiting Southern Thailand during the recent National Day public holiday.
"The figure recorded by the Thai authorities has reached about 18,000 people and this time, l believe there will be between 15,000 and 20,000 Malaysian tourists spending their holidays there," he told the New Straits Times.
Fahmi added that a majority of Malaysian tourists would enter Thailand via the Sadao-Bukit Kayu Hitam checkpoint.
"Other tourists will use the other checkpoints in Padang Besar, Sungai Golok and Betong.
"l believe around 10,000 Malaysians a day will pass these three checkpoints," he added.
Meanwhile, checks at Rantau Panjang checkpoint showed that Malaysians have begun entering Thailand yesterday evening.
Most of the motorists brought family members including children following the long public and school holidays, which began today.
Thai English daily Bangkok Post recently reported that there was a surge of tourists to Thailand's southern region during Malaysia's National Day.
Quoting Thai officials, the report said this surge was expected to contribute about 100 million Thai baht to their economy.
More than 13,000 Malaysian tourists passed through Songkhla's Sadao checkpoint on Aug 31 and about 5,000 others arrived via the Betong checkpoint in Yala to spend their long holiday in Thailand.