Indians can now enjoy visa-free travel to Thailand from November 10 to May 10, 2024, with a stay of up to 30 days. The country has waived visa requirements for Indian and Taiwanese citizens, aiming to attract more tourists.
Post-Covid, several countries are actively wooing Indian travellers, and India has emerged as Thailand’s fourth-largest source market for tourism this year, following Malaysia, China, and South Korea, with around 12 lakh arrivals.
Indian government data reveals a steady increase in the number of Indians traveling abroad, rising from 1.4 crore in 2011 to a peak of 2.7 crore in 2019. Despite two pandemic years of travel restrictions and closures, the numbers rebounded to 2.1 crore in 2022.
According to the Ministry of Tourism, the top 10 countries preferred by Indian travelers are as follows:
| UAE | 59 lakh, | 28% |
| Saudi Arabia | 24 lakh | 11.5% |
| US | 17 lakh | 8% |
| Singapore | 9.9 lakh | 4.7% |
| Thailand | 9.3 lakh | 4.4% |
| UK | 9.2 lakh | 4.3% |
| Qatar | 8.7 lakh | 4.1% |
| Kuwait | 8.3 lakh | 3.9% |
| Canada | 7.7 lakh | 3.6% |
| Oman | 7.2 lakh/ | 3.4% |