After suffering from haze blanketing several provinces in the North the past several months, hotel operators in Chiang Mai think it's unlikely their business will recover over the next few months.
Thick smoke from forest fires has led to a plunge in occupancy rates for hotels in the province, down from 80% typically to 75% in March and 60% in April, said La-Iad Bungsrithong, president of the Thai Hotels Association (THA) northern chapter.
The decline was evident during Songkran, one of the most popular festivals celebrated in Chiang Mai.
Thais, who usually account for 60% of total visitors to Chiang Mai, were fewer in number relative to foreign visitors, including Chinese tourists, who continued to visit, Mrs La-Iad said.
Although the haze has improved, the low season has hoteliers in the North pessimistic.
"Hoteliers are pinning their hopes on robust tourism in July and August, which is the start of high season for the European and Chinese markets, as well as the school semester break in Thailand," Mrs La-Iad said.
Last year, 10.9 million foreign and Thai visitors travelled to Chiang Mai, resulting in an average hotel occupancy rate of 75%. The association estimates the rate this year at 70-72%.
Mrs La-Iad said 60,000 hotel keys are registered with the authorities. A further 8,000 rooms are available under the Airbnb platform.
