TAT Launches Nihao Month 2026 to Court Chinese Travellers Through Mid-Autumn and Golden Week

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) announced Nihao Month 2026 in Bangkok on 14 September 2026, the third edition of its Amazing Thailand Mid-Autumn campaign for the Chinese market. The programme begins on 15 September and, according to TAT, is built around four connected activities intended to influence travel decisions before departure, improve the visitor experience inside Thailand and extend destination storytelling after the trip. TAT Governor Thapanee Kiatphaibool said the campaign connects pre-departure travel demand with privileges and experiences in Thailand, then extends engagement through culture and creator-led storytelling, with the aim of encouraging longer stays and repeat visits.

The first element is a joint promotion with Meituan, a Chinese lifestyle platform covering travel, hotels, dining and food delivery, running from 15 September to 31 October 2026. TAT states that Meituan sees more than 80 million users a day engaging with dining and related lifestyle searches, and that the campaign targets at least 10,000 purchasers, using location-based technology to deliver offers across hotels, restaurants, flights and activities. The partnership includes a dedicated Thailand landing page featuring fine dining and the Black Pearl Restaurant Guide, plus a user-generated content campaign on Meituan and Xiaohongshu.

Running over the same 15 September to 31 October period, a Chinese Passport Privilege programme brings together 20 partners across shopping and lifestyle, spa and wellness, transport, travel applications, telecommunications and online payment. Chinese visitors can claim discounts, vouchers, complimentary products, connectivity packages and payment privileges by presenting a Chinese passport at participating locations. TAT will also stage the Amazing Thailand Mid-Autumn Celebration 2026 at One Bangkok on 25 September, bringing together around 30 Chinese influencers, a celebrity guest and cultural workshops covering lantern decoration, calligraphy and traditional fortune-stick activities. From 26 to 29 September those 30 influencers continue on a familiarisation trip across four themed routes: Krabi, Phetchaburi–Hua Hin, Chiang Rai and Rayong–Ko Samet.

On expected volumes, TAT forecasts that Chinese travel to Thailand over the extended Mid-Autumn and Golden Week period of 25 September to 7 October 2026 will grow by 24 per cent, with around 250,000 arrivals generating approximately 11.5 billion baht in tourism revenue, up 37 per cent year on year. For the official National Day Golden Week of 1–7 October alone, TAT forecasts around 137,000 arrivals, up 21 per cent, and revenue of about 4.2 billion baht, up 35 per cent. TAT cites ForwardKeys data showing October bookings to Thailand up 16 per cent and flight searches from China up 24 per cent, led by Shanghai, Guangzhou, Chengdu, Hangzhou and Chongqing, and notes that six new direct routes from China to Thailand are launching across September and October. These are TAT's own forecasts rather than recorded arrivals.

Source: Tourism Authority of Thailand, TAT Newsroom, "TAT expands Nihao Month 2026 to drive China travel and engagement", published 14 September 2026.