Published: January 18, 2024
Thailand’s iconic New Year’s bash signals a strong start for tourism in 2024
2024 was welcomed with a bang at ICONSIAM, Bangkok’s unmissable landmark destination nestled on the Chao Phraya River, signaling that tourism in Thailand is off to a great start this year.
Over 11 million people witnessed the countdown at ICONSIAM through various channels and feeds set up around the world. (1)
Bangkok was ranked as the top visited city in the world in 2023, (2) according to a survey by Travelness and this chart-topping is likely to persist in 2024 if the crowds at ICONSIAM’s New Year’s celebration are anything to go by.
In fact, foreign visitors to Thailand increased by almost threefold to 22.2m from January to October 2023, compared to 7.1m for the same period in the previous year, according to the Ministry of Tourism and Sports. (3)
Thailand plans to generate some 3.5 trillion baht ($98.6 billion) in tourism revenue in 2024, with 2.5 trillion baht from international tourists and 1 trillion baht from Thai tourists. (4)
Within Southeast Asia, Bangkok saw the biggest year-on-year growth in international arrivals at 142% in 2023. (5)
It is no wonder that Bangkok and ICONSIAM have been featured in many Top Ten best global countdowns. But this year the hope is that it will be listed among the top five best countdowns in the world.
A whopping US$8.5 million was spent preparing for this extravaganza to ring in 2024. Festivities included over 2,000 drones and a record-breaking spectacle of 50,000 eco-friendly fireworks.
Directed by world-renowned pyrotechnic director Okujyo Yoshimasa, who won the 2023 Shinmei Fireworks Competition in Yamagata, Japan, the fireworks lasted over 10 minutes and lit up the night sky along 1.4 kilometers of the river.
“I saw on the internet that this was probably the biggest (fireworks display) in Thailand,” said Charat Chinwarataphat, sound designer. “That’s why I came here to see the fireworks — to enjoy with my family and friends.”
Being a part of Amazing Thailand Countdown 2024, ICONSIAM is a designated national countdown destination that maintains a uniquely Thai flavor which it brought to the celebrations.
What makes the Amazing Thailand Countdown 2024 particularly noteworthy is the collaboration between both private and public sectors.
“The Amazing Thailand Countdown 2024 is a broad-based collaboration between the public and private sectors,” says Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Kiatphaibool. “It’s a team effort to draw the attention of the world to one of the most exciting countdown events and also helps to generate long-term benefits for the economy.”
This year’s celebration is especially notable as it is the fifth anniversary of the opening of ICONSIAM.
ICONSIAM’s management has also set an ambitious goal to increase the number of Thai and foreign tourists to the Chao Phraya River area by more than 50% this year compared to 2019. (6)
The celebrations at ICONSIAM started the year on a high. Not only does it secure the lifestyle destination’s title as the nation’s top countdown hub. It also signals a promising year to come in terms of tourism-dollars for the whole country.
(1) https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/thailands-iconic-countdown-destination-iconsiam-readies-for-2024-riverside-extravaganza--vying-to-be-among-the-worlds-five-greatest-countdowns-302015314.html
(2) https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/tourism/40029935
(3) https://www.mots.go.th/mots_en
(4) https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/tourism/40033872
(5) https://www.euromonitor.com/press/press-releases/dec-2023/euromonitor-internationals-report-reveals-worlds-top-100-city-destinations-for-2023
(6) https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/pr/2660654/iconsiams-grand-5th-anniversary-extravaganza-lights-up-bangkoks-riverfront