Thailand's tourism industry grapples with the aftermath of the kidnapping of Chinese movie stars

An increasing number of Chinese people are canceling their trip to Thailand after Chinese actor Wang Xing (actual name Shin Xing, 31) was kidnapped by a human trafficking organization in Thailand.

The Thai government is struggling to come up with measures ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday, China's biggest tourist peak.

According to the Hong Kong daily South China Morning Post (SCMP), more than 380,000 posts were searched after searching for "How to cancel a trip to Thailand" on Xiao Hongshu, a Chinese version of Instagram.

In addition, questions such as "Is Chiang Mai safe" and "How can I persuade a travel agency to refund me when I want to cancel my trip to Thailand?" are reportedly pouring into various social media in China.

Shanghai offline store manager at China's largest online travel agency Ctrip also explained that bookings to Thailand have been reduced due to the Wang Xing kidnapping.

The Thai travel industry predicted that the incident would reduce the number of Chinese tourists visiting Thailand during the Lunar New Year holiday by 10-20%.

Wang Xing went missing on the Thai-Myanmar border on the 4th, was found in Myanmar three days later, and returned to China via Thailand.

Wang Xing, who appeared in the movie "Yupmun 3" and the drama "The Magical Test" (The Story of the Rose), arrived in Thailand after being offered a drama cast and was taken to Miyawadi, Myanmar, near the border.

Wang Xing, who was found shaven and haggard, told Thai police he had been kidnapped by a Chinese criminal gang and had been trained in fraud targeting Chinese people.

In response, Thai Prime Minister Patton Shinawatra came forward and ordered a quick investigation.

According to Thailand's Ministry of Tourism and Sports, 35.5 million foreign tourists visited Thailand last year, with 6.73 million Chinese.

Miyawadi, where Wang Xing was taken, is notorious for being a base for criminal organizations that often engage in voice phishing and online fraud.

According to China's state-run CCTV, Chinese authorities estimated that up to 100,000 people in Miyawadi alone were involved in scams using phones or the Internet in 2023.