"This is a different story to the situation last year when many Chinese tourists visited our country by car," Pakaimass said. "Gratae Pawantree, a Chiang Mai resident, said there were still a lot of Chinese tourists in the province. "Now the tourist |industry in Chiang Khong, which relies heavily on Chinese tourists, has already been affected and some businesses have already closed down. tourismSTRICT REGULATIONS to regulate Chinese tourists entering Thailand by road resulted in no vehicle entries one month after their implementation, said Pakaimass Viara, Chiang Rai Chamber of Commerce deputy chief.News of the finding came as Chiang Mai residents welcomed stricter |controls of Chinese tourists' transport to improve road safety.The road entry point into Thailand for most Chinese tourists is R3A Highway through Laos.Pakaimass attributed the drop off to regulations making the road journey to Thailand too expensive for many people. "From what I have asked the tourism business owners that arrange road tours from China, I found that tourists still want to travel to Thailand by their own car.

Source: The Nation Bangkok July 25, 2016 16:52 UTC