The Songkhla tourism industry has cried foul over the government's new entry regime that restricts land arrivals from two key source markets, Singapore and Indonesia.
The Tourism Council of Songkhla (TCS) has expressed concerns over the possible drop in arrivals from the two countries, especially during the Songkran holiday next month.
"There is a likelihood many repeat visitors from those markets will shy away simply because of the inconvenience in getting visas," said TCS president Surapol Kamparanonwat.
He was referring to an Interior Ministry announcement effective on Dec 31, 2016 that tourist visa exemptions for Singaporean and Indonesian nationals will be limited to two entries at land borders in one calendar year, each for a 30-day stay.
That means a third land entry in a calendar year by these nationals requires a visa from Thai diplomatic missions. The ruling, which affects nationals from more than 40 countries, does not apply to arrivals by air.
Mr Surapol said the rule would affect the tourism industry in Songkhla, which includes the bustling city of Hat Yai, the top southern destination among cross-border tourists from Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia.
The council has not quantified the impact of the rule on repeat tourism from the two countries, but he said the outlook does not look good for the Songkran celebration, which is typically high season for the southern province.
Panu Woramit, director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand's (TAT) office for Songkhla and Satun, echoed the private sector's concern about the rule.
There are more than 100,000 tourists from Singapore and Indonesia arriving through land borders in southern Thailand each year, and many of them are repeat visitors, he said.
However, the visa rule does not apply to Malaysian tourist arrivals by land, the top source market for southern Thailand. But there has been slowdown because of the heavily weakened ringgit against the baht, making even short trips pricey for Malaysian tourists.
The TAT estimated Malaysian arrivals to Hat Yai had dropped by 10% year-on-year in January this year while the average length of stay dipped from two nights to just one. Travel spending also fell to about 2,000 baht per head per day.
Mr Surapol said the TCS has asked authorities to ease the rule to sustain land arrivals from Singapore and Indonesia to make up for the drop in Malaysian entries, but there has been no response.
Hat Yai attracts nearly 4 million foreign visitors a year through all modes of transport with about the same number of local tourists, said the TAT.