With the introduction of the e-ticket system in July, Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife, and Plant Conservation has earned around million baht per day in entry fees charged to tourists visiting the Phi-Phi islands.
Rakchanok Paenoi, chief of Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi-Phi National Park, stated that revenue from entry fees from e-ticket sales has jumped by 20-30% to an average of one million baht per day, for a total of 137 million baht since the e-ticketing system was implemented. Every day, over 4,000 tourists visit the islands.
She claims that the number of visitors in April alone has climbed 2-3 times over last year, with the majority of people coming from Russia and Europe, and she expects even more during the Songkran holiday next week.
She did agree that there is a problem because park staff are unable to check the e-tickets of some guests due to a bad telephone signal, which needs to be remedied immediately.
She also stated that due to the poor telephone service, the e-tickets cannot be utilized by travelers who wish to continue their journey to other islands such as Ko Phai and Phi-Phi Don.
Atthaphon Charoenchansa, the department chief, stated that they will strive to encourage the use of e-tickets to cover entry fees to all national parks within two years.
He stated that the ecosystem and biological system of various islands had improved after the closure of the Hat Noppharat Thara Mu Ko Phi-Phi National Park for roughly two years during the COVID-19 epidemic, citing the case of Maya Bay, where several black-tipped coral sharks have returned.
