Thailand welcomes 9.17m foreign visitors Jan 1-Mar 29, down 2.29% year on year
The Tourism and Sports Ministry says Thailand recorded 9,174,586 foreign arrivals from January 1 to March 29, 2026, down 2.29% year on year, generating an estimated 446.8bn baht in visitor spending.
Thailand recorded 9,174,586 foreign tourist arrivals between January 1 and March 29, 2026, a decline of 2.29% year on year, according to the Ministry of Tourism and Sports. The ministry estimated foreign visitor spending over the period at around 446,765 million baht.
Top five source markets (Jan 1-Mar 29, 2026)
- China — 1,468,333
- Malaysia — 947,123
- Russia — 714,424
- India — 614,016
- South Korea — 409,331
Natreeya Taweewong, permanent secretary of the ministry, said that in the past week (March 23-29, 2026) travel demand eased as short-haul markets wound down after the Eid al-Fitr holiday period, while long-haul travel also moved into the tail end of the season. She noted, however, that long-haul demand has shown signs of improving as some travellers adjust to more direct flight routings from Europe to Thailand.
For the week, Thailand recorded 630,102 foreign arrivals, down 45,305 from the previous week, or 6.71%, averaging 90,014 arrivals per day.
Top five weekly arrivals (March 23-29, 2026)
- Malaysia: 92,685 (down 13.77% week on week)
- China: 90,583 (down 4.99%)
- India: 47,679 (down 1.80%)
- Russia: 45,945 (down 4.93%)
- United Kingdom: 29,683 (up 21.27%)
Looking ahead, Natreeya said arrivals next week are expected to be broadly steady, supported by measures aimed at encouraging Chinese tourists, safety-image initiatives under “Trusted Thailand”, and government ease-of-travel measures to improve convenience for visitors. She cited the waiver of the TM.6 arrival/departure card, as well as efforts to encourage airlines to add more flights to Thailand.
