Thailand foreign tourist arrivals top 15 million as China leads
The ministry said foreign tourists generated THB745.388 billion in spending, with China remaining the top source market in the cumulative tally.
- From January 1 to June 20, 2026, Thailand received over 15.4 million foreign tourists, who generated more than THB 745 billion in revenue.
- China was the leading source of tourists, accounting for over 2.5 million arrivals during this period.
- The top five source markets for tourists were China, followed by Malaysia, India, Russia, and South Korea.
- Recent holidays, such as the Dragon Boat Festival, contributed to a weekly increase in arrivals, particularly from China and Taiwan.
The Ministry of Tourism and Sports has updated the latest tourism situation for the period from Thursday (January 1, 2026) to Saturday (June 20, 2026).
It found that Thailand had welcomed a cumulative 15,447,571 foreign tourists, generating THB745.388 billion in foreign visitor spending.
The top five source markets for foreign tourists visiting Thailand were:
- China: 2,538,498 tourists
- Malaysia: 1,992,324 tourists
- India: 1,188,190 tourists
- Russia: 996,840 tourists
- South Korea: 576,404 tourists
Surasak Phancharoenworakul, Minister of Tourism and Sports, said preliminary assessments showed that from Thursday (January 1, 2026) to Saturday (June 20, 2026), Thailand had recorded a cumulative 15.45 million foreign tourists.
During the week from Sunday (June 14, 2026) to Saturday (June 20, 2026), the tourism sector was supported by consecutive holidays during the Dragon Boat Festival in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
This pushed cumulative Chinese tourist numbers to 2.54 million.
Chinese tourists also ranked first in arrivals this week, while Taiwanese tourist numbers expanded and moved up to fifth place this week from seventh in the previous week.
In addition, a midweek holiday in Malaysia led to a slight rise in Malaysian tourist numbers.
As a result, 508,133 foreign tourists travelled to Thailand this week, up 21,464 from the previous week, or an increase of 4.41%.
This represented an average of 72,590 foreign tourists per day.
By market group, the short-haul market recorded 373,263 tourists, up 3.37% from the previous week.
The long-haul market recorded 134,870 tourists, up 7.40% from the previous week.
The top five foreign tourist groups were Chinese tourists at 83,796, up 7.82% from the previous week; Malaysian tourists at 81,398, up 0.39%; Indian tourists at 43,633, down 7.82%; Singaporean tourists at 24,225, down 4.36%; and Taiwanese tourists at 21,043, up 18.23%.
For the following week, foreign tourist arrivals are expected to decline, as tourists from several markets are likely to pause after travelling this week, while the Indian market faces a challenge from reduced flight numbers.
