Hotel bookings in 2025 were more volatile than expected, primarily due to a notable slowdown in Chinese outbound travel, which reduced group tours and mid-scale hotel demand, particularly in Bangkok and traditional mass-market destinations. The decline in bookings was partially offset by stronger inflow of travellers from newer markets like India, Russia, and Europe, resulting in a more diversified but less predictable demand mix.
Meanwhile, domestic tourism played a critical but stabilising role, supported by government incentives and resilient local travel demand. Domestic trips helped sustain occupancy in secondary and leisure destinations, although stays were typically shorter and more price-sensitive than the international segment.
Top-tier destinations dominate tourism activity:
Bangkok remained the primary gateway and revenue generator, though occupancy growth softened due to reduced group travel.
Phuket, Koh Samui, and Krabi outperformed city markets, benefiting from long-haul leisure demand and higher-spending travellers.
Pattaya/Chonburi and Chiang Mai showed balanced performance, supported by both domestic and international demand.
TREND HIGHLIGHTS in 2025 vs. 2024
In 2025, Thailand recorded approximately 32.9 million to 33 million foreign tourist arrivals. This marked a 7.2% to 7.25% decrease compared to 2024, representing the first annual decline in international arrivals in a decade, excluding the COVID-19 pandemic years
Chinese Market Contraction: A significant trend in 2025 was the slow recovery of Chinese tourists, with arrivals projected to fall by as much as 33% compared to previous expectations.
Rise of India and Russia: Bookings from India (+16%) and Russia (+11%) emerged as major growth drivers, offsetting some of the losses from short-haul markets.
Secondary Destination Growth: Government initiatives like the "Amazing Thailand Grand Tourism Year 2025" successfully pushed bookings toward secondary cities (e.g., Nan, Phrae) to alleviate overcrowding in major hubs like Bangkok and Phuket.
Domestic Stimulus: Programs such as the "Half-Price Thailand Travel" scheme provided a critical boost for hotels during low-season periods by encouraging domestic trips
HOTELIERS GURU - BOOKINGS OVERVIEW:
Although the marketing dynamics and demographic profile of travelers in 2025 changed when compared to the year earlier, Hoteliers Guru platforms generated just under 16 billion baht in hotel booking value. On a year on year basis, this represented a robust 39% jump over 2024 with Channel Manager & Booking Engine producing 6 million room nights from a total of 2 million hotel bookings.
The headline booking performer in 2025, were Booking.com and Agoda, which remained the dominant OTA’s capturing 60% + of the collective market share. Meanwhile, a key shift from 2024 was the continued growth in direct bookings through hotel websites, driven by AI-powered search and the increasing use of AI concierge agents.
TOP TIER RANKINGS
Booking.com remains the top revenue producer. The platform captured 44% of the combined booking value with 2.2 million room nights and 600,000+ bookings. Booking dot Com generated high-volume bookings from travelers in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Russia, and the Netherlands. Booking.com is also the preferred OTA for Thai travelers booking local stays, second only to direct bookings in some segments. Strong brand visibility and global reach keep it central to 2025 hotel distribution, especially for long-haul and Western source markets.
Meanwhile, sister brand Agoda - dominates the East Asian and ASEAN markets coming in second position, capturing 20% of the total booking value. Agoda contributed approx. 1.6 million room nights in total and actually generated slightly more bookings than Booking dot Com. Agoda remains popular with travelers from China, Malaysia, South Korea, and Singapore. It consistently ranked Bangkok as the most revisited destination in Asia in H1 2025 based on its data.
Taking third place was the Expedia Group which continues to be a major OTA platform contributing 12% of the total booking value. Expedia generated booking demand for Thailand’s key tourism destinations, like Bangkok, Phuket, Koh Samui and other high-demand markets. Expedia’s role is enhanced through a three-year strategic partnership with the Tourism Authority of Thailand, aimed at increasing tourism demand, especially from high-value international segments, and supporting sustainable growth efforts.
Trip.com: Saw substantial growth, climbing the rankings due to the strong resurgence of outbound Chinese tourism to Thailand.
Hotel Websites (Direct Bookings): Direct hotel books showed significant growth, contributing up to 10% of total hotel booking value and solidifying its rank as one of the important booking sources for many Thai hotels in 2025. This channel's rise began in 2024 as hotels incentivized direct bookings with perks to avoid OTA commissions and renewed government direct hotel booking incentives.
Others: Niche and regional platforms like Hotelbeds, Traveloka, Goibibo & MakeMyTrip contributed favorably to Thailand hotel bookings with a collective total representing 10% of the total booking value, and 700,000 room nights produced, especially from South and Southeast Asian markets, reflecting diversified source markets in 2025 relative to 2024.
SUMMARY:
In 2026, Thailand’s tourism strategy has officially shifted from pursuing record-breaking visitor numbers to a "Value over Volume" model. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is targeting a total revenue of 3 trillion baht, supported by an expected 36.7 million international arrivals. This approach prioritizes high-spending travelers and longer stays over mass-market tourism to ensure more sustainable economic growth.
The 2026 roadmap, known as the "Amazing 5 Economy," focuses on premium niches such as wellness, medical tourism, and the "night economy." Global outreach is being led by superstar Lalisa "Lisa" Manobal, the official Amazing Thailand Ambassador, whose 2026 campaign aims to boost confidence in the brand. Additionally, there is a heavy push for "Hidden Gems" in secondary provinces to spread tourism wealth beyond popular hubs like Bangkok and Phuket.
While the outlook is optimistic, the industry faces headwinds from increased travel costs, including new aviation fees and departure taxes introduced in early 2026. To reach its goals, Thailand is heavily leveraging digital platforms and AI to streamline the visitor experience while competing with regional neighbors like Vietnam and Malaysia for a share of the global luxury market.
