Thai Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said the additional holidays in 2025 will all fall on Mondays. Specifically, the additional day is June 2, 2025, right before the Queen's birthday on June 3. Mother's Day on August 12 will be added on Monday, August 11, 2025. From then on, Thai workers will have two more weekends of up to four days.
Another holiday is added, Friday, January 2, 2026, extending the New Year holiday to five days, from December 31 to January 4, 2026.
Thai workers will have a total of 21 public holidays and New Year holidays in 2025, according to the Bangkok Post.
Tourism-dependent Thailand has approved additional public holidays to help the tourism industry recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The tourism industry accounts for about 12% of the country's gross domestic product and nearly 20% of the country's jobs.
The declaration of additional holidays also fits with a move by Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra's administration to designate next year as a tourism and sports-focused year, according to government spokesman Sasikan Wattanachan.
Since the beginning of the year, Thailand has welcomed about 30 million tourists, on track to reach the government's annual target of 36.7 million international arrivals.
In 2019, Thailand welcomed a record number of international visitors of nearly 40 million, earning 60 billion USD. However, the country's tourism industry suffered heavy losses during the pandemic.
