Tourism industry leaders warn that Thailand is facing the risk of falling from the "top destination" group to just "one of many options" in the region.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin pledged strong support from the government and timely response, according to Nation Thailand.
A delegation of five major tourism associations met with Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul this week to present emergency recovery measures for Thailand's tourism industry in 2025, amid signs of decline in the region.
Many Asian and ASEAN markets are seeing a decrease in the number of overseas visitors, and the number of international visitors to Thailand may decrease by about 7% next year compared to 2024.
The delegation - including the Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT), the Association of Thai Tourism Agents (ATTA), the Association of Thai Travel agencies (TTAA), the Thai Hotel Association (THA) and the Thai Aviation Association (AAT) - proposed emergency measures for 3 months, focusing on improving safety, restoring confidence and dealing with negative waves on social networks.
The main proposals include: Global safety campaign to rebuild trust; Increase domestic and international airfares; Proactive tax measures to stimulate tourism and communication to prevent damage to image.
In the medium and long term, the private sector urges the National Tourism Policy Committee to deploy 6 groups of tasks: Reforming tourism laws; Enhancing national service standards; Improving infrastructure, especially in level 2 localities; Promoting investment in new, world-class tourism products; Building new and attractive brand recognition for Thailand and increasing competitiveness through sustainable development.
Associations warn that if the government fails to act promptly, Thailand is at serious risk of being downgraded from a top destination to one choice among many destinations.
Prime Minister Anutin reassured that tourism is a top priority for the government of this country.
He said that his recent visit to China has opened up many new opportunities through the government-government dialogue (G2G), creating conditions for the private sector to negotiate to expand the flow of visitors between China and Thailand.
He added that if the Chinese Prime Minister visits Thailand to continue bilateral negotiations, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) could propose a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to strengthen long-term cooperation and develop sustainable tourism between the two countries.
Thailand welcomed 28,277,276 international visitors in the period from January 1 to November 16, 2025, according to the latest update from the country's Ministry of Tourism and Sports released on November 18.
Although the number of visitors decreased by 7.18% compared to the same period last year, the tourism industry still earned about 1,308 trillion baht (more than 40.3 billion USD).
Thailand's top 5 international tourist markets include Malaysia, China, India, Russia and South Korea.
Strong growth in the short term recorded from nearby markets, especially Korea, increased by 15.98% compared to the previous week thanks to the winter vacation and peak tourist season. Korea has risen to 5th in the rankings from 8th place.
