2025
Latest figure
32.97 million
international tourist arrivals
How Many People Visit Thailand Every Year? Latest Tourism Statistics
How many people actually visit Thailand every year?
It’s undeniable that Thailand is busy. Bangkok is a metropolis of vibrant activity. Phuket is a haven for numerous expats and Pattaya, well don’t even go there, literally. It’s easy to say that Thailand is busy when you think of all the people that go to live, work and travel there but just how busy is it when you look at the numbers?
Thailand recorded about 32.97 million international tourist arrivals in 2025. That was down from about 35.55 million in 2024, and still below the pre-COVID peak of nearly 40 million arrivals in 2019.
It’s incredibly important to understand the word “arrivals”. Tourism data normally counts entries into the country and because of this they are not guaranteed unique individual people. The World Bank international tourism arrivals dataset uses that standard arrivals measure, sourced from UN Tourism.
For this article, the latest full-year figures were checked against Thailand's 2025 tourism performance report from Thailand PRD / Ministry of Tourism and Sports, the Tourism Authority of Thailand, the Bank of Thailand tourism indicators and the World Bank / UN Tourism arrivals series.
International tourism
Thailand’s international tourist arrivals
A comparison of Thailand’s reported international tourist arrivals in 2019, 2024 and 2025.
2024
35.55 million
international tourist arrivals
2019
Pre-COVID peak
39.80 million
international tourist arrivals
What will we cover in this article?
Thailand visitor numbers by year, from 2015 to 2025.
The difference between arrivals and unique people.
The COVID collapse and recovery pattern.
Top source markets and monthly 2025 arrivals.
Tourism revenue, domestic travel and the 2026 forecast.
“visitors” does not always mean unique people
This is incredibly important to maintain accuracy and it’s something that other articles sometimes get wrong. When people say “35 million people visited Thailand”, they usually mean 35 million international tourist arrivals.
It is the normal way tourism is reported. It just needs to be worded properly, especially if you are quoting the figure in another article.
Tourism statistics usually count arrivals, meaning entries into the country.
A repeat visitor can be counted more than once in the same year. For example, as of writing this I have entered Thailand twice in one year which means that I could be counted as two visitors.
Air arrivals, land borders and regional trips can all affect the final total.
Domestic Thai travel is a separate dataset and should not be mixed into international arrivals.
Thailand visitor numbers by year: 2015 to 2025
The figures below show the growth before COVID, the collapse in 2020 and 2021, the strong rebound and the softer 2025 result.
| Year | International tourist arrivals | Simple context |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 29.88 million | Growth period |
| 2016 | 32.59 million | Strong growth |
| 2017 | 35.38 million | Major tourism expansion |
| 2018 | 38.28 million | Near peak |
| 2019 | 39.80 million | Pre-COVID peak |
| 2020 | 6.70 million | COVID collapse |
| 2021 | 0.43 million | Very restricted travel year |
| 2022 | 11.15 million | Borders reopening |
| 2023 | 28.04 million | Strong rebound |
| 2024 | 35.55 million | Near pre-COVID recovery |
| 2025 | 32.97 million | Softer year |
Figures are rounded to two decimal places so the annual trend is easier to compare.
What was Thailand’s busiest tourism year?
Thailand’s busiest recent tourism year was 2019, when the country reached almost 40 million international tourist arrivals. That is why 2019 is still the benchmark for recovery comparisons.
A recovery year is not the same as a record year. To call a year a new record, the total needs to beat the 2019 level.
How did COVID change Thailand’s tourism numbers?
Before COVID, Thailand was on a clear growth run. International arrivals rose from just under 30 million in 2015 to almost 40 million in 2019.
Then the numbers fell hard. Thailand recorded about 6.7 million international arrivals in 2020 and under half a million in 2021, depending on the official table being used. After that, travel returned quickly: about 11.15 million in 2022, more than 28 million in 2023 and about 35.55 million in 2024.
The 2025 total then dipped to about 32.97 million. That does not mean Thailand stopped being popular. It does mean the recovery line is not perfectly smooth.
Is Thailand back to pre-COVID tourism levels?
Not fully, based on annual international arrivals. Thailand has recovered strongly, but 2024 and 2025 were still below the 2019 peak.
Recovery benchmark
Thailand tourist arrivals compared with 2019
This section uses 2019 as the benchmark year. It shows that both 2024 and 2025 remained below the pre-COVID peak.
Benchmark year
2019
Pre-COVID peak
Arrivals
39.80 million
Highest figure in this comparison
2019
Pre-COVID peak
39.80 million
Benchmark = 100%
2024
Still below 2019
35.55 million
89.3% of 2019
4.25 million fewer arrivals than 2019
2025
Further below 2019
32.97 million
82.8% of 2019
6.83 million fewer arrivals than 2019
| Year | Arrivals | Compared with 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 39.80 million | Pre-COVID peak |
| 2024 | 35.55 million | Still below 2019 |
| 2025 | 32.97 million | Further below 2019 |
Key point: 2024 came closer to the 2019 peak than 2025 did, but neither year fully matched the pre-COVID level.
Which countries send the most tourists to Thailand?
For 2025, the leading source markets in the public government report were Malaysia, China, India, Russia and the Republic of Korea. The full 2025 source-market figures below come from the Thailand PRD report citing the Ministry of Tourism and Sports.
Top five source markets
Malaysia recorded the highest number of arrivals, narrowly ahead of China. India and Russia were the only markets in the top five to grow compared with 2024.
Increase from 2024
Decrease from 2024
-
1Malaysia Largest source market4,520,856 2025 arrivals8.71%
-
2China Second-largest source market4,473,992 2025 arrivals33.55%
-
3India Third-largest source market2,487,319 2025 arrivals16.82%
-
4Russia Fourth-largest source market1,898,837 2025 arrivals8.00%
-
5Republic of Korea Fifth-largest source market1,555,227 2025 arrivals16.79%
Key point: Malaysia and China supplied similar numbers of visitors, but China recorded the largest year-on-year fall among the five markets shown.
How many people visit Thailand each month?
Monthly arrivals move around a lot. The Bank of Thailand tourism indicators list foreign tourists visiting Thailand in thousands and cite the Economic Tourism and Sports Division, Ministry of Tourism and Sports as the source.
2025 monthly breakdown
January recorded the highest number of international arrivals, while September recorded the lowest. Visitor numbers then strengthened during the final three months of the year.
Month
International arrivals
-
January Strongest3,709,100 3.71 million
-
February3,119,450 3.12 million
-
March2,720,460 2.72 million
-
April2,547,120 2.55 million
-
May2,266,570 2.27 million
-
June2,322,770 2.32 million
-
July2,610,370 2.61 million
-
August2,583,640 2.58 million
-
September Softest2,235,850 2.24 million
-
October2,573,740 2.57 million
-
November2,914,810 2.91 million
-
December3,370,440 3.37 million
View the exact monthly data table
| Month | International arrivals, 2025 | Rounded figure |
|---|---|---|
| January | 3,709,100 | 3.71 million |
| February | 3,119,450 | 3.12 million |
| March | 2,720,460 | 2.72 million |
| April | 2,547,120 | 2.55 million |
| May | 2,266,570 | 2.27 million |
| June | 2,322,770 | 2.32 million |
| July | 2,610,370 | 2.61 million |
| August | 2,583,640 | 2.58 million |
| September | 2,235,850 | 2.24 million |
| October | 2,573,740 | 2.57 million |
| November | 2,914,810 | 2.91 million |
| December | 3,370,440 | 3.37 million |
Seasonal context: December and January often benefit from Thailand’s main cool and dry-season travel window.
Does domestic tourism count in these figures?
No. International tourist arrivals count foreign visitors entering Thailand. Domestic tourism counts Thai residents travelling inside Thailand.
Both matter economically, but they are not the same thing. In 2025, Thailand recorded about 32.97 million international arrivals and around 202.37 million domestic trips by Thai travellers, according to Thailand PRD / Ministry of Tourism and Sports. Those two numbers should be kept apart.
How much money does tourism bring into Thailand?
Visitor numbers are only one side of the story. Revenue is the other.
In 2025, Thailand generated about 2.70 trillion baht in total tourism revenue. International travellers generated about 1.54 trillion baht, while domestic tourism generated about 1.17 trillion baht, based on the 2025 government tourism performance report.
In 2025, 1.54 trillion baht in international tourism revenue divided by 32.97 million international arrivals produced an estimated average of approximately 46,709 baht per arrival, rounded to about 46,700 baht.
How the average is calculated
1,540,000,000,000 baht
32,970,000 arrivals
46,709 baht per arrival
The published benchmark is rounded to about 46,700 baht per arrival.
Which visitors generated the most tourism revenue in 2025?
Revenue by source market
China generated the most international tourism revenue among the five markets shown, at 249.88 billion baht.
-
1China Highest revenue249.88 billion baht
-
2Russia Second-highest revenue113.95 billion baht
-
3India Third-highest revenue93.86 billion baht
-
4Malaysia Fourth-highest revenue88.65 billion baht
-
5United Kingdom Fifth-highest revenue74.52 billion baht
Most arrivals
Malaysia
4,520,856 arrivals
Most revenue
China
249.88 billion baht
Key point: “Most arrivals” and “most money” are not necessarily the same measure. Malaysia recorded the most arrivals in the supplied 2025 figures, while China generated the most international tourism revenue.
View the exact revenue table
| Rank | Market | International tourism revenue, 2025 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | China | 249.88 billion baht |
| 2 | Russia | 113.95 billion baht |
| 3 | India | 93.86 billion baht |
| 4 | Malaysia | 88.65 billion baht |
| 5 | United Kingdom | 74.52 billion baht |
Why Thailand visitor numbers go up and down
There are countless reason why tourism numbers can be affected. A big year or a softer year usually comes from several things happening all at once.
Visa policy
Visa rules affect how easy Thailand feels to visit. TAT linked part of the 2024 recovery to measures such as visa exemption changes and smoother border processes. As of writing this they are currently offerening a 60 day visa on arrival (for certain passport holders) but with talks of dropping it to 30 days again. It will be interesting to see how this act will change tourism numbers.
Flight capacity
More routes and more seats usually make travel easier. TAT also linked the 2024 rebound to airline route resumptions, new routes and higher international seat capacity.
Safety and confidence
Travel confidence matters. If visitors are worried about safety, scams, regional uncertainty or costs, they may delay a trip or choose somewhere else.
Regional competition
Thailand competes with places such as Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and Japan for short-haul and long-haul trips.
Exchange rates and cost
Flights, hotel prices, the baht exchange rate and wider inflation all affect how expensive Thailand feels from different markets.
Thailand tourism forecast: what could happen next?
Forecasts are useful, but they are not final visitor numbers. The final annual total should always be checked after the year closes.
In June 2026, TAT said Thailand had welcomed more than 14 million international visitors as of 2 June 2026 and was working with an expectation of 33 million international arrivals for the year, alongside projected total tourism revenue of 2.65 trillion baht. That came from a TAT tourism update at TTM+ 2026.
Thailand is aiming for another year around the low-30-million range, but the confirmed result will depend on flights, travel confidence, visa conditions, regional demand and spending.
Thailand tourism statistics: key facts
The main figures and context from Thailand’s 2025 international tourism data.
The COVID-era collapse
International arrivals fell sharply in 2020 and 2021 during COVID restrictions.
Arrivals are not necessarily unique people
The official figure counts arrivals, not guaranteed unique individuals.
Domestic tourism is measured separately
Domestic tourism and international arrivals are separate datasets and should not be combined.
Top five source markets
Malaysia, China, India, Russia and the Republic of Korea were the top five source markets in 2025.
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