On Tuesday, Thailand’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports revised its 2025 tourism income projection downward to 3 trillion THB ($90.3 billion), marking a decrease from the earlier estimate of 3.5 trillion THB due to various domestic and international influences.
The updated forecast reflects a return to pre-Covid levels, comprising 2 trillion THB from international tourists and 1 trillion THB from domestic travelers.
Nattareeya Thaweewong, the permanent secretary at the ministry, stated that they have asked the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) to update their promotional strategy for H2 2025. This decision comes amid various considerations like worries about tourist security and seismic activity, along with outside pressures such as former U.S. President Donald Trump’s retaliatory trade duties.
She further mentioned that both the ministry and the TAT aim to complete the updated marketing strategy by May. They believe this method will likely prove more effective compared to organizing a workshop, as assembling all pertinent parties simultaneously can be cumbersome. Additionally, the TAT’s primary performance metrics will be modified to concentrate more directly on tourist numbers and revenue from tourism activities.
She stated that the TAT needs to realign its goals to focus more on luring higher-spending visitors, especially individuals from the Middle East who frequently come to Thailand with their families for medical tourism purposes.
Potential visitors from countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, along with various European nations where travel to the United States is less common, should be motivated to choose Thailand as their destination—especially guests from Spain, Germany, Sweden, the UK, alongside those from Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
Nattareeya mentioned that the TAT plans to cut costs associated with events in underperforming markets to guarantee a more effective distribution of resources.
Thailand, which has the region\’s second-largest economy, anticipates welcoming between 38 and 39 million international visitors this year.