BANGKOK, THAILAND – Thailand welcomed 6,541,710 foreign visitors in the first two months of 2026, a 4.2 percent year-on-year decline, even as February arrivals picked up sharply led by China.
Slow start to the year for arrivals
The Tourism and Sports Ministry reported 6,541,710 international arrivals between 1 January and 28 February. This represented a 4.2 percent drop compared with the same period a year earlier.
Despite the setback at the start of the year, the ministry’s data indicated that performance varied within the period. February figures contrasted with the overall decline, pointing to a short-term improvement.
Revenues hold up despite fewer visitors
Cumulative revenue from international markets was put at 322.595 billion baht for the first two months. According to the ministry, this was only 0.6 percent below the level recorded in the corresponding period of the previous year.
The relatively small decline in earnings suggested that spending per visitor remained resilient. This hinted at a degree of stability in tourism income even as headline arrival numbers softened.
China leads as New Year drives peak traffic
China remained the largest source market with 1,078,089 visitors during the first two months of 2026. The ministry’s statistics showed that Chinese New Year in February provided an additional boost.
Daily arrivals from China climbed to around 30,000 during the holiday peak, before settling back to about 14,000 per day by 28 February. This pattern underlined the impact of festival periods on Thailand’s tourism flows.
Top five source markets unchanged
The ranking of the five leading source markets stayed the same over the two-month period: China, Malaysia, Russia, India and South Korea. According to the ministry, Malaysia contributed 616,835 visitors, Russia 504,756, India 417,114 and South Korea 312,689.
These figures showed that regional markets continued to anchor Thailand’s inbound tourism. The stability of the top five list pointed to consistent demand from neighbouring and near-haul countries.
Germany passes 200,000 in long-haul segment
The ministry stated that long-haul markets such as the United Kingdom, Germany, France and the United States showed “solid momentum” during the high season in the first two months. Arrivals from Germany reached 235,158, from the UK 242,711, from France 234,158 and from the US 221,722.
“Long-haul markets showed solid momentum in the high season of the first two months, including the United Kingdom, Germany, France and the United States.”
said the Tourism and Sports Ministry.
The data placed Germany above the 200,000 mark in this period, alongside other key European and North American markets. This underscored the role of long-distance travellers in supporting revenue levels.
February returns to growth with reshuffled top 10
In February 2026 alone, Thailand recorded 3,263,802 foreign arrivals, a 4.63 percent increase compared with February of the previous year. This monthly gain contrasted with the cumulative decline over the first two months.
The top 10 source markets in February were China (677,768), Malaysia (313,506), Russia (231,797), India (185,930) and South Korea (144,467). They were followed by France (120,047), Germany (119,458), Japan (116,776), the UK (114,136) and Taiwan (112,599).
The figures illustrated how strongly tourism depended on individual markets and on holiday effects such as Chinese New Year. They also raised questions about whether short-term dips in arrivals would give way to a trend of more stable revenues despite fluctuating visitor numbers.