Cambodia received approximately 2.46 million international tourists between January and September 2026, a 43.7% decline compared to 4.37 million during the same period in 2025, representing a loss of about 1.9 million visitors in the first nine months of 2026.
Key Source Markets See Declines
Vietnam replaced China as Cambodia’s top source of international tourists in January to September 2026, with 651,486 visitors compared to China’s 643,314, a narrow margin of 8,172 tourists. Tourist numbers from Vietnam decreased by 28%, while China experienced a 27.6% decline. The United States ranked third, providing 140,276 tourists with a 5.6% drop from the previous year.
Quarterly and Monthly Tourist Arrivals
Cambodia’s international arrivals
declined steadily across the quarters of 2026. The first quarter registered a 44.8% drop with about 1.04 million tourists. April saw a 48.3% decrease with approximately 292,000 arrivals. The third quarter experienced a 29.7% reduction totaling 712,000 tourists. Monthly figures show 246,000 in July, 255,000 in August, and 211,000 in September, the latter representing a 35.4% fall compared to September 2025.
Impact of Thai Border Closure and Revenue Losses
The most significant decline was among tourists from Thailand, plummeting 94.7% from 978,826 in January-September 2025 to 52,114 in the same period of 2026. The prolonged border closure and unresolved tensions between Cambodia and Thailand have severely affected land-based
tourism. The Asian Development Bank highlighted the worsening economic outlook for Cambodia linked to these geopolitical issues. Although air tourism increased, it did not offset the heavy losses from land arrivals.
Tourism revenue is also affected. Angkor Archaeological Park, Cambodia’s primary cultural attraction in Siem Reap Province, recorded 510,528 foreign ticket holders from January to September 2026, a 27.61% decrease. Ticket sales revenues dropped by 25.9% to just over US$24.2 million, impacting the local economy dependent on hotel bookings, tours, transport, and restaurants.
Domestic Tourism Growth and Official Explanations
Domestic tourism visits rose by 46% in the first nine months of 2026, reaching about 27.2 million
visits, according to official statistics. However, domestic tourists typically spend less than international visitors, limiting the offset to revenue losses from abroad.
According to Cambodia’s Minister of Tourism, Huot Hak, the tourism downturn results primarily from the border closure with Thailand, adverse media coverage about internet scamming networks linked to human trafficking and forced labor, and increased travel expenses due to ongoing global conflicts. These factors have negatively influenced traveler confidence, affecting hotel occupancy, local businesses, and transport services.
Government Initiatives and Regional Context
The Ministry of Tourism is promoting collaboration between public and private sectors and encouraging tourism diversification beyond Siem Reap. Efforts focus
on coastal areas such as Koh Rong, the Mekong region, and northeastern Cambodia to attract visitors seeking nature, culture, and community-based travel experiences. Challenges include improving transport reliability and service quality to support these destinations.
By contrast, Vietnam recorded approximately 17.68 million international tourists in the same nine-month period of 2026, marking a 14.5% increase and underscoring uneven tourism recovery across Southeast Asia.
Outlook for Recovery
The recovery of Cambodia’s international tourism depends significantly on reopening land borders with Thailand, ongoing efforts to combat criminal networks affecting security, establishing new air connections, and enhancing safety and service quality. Data from January to September
2026 signals persistent challenges that require addressing to improve tourist numbers and revenue in the remainder of the year.
