A robust rebound in domestic travel, China’s re-emergence as a key source market, and major infrastructure developments such as Phnom Penh’s Techo International Airport were among the brighter spots for Cambodia’s tourism sector in 2025 – a year that was also shaped by significant headwinds, including geopolitical tensions with Thailand.
Official statistics show that Cambodia welcomed 5.17 million international visitors in the first 11 months of 2025, representing a 13.8% YoY decline. While international arrivals softened, the sector found support from domestic travel, which surged 64.7% between May and October – traditionally the country’s low season due to monsoon rains.
Figures released by the Ministry of Tourism showed a 45.6% YoY increase in arrivals from China between January and August 2025. This resurgence helped offset softer arrivals from Thailand, which had been Cambodia’s largest source market in 2024 with over 1.3 million visitors, before being impacted by last year’s border tensions.
The uptick in domestic travel could be credited to the government-backed Visit Cambodia in the Green Season campaign piloted last year, representing a concerted national effort to reposition the monsoon months as a time to experience the country at its most verdant and least crowded.
A Cambodia beyond Angkor
Tourism may have peaked in 2018, when it accounted for 12.7% of Cambodia’s GDP, but 2024 delivered a strong signal of recovery, with international arrivals reaching a record 6.7 million – an indication that the sector is well on its recovery from the pandemic.
Beyond rebranding the monsoon season and strengthening bilateral ties, Cambodia’s tourism strategy appears to include courting India’s fast-growing, multi-generational travel class, known for its rising spending power and appetite for experiential travel.
For Lao Chheuy, founder and owner of Cambodia Overland Travel, optimism stems from consistency rather than reinvention. “Cambodia’s core appeal hasn’t changed, and that’s exactly why I’m hopeful for 2026,” he says.
Last year, Chheuy’s company guides led 10 to 15 tours daily, including around the Angkor temple complex – although Cambodia definitely still has lots to offer.
“[Cambodia] is still safe, welcoming, and full of experiences beyond the main highlights. I’m also seeing growing interest in community-based and nature travel, including places like the Mekong River islands, the Cardamom Mountains, Tonlé Sap’s landscapes and our beautiful islands and beaches, countryside cycling, and national parks.
“With better flight connections and more creators and media coverage [on] the ‘Cambodia beyond Angkor’ story, I think confidence will keep building.”