Cambodia’s international tourist arrivals fall by nearly half in first eight months of 2026

Global economic crisis, higher fuel prices and what Cambodia’s tourism ministry has described as domestic challenges have weighed heavily on the country’s visitor industry. The Kingdom received just over two million international arrivals in the first eight months of 2026, a decline of almost 50% from the same period a year earlier.

Figures released by the ministry on September 23 showed 2,252,698 foreign tourists arriving between January and August 2026. That was 44.4% lower than the 4.05 million recorded in the same eight-month span last year.

Arrivals from major markets all fell

The ministry’s data showed sharp drops across most of Cambodia’s important source markets:

• China: 588,051 arrivals, down 25.1%
• Vietnam: 585,711 arrivals, down 27.6%
• The United States: 129,876 arrivals, down 7.3%
• France: 79,946 arrivals, down 15.5%
• The United Kingdom: 77,913 arrivals, down 14.2%
• Indonesia: 65,487 arrivals, down 35.9%

Tourism workers face squeezed incomes

Khiev Thy, president of the Angkor Tourist Guides Association, said the fall in foreign arrivals has been severe. He noted that some guides were working close to 20 days a month last year, but this year many have managed only four or five days of work.

He added that the slowdown is putting intense pressure on people whose livelihoods depend on inbound travel, especially guides, drivers and small vendors who earn income from foreign visitors.

Visa exemption aimed at Chinese travelers

To help draw more tourists from China, the Cambodian government has introduced a visa exemption for all Chinese passport holders. The policy applies whether travelers come directly from China or enter Cambodia from another country.

Under the measure, Chinese citizens may stay for up to 14 days during a four-month implementation period running from June 15 to October 15, 2026, and the arrangement allows multiple entries.

Angkor ticket sales decline

Angkor Enterprise reported that 474,993 tickets to the Angkor Archaeological Park were sold during the first eight months of 2026. That was a 29.07% decrease from the same period last year. Ticket revenue reached $22.54 million, down 27.43%.

Growth forecast lowered

The Asian Development Bank also revised its 2026 growth forecast for Cambodia to 3.9%, down from the 4.1% it had projected in July. The bank cited weaker-than-expected performance in tourism as the main reason for the downgrade.