Over 3,200 new hotel keys expected to launch in Bangkok by end-2025

The total new supply is on track to reach over 5,100 keys for the year.

According to a Knight Frank report, Bangkok enters the second half of 2025 amid mixed signals in its tourism and hospitality market. Following a subdued first half—marked by a 3.7 percentage point drop in hotel occupancy to 75.1% and only modest ADR growth to THB 4,260—attention is shifting to how the market will absorb the 3,283 new hotel keys expected to launch before year-end.

This will bring total new supply for 2025 to over 5,100 keys, representing the fastest annual growth since the pandemic.

Here’s more from Knight Frank:

A significant drag on performance has been the sharp decline in Chinese tourist arrivals, down nearly 35% year-on-year in 1H 2025. While China remains Thailand’s top source market by volume, this slowdown has disproportionately impacted Bangkok’s midscale and group-tour-focused hotels.

Notably, Chinese outbound travel remains strong globally: Vietnam welcomed 2.7 million Chinese visitors and Japan 3.13 million in just the first few months of the year. This points not to a lack of outbound demand, but to a relative loss in Thailand’s competitiveness, driven by safety perceptions, negative media narratives, and shifting traveller preferences.

While visa exemption policies and improved regional flight connectivity continue to support tourism, the government has begun introducing domestic stimulus measures, such as the Co-Pay Thai Travel subsidies, the “Half-Price Thailand Travel” campaign, and new tax incentives, to bolster domestic travel, especially during low-season periods.

The second half of the year will depend more on market-driven recovery and incremental airline capacity increases. Growth from India (+14.6%) and Russia (+11.1%) remains a bright spot, alongside moderate momentum from ASEAN markets, but these gains are not yet sufficient to offset the steep declines from China and South Korea.

Against this backdrop, RevPAR growth in 2H 2025 is expected to be volume-driven, relying on strong occupancy during peak months such as November and December, buoyed by year-end holidays and MICE demand. However, ADR pressure is likely to persist, particularly in the mid-tier segment, where intensified competition from new entrants will challenge pricing power. Rate performance will hinge increasingly on brand equity, effective distribution strategies, and prime locations.

The luxury segment should remain comparatively stable, supported by resilient demand from long-haul travellers and high-income regional visitors. That said, rate growth is expected to be modest, with greater competition among top-tier properties. Bangkok’s price advantage relative to regional hubs such as Singapore, Hong Kong, and Tokyo could help sustain interest from experience-driven travellers seeking high value at competitive rates.