Tourists visit the Grand Palace in Bangkok, Thailand, on Jan. 7, 2023. Photo by Reuters
Thailand’s cabinet has approved extra public holidays for next year and January 2026, declaring long-weekends to boost tourism and the overall economy.
Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said the extra holidays next year are both Mondays, June 2 and Aug. 11, with the Queen’s birthday holiday on June 3 and Mother’s Day on Aug. 12, creating a four-day weekend.
Another added holiday is Friday, Jan. 2, 2026, stretching the New Year break to five days, from Dec. 31 to Jan. 4 inclusive.
There will now be 21 public holidays in 2025.
Tourism-reliant Thailand has in recent years granted additional holidays to support the travel industry and aid recovery from the Covid pandemic. The tourism sector accounts for about 12% of Thailand’s gross domestic product and nearly a fifth of the country’s jobs.
The declaration of additional holidays is also in line with the move by Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s administration to designate next year as the year of tourism and sports, deputy government spokeswoman Sasikan Wattanachan said.
About 30 million tourists have visited the country so far this year, on course to meet the government’s full-year target of 36.7 million.
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