Industry leaders at Thailand Tourism Forum 2026 warned that the kingdom is at a “defining nexus”, saying infrastructure gaps and the rise of neighbouring destinations such as Vietnam require a strategic shift.
C9 Hotelworks managing director Bill Barnett said Thailand’s international arrivals fell 7.2 per cent in 2025, while Vietnam recorded a 20.4 per cent increase. He also launched the firm’s Thailand Tourism Report: A Defining Nexus at the forum.
“Thailand’s tourism industry stands at a critical juncture where strategy matters more than scale. Regional competitors are investing billions, and Thailand cannot rely on past success. The choices made now will define the next decade,” Barnett said.
He added: “The government needs to focus on infrastructure, infrastructure, infrastructure. It needs to attract foreign capital to have infrastructure, (particularly) transportation infrastructure renewed.”
Despite high household debt and global volatility, investment sentiment remains cautiously optimistic.
Phoom Chirathivat, managing partner at Central Group Capital, emphasised the resilience of the market and also “the need to look beyond the ‘big five’ of Phuket, Koh Samui, Pattaya, Chiang Mai and Bangkok” to places such as Isarn and Nakhon Sri Thammarat on the south-east coast with over 3,000 kilometres of undeveloped coastline”.
He stated: “We would only execute on deals and transactions where we feel that we can do something considerably different and better from the market.”
Marriott International is responding by diversifying its footprint, with four new brands and 31 hotels in its Thailand pipeline.
“It’s not just about getting value or higher rated customers, just luxury or upper-upscale projects. Some of the brands we are launching are mid-scale brands, such as Four Points Flex by Sheraton. This is an area which we did not play with (previously) – but we definitely see a customer there for the future,” commented Gautam Bhandari, chief development officer for Asia-Pacific (excluding China), at Marriott International.
Ooi joins the group following her role as director of sales and marketing at Aloft Langkawi Pantai Tengah. She has more than 20 years of experience in hospitality and has held senior commercial roles with Shangri-La, St Giles and Hilton. She reports to group general manager Kevin Cheah.
Newman was previously founding chief executive of Christchurch Adventure Park, where she led the operation through fires, flooding and the Covid pandemic. She was recognised with the Emerging Tourism Leader Award at the New Zealand Tourism Awards in 2024.
Booneady previously served as CEO of Sun Siyam Resorts, where he led brand positioning and portfolio development across the Maldives and Sri Lanka.
