Surasak has decided to postpone the "Thai Tiew Thai Plus" program from the end of this year to start in April 2027 to stimulate the economy during the low season and school holidays, while awaiting private sector discussions before proposing the "Thai Chuay Thai Plus" program to revive the economy later this year.
16 Sep 2026 GMT+7 Mr. Surasak Pancharoenworakul, Minister of Tourism and Sports, revealed that there is currently a tendency to postpone the start date of the "Thai Tiew Thai Plus" domestic tourism stimulus project from the original date of 1 October 2026 to begin instead during the low tourism season around April 2027.
This follows discussions in Cabinet meetings and among other ministers, who agreed on the need for a tourism stimulus project but differed on timing. They felt that investing during the high season—from late this year to early next year—when tourists are already traveling and hotels are fully booked would not maximize economic impact and would waste the allocated budget.
Meanwhile, private sector surveys found some operators, especially in the hotel business, agree that running the project during the high season offers no additional benefits since rooms are already fully booked and tourists plan travel well in advance. However, opinions vary among operators, as some believe other businesses might still have capacity. Further private sector consultations will be held to reach a comprehensive conclusion.
"Therefore, there is no need to rush the Cabinet submission this September. We will wait for clear details and finalized timing before formally presenting it for Cabinet approval and official announcement. Postponing the project's timeline poses no issues as long as it occurs and benefits the economy to the greatest extent," he said.
Mr. Surasak added that the "Thai Tiew Thai Plus" tourism stimulus has a budget framework of 4 billion baht for 1 million rights. The government will subsidize accommodation at 1,500 baht per night for up to five nights and provide digital co-payment coupons split 50-50, with 1,500 baht per day for major cities and 2,000 baht per day for secondary cities. The principles, conditions, details, and budget framework have been preliminarily approved and funds secured.
The original timeline planned travel from November 2026 to February 2027, with a blackout period avoiding the New Year festival from 15 December 2026 to 15 January 2027. There was concern that such breaks could lead to criticism about the lack of continuity in stimulating tourism.
"Discussions with other ministers largely support consolidating the project to run once after the New Year period for maximum economic benefit. The original 4 billion baht budget, reserved from the first tranche of the 400 billion baht loan decree, will still be used, just with adjusted timing," he confirmed.
However, Mr. Surasak also said, that during October to December, or the last quarter of this year, economic stimulus efforts will rely on the "Thai Chuay Thai Plus" program, which will be extended to encourage public travel in advance for about two to three months until the year's end. After that, the new 4 billion baht tourism stimulus project will begin during the low season and school holidays, offering more opportunities for families to travel with their children.