Ten large Chinese tourism businesses have expressed keen interest in Cambodia’s tourism potential, especially as 2025 has been designated the “Cambodia-China Tourism Year”.
According to the Ministry of Tourism, on the evening of August 30, tourism minister Huot Hak, who is accompanying Prime Minister Hun Manet to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Tianjin, China, met with the leaders of 10 major tourism operators from Beijing and Tianjin.
During the meeting, the minister briefed the Chinese on Cambodia’s current political stability, social security and the rich potential of its tourism sector. He also highlighted the various incentive mechanisms put forward by the Royal Government to boost tourism, particularly to attract more Chinese tourists to visit Cambodia.
He emphasised that Cambodia is a safe tourism destination with a wide variety of tourism products — such as ancient temples, historical sites, beaches, islands and areas of natural beauty. Hak also explained that Cambodia is also known for its warm hospitality and delicious cuisine.
“Cambodia is an emerging market in tourism with great potential to attract tourists and investors from Beijing and Tianjin. This is further supported by government incentives and priorities aligned with the spirit of the Cambodia-China Tourism Year 2025, endorsed by the top leaders of both nations,” he said.
Both the Cambodian and Chinese sides agreed to intensify cooperation, including through the creation of more tourism packages to Cambodia, and the portion of direct flights between Tianjin and Phnom Penh as well as Siem Reap.
They also agreed to promote the Kingdom’s tourism potential and disseminate accurate information about Cambodia’s safety and security and countering fake news.
FAM (Familiarisation) trips to explore Cambodia’s tourism and investment opportunities will also be organised, and joint tourism events will be staged, under the framework of the Cambodia-China Tourism Year.
Thourn Sinan, president of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Cambodia chapter, told The Post on September 1 that the meeting with major Chinese tourism companies would bring many positive opportunities for Cambodia’s tourism sector through enhanced promotion and the development of China-to-Cambodia tour packages.
He added that every country in the world wants to see tourists — including their own citizens — travel within their borders, as the tourism sector not only brings tourists, but also attracts investors.
“I expect the number of Chinese tourists traveling to Cambodia will continue to grow steadily, as the number of flights from major Chinese cities to Cambodia also increases,” he said.
On August 26, in Kunming city, Yunnan province, representatives from the Cambodian and Chinese public and private tourism sectors signed five memorandums of understanding (MoUs) aimed at strengthening tourism promotion and increasing Cambodia’s attractiveness to Chinese tourists.
According to the latest data from the Ministry of Tourism, in the first 7 months of 2025, Cambodia received a total of 3.71 million international tourists, a slight 0.8% decrease compared to the same period in 2024. Among them were 687,509 Chinese tourists, an increase of 48.2%, making up 18.5% of the total international arrivals.
In 2024, Cambodia received a total of 6.7 million foreign tourists, a 23% increase over 2023. Of that number, around 850,000 were Chinese nationals, a 55% increase.
