Trat
Cambodia border tourism crash—Koh Chang/Koh Kood occupancy collapsed from 100% to 20% in Dec 2025, 1B baht losses in 9 days, 80% income drop for border residents.
Trat was building toward 20 billion baht in tourism revenue when the Cambodia border exploded. In early 2025, Koh Chang, Koh Kood, and Koh Mak drove a "tourism renaissance"—410 hotels with 11,299 rooms operated at full capacity during high season, generating 200–400 million baht monthly. Then fighting along the northeastern Thai-Cambodia border triggered border closures. The Haad Lek checkpoint shut for four months; Khlong Yai residents saw income drop 80%.
December 2025 brought direct conflict to Trat's borders. Nine days of fighting inflicted over 1 billion baht in losses—500 million industrial, 300 million tourism. Hotel occupancy on Koh Chang and Koh Kood crashed from near-full to 20%. Mass booking cancellations extended through early 2026. The islands depend on foreign visitors (70–80% of guests); when martial law signals danger, internationals flee.
Before the crisis, Khlong Yai Customs handled 29.29 billion baht annually—16.8% of Thai-Cambodia border trade. The province straddles the Cardamom Mountains separating Thailand from Cambodia, hosting Thailand's third-largest island (Koh Chang) after Phuket and Koh Samui. By late 2026, Trat will reveal whether tourism can recover from geopolitical shock—or whether border provinces pay permanent premiums for their geography.