PHNOM PENH, Dec 25 — Cambodia recorded a total of 1.1 million Chinese tourists in the first 11 months of 2025, a year-on-year increase of 43.5 per cent, the Ministry of Tourism said on Thursday, reported Xinhua.

The number of Chinese tourists accounted for 21 per cent of the 5.17 million international tourist arrivals to the kingdom during the January-November period this year, the ministry said in a report.

China was the second-biggest source of foreign holidaymakers to the Southeast Asian country after Vietnam, the report added.

Thourn Sinan, chairman of the Pacific Asia Travel Association Cambodia chapter, said the growth showed a strong and growing interest of Chinese tourists in Cambodia’s tourist attractions.

“The rising middle class in China, coupled with targeted marketing and expanded flight routes, should further boost Chinese arrivals,” he told Xinhua.

Tourism is one of the major pillars supporting Cambodia’s economy. Thong Mengdavid, deputy director at the China-Asean Studies Centre of the Cambodia University of Technology and Science in Phnom Penh, said Chinese tourist arrivals are expected to continue rising steadily in the coming years, supported by China’s gradual outbound tourism recovery, improving flight connections, and Cambodia’s renewed push to diversify its tourism markets. — Bernama-Xinhua