Travel disruption in Thailand as hotel system malfunction causes halt in bookings, despite the availability of unused subsidies for travelers.
The "Half-Half Thai Travel 2025" scheme, designed to stimulate domestic tourism by offering subsidized room-nights, has faced operational challenges since its public registration opened on July 1, 2025.
Current technical issues include hotel booking suspensions and discrepancies between room rates submitted by hotels and those displayed on the booking platform. Major hotels such as Amari Hua Hin have temporarily halted bookings due to these issues, as well as persistent technical faults in the Amazing Thailand app’s operator interface.
One of the main problems is the system only allows one fixed rate per hotel, covering both weekdays and weekends. This has resulted in higher weekend rates that hotels cannot adjust, causing travellers to compare prices with online travel agencies (OTAs) where dynamic pricing often results in better deals.
Another issue lies in discrepancies between room rates submitted by hotels and those displayed in the booking system. This has led to confusion and booking suspensions, with many hotels reporting data inconsistencies such as mismatched booking dates between customers and hotels.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is actively monitoring hotel pricing, suspending any hotel found charging unusually high rates under the program to prevent overpricing abuses. Consumers can report suspected overpricing directly to TAT for immediate action.
As of July 2, only 1,959 of the 500,000 subsidies had been claimed, leaving 498,041 still available. Toscana Valley Khao Yai has announced a temporary suspension of bookings due to unresolved technical errors in the operator-side app.
The authorities have acknowledged these issues and expressed their encouragement by the strong public interest. The government confirms that the scheme is focused on registering eligible businesses and protecting the subsidy’s integrity. The project aims to generate around 35 billion baht and create over 40,000 jobs between July and October 2025.
Despite these challenges, TAT remains optimistic about resolving the technical setbacks and realizing the program’s full potential. The authorities are investigating the issues and working towards providing solutions to the affected hotels and travellers.
In other news, TAT has confirmed that Tomorrowland 2026 will take place in Chonburi with a billion-baht investment. However, this announcement is not related to the 'Half-Half Thai Travel' scheme.
- The operational challenges facing the "Half-Half Thai Travel 2025" scheme, such as booking suspensions and discrepancies between room rates, have raised concerns in the politics of tourism, affecting both local businesses and travellers.
- TheTechnology-driven Half-Half Thai Travel 2025 scheme, designed to boost domestic tourism, has encountered issues with fixed room rates that may impact the lifestyles of travellers, who frequently compare prices with online travel agencies for better deals.
- Despite the technical difficulties encountered in the implementation of the "Half-Half Thai Travel 2025" scheme, the government's focus on registering eligible businesses and protecting the subsidy's integrity reflects a commitment to the growth of both the business and technology sectors in Thailand, with a target to generate around 35 billion baht and create over 40,000 jobs by October 2025.
