Places to Visit Thailand

Visit To Thailand

      Tourism is a major economic factor in Kingdom of  Thailand. Estimates of tourism receipts directly contributing to the Thai GDP of 12 trillion baht range from 9 percent to 17.7 percent in 2016. When including indirect travel and tourism receipts, the 2014 total is estimated to have accounted for 19.3 percent of Thailand's GDP.

       The Tourism Authority of Thailand uses the slogan "Amazing Thailand" to promote Thailand internationally. In 2015, this was supplemented by a "Discover Thainess" campaign.

       Among the reasons for the increase in tourism in the 1960s were the stable political atmosphere and the development of Bangkok as a crossroads of international air transport. The hotel industry and retail industry both expanded rapidly due to tourist demand. It was boosted by the presence of US GIs who started to arrive in the 1960s for rest and recuperation during the Vietnam War.         Concomitantly, international mass tourism sharply increased during the same period due to the rising standard of living, more people acquiring more free time, and improvements in technology making it possible to travel further, faster, cheaper and in greater numbers, epitomised by the Boeing 747 which first flew commercially in 1970.Thailand was one of the first players in Asia to capitalise on this then-new trend.

         International rankings ---

                    In the MasterCard 2014 and 2015 Global Destination Cities Index, Bangkok ranked the second of the world's top-20 most-visited cities, trailing only London.

       The Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2015 published by the World Economic Forum ranked Thailand 35 of 141 nations. Among the metrics used to arrive at the rankings, Thailand scored high on "Natural Resources" and "Tourist Service Infrastructure", but low on "Environmental Sustainability" and "Safety and Security".

        In 2013, Thailand was the 10th "top tourist destination" in the world tourism rankings with 26.5 million international arrivals.

        In 2016, Bangkok ranked 1st surpassing London and New York in Euromonitor International's list of "Top City Destinations" with 21 million visitors.

       Climate ----

               Thailand's popularity as a tourist destination owes a great deal to its benign climate. Thailand predominantly has a tropical wet and dry or savannah climate while the south and the eastern tip of the east have a tropical monsoon climate.

  Most of Thailand has three seasons:--

                The cool dry season from late-November to February. Temperatures in December for Chiang Mai average around 15 Celsius at night, rising to around 28 Celsius during the day with clear sunny skies. Higher up in the mountains, temperatures may drop to near freezing at night. In Bangkok and in the central and northeastern plains of Thailand, midday temperatures during the cool dry season average around 30 Celsius and the humidity is much lower.

              The hot dry season from March to May can see daytime temperatures in the mid- to high-30s. This is the time for holding festivals to mark the coming of the rainy season.

              The rainy season from May to October has daytime temperatures in the low-30s with nighttime temperatures in the mid= to high-20s. Some areas have a relatively short rainy season, such as Ko Samui where it is typically only approximately six weeks, starting in October and running to November. Rain showers mainly occur late-afternoon or early-evening. Typically, humidity is high.

              Deeper south on the Kra Isthmus with its tropical monsoon climate, daytime temperatures year-round tend to hover around 31 Celsius with only a marked increase in rainfall during the monsoons. The west coast is affected by monsoons from May to October, the southeast coast of the isthmus is affected from October to January.

     Gastronomical tourism ---

              The governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, said the agency aims to increase income from the gastronomy business from 20 percent of total tourism income forecasted for 2017 to 25 percent in 2018. In 2017, TAT aims for 2.77 trillion baht in tourism revenue, 20 percent of which is projected to come from gastronomy. In 2018, tourism revenue is expected to climb to three trillion baht, with gastronomy accounting for 750 billion baht.

             TAT, in early-2017, approved a budget of 144 million baht to commission the Michelin Guide to rate restaurants in Thailand for the five-year period 2017–2021. The first guide, Michelin Guide to Bangkok, was released on 6 December 2017. It bestowed Michelin stars on 17 Bangkok restaurants, ten of which do not serve Thai food. Guides to other cities will follow.

   

   Elephant tourism ---

            Elephant trekking has been an attraction for tourists in Thailand for decades. Ever since logging in Thailand was banned in 1989, elephants were brought into camps to put on shows for tourists and to give them rides. The Asian elephant is the main species found in elephant camps, being native to Thailand and found in the wild there. Despite this elephant being classified as endangered since 1986, it continues to be an attraction for tourists.

     Medical tourism ---

             

Medical tourism is a large and growing sector within Thailand's extensive tourism and healthcare industries. The country is attractive to potential medical tourists and international patients for a number of important reasons: Thailand was the first Asian country to achieve Joint Commission International accreditation in 2002. As of April 2014, 35 hospitals were JCI-accredited.; experienced, often Western-trained, medical professionals; the latest medical technology; and significantly lower costs of treatment when compared to corresponding procedures in the West. Taken together, all these factors—plus the country’s reputation as a popular tourist destination—have made Thailand one of the world's most popular medical tourism destinations.