Last year was a record breaking one for Thai tourism, with visitor arrivals breaking the 22 million mark for the first time, an increase of 15.98 per cent on 2011.

TAT governor, Suraphon Svetasreni says this upsurge was largely thanks to global, regional and local peace and stability. "Last year the world was generally at peace and there were no major geopolitical, economic, environmental or natural disasters and no health pandemics," he says. "Travel and tourism can only flourish worldwide if the underlying conditions that support it remain free of disturbance and disruption."

East Asian visitors comprise the biggest market share, making up more than 12 million of the visitors. More than five million come from Europe, a growth of 10 per cent. India is the fastest growing market, with just over one million visitors.

This year (2013), Thailand is hoping to get 24.5 million arrivals.