Bangkok beats London as top travel destination
Expecting record 21 million visitors this year Bangkok tops Mastercard ranking, providing value for money with famous street food, shopping & nightlife.
Expecting record 21 million visitors this year Bangkok tops Mastercard ranking, providing value for money with famous street food, shopping & nightlife.
TOURISM
Bangkok beats London as top travel destination
22/09/2016
Reuters News agency
Bangkok has beaten London as the world's most popular travel destination this year.
This is according to Mastercard's annual ranking announced on Thursday.
A vendor offers grilled pork and grilled chicken on Witthayu Road in the Lumpini area of Bangkok in January 2016. (Bangkok Post file photo)
TOURISM BRIGHT SPOT AMONG MANY PROBLEMS
Tourism has been one of the rare bright spots for Thailand, which has grappled with weak consumer confidence and exports after the 2014 coup.
Last month's wave of bomb blasts in southern Thailand, which police have blamed on Muslim separatists, appears to have had a limited impact on tourism.
Late hours street food being sold on the side of the road along one of beachside resort Pattaya's labyrinth of places to walk, only two hours away from Bangkok.
MASTERCARD INDEX OF GLOBAL DESTINATION CITIES
Bangkok topped the 2016 listing of 132 cities, beating London, Paris and Dubai to become the city most visited by international travellers in the Mastercard Index of Global Destination Cities.
Sprawling Bangkok is projected to receive 21.47 million international visitors in 2016, just ahead of second-ranked London, with 19.88 million visitors.
Creative dance with bubble holding rice stalks & wearing traditional farmer hats during a stage show at the annual Thailand Tourism Festival in Lumpini Park that takes place during five days in January each year.
Thailand expects to welcome a record 33 million visitors this year, thanks to a jump in the number of Chinese tourists.
"The pollution makes it a less than ideal city to stay long term, but the food is second to none," James Donnelly, 31, a tourist from Britain who was visiting the city on his way to Vietnam, told Reuters.
From Bangkok, the rest of Thailand is only a bus-ride away. Here the matrons of the small town in Isan called Khemmarat resurrect the former glory of the town in dance. On the second and fourth Saturday of each month, Wisit Si Road in the old-town area, teeming with old houses, is turned into a pedestrian street where locals come to perform traditional dance as well as to sell food, souvenirs and other interesting items.
BANGKOK DELIVERS VALUE FOR TOURIST MONEY SPENT
Bangkok has been in a strong position to be the top destination city for a long time, according to Mastercard's chief economist.
"There's the value for money, especially for visitors coming from high-income countries."
Street food, found almost everywhere provides low-cost meals.
Bangkok was recently ranked one of the 23 best cities in the world for street food by the international news network CNN (see here & also here).
Low-cost accomodation in almost every price range from guest house to five-star hotel is also available.
Seaside resorts like Pattaya, two hours from Bangkok, provide low cost relaxation by the beach and a vibrant nightlife after the sun goes down.
Large public events such as Bike for Dad are common in Bangkok, seen passing through the Ratchaprasong Intersection shopping district where Mah Boon Krong (MBK) Shopping Center hovers in the background with Siam Center, Siam Square & Siam Paragon nearby.
OSAKA, JAPAN STRONGEST RECENT GROWTH IN VISITORS
Elsewhere in Asia, the Japanese city of Osaka has shown the strongest growth in international visitors over the past seven years.
Osaka attracts tourists from neighbouring countries, particularly China and South Korea, said Mastercard.
Young men dressed in festive outfits for the Thailand Tourism Festival in Lumpini Park in downtown Bangkok during five days in January every year.
LONDON USUALLY TOPS IN RANKING
The British capital London topped the 2015 ranking of global destinations.
Mastercard did not say why some of its shine had rubbed off on travellers this year.
London has long topped the Mastercard ranking for most of the history of the ranking.
Parade through Lumpini Park as part of Thailand Tourism Festival in January each year.
Traditional northern attire worn during stage show at Thailand Tourism festival at Lumpini Park.
One of many stage shows at night during the the Thailand Tourism Festival.
Traditional costumes resembling a Kinarree at Thailand Tourism Festival.
Numerous decorations & sets provide photo & selfie opportunities at Thailand Tourism festival.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/business/tourism-and-transport/1092208/mastercard-bangkok-edges-out-london-as-top-destination
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