10 September
Bangkok has been named the top tourism destination of 2018 in terms of overnight visitors from overseas, according to a survey by a US credit card company.
Thailand's capital was number one in Mastercard's annual report which ranks about 200 cities around the world, based on visitor volume and spending data.
Bangkok took the number one spot with around 22.8 million international overnight visitors in 2018 - the highest among cities surveyed.
Paris and London were ranked second and third by a small margin, with visitor numbers in both cities hovering around 19 million.
Dubai was ranked fourth, followed by Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. New York came seventh, followed by Istanbul.
Tokyo was ninth in the poll. The firm says the Japanese capital is expected to experience the largest increase in overnight visitors this year among the top 20 cities.
Dubai in the United Arab Emirates also topped the list in terms of dollar amounts that international travelers spend in these cities. Dubai's visitors spent 30.82 billion dollars last year.
Mastercard says that people's growing desire to travel the world and immerse themselves in other cultures remained constant.
The company forecasts increases both in the number of international travelers and the amount of dollars spent by them in 2019.
NHK
