Thailand leads every nation in Asia in tourism spend, says UN World Tourism

It all comes down to volume. Foreign arrivals could hit 40 million next year, which is more than half the country's population

Just more than a year ago, five-star hotel, the Anantara Siam, with its gilded murals and landscaped courtyards, cost $150 a night, including a breakfast buffet that was truly fit for royalty. Even the most expensive souvenir in town, an elephant figurine with inlaid mother of pearl, cost less than a typical outing to McDonald’s in New York.

Yet, according to a visualisation of recent UN World Tourism Organisation data by HowMuch, a financial literacy and infographics agency, Thailand outranks every other nation in Asia when it comes to tourism spend.

Last year, it collected $57 billion in