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Bangkok has surpassed London to become the top destination for visitors in 2013. According to the third annual Global Destination Cities Index by MasterCard, Bangkok will draw the highest international visitor numbers in 2013, ahead of London, Paris, Singapore, and New York.
This is the first time an Asian city is in the top rank since the Index was first launched in 2010.
The research said that New Delhi ranks as one of the top 10 feeder cities, driving up visitor arrivals in Bangkok. It said that New Delhi's growing economy along with rising household disposable income and a strong appetite for international travel amongst its residents are all factors responsible for the burgeoning travel corridor between New Delhi and Bangkok.
According to the Index, in 2013, Bangkok will attract over 4,00,000 overnight visitors from New Delhi, a 7.4% increase over 2012. It added that this increase in arrivals from New Delhi is also driving up cross-border spends; with overnight visitor spend projected to increase by 9.1% in 2013 to a total of $378 mn.
Ari Sarker, Division President, South-Asia, MasterCard said, "International tourism is becoming a vital and resilient export for the leading destination cities in the world and its economic and social benefits are far-reaching. The fact that an Asian city is at the top rank for the first time and that India’s contribution as a feeder city to Bangkok is significant are both indicative of growing Asian cross-border travel. As this travel increases, the role of electronic transactions and payment networks like MasterCard that offer safety, convenience and global acceptance will become even more critical."
The Index additionally reveals that Mumbai has registered a rapid growth in the number of international visitors arriving in the city from 2009-2013. Chennai is the only other Indian city to feature in the Top 20 list, with a projected growth rate of 56.1% by the end of 2013.
Bangkok has bested London by slimmest of margins with only about 25,000 visitors separating the two, a difference of about 1%. London is now followed by Paris, Singapore, New York, Istanbul, and Dubai. Paris remains third, but has shown a decline in the estimated number of international visitor arrivals.
The MasterCard Index of Global Destination Cities ranks cities in terms of the number of their total international visitor arrivals and the cross-border spending by these same visitors in the destination cities, and gives visitor and passenger growth forecasts for 2013. This Index and the accompanying reports are not based on MasterCard volumes or transactional data.
