The tourism business boomed in 2011, with overall revenue up 23.92 per cent over 2010 to 734.59 billion baht, a historic high, despite the flood crisis, Supol Sriphan, director general of the Tourism Department at the Tourism and Sports Ministry, said on Thursday.

He said 19.09 million tourists came to Thailand in 2011, up 19.8 per cent on the previous year,.

The largest number of foreign tourists were from Malaysia, at 2.47 million, followed by China (1.76 million), Japan (1.12 million), Russia (1,014,493), South Korea (1,014,292), India (916,787), Laos (887,677), Australia, (854,064), Great Britain (844,221) and the United States (684,073).

Tourists from these countries accounted for 66.60 per cent of total foreign tourists visiting the country in 2011, up from 57.86 per cent reported in the previous year, he said.

Mr Supol said the number of tourists from other Asian nations is expected to further increase in line with the continuing economic expansion in China, India and South Korea.

The director general projected that the number of foreign tourists to Thailand in 2012 would increase by eight to ten per cent, to between 20.5 million and 20.9 million.