Thailand - Tourism and Travel

The Kingdom of Thailand is located in southeast Asia.

It was once known as Siam.

With an area of 198,115 square miles (513,115 square kilometers), Thailand is the largest country in the peninsula of Indochina. It has coasts on the Andaman Sea and on the Gulf of Thailand. There are numerous small islands along the coasts.

The Mekong River forms the border between Thailand and Laos.

Thailand was never colonized, unlike the neighboring countries of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, which were once French colonies, .

The Chao Phraya river basin makes up the center of Thailand. There are forested mountains and hills in the north and south of the country. In the east there is a dry plateau that is drained by tributaries of the Mekong.

Thailand has a hot, humid climate that is characterized by monsoons.

The capital of Thailand is Bangkok. It is in the Chao Phraya river basin.

67,764,000 people live in Thailand.

83% are Thai, 12% are Chinese and 3% are Malay.

The official language of Thailand is Thai. Chinese, Malay, Mon, Karen, Khmer and Miao are also spoken.

95% of the people are Buddhist and 4% are Muslim.

About half of the workforce does agricultural work.

Rice, corn, tapioca and rubber are major exports.

Commercial logging was once common, but it has been stopped because of concerns about the overexploitation of Thailand's tropical rainforest.

Fishing and fish processing are also important.

Thailand produces oil, natural gas, lignite, tin, tungsten, baryte and gemstones.

Tourism is Thailand's most important source of foreign income.

Manufacturing provides a large proportion of export income. The most important industries in the manufacturing sector are electronics, food processing, textiles, clothing and footwear.

Thailand has a parliamentary system of government.

The baht is the official currency of Thailand. It is equal to 100 satang.