The number of passengers entering and leaving the country via all modes of transportation increased sharply throughout last year when compared to the previous year, according to the Transport Ministry.
Transport Minister Saksayam Chidchob on Monday said in total, 22.57 million passengers moved in and out of Thailand by land, sea and air, with about 97% arriving by air.
In December of last year alone, over 4.47 million people travelled in and out of Thailand, up 23.06% from November's figure and a 171.9% increase from the average observed between January to November, he said.
Out of the 4.47 million passengers, more than 2.3 million were inbound passengers. Between January and November last year, the average number of inbound passengers was 835,054 per month, Mr Saksayam said.
Prompted by expected arrivals from China as the nation readies to reopen its borders on Sunday, the TAT has revised up this year's target for overall foreign arrivals from 20 million to 25 million, but the anticipated revenue from tourism will remain unchanged at 2.38 trillion baht.
The TAT said Chinese tourists would start arriving from Wednesday, and about 300,000 will arrive in the first quarter of this year.
Government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri said Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is very pleased Thailand is still a popular destination among foreign tourists.
Citing Hopper, a popular website and app which helps travellers draw up their travel plans, Mr Anucha said the prospect of Bangkok being a top tourist destination is bright.
Based on flight searches by Americans in the first week of December, Hopper expected more Americans would travel abroad this year, especially to Asia.
Searches by Americans for international flights to cities in Asia accounted for 27% of the total, up from only 19% in the past year.
Bangkok was the third most popular destination, after Tokyo, Japan, and Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, Mr Anucha said.
In a bid to promote tourism this year, several government agencies in Thailand have stepped up their cooperation with other countries to push for tourist exchanges between them.
"The prime minister is very pleased several Thai cities have become popular destinations for foreign tourists," Mr Anucha said.
"He thanks all relevant agencies for complying with the government's policies to promote tourism, which is a main factor in the revival of the country's economy."
Mr Anucha said the government had set a target to lift revenue from tourism in 2023 to about 80% of the pre-Covid period and for the number of foreign tourists to return by about 50%.
The government is also aiming to earn about 2.38 trillion baht from tourism with at least 20 million foreign tourist arrivals, he said.