Thailand
Formerly known as Siam, the Kingdom of Thailand is one of the best known countries in South East Asia and it is consistently highly ranked as a popular tourist destination. The country offers all kinds of things to see and do for visitors of all ages from historic sites to beautiful beaches. The official currency of the country is the Baht and the official language is Thai. The capital city here is Bangkok and the majority religion practised by most Thais is Buddhism.
Unlike all other countries in this region Thailand has never been a colony and has remained independent. It has a monarchy in place which puts the King as the head of state and a parliamentary government led by a Prime Minister which is manned by two houses of senators and representatives. There are over 70 provinces in Thailand all of which have an appointed governor who runs them apart from the province of Bangkok whose governor has to be elected.
There are four primary areas of Thailand. The north of the country is famous for its mountains, the north-east for its rolling hills, the central region for its rice fields and the south for its forests. This variety of landscape enables the country to have a strong and diverse economy that is based on various factors such as tourism, agriculture and manufacturing.
Visitors to Thailand often prefer to visit the country after the rainy season which lasts from July until November - so visiting around November to February will give you a less humid and wet visit.