The 25 cities that received the most foreign visitors in 2012

Asia has emerged as the leading destination of choice among travelers in a recently released report that tracked the number of international tourist arrivals in 2012.

According to London-based market research firm Euromonitor, Hong Kong maintained its ranking as the top destination, receiving 23,770,200 foreigners in 2012, mostly from China.

New this year, analysts also attribute the wild popularity of the 2012 Chinese film “Lost in Thailand” for nudging Bangkok into third spot and knocking London down a rung from 2011 to 2012.

Here are the top 25 city destinations based on the number of international arrivals in 2012:

1. Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 23,770,200 visitors
2. Singapore, Singapore, 21,345,700
3. Bangkok, Thailand 15,822,600
4. London, UK 15,461,000
5. Macau, Macau, 13,360,800
6. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 13,339,500
7. Shenzhen, China, 12,100,400
8. New York City, USA, 11,618,000
9. Antalya, Turkey, 10,296,600
10. Paris, France, 9,780,800
11. Istanbul, Turkey, 8,820,100
12. Rome, Italy, 8,670,000
13. Dubai, UAE, 8,023,000
14. Guangzhou, China, 7,879,600
15. Phuket, Thailand, 7,217,000
16. Mecca, Saudi Arabia, 6,852,900
17. Pattaya, Thailand, 6,564,300
18. Taipei, Taiwan, 6,561,200
19. Prague, Czech Republic, 6,547,700
20. Shanghai, China, 6,539,700
21. Las Vegas, USA, 6,298,000
22. Miami, USA, 5,987,000
23. Barcelona, Spain, 5,459,100
24. Moscow, Russia, 5,036,200
25. Beijing, China, 5,035,400