Part of the problem is that Thailand is one of those "bad-news-only" countries to the western media. The bad news also needs to have pictures to get on the radar screen. And if it's disaster related, like some bus plunging off a cliff, it needs a higher death toll than if the same thing happened in, say, France.

There's definitely a fear-of-the-unknown factor to overcome. But also an awful lot of people who wish they'd "found" the place earlier in life.