The Bangkok Post reports that although the overall number of visitors declined by 1.15% in 2005, hostelling is up:
"...young people aged 15-24 were up 12.81% to 1,181,183, and people aged 25-34 were up 1.52% to 2,943,762. This reflects the attraction of areas such as Khao San Road and Thailand's growing popularity as a backpacker destination. Directly correlated to this was a whopping increase of 2,151% in visitors staying at youth hostels, to 51,889."
