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Bangkok Airways welcomes two Airbus320 to the fleet

Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth, Bangkok Airways president, recently welcomed its two latest Airbus320s named “Maha Mongkol” and “Sawadee Umporn” at Suvarnabhumi Airport.
This type of aircraft consists of 162 economy class seats and will serve both domestic and international routes, including Chiang Mai, Phuket, Yangon (Myanmar), Siem Reap (Cambodia), Mumbai (India), and Dhaka (Bangladesh).
Bangkok Airways’ fleet now consists of 21 aircraft: 8 ATR72s, 5 A320s, and 8 A319s.


Deputy Minister of Transport visits THAI and observes New Year travel readiness

General Prin Suwanatat, Deputy Minister of Transport, recently made a visit to observe Thai Airways International Public Company Limited (THAI) readiness to provide the following passenger services at Suvarnabhumi Airport during the New Year: catering, passenger services, baggage sorting and handling.
THAI President Dr. Sorajak Kasemsuvan and THAI management welcomed the Deputy Minister of Transport at Suvarnabhumi Airport.


2012 Golden Year of Thai tourism

Inbound tourists to Thailand hit a historic record of almost 22 million people this year, generating at least Bt900 billion (US$30 billion), a prominent Thai tourism industry leader said this week.
Piyamarn Techapaibul, president of the Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT), described 2012 as the ‘golden year’ for Thailand’s tourism industry as circulating revenue from local tourists has also increased to Bt500 billion (US$17 billion).
She said that political stability and the increasing popularity of tourist attractions in Thailand have contributed to the tourism boom, while the ongoing Sino-Japanese conflict has diverted travelers from both countries to Thailand.
Number one ranked in numbers of visitors to Thailand this year is China with 2.5 million travelers. Russia placed second with one million visitors, while India, South Korea and Japan each produced almost one million people from each country.
She said the Tourism and Sports Ministry will be asked to plan a strategy to wider tourist attractions from the traditional locations in the North and beach resorts on the Andaman Coast to other potential areas such as provinces along the Gulf of Thailand.
Piyamarn said the TCT has also targeted extending foreign tourists’ average five-day stay in Thailand to six days and increasing their daily spending of Bt3,000 (US$100) per person to Bt5,000 (US$170).
According to the plan - expected in the next three years - room rates in Thailand, currently the cheapest in Asia, must be adjusted while locally made merchandise should be redesigned to attract Asian tourists.
She urged the government to the lower import tax on luxury goods to make Thailand more competitive with destinations such as Hong Kong and Singapore. (MCOT)


Live, learn, ride like a mahout

Thai Elephant Conservation Centre

Previously a training centre for baby elephants, this sanctuary has become the Thai Elephant Conservation Centre, aka the National Elephant Institute. It is considered to be the first mahout-training centre in the world, as well as an elephant hospital. Here, there are many veterinarians and mahouts ready to take care and provide medical care for sick and old elephants nationwide, free of charge. Not only is it a research centre studying the nature of elephants, but also an attraction for tourists who want to have the ultimate mahout experience.

The Thai Elephant Conservation Centre provides home stay accommodation for tourists who are interested in the program. Tourists will learn techniques of elephant riding, elephant bathing, and elephant training. They will dine with mahouts and exchange experiences with them. Most importantly, they will also get to be a part of the elephant show, performed daily for visitors at the center.
The program starts with mahouts taking elephants to bathe and leading elephants to walk back in a row to the staging area; adorably holding each other’s tail with their trunks. The show is followed by the demonstration of logging techniques. Tourists will get to experience and enjoy peaceful nature through elephant riding and trekking in the forest, experiencing the lifestyle and culture of a mahout at the Mahout Village. The show will end with the demonstration of recycling elephant dung into fiber pulp, used in the production of dung paper.

Know before you go
Open daily from 9.30 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. An annual event called Kantoke Chang / Satoke Chang, the grand elephant feast, will be held on the first Friday and Saturday of February. Mahouts will ride over 70 elephants down from the mountain to enjoy specially prepared food in this event in a well-trained manner.
Additionally, a religious ceremony, Hindu ritual and Mot-Meng Spiritual Dance (the ritual of ancestor veneration) will be held to bring luck and prosperity to Lampang province.

Recommendation: The mahout home stay experience should be booked with the minimum of 7 days in advance.
Awards: The Thai Elephant Conservation Centre has received the Award of Excellence for Recreational Attraction from the Tourism Authority of Thailand in 1998.
Travel info: From Lampang, take Highway 11 (Lampang-Chiang Mai). Thai Elephant Conservation Centre is on the right, between Km 28 and Km 29.
GPS location: N18° 21.52’, E99° 14.53’
Contact: Thai Elephant Conservation Centre, +66 5482 9333, www.thailandelephant.org
Facilities & services: Tour guide, home stay, food, restroom and parking.


 


HEADLINES [click on headline to view story]

Bangkok Airways welcomes two Airbus320 to the fleet

Deputy Minister of Transport visits THAI and observes New Year travel readiness

2012 Golden Year of Thai tourism

Live, learn, ride like a mahout

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