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Japan top destination for
Thais during Songkran holiday
Thai tourists are streaming overseas for the mid-April
Songkran holiday, with Japan being the preferred destination after the
island nation waived visa requirements for Thai visitors last year.
Thai Travel Agents Association (TTAA) president Suthipong Pheunpipop said
the number of outbound tourists in April is expected to reach some 400,000
people, up 20 percent from around 300,000-350,000 persons last year.
Some 200,000 Thais who plan to travel during the April 9-16 Songkran
festival make up more than one-third of total tourists travelling during the
month.
According to Suthipong, most travelers will venture to Asian destinations,
especially Japan, thanks to the visa exemption for Thai nationals. The rest
will likely visit other Asian destinations including South Korea and China,
followed by ASEAN member countries such as Singapore, Myanmar, Malaysia and
Vietnam.
Suthipong also said that the emergency decree lifting would boost tourist
arrivals in the country as travel advisories issued by foreign countries
would soon lowered.
He said Europeans are among the first groups of tourists who visit the
kingdom as the emergency decree did not affect them that much when it was in
effect. Then prospective tourists from Asia including Japan, China and South
Korea would follow. (MCOT)
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Pattaya tourist community cleans up Cosy Beach
Hotel staff and Green Pattaya volunteers
cleaning.
Neo LongThum
On the 11th February, 50 people from local companies, Green
Pattaya, volunteers and Pattaya City Hall cleaned up Cosy Beach. Three
trucks were fully loaded with rubbish removed from the beach.
The theme for the cleaning was bring your own food and share with others
and many of the local hotels did just that. All the cleaners could taste
delicious chicken, sausage rolls, cakes and other snacks. The food was
provided by Nova Group, Siam Bayview Hotels, Green Leaf Hotels and as
usual Kingdom Property provided water.
International Thai students came to help.
The decision to come back to Cosy Beach after just one month was made
due to the fact that the last cleaning had covered all but a nasty pit
of plastic and rubbish in an old water gully at one end of the beach.
Previously Green Pattaya had taken away one truck of rubbish from the
gully, and this time 50 people helped at the event and carried a further
three trucks of rubbish up the stairs, but still there was some rubbish
left.
The problem is that the gully, once formed by running water, leaves a
convenient dip in the ground for people on the beach to imagine that
there is no harm in using it as a dump. When it looks like a garbage
dump it probably is a garbage dump. One “mama” who normally settles on
this spot was not there to direct GP on her potential claims, and so no
one knew what we could or could not remove, thereby creating discussions
and delays. However, they were kind enough to provide free drinks which
were much appreciated.
Hotel staff trying to determine garbage dump
or beach?
Indicative of the problem was something that occurred when the Green
Pattaya team took their lunch break. Tourists wanting to discard their
rubbish, seeing no bins but seeing the messy area on the beach, put
their rubbish there in the gully Green Pattaya was cleaning.
Green Pattaya will work with city hall to get some signs to the area and
to talk with the people who make money from the beach. We will also be
back on the beach after Songkran with another cleaning before the rainy
season begins.
The next Green Pattaya event is on the 29th March between 09.00 and
13.00 and you and guests are welcome to come and see or join in at any
time during this event.
Online:
https://www.facebook.com/events/669583499731058/
[email protected]
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Thailand’s Phuket and Samui resort markets mitigate risk to tourism arrivals through
dramatic rise in direct airlift
Thailand’s resort destinations of Phuket and Samui have taken a page
from the iconic television show Survivor’s playbook during the country’s
prolonged political crisis. Sharp increases in direct airlift to the two
islands has seen tourism prosper in what could best be termed as Outwit,
Outplay and Outlast.
According to new research by consulting firm C9 Hotelworks,
international passenger arrivals to Phuket rose 26% in 2013, while Samui
shot up 37% in year-on-year growth. Looking inside the numbers the
emerging markets of Mainland China and Russia are key drivers of demand,
with each posting gains into Phuket at 67% and 41% last year
respectively. Download both reports here: Phuket Hotel Market Update
2013 <http://www.
c9hotelworks.com/downloads/phuket-hotel-market-update-2014-03.pdf> and
Samui Hotel Market Update 2013 <http://www.c9hotel
works.com/downloads/samui-hotel-market-update-2014-03.pdf>
 Bill
Barnett, Managing Director of C9 Hotelworks.
While Thai politics have made headline news globally, data from STR
Global saw Bangkok hotels register a 26% Y-o-Y decline in January
occupancy due to the impact. Conversely the two resort markets compared
to Bali which experienced a high-trajectory growth trend over the
previous four years outperformed their Indonesian counterpart for the
full year in term of market wide occupancy and average rate.
Bali’s international passenger arrivals posted a 9% growth in 2013, but
the gains were absorbed into a mounting number of new hotel rooms that
has the local industry concerned with looming oversupply.
Speaking on the current situation, C9’s Managing Director Bill Barnett
said, “Phuket and Samui have been broadly insulated from the situation
in the nation’s capital, as overseas flight traffic remains on an upward
path. Phuket’s occupancy last year was 74% with Samui closely following
with 73%. More importantly the latter saw a record high 1.7 million
visitors in 2013, with 88% of these coming internationally.”
C9’s research has pinpointed airlift as a main component of sustainable
tourism growth to Thailand’s resort markets noting that Samui’s private
airport limitation on stated capacity has been bypassed with the nearby
international aviation facility in Surat Thani.
Over the past two years, annualized passenger arrivals has swung upwards
by 38% and 32%, boosted by a combination of domestic and direct overseas
fights, which has effectively created a Plan B stimulator for the
island’s blossoming tourism sector.
“Looking skyward remains the most prolific economic gauge for Phuket and
Samui,” adds Barnett, commenting on the trading horizon for the
remainder of 2014. “Feedback from hotels remains positive given the
dynamics of a shorter term booking horizon. Historical trading trends
have shown the potential to claw back any lost business due to external
events within a compressed time period.”
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Royal Cliff Hotels Group opens “The Verge”
Royal Cliff Hotels Group opens Pattaya’s
coolest teen zone, “The Verge: Games, Pool and Lounge”.
Royal Cliff is proud to introduce their latest addition, The Verge.
Designed by an internationally renowned interior design firm, the centre
provides the ultimate in teen entertainment as it boasts a variety of
activities to keep young adults entertained.
Located at the ground floor of the Royal Cliff Beach Hotel, The Verge
features interactive elements and the latest video game consoles
including the popular Xbox 360 and the flagship motion sensor products
Kinect, Playstation 4 and Nintendo Wii. The game stations are all
equipped with the newest games in different varieties to suit all
tastes. Teens can also have the chance to kick back and unwind at the
pool table zone and the TV lounge area. With the opening of this ideal
teen environment, young adults now have a fun area to relax, hang out
and call their own!
The Verge TV Lounge with a state-of-the-art
home theater system complete with surround speaker system that makes
even watching 3D movies possible.
Last year, Royal Cliff also introduced its Funtasea Kid’s World, a
modern, interactive ‘edu-tainment’ center for children between 2-11
years old. It is a fun and enriching environment for kids with
activities designed to stimulate creativity and imagination including
cooking and bed making classes, origami classes, balloon making, pottery
workshop and storytelling by the kid’s club manager. It also features an
intricate maze and soft toys to delight the little ones.
The Verge is open daily except on Mondays. The opening time is from
9:00hrs - 12:30hrs and again at 13:30hrs - 22:00 hrs.
For more information about The Verge, please contact Ms. Monica at
[email protected]
The Verge: Game zone which features the
latest video game consoles including the popular Xbox 360 and the
flagship motion sensor products Kinect, Playstation 4 and Nintendo Wii.
The Verge: Computer zone which features
high-tech computers for web surfing, playing the latest online games and
checking emails.
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