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Amari Watergate donates funds to Vong Vian TV program
Pierre
Andre Pelletier (center) presents a cheque to Danai Sriyaphai (2nd right),
while looking on from left are Manatchaya Rugpanitchsaeng, assistant social
news editor of Channel 3; Nichaya Chaivisuth, director of public relations
at Amari Watergate Hotel and Chartri Saenjaitham, artist.
Pierre Andre Pelletier, general manager of Amari Watergate Hotel recently
donated funds raised from the art exhibition titled “Muay Thai-Round
One” to Danai Sriyaphai, report section advisor at the Bangkok
Entertainment Co., Ltd. (Channel 3) to support the Vong Vian TV program on
Channel 3
Surin elephants to feast
on 70-ton banquet
The traditional elephant round-up of the northeastern
province of Surin is now in its 43rd year. Plans this year include a
spectacular show and a 70-ton banquet for 300 elephants, the largest number
in the event’s history.
Kittiphat Rungthanakiert, president of the Surin
Provincial Administrative Association, announced that this year’s Elephant
Round-up and Red Cross Fair would be the largest - and indeed only - event
of its kind in the world.
Visitors to the event will be greeted by giant sculptures
of elephant tusks as tall as three-storey buildings as soon as they get near
the showground, where around 300 elephants will be waiting to perform.
Included in the festival, which will be held on 7-18
November, will be elephant processions giving the history of elephants from
ancient times to the present, and an elephant banquet contest, with tables
stretching over a distance of two kilometers.
Kittiphat said that invitations had now been issued to
elephant camps, and that the food for the pachyderms had already been
prepared. The elephants will feast on sugarcane, pineapples, water melons
and cucumbers. The banquet will be broadcast on Modernine TV. (TNA)
Thailand praised for role and vision in addressing SARS crisis
Thailand has been praised by the Travel Trade Gazette
Asia (TTG Asia), the most leading and influential travel magazine in Asia,
for the country’s role and vision with effective strategies in addressing
a recent tourism crisis caused by the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory
Syndrome (SARS) in the region earlier this year.
The Ministry of Tourism and Sports said in a statement on
November 3 that TTG Asia had expressed its appreciation to the Thai kingdom,
particularly the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, the Tourism Authority of
Thailand (TAT), Thai Airways International Plc (THAI), and the Federation of
Thai Tourism Industry for their collaboration in surviving the kingdom from
the recent SARS crisis successfully.
Tourism and Sports Minister Sontaya Khunpluem was praised
for his role and vision with effective actions in bringing together all
parties concerned collaboratively and systematically to launch programs and
implement activities aimed to convincing world tourists that Thailand is a
safe tourism haven, leading to the nation’s success in getting through the
SARS crisis.
The TAT, THAI and the Federation of Thai Tourism Industry
were praised for their collaboration in launching and implementing the
programs and activities.
“The Tourism and Sports Minister, who chairs the
Tourism Committee of Thailand, has called meetings of parties concerned
since March 2003 to work out on plans and strategies to deal with the SARS
crisis and impacts of the US-Iraqi war, leading to initiatives to launch and
implement such programs as Thailand SmilesPlus, Mega Famtrip, Visit Thailand
with Luck, and Free Tickets with THAI, which have sailed the country through
the SARS crisis successfully. The programs were launched and implemented by
the TAT, THAI, and the Federation of Thai Tourism Industry
collaboratively”, said the statement.
TTG Asia has specially praised the Mega Famtrip Program,
managed by the TAT with the cooperation of THAI, the Federation of the Thai
Tourism Industry and the Ministry of Public Health, in which over 1,300
journalists from around the world were invited to visit Thailand so that
they could help publicize the safety and SARS-free situation of the kingdom,
and the Visit Thailand with Luck Program, jointly managed by the TAT and
THAI with a budget of US$25 million, in which 20,000 free THAI tickets were
presented to passengers through lucky drawings.
Given the strategies, Thailand has recovered from the
SARS crisis quicker than many other countries in the region, with continued
growth in its domestic tourism industry, from 1% in August to 3% in
September, and expected 4% in October, according to the statement.
The TAT, THAI, and the Federation of Thai Tourism
Industry were presented with the TTG Asia Award for their outstanding role
benefiting the regional tourism market, together with other selected 12
personalities and organizations at a ceremony held on November 4. (TNA)
Britain campaigns to tap Asia’s MICE segments
Britain has mounted its first-ever marketing campaign to
tap Asia’s business and MICE segments. The former British Tourist
Authority, which has been restructured and was re-launched as VisitBritain
in April, is making its debut at IT&CMA, with a firm commitment to work
with Asia’s professional MICE organizers. Visit Britain’s manager
South-east Asia, Michael McCormick, has been appointed the NTO’s regional
business specialist and MICE ‘champion’.
McCormick said, “Global business tourism, including
MICE, to the UK has been growing significantly in recent years. There is
strong potential within the Asian region as economic recovery is slowly
returning. Singapore, Hong Kong, Thailand have been generating increases in
business travel spend to Britain of between five and nine per cent, while
Japan has held steady in the period between 1997 and 2002.”
McCormick added, “We know Asian MICE groups with
between 300 and 500 people are going to the UK and Europe, and
VisitBritain’s role is to make it easier for meeting planners and MICE
organizers to send business to Britain. We will lend support to event bids,
from joint presentations to the provision of bid documents.”
VisitBritain will also highlight British MICE events such
as CONFEX, the Incentive and Travel Show and association meetings to the
Asian industry. Immediate targets are Singapore and South-east Asia, where
VisitBritain has started to build its partner database.
Information and tools for the industry include
VisitBritain’s website www.visit britain.com/sg (for those in Singapore)
or www.visit britain.org. There is also Meet Britain, a new Visit Britain
publication produced specifically for the MICE industry. (TTG Asia)
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