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Patong beach to be renovated and restored
The Tourism Authority of Thailand and the Phuket
provincial authorities have agreed to renovate and reorganize the resort
island’s top tourist attraction - Patong Beach - after being devastated by
massive tsunamis waves last month.
Under the restoration plan, many buildings which have
blocked the scenic view of the famous Patong Beach for years will be
demolished. New buildings will not be permitted to be built within 15 meters
from the beach. The road system will also be redesigned to ease traffic
congestion in the busiest area. Car parks and an electric rail system will
also be built to service tourists who want to travel around the Patong area.
Small beach businesses, including beach chairs renting, drinking stalls and
massage booths, will be zoned in order to keep the beach organized and
clean.
After the redesign of Patong has been drawn up, the local
authorities will open it to public opinions. “The cooperation of local
residents, business owners and people in the service sector is important,
and we will listen to every group before the plan is implemented”, a
senior municipal official told journalists. (TNA)
Foreign road shows to kick-start Andaman tourism
The Ministry of Tourism and Sports is to launch one of
the largest tourism marketing drives in Thai history through a series of
foreign road shows aimed at restoring tourist confidence in the country’s
southern Andaman coast.
Speaking after a meeting of key government figures and
tourism operators on the southern resort island of Phuket, Tourism and
Sports Minister Sontaya Khunplome said that both the public and private
sectors were unanimous in the belief that the nation needs to reassure
foreign tourists that 80 percent of tourism destinations in the Andaman
region remained unaffected by the tsunami.
Pledging an injection of 2 million baht for the
government’s tourism drive, Sontaya said that Thailand would conduct a
tourism road show in Malaysia at the end of this month, before taking the
road show to Germany in March and Russia in April.
Deputy Finance Minister Varathep Ratanakorn, meanwhile,
confirmed that the Finance Ministry would seek to assist tourism operators
affected by the tsunamis through a debt moratorium scheme and joint
investment with the public sector. (TNA)
Public and private sectors join hands to restore Andaman coast
State officials and private sector tourism operators met
last week to draw up unified plans to restore Thailand’s Andaman
coastlines following last month’s devastating tsunamis, with the
government pledging 2 million baht for a marketing campaign aimed at
reviving tourist confidence.
The importance of the meeting, attended by over 30
tourism operators, was underlined by the presence of both Tourism and Sports
Minister Sontaya Khunplome and Deputy Finance Minister Varathep Ratanakorn.
Phattanphong Ekwanich, president of the Phuket Tourism
Association, spoke for local tourism operators when he called on the
government to beautify the region’s beaches and surrounding areas.
But tourism operators also stressed the need for
continuing assistance for the survivors of the tragedy, with Sombat Atiset,
president of the Phuket Federation of Industries, calling on the government
to draw up clear short-term and long-term aid plans. Noting that many
countries were warning their nationals of the possibility of outbreak of
diseases in the wake of the tsunamis, he said that the government had to be
instrumental in reassuring foreign nations that the region was safe.
Speaking after the meeting, Sontaya said that all the
opinions expressed would be put before the cabinet. He also stressed that
the Tourism and Sports Ministry would take the lead in what promises to be
one of Thailand’s biggest tourism marketing drives ever, saying that the
ministry would publicize the fact that more than 80 percent of tourist
destinations in the six southern provinces affected by the tsunamis -
Phuket, Phang-nga, Krabi, Trang, Ranong and Satun - in fact remain
undamaged. (TNA)
Addition to Colors of Angsana stable
The Maison Souvannaphoum, a boutique hotel in
Thailand’s World Heritage Site of Luang Prabang, will celebrate its
official opening at the end of February.
The hotel was re-branded from the Hotel Souvannaphoum
when the reins were taken up by Banyan Tree’s three-star brand, Colors of
Angsana.
The 23-room hotel has undergone renovations to
guestrooms, common areas and restaurants. It was soft-opened in December
with six rooms and will be fully opened along with a new spa and gallery
late next month. There are 23 rooms, a restaurant, a bar and a new Angsana
Spa with two treatment rooms.
Director marketing communications, Lim Siok Ching, said,
“We have opened a reservations office for the property in Bangkok to
handle enquiries from ground operators there,” he said (TTG Asia)
National parks in tsunami-hit areas to be restored
Thailand plans a variety of immediate and long-term
measures to restore the national parks in the country’s six southern
provinces hit by tsunami waves last month, the permanent secretary for
Natural Resources and Environment, Petipong Pungbun Na Ayudhaya, said.
Under the long-term scheme, permanent embankment walls
and a network of tree plantations will be built along the seafront of the
national parks as a barricade against strong waves.
“The long-term plans also include reorganizing tourist
services and the management of recreational activities to minimize their
potential adverse affects on the environment and ecology in the national
parks. The immediate solutions include the rearrangement of local vendors
doing business in the parks, routine cleaning and repairs of the damage,”
Petipong said. (TNA)
Hua Hin and Cha-Am
top Thailand’s tourist campaign
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has launched
campaigns to boost the number of foreign visitors to two of the country’s
world class seaside resorts in the southern provinces of Prachaup Khiri Khan
and Petchburi.
The TAT has launched different campaigns to attract
foreign visitors from both Asia and Europe to the two beach towns of Hua Hin
and Cha-Am in Prachaup Khiri Khan and Petchburi. The authority hopes to
attract two million visitors to these two tourist resorts in 2005, compared
to 1.7 million of last year. Hua Hin and Cha-Am are renowned for their
scenic landscapes.
But Thai tourist officials believe that more Thais and
foreign tourists will be attracted to these resorts by the new service
industries there, including spas, health care and golf courses, the local
tourist chief, Silachai Surai said.
“The TAT is targeting tourists from Scandinavia, Japan
and South Korea, as well as local tourists. Last October, the TAT launched
campaigns abroad and locally, dubbed “Thailand happiness on Earth”.
These focused on four groups of tourists – regular tourists, the elderly,
up-market travelers, and participants of seminars and conferences, Silachai
said. Local residents and provincial authorities have been urged to support
the campaigns and help organize their town’s services in order to impress
the tourists who come, he said. (TNA)
French Foreign Affairs
gives Phuket green light
The French Foreign Affairs has given Phuket the green
light. Its website says the following (translated to English): “The tidal
wave of December 26 caused important destructions alongside the southwestern
coast of Thailand (provinces of Phuket, Krabi, Phang-nga, Trang, Satun and
Ranong).
“(While) Phi Phi and Khao Lak were ravaged, damages on
the island of Phuket were very localized and limited to certain beaches.
Daily life and the ordinary activities continue in a normal manner in most
of the island. Many hotels, restaurants, dive center, etc, work as usual.
The situation is the same in Krabi. There are no more risks of appearance of
infectious diseases. It is therefore completely possible to go in the
zone.” (TTG Asia)
Tsunami washes away THAI revenue
Thai Airways International Public Company Limited (THAI)
is racing to draw up plans to attract tourists back to the kingdom, after
conceding that last month’s tsunami was likely to wipe 1-3 billion baht
off the airline’s revenue.
Speaking on January 10 after a video conference with Thai
sales representatives, airline president Kanok Abhiradee said that second
trimester revenue this year looked set to be 1-3 billion baht lower than
initial projections, with the first quarter of the year seeing a 15 percent
reduction in domestic passenger numbers and a 10 percent reduction in
passengers from abroad. Nonetheless, he stressed that the airline was
pushing through measures to remedy the situation, and expressed confidence
that the second trimester would see a steady return of passenger numbers,
with the situation returning to normal by the third quarter.
But the extent of the airline’s worry was highlighted
by his announcement that the national flag carrier was already drawing up
cost control measures, including the possibility of introducing smaller
aircraft on the Bangkok-Phuket route to respond to an expected reduction in
passenger numbers.
Kanok said that the airline was also considering
introducing new holiday packages for its customers, focusing on the seaside
resorts of Pattaya, Tanong, Cha-am, Hua Hin and even Bali rather than the
Andaman coast.
Kamok said, “Thai Airways concedes that the tsunami has
dealt a blow to the airline’s revenue. There must be changes, but they
will be minimal”.
He also confirmed that the airline would liaise with the
Ministry of Public Health to help allay the health concerns of foreign
tourists worried about the spread of disease in the wake of the tsunami.
On January 13 the airline invited agents from China to
see the situation in Phuket and Phang-nga, two provinces hit by last
month’s tidal waves. The team will also take pictures of coral reefs in
the area which will be broadcast through international media channels such
as CNN to show that Thailand’s coral remains largely undamaged.
Hotel damages in tsunami-hit areas estimated at 12 billion baht
A preliminary estimate of damages to hotels in six
tsunami-stricken provinces in the South is 12 billion baht, Tourism and
Sport Minister Sontaya Khunplome revealed. Out of the 48,000 rooms in the
entire area, Sontaya said around 12,000 rooms were damaged at various
degrees.
‘’Some hotels were slightly affected but some were
totally destroyed especially those in Khao Lak of Phang-nga and Krabi’s
Phi Phi Island which were the worst-hit areas. We have preliminarily
estimated the damage at 12 billion baht but we are compiling damages on
restaurants and other tourism-related services. We should have a clearer
figure soon,” Sontaya. He said the ministry would request a special fund
to rehabilitate southern tourism during the next cabinet meeting to be held
in the northern province of Chiang Rai.
In addition to the 12 billion baht to repair and rebuild
hotel rooms, Sontaya said more budget would be needed for a new marketing
plan on tourism. He said he would have an exact figure to be tabled for the
cabinet meeting.
During SARS and bird flu outbreaks, the ministry spent
between 800 and 1,000 million baht in its tourism rehabilitation scheme,
added the minister. (TNA)
TAT refuses to downsize visitor target
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) remains confident
that 13 million foreign tourists will visit the kingdom this year, despite
the blow dealt to the local tourism industry by last month’s tsunamis.
TAT’s Deputy Governor Suraphon Svetasreni has confirmed
that the authority had not downsized its 2005 tourist target, set at 13.38
million foreign visitors and 76.25 million domestic holidays. The high
target would encourage the TAT to work hard to ensure success, he said,
noting that many of the destinations in the Andaman region hit by last
month’s tsunamis had already been cleared of debris and were ready to
welcome back tourists. He conceded, however, that some of the worst hit
areas, including the resort of Khao Lak in Phang-nga Province, would take
longer to clear.
Noting that 60 percent of the tourists who had cancelled
bookings in the Andaman region following the tsunamis were European,
Suraphon said that the TAT would turn to the Asian market to make up tourist
numbers.
The TAT is inviting journalists and tourism operators
from around the world to witness the true situation in the Andaman region,
with a delegation from China expected at the end of this month in
anticipation of Chinese New Year. A second delegation from Japan will arrive
in February, while the TAT will conduct a road show in the German capital of
Berlin later in the year to promote the Andaman region. (TNA)
Air India employees contribute one day’s salary for relief
Air India employees will contribute one day’s salary,
including Productivity Linked Incentive, to the Prime Minister’s Relief
Fund in the wake of the tragedy caused by tsunami floods in the southern
states of India
Air India employees have, in the past, also responded
magnanimously. The previous three instances being the earthquake in Latur,
war in Kargil and earthquake in Gujarat.
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