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Pattaya Skålleagues close ranks in preparations for World Congress
In October 2006 more than 1500 delegates and their
families from all over the world are expected to converge into Pattaya to
attend the 67th Skål World Congress.
Delegates are members of Skål International in their
respective countries, who are managers or executives directly involved in
tourism management, sales and promotions in specified travel and tourism
businesses, including transportation (airlines, cruise lines, railways,
ferries), travel and tour operators and agencies, tourism organisations,
governments and non-government tourism councils, hotels, convention centers
and travel media.
Jerry
Dobbs, Anil Singh and Christina Boden enjoying a pint or two.
Therefore it is anticipated that this congress will boost
Pattaya’s tourism business to an all time high.
Andrew Khoo, president of Skål Club of Pattaya &
East Thailand, the host club has set the wheels in motion in terms of
strengthening membership, enlisting top professionals in the travel and
tourism business to assist in preparing for this historical event.
 Benny,
Malcolm and Paul catch up on Pattaya happenings.
Since his election as president, Andrew has revamped the
operations of the club in various aspects, including meetings, information
and fellowship.
Keeping in mind that Pattaya is a true Skål community
because of the predominance of the travel and tourism business, the
president and the committee try to take the meetings and fellowships to
various businesses involved in this sector.
Hans
Banziger, Paisan and Deborah Bundityanond, Michael Swart and Stefan Heintze
make up a formidable team.
This month business was conducted at the Hard Rock Hotel
and then adjourned to the Moon River Pub at the Thai Garden Resort for the
fellowship.
Skållegue Rene Pisters, GM of the Thai Garden Resort,
assisted by Alexandra Mueller, guest relations manager, welcomed
Skålleagues and friends to an evening of food, drink and entertainment, the
excellence of which has become a well known trait of the resort. Rene was
also instrumental in arranging for sponsorship of Paulaner beer, which
helped enhance the happy mood.
Anja,
Marlowe, Ib and Kannikar liven up the party.
Skålleauge Ingo Raeuber, (GM Pinnacle Resorts) the
secretary of the club, announced that preparations for the World Congress
were proceeding at a rapid pace and that pending a few confirmations the
Organising Committee list was being finalised.
Bobbie
and Peter court Alexandra and Cecilia.
He also announced and invited everyone to attend the
Charity Gala dinner organised by the Charity Club of Pattaya and the Skål
Club of Pattaya and East to be held at the Dusit Resort on October 1, 2005.
Proceeds of the event will be donated to the various charities including the
disaster relief project for victims of the tsunami tragedy.
Skålleague Alexander Haeusler, (GM Royal Cliff Beach
Resort) 2nd vice president of the club, did a
brilliant job as auctioneer selling off prizes donated by the Hard Rock
Hotel and the Thai Garden Resort, bringing in a reasonable sum of money.
Proceeds of the auction will be utilised for the “Skål Pattaya Promotion
Fund”. This fund will be used to publicise and promote Pattaya nationally
and internationally.
 The
big boys of Skål, Alex Haeusler, Ingo Raeuber and Rene Pisters.
President Andrew said, “Skål is a very serious travel and tourism
oriented organisation. We invite businessmen and women in Pattaya to join
Skål to help foster friendship amongst like minded people in the common
cause of increasing tourism to Pattaya.” Interested persons who wish to
know more about Skål can contact Ingo Raeuber at tel. 038 255492-4, or
e-mail: [email protected]
Pattaya Paradise - you’ve been
to the bazaar, now see the movie
Narisa Nitikarn
Pattaya Paradise, advertised as an “alternative
lifestyle bazaar” has been launched with a 140 million baht budget, and
will be backed by the release of a movie under the same name.
Announcing the project at a Pattaya Bay Hotel press
conference on August 6, chairman of the owning company Box Asset Co Ltd,
Wirat Udomsinwattana, said that the concept is to add an extra dimension to
Pattaya’s daytime activities.
Project
owner and administrators have their photo taken with Lieutenant Ma Pho-Ngam,
MP Kanchanaburi Zone 5 (3rd from left), Mayor Niran Wattanasartsathorn, Na
Hathai Lekbamrung, star of the Pattaya Paradise film and Hong Kong movie
stars.
Pattaya Paradise will consist of 35 shop units covering
an area of 5,000 sq m next to the beach at South Pattaya, with Pratamnak
Hill directly behind. Separate zones will sell clothing, food and other
items, making it unlike any other bazaar in Pattaya, and there will be
attractions specifically for families. Extra Bean Co Ltd will manage the
project.
The movie entitled Pattaya Paradise, meanwhile, uses
Pattaya as its location. Co-investors are Box Office Entertainment of
Thailand, YSY Entertainment Group of Hong Kong, and Pathfinder Pictures of
the USA.
The story revolves around four men and women with broken lives meeting
each other in a Pattaya bar called Suay. The owner of the bar is very
beautiful, but the bar itself has a strange and disturbing past. The movie
premiered on August 25.
Central Plaza announces new heads, projects
The Central Plaza Hotel Public Co has appointed Gerd
Steeb as president of the group and Thiradej Chirathivat as senior executive
vice president. Both will oversee its hotel and food business respectively.
Incumbent president, Suthikiati Chirathivat, will be chairman of the
Executive Board, overseeing policies and giving key strategic directions for
the company.
Steeb was previously executive vice president of Central
Hotels & Resorts. Thiradeji was previously executive director of Central
Restaurants Group.
Meanwhile, the company has announced hotel projects lined
up in the pipeline. They include the 192-room Central Krabi Bay Resort to
open later this year, the 505-room five-star Central World Hotel Bangkok
expected to have a soft opening in late 2007, and a new “jungle” themed
resort replacing the Central Wong Amat Pattaya Beach Resort, to be ready in
2008.
Of the food business comprising of KFC, Pizza Hut, Mister
Donut, Auntie Anne’s, Baskin Robbins and Steak Hunter, Suthikiati said:
“We expect that there will be a huge expansion with more than 500 outlets
within the next one to two years.” (TTG Asia)
Pattaya hotel and tourism sector calls water problem a crisis
Hoteliers and tourism business operators in the popular
seaside resort of Pattaya, located in Thailand’s eastern province of
Chonburi, said in a meeting on Friday that they would ask their member of
parliament (MP) to petition Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra for a solution
to the current water shortage.
Speaking at a panel discussion on water shortage in the
country’s eastern provinces, Thanet Supornsahasrangsee, president of the
Pattaya Travel and Tourism Association, said the government is still hiding
the truth about the reality of the water crisis.
The true extent of the water shortage is more severe than
what the government portrays, he said.
Pattaya needs 120,000 cubic meters of water per day,
Thanet said, but East Water Company and the Royal Irrigation Department now
provide the city with only 80,000 cubic meters a day.
The 40,000 cubic meter shortfall must be made up by
residential customers and the business sector themselves who are forced to
buy directly from commercial water supply trucks at 100 baht per cubic
meter.
He said the association would work with local MP to
negotiate an immediate solution to the water shortage crisis by meeting with
the prime minister, warning that the problem, if prolonged would affect
local tourism and cost the nation billions of baht in lost tourism revenue.
(TNA)
Upbeat Thomas Cook to fly 20,000 European tourists a month to Phuket
Europe’s leading travel firm, Thomas Cook, pledged to
bring 20,000 visitors from Europe a month to Phuket. Phuket is described by
the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) as the world’s leading tourist
destination.
Thomas Cook Travel’s Vice President, Peter Fankharser,
announced the good news for this southern holiday resort’s travel industry
Thursday in a press conference held jointly with Phuket Governor Udomsak
Assavarangkura and Suwalai Pinpradab, director of TAT’s Southern Office,
Region 4, covering the tsunami-affected areas of Phuket and the nearby
provinces of Phang-nga and Krabi.
Farnhouser said his company plans to bring, on average,
20,000 visitors a month to Phuket from 1 November this year through April
next year.
Suwalai said the move by Thomas Cook represents a
positive signal to the recovery of tourism in Phuket and will help
Thailand’s travel industry restore confidence among other travel
suppliers.
The TAT official said that Thomas Cook’s action should
motivate other travel agents and companies to follow their example.
She is confident that more European travelers will return
to Phuket this year. (TNA)
Sri Lanka gains more air links
Martinair will resume operations between Colombo and
Amsterdam from October 29. The flights will operate twice a week, year
round. Saturday and Sunday flights will be direct operations between Colombo
and Amsterdam while Friday’s flight will operate from Colombo to Amsterdam
via Mal้ in the Maldives.
Meanwhile, Austrian Airlines will start scheduled flights
between Vienna and Colombo twice a week from November on. “Effective April
2006, we can confirm that scheduled Austrian Airlines flights will operate
thrice weekly on the Vienna-Colombo-Mal้-Vienna route,” Austrian
Airlines Manager Sri Lanka, Rajitha Seneviratne, said. (TTG Asia)
ATF 2006 to proceed on scheduled dates
The Philippines will follow the original schedule of
January 13 to 21 for ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2006.
Department of Tourism (DoT) Undersecretary Tourism
Services and Regional Offices, Oscar Palabyab, said the Philippines had
accepted the request of the ASEAN Secretariat to host ATF 2006. At press
time, Tourism Secretary, Joseph Durano, had written to the ASEAN Secretariat
officially accepting the project, stating that the DoT was only waiting for
the final concurrence of all ASEAN members. Durano will formally announce
Davao as the ATF 2006 host city this week.
Palabyab did not foresee major logistical disruptions,
saying: “It is only a transfer of venue. We are just transposing whatever
Myanmar had planned to Davao. Delegates will only need to change their
travel plans.”
The Philippine government has released a budget of a
little less than 100 million pesos (US$1.8 million, Bt.72 million) for the
event. Palabyab said: “Since we had been preparing early for ATF 2007, we
have found ourselves ready to advance our hosting to 2006. We will just
fast-track our preparations and are considering hiring TTG (Asia Media) to
organize Travex.” (TTG Asia)
Xiamen hosts first Cross-Strait Travel Fair
THE first Cross-Strait Travel Fair will be held in Xiamen
from September 6 to 11.
Hosted by the China National Tourism Administration and
the Fujian provincial government, the fair aims to give play to Fujian’s
geographical advantage and provide a platform for tourism cooperation across
the straits. It will feature 320 exhibition booths, showcasing the rich
tourism resources in the area. Tourism administrative bodies from Hong Kong,
Macau, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Turkey, Korea and Indonesia will take
part in the expo.
A panel discussion on the future cooperation and development of
cross-strait tourism will be the highlight of the event. More than 200
tourism projects with total investments reaching US$2.2 billion (Bt.84
billion) will also be put forth for bidding. They include the construction
of tourism infrastructure, development of scenic spots, hotel and travel
agency management. Visit www.stfair.com.cn (TTG Asia)
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