Krabi Airline postpones
launch till August
Start-up Krabi Airline has again postponed its plan
to inaugurate the Krabi-Bangkok (Don Muang)-Oslo and Krabi-Bangkok (Don
Muang)-Munich services from April 5 to August 30.
The airline, which has been in the making for about two years, initially
planned to launch the services in November last year but postponed the
dates to January and later to April.
Chief commerce officer and co-founder, Mr. Kosol Vongsrisart, told TTG
Daily News: “We cannot take off on April 5 as we are still working on
several aspects, including airline operation certification and wet lease
of a Boeing 747-300 aircraft.
“Also, we have decided to postpone the inauguration date to August 30 as
it is closer to the high tourist period and our key markets -
Scandinavia and Europe - are seasonal.”
Mr. Kosol said the airline expected a cabin factor of 80 per cent for
the high season from October to March and 40 per cent for the remaining
months in the first years of operations. He added the airline’s
e-booking engine would be ready by the end of March.
Krabi Airline has appointed International Travel Service and Aviareps as
its general sales agents in Norway and Germany, respectively. (TTG)
China scraps charges at most museums
From March, 2008, all state-owned museums in China have stopped charging
admission fees.
According to government officials, more than 300 museums, libraries and
galleries across China have opened their doors to the public at no charge.
The move is part of a new push to encourage more people to experience Chinese
history and culture up close.
There are some concerns, however, that the increasing number of visitors to
museums as a result will impact some of the relics.
China has over 2,300 museums, which received some 150 million visitors in 2007.
(TTG)
“Hot” investments in Thailand
Thai tourism and sports minister, Mr. Weerasak Kowsurat, plans to invite
Thai and foreign investors to develop around 112 hot springs throughout
Thailand as tourism destinations.
Speaking at a seminar on Hot Spring Tourism Destination Management and
Development on March 5 in Bangkok, Mr. Weerasak said they could help to
attract more foreign leisure visitors and international meeting and
incentive groups to the country.
In a bid to attract investors’ interests, the Office of Small and Medium
Enterprises Promotion will fund the development of a hot spring in Chiang
Rai into a tourism attraction. (TTG)
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