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Spend Chinese New Year by the ocean at Novotel Marina Sriracha and Koh Si Chang Thailand

Chinese New Year, Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, whatever you call it, is a time for family, feasting, and fresh beginnings. This year, why not swap the crowded streets for sea breezes and sunshine at Novotel Marina Sriracha and Koh Si Chang? The dual-location...

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  • Event Round-Up – December 2018

    Event Round-Up – December 2018

    by The Sponsorship Experts – Paul Poole (South East Asia) Co. Ltd. The festive season is here and with it a slew of events from music and flower festivals to yachting events and road races. The month starts off with the popular Phuket King’s Cup Regatta running until December 8. Held for the 32nd time, …

  • Living with elephants – avoiding problems in Khao Yai national park

    Living with elephants – avoiding problems in Khao Yai national park

    Khao Yai National Park, north of Bangkok, is instructing tourists how not to anger the park’s wild elephants as they walk on or besides the roads. Tourists travelling to the national park from Prachin Buri Province at the Noen Hom entrance are likely to meet wild elephants in the morning and evening, according to national …

  • Want that perfect picture? Just wait your turn.

    Want that perfect picture? Just wait your turn.

    PHOTO: Tomas Alfoldi In this modern day of social media it seems so many are out to get that ‘perfect shot’, and will go to great lengths to get it. Seeing a picture of someone perched on some isolated cliff overlooking some natural wonder and thinking to yourself ‘I’ve got to get that picture!’. We’re …

  • Bangkok #2, Phuket #11 – World’s most popular destinations

    Bangkok #2, Phuket #11 – World’s most popular destinations

    “Phuket rank 11th with about 11.9 million tourist arrivals this year, higher than last year’s 11.6 million arrivals making it Thailand’s most important economy outside Bangkok.” Bangkok has come in second place in the list of the world’s top cities for tourism. The list has been compiled by Euromonitor International. Their Top 100 City Destinations …

  • E-visas available from February 2019. China first country.

    E-visas available from February 2019. China first country.

    The Consular Affairs department is launching a new e-visa service from February 2019. It will initially available in China and then expand to other countries over a period of three years. Kasikornbank Bank is co-operating with the Consular Affairs unit to handle the e-payments, . The service will be available from February 15, 2019 and, initially, …

  • Airline staff mock young girl over her name – Abcde

    Airline staff mock young girl over her name – Abcde

    An American discount airline has apologised to a mother after she claimed the staff laughed at her five year old daughter’s name. The daughter is called Abcde. The name, according to the mother, is pronounced ‘Ab-si-dee’. The airline staff also and posted a picture of her boarding pass with the unusual name. The mother said she was …

  • How will ‘Chindia’ change Phuket’s tourism future?’

    How will ‘Chindia’ change Phuket’s tourism future?’

    What exactly is this Chindia? In a nutshell it’s a flash drive marketplace with 1/3 of the world’s population – China and India. For a great number of Phuket hoteliers, the first half of 2018 saw marketplace velocity, where RevPAR’s rose on surging demand, and the most often heard comment was the ignominious ‘same same’. …

  • Influx of Indian tourists expected over the next decade

    Influx of Indian tourists expected over the next decade

    PHOTO: LookEast Magazine Tourism from India will increase markedly over the next ten years. This prediction from the head of the Association of Thai Travel Agents, Wichit Prakorpkoson. By 2028 he says he expects 10 million Indian visitors each year. About Chinese tourism, the ATTA chief say he expected the numbers to slow from previous trends but …

  • Walking on air. 314 metres above Bangkok.

    Walking on air. 314 metres above Bangkok.

    PHOTO: The Nation King Power International Group has opened what is being marketed as the world’s biggest glass-bottomed skywalk. The new tourist (and local) attraction is on the rooftop of the 78 storey Mahanakhon building on Narathiwat Road in Bangkok’s Bang Rak district. Mahanokon is Thailand’s tallest building at 314 metres. The glass skywalk has …

  • Arrivals up 20% – visa fee waiver

    Arrivals up 20% – visa fee waiver

    The Tourism and Sports Ministry is sprouting anecdotal evidence that tourist arrivals are up a massive 20% for the second half of November. This follows the hastily prepared visa-on-arrival fee waivers for 21 countries, introduced on November 15 and intended to run through to January 13 next year. New visitors from India are part of …

  • Airbnb launches ‘Airbnb Plus’ in Bangkok and Phuket

    Airbnb launches ‘Airbnb Plus’ in Bangkok and Phuket

    Airbnb, the community-driven travel platform, welcomes its next stage of growth in Thailand with the launch of Airbnb Plus in Bangkok. Come December, Airbnb Plus will also be available for bookings in Phuket, Asia’s number one resort destination. Airbnb Plus is a selection of homes of the highest quality offered by hosts with great reviews …

  • Walk on the wild side – the new Mahanakhon SkyWalk

    Walk on the wild side – the new Mahanakhon SkyWalk

    YIKES! Is there anything more terrifying than a ride in a border visa-run passenger van? We think we’ve found it. The Mahanakhon SkyWalk – Thailand’s highest observation deck and rooftop bar at 314 metres high – offers spectacular panoramic views of Bangkok from Thailand’s tallest building. But that’s not the really scary bit. The new …

  • Chiang Mai tourism operators paint gloomy outlook

    Chiang Mai tourism operators paint gloomy outlook

    Tourism in Chiang Mai has been decimated by the downturn in Chinese arrivals. Tour operators and officials are hoping that more Western tourists would fill their place, especially during the next few months. The Chiang Mai News reports that a hotel operator in the Prapokklao area says her business had been terrible the last few …

  • Fast-lane online visa system launched at Thai airports

    Fast-lane online visa system launched at Thai airports

    The Immigration Bureau acting commissioner Pol Maj-General Surachate Hakparn has officially launched the e-Visa on Arrival system today that is expected to cut visa processing times to as little as one minute and reverse the downward trend of Chinese tourist visitation. Surachate launched the new system which been trialled at Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang airports …

  • First Kunming-Krabi direct flight landed

    First Kunming-Krabi direct flight landed

    The first direct flight from Kunming, China, full of Chinese passengers, has arrived at Krabi International Airport. The General Manager of the Krabi International Airport Apichai Aranyik has welcomed the new Lucky Airline (Boeing 737) with its first direct Charter Flight from Kunming to Krabi. The flight carried 162 passengers and arrived in Krabi at …

  • Return to Elephant Jungle Sanctuary

    Return to Elephant Jungle Sanctuary

    By Mark Louie Maycong Phuket is one of the Thailand’s most popular tourist destinations and continuously booming. There are so many attractions and activities that you can enjoy. One of them is visiting the Elephant Jungle Sanctuary. Visiting this place is heaven on earth specially for animal lovers. You get to know the elephants and …

  • Smart Visa qualifications updated

    Smart Visa qualifications updated

    The Smart Visa scheme was introduced last year as a new category to recognise the changes in people visiting and working in Thailand, and the skills the Thai Government are trying to attract to the Kingdom. Now the government’s introduced a fine-tune to the new visa, adding three new professions suited to the so-called Smart …

  • Meeting in Pattaya addresses Chinese tourism drop-off

    Meeting in Pattaya addresses Chinese tourism drop-off

    PHOTO: South China Morning Post The Tourism Authority of Thailand, and its regional offices, are very good at painting a happy face, even as the numbers and trends are heading in the opposite direction of their planned growth in tourist arrivals. In Phuket, for example, where there’s been a big drop off in Chinese tourists, …

  • Visa-fee waiver for 21 countries as tourism slump sparks panic

    Visa-fee waiver for 21 countries as tourism slump sparks panic

    by Kat Chanwanpen Visitors from 21 countries are getting their visa-on-arrival fee waived for 60 days, starting December 1. Amid declining numbers of visitors, notably from China, a desperate Cabinet yesterday agreed to waive the 2,000 baht visa-on-arrival fee for tourists from 21 countries for 60 days to try and revive one of the main …

  • Thailand’s creative entrepreneurs funding passions through Airbnb

    Thailand’s creative entrepreneurs funding passions through Airbnb

    2,000 Airbnb Homes and Experiences hosts in Thailand are members of the Creative Community 25% of all creative Thai hosts are based in Bangkok. One in every five Thai Experience hosts are from the arts, music, fashion or entertainment industries. Like tourism, which now accounts for more than 10 percent of the world’s global GDP, the …

  • Thai Airways doubles up on 2017 losses

    Thai Airways doubles up on 2017 losses

    Thai Airways has doubled up on losses for the past three months (Q3), compared to the same period last year. They’ve reported an operating loss of 3.69 billion baht, up 103% year-on-year. The total revenue was actually up 2.2%, according to a statement from the Thai Airways president, Sumeth Damrongchaitham, but the operating costs were …

  • Thailand’s Seniors are world’s most active Airbnb hosts and guests

    Thailand’s Seniors are world’s most active Airbnb hosts and guests

    Seniors (hosts and guests aged 60 and older) have been a growing and integral part of the Airbnb community for many years – they are growing fast, earning important extra income, and continue to be the most-loved of any age group. They are fast growing, are booking on Airbnb in increasing numbers, and leading a …

  • Event round-up November 2018

    Event round-up November 2018

    by The Sponsorship Experts, Paul Poole (South East Asia) The month kicks off with the last Spartan Thailand race of the year, held in Hua Hin on 3 November. Participants can choose between two different courses, the 21km Spartan Beast race with more than 30 obstacles designed to really push people to their limits, and …

  • Pattaya – Hua Hin ferry service back again for high season

    Pattaya – Hua Hin ferry service back again for high season

    PHOTO: Talk News The Pattaya – Hua Hin ferry service has started again for the high season. The Hua Hin deputy chief Chareewat Phramanee has confirmed that Royal Passenger Liner will operate a daily service again between Hua Hin and Pattaya during the high season. The service was suspended in September, with Royal Passenger Liner …

  • Koh Tarutao archipelago is plastic-free

    Koh Tarutao archipelago is plastic-free

    Tarutao Islands National Park has been declared as an area free of plastic and styrofoam containers for the current tourist season. Assistant Park Director Kittipong Sanui said during the launching ceremony of Satun Andaman Tourism Season that the Department of Natural Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation has imposed a ban on the use and import …

  • Hackers get into the Cathay Pacific database

    Hackers get into the Cathay Pacific database

    Cathay Pacific says they’ve uncovered a data breach where the personal information of more than 9 million passengers could have been stolen. Cathay Pacific has clarified that a wide range of data, including passenger names, dates-of-birth, phone numbers, email contacts and passport numbers, was potentially exposed in a hack of its information systems earlier this year. …

  • Phuket smartens up to bring tourists back

    Phuket smartens up to bring tourists back

    Marimi Kishimoto, Nikkei staff writer Reeling from a deadly boat accident this summer, Thailand’s Phuket Island is using “smart” technologies to tackle issues like safety and traffic in an effort to get back on track amid the Southeast Asian tourism boom. The international tourist destination has seen tourist traffic drop off after two boats capsized …

  • The Great Bridge of China – the world’s longest sea-bridge opens

    The Great Bridge of China – the world’s longest sea-bridge opens

    The world’s longest sea-crossing bridge, linking Hong Kong to mainland China, has opened today. The opening is of immense economic and political significance for China, Hong Kong, the greater Pearl Delta and the region. The Chinese President Xi Jinping presided over the ceremony in Zhuhai, next door to Macau, at the China end of the …

  • Ode to the Honda Click

    Ode to the Honda Click

    No helmets, but a lot of effort, some cameos by local dogs and a drone, brings together a heart-felt ode to the ubiquitous Hand Click, the favourite scooter rental for Thai tourists for a decade. This unlikely, hastily organised boyband duo deserves 10 out of 10 for effort but a lower score for their singing …

  • “Customer is King” – Thai Airways union attacks first class pilots

    “Customer is King” – Thai Airways union attacks first class pilots

    The Thai Airways International worker’s union has attacked two pilots for demanding first-class seats from passengers in a standoff drama that delayed an October 11 Zurich-Bangkok flight by two hours even as airline executives vowed to reform the national carrier. Airways executives pledged to nurture a “Customer is King” culture, pledging to use the controversy …