Govt plans Pattaya, Cha-am ferry link

Govt plans Pattaya, Cha-am ferry link

It has been a long nine years since the Queen Mary 2 docked at Laem Chabang deep-sea port, Rayong, to allow passengers, mostly British, Americans and German, to set off on tours of Pattaya and Bangkok. Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul proposes building terminals to attract more liners. (File photo by Somchai Poomlard)
It has been a long nine years since the Queen Mary 2 docked at Laem Chabang deep-sea port, Rayong, to allow passengers, mostly British, Americans and German, to set off on tours of Pattaya and Bangkok. Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul proposes building terminals to attract more liners. (File photo by Somchai Poomlard)

The Transport Ministry plans to launch a ferry route across the Gulf of Thailand linking Pattaya in Chon Buri to Cha-am district in Phetchaburi to boost tourism, said Deputy Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith.

Mr Arkhom said that by cutting overland travel time by half, the ferry route will enable holidaymakers with limited time to spare to visit both resort cities.

The project will help promote tourism in Thailand, he said. 

Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul proposed the introduction of a new international cruise liner route with port calls at Phuket, Singapore, Cambodia and Vietnam.

She said many tourists to the country arrive aboard cruise liners because of the growing popularity of that form of holiday. But limited capacity and facilities at the country's ports means the number tourists from cruise ships will not grow significantly.

The Transport Ministry announced its intention earlier this week to build two cruise liner terminals in Krabi and Surat Thani. Ms Kobkarn said Singapore has shown interest in a cruise liner route between Singapore and Phuket.

However, tourism authorities in Singapore also want to discuss the possibility of including Vietnam and Cambodia, she said.

Ms Kobkarn also said the Tourism and Sports Ministry wants to promote more marine-related tourism, with more river and sea transport links to draw more tourists.

Tourists also arrive in Thailand on yachts, she said. "But we still have to figure out how to increase commerce from this group of well-heeled tourists," she added.

The country plans to host two major yacht exhibitions in Pattaya and Surat Thani's Koh Samui later this year.

Meanwhile, Ms Kobkarn revealed the Tourism Ministry has donated 299 life vests to the Transport Ministry for use in water transport.

Another 2,201 life vests will be provided by the end of this month. 

She said sea tourism will be a major draw for tourists so the ministry seeks co-operation from other agencies to provide security for them.

Tourists love Thailand's warm waters, which is why two ministries are exploring plans to put foreign visitors near beaches. These holidaymakers are playing with fish in the Andaman Sea in the southern province of Krabi. (Photo by Pattarapong Chatpattarasill)

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