TRAVEL Titbits
Big plans for Cha-am
- Published: 5/03/2009 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Horizons
The Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand (IEAT) and TCC Property Development of Thai Beverage tycoon Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi have agreed to launch a mega tourism project in Phetchaburi.
Emirates Airline now connects travellers from Bangkok to Christchurch with a daily flight.
The 10-year project covering development of 13,335 rai (around 21 square kilometres) of land in Cha-Am district of Phetchaburi will require an investment of around 60 billion baht.
The first phase of the project calls for building of resorts, spas, hotels, a botanical garden and healthcare facilities on 1,366 rai, or around 10 per cent of the land earmarked for development, with an initial investment of 2.4 billion baht, and IEAT and TCC are expected to sign an agreement to that effect within this month.
The next phase will see the building of film studios along the lines of Hollywood, followed by convention and exhibition facilities.
TAT eyes Asean tourists
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) wants to boost tourist arrivals from Asean countries by 20 per cent to 4.3 million this year.
According to official statistics Malaysians (1.6 million) headed the list of tourists visiting Thailand from Asean countries last year, followed by Laotians (563,036), Singaporeans (523,799), Vietnamese (315,787) and Indonesians (232,476).
Asean tourists to Thailand in 2008 totalled around 3.6 million and the TAT wants to raise that number to 4.3 million this year, hoping to cash in on the services provided low-cost airlines connecting Thailand with the region.
Prakit Piriyakiat, a TAT director overseeing Asean, South Asia and Pacific regions, said TAT will urge tour operators in the Philippines, Laos and Vietnam to devise special travel packages to Thailand.
TAT will back that up by encouraging low-cost carriers to introduce new direct flights on tourist routes, such as Jakarta-Phuket and so forth, to facilitate travel to Thailand and tourism in the region.
The government has already announced a three-month visa waiver to encourage foreign tourists to travel to Thailand.
Connecting Christchurch
Emirates Airline has launched daily service between Bangkok and the New Zealand city of Christchurch using the 364-seater Boeing 777-300ER on the route.
Flight time either way is 13 hours and 45 minutes with a brief stopover in Sydney.
Christchurch is located on the east coast of the South Island. Its highlights include the weekend Arts Centre market, Christchurch Cathedral, Botanic Gardens and International Antarctic Centre.
Visit http://www.emirates.com/th for more information.
Passage to Kandy
SriLankan Airlines has eased passage for Buddhist pilgrims wishing to travel to the city of Kandy to attend the Tooth Relic of Lord Buddha exposition scheduled March 6-16.
The sacred relic opens to pilgrims only on special occasions, the last time being five years ago. A symbol of power, it's the belief of former Sri Lankan monarchs that who ever possessed the relic will rule the country's destiny.
The relic is enshrined at the Sri Dalada Maligawa Temple in Kandy that was declared a World Heritage site in 1988. Kandy is 100 kilometres from Colombo, Sri Lanka's capital.
SriLankan Airlines offers a daily flight from Bangkok to Colombo. For details, visit http://www.srilankan.aero.
Travel fair
The 15th Discover Thailand Discover World travel fair opening today at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre runs until March 8.
Present are some 1,178 booths representing hotels, resorts, spas, tour operators, airlines, car rental firms, operators of adventure tours, and marketers of OTOP products who are offering goods and services at attractive discounts through the sale of vouchers promoting domestic travel.
Visit http://www.pkexhibition.com/pkweb/event.html for more information.
Archaeology camp
The National Discovery Museum Institute is organising a camp for children aged 8-12 from March 25-29 run by archaeologists from Silpakorn University to create among them an awareness about history through self-learning and team work.
Themed "Little Archaeologists and Puzzled Beads", it will run from 8:30am to 4:30pm. There will be a pilot site for children to explore and learn to work in the field as an archaeologist and a tour of Rattanakosin Island. The joining fee is 3,000 baht.
Visit http://www.ndmi.or.th or call 02-225-2777 ext 410/11 for more information.
If you have any comments or news to share, mail them to karnjanak@bangkokpost.co.th.
About the author
- Writer: KARNJANA KARNJANATAWE
