Bangkok and Phuket rank among the top 10 favourite destinations for Danish travellers, according to a report by Momondo.dk, a hotel and travel search engine in Denmark.
"The research consists of looking at Momondo.dk's search data. So we look at what the most searched destinations are on our site," said company PR manager Lasse Skole Hansen, adding that the site is also Denmark's biggest price comparison site for flights.
It found that Bangkok is the most preferred destination, followed by London. Phuket is in third, followed by Dubai, New York, Malaga, Las Palmas, Paris, Miami and Ho Chi Minh City.
"It is definitely not the first time that Bangkok has been No.1. We often see Bangkok being the most searched destination among Danes -- especially during the winter months," he added.
New Chatuchak app to help shoppers
Chatuchak Guide app has been launched to help shoppers at Chatuchak Weekend Market.
The app is the co-project of the State Railway of Thailand, which manages the weekend market, Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) and Digital Ventures Company, a subsidiary of SCB.
The app features a smart map containing locations of 8,000 stores and shop information for visitors to browse for information before wandering around the largest outdoor market in Southeast Asia.
The app also showcases highlighted items, provides real-time promotions of stores near where you are and a channel for you to review stores.
The app is available in Thai, English and Chinese and is free for download on iOS and Android phones.
SCB also provides QR Pay services allowing SCB users to pay for goods or services by using the SCB app. The cashless service is available at 2,000 shops in the market.
Udon Plaza plans new facility
Udon Plaza, the operator of UD Town shopping mall in Udon Thani, plans to build a meeting and function facility to support the growing industry of Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions (MICE).
According to company president & chief executive Tanakorn Weerachatyanukul, the company has scrapped its previous plan to build a premium shopping centre in the Northeast called UD Decentia and will redesign it as a three-storey MICE facility.
It expects the project located in Muang district will make Udon Thani an alternative MICE venue in the region in addition to Khon Kaen. The facility can support up to 5,000 guests and is expected to be completed within the third quarter of next year.
TAT launches online campaign
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has launched an online campaign to enable people to vote in the Kinnari awards.
The online voting activity is for the Thailand Tourism Awards 2017, also known as the Kinnari Awards, announced in September. The awards honour 108 Thai companies, organisations and destinations for their achievements and outstanding contributions to the tourism industry.
TAT has listed 108 winners in five categories and asks internet users to vote for their favourite places in each category. The five categories include destinations, accommodation, organisations or communities that promote tourism, health and wellness tourism and tour agents.
Rewards for participants include accommodation packages with a total value of 100,000 baht.
The campaign will last until Dec 31 and names of the winners will be announced on Jan 11.
Visit tourismproduct.tourismthailand.org/popularvote/vote.
Airlines update
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has launched "Anytime for You" meal service for its World Business class passengers flying between Bangkok and Amsterdam.
The airline introduced the service on July 1 on the Amsterdam-Johannesburg route and the service on the Bangkok-Amsterdam flights is its second.
The service allows passengers to decide when they want to enjoy extra food in addition to the usual three-course dinner and lunch options. The "Anytime For You" menu has eight dishes of hot, cold, healthy dishes and sweet treats. The selected dish is prepared and served in restaurant style.
KLM flies daily direct flights from Bangkok to Amsterdam. It flies with Boeing 777-300ER offering 34 seats in Business Class and 374 seats in Economy Class.
The flight departs from Suvarnabhumi airport at 12.15pm and arrives in Amsterdam at 6.30pm. The return leg from Amsterdam is at 5.15pm and the arrival time in Bangkok is at 10.05am of the next day.
Visit klm.com.
Japan Airlines has signed a memorandum of understanding for a strategic co-operation agreement with Aeroflot Russian Airlines.
The MoU will allow both airlines to start code-share flights for both domestic and international destinations. Both airlines will further introduce other partnership services such as frequent flyer programmes while considering joint business in the future.
Japan Airlines operates four weekly flights to Moscow Domodedovo Airport from Tokyo Narita Airport using Boeing 787-8 aircraft. Aeroflot operates daily non-stop flights year-round from Moscow Sheremetyevo Airport to Tokyo Narita Airport. Flights from Moscow are operated with Airbus 330-300 aircraft.
Hotels updates
Onyx Hospitality Group will launch the midscale Ozo Phuket in 2019. A short walk from Kata beach, the hotel will feature 255 guest rooms, restaurant, the Eat2Go corner, fitness centre, two swimming pools and a meeting room.
Ozo was launched in Hong Kong in 2013 before expanding to Koh Samui and Colombo and Kandy in Sri Lanka. Ozo hotels are planned in Hoi An in Vietnam, Pattaya, Johor and Penang in Malaysia and Xiamen in China.
Email karnjanak@bangkokpost.co.th if you have any comments to share.
