Sustainability awards
Hua Hin and Krabi have won Sustainable Cities And Human Settlements Awards.
The awards were announced at the 2018 Annual Session of Global Forum on Human Settlements (GFHS 2018) at the United Nations Conference Centre in Bangkok.
Supported by the United Nations Environment Programme, the awards comprise 15 categories, including the Global Model of Urban Innovation, Global Green Park and Global Human Settlements Model of Community. There were 35 winners.
Hua Hin won the Global Green City, along with Port Vila in Vanuatu and Qingdao Sino-German Ecopark in China.
Krabi, on the other hand, won the Global Low-Carbon Ecological Scenic Spot. Winning the same award was Daintree National Park in Queensland, Australia.
LGBTQ-friendly cities
Five safest global urban neighbourhoods for LGBTQ travellers have been announced.
According to the New York-based GeoSure, the global leader in scaled, location-safety assessment, the information is based on the first-ever neighbourhood-level LGBTQ Safety ratings category on its smartphone app, also called GeoSure. The app allows users to rate, and have unlimited access to real-time safety ratings on, more than 30,000 neighbourhoods worldwide.
"Three years ago, GeoSure was the first ever to develop a dedicated women's travel safety measure scaled globally, and today we are pleased to unveil the first localised safety-awareness solution specifically for travelling LGBTQ persons," said GeoSure CEO Michael Becker, adding that it aims to help ensure smooth trips.
The places are the Castro district in San Francisco, Berlin's Schöneberg neighbourhood, Amsterdam's Centrum neighbourhood, Barcelona's Eixample neighbourhood and Tel Aviv's City Center/Florentin neighbourhood.
The app is available through the App Store and Google Play. Visit http://geosureglobal.com.
AIRLINES UPDATE
- Bhutan Airlines will launch direct flights between Bangkok and Gaya of the Bihar state in India, starting on Dec 2. Flights will be available every Wednesday and Sunday until Feb 27. They will depart Suvarnabhumi at 7.30am and reach Gaya at 8.30am. The return flight will leave Gaya at 1.05pm and arrive in Bangkok at 5.35pm.
Bhutan Airlines has provided the service to this sector over the past three years on a seasonal basis.
Visit http://b3thailand.com/booking.html or call 02-630-4600/1.
- Thai Smile has increased flights from Bangkok to Udon Thani and to Khon Kaen.
The new flight time from Bangkok to Udon Thani is 8.35pm and from Udon Thani to Bangkok is 7.15am, until Dec 15, and will be rescheduled for 7.20am from Dec 15 to March 30. Flying time is about one hour.
The new flight bound to Khon Kaen will leave Suvarnabhumi at 9.05pm, and the new flight from Khon Kaen to Bangkok is available at 7.05am. Flying time is one hour.
Visit http://thaismileair.com or call 1181.
HOTELS DEALS & UPDATE
- Modena by Fraser Buriram has been opened.
Located near the Chang International Circuit racetrack and the Chang Arena, a Fifa-standard football stadium, the 4-star hotel features 152 rooms, each equipped with Wi-Fi and in-room home entertainment systems. Other hotel facilities are a swimming pool, 24/7 fitness centre, two meeting rooms that can accommodate up to 120 people, a launderette and a restaurant bar.
Visit http://buriram.modenabyfraser.com.
- U Zenmaya Phuket has finished its renovation and will open on Nov 21.
The 5-star beachfront hotel on Kalim beach now has a new elegant look throughout the property. The hotel offers a "Stay More & Save" deal, offering a 35% discount on 3-night stays and a 40% discount on stays of four nights or more. The promotion starts at 2,339 baht per room per night and includes daily "Whenever Wherever" breakfast, Wi-Fi internet access and bicycles for leisure.
Visit http://uzenmayaphuket.com.
- Amari Residences Bangkok offers up to 15% discount.
Until Dec 31, early birds can save up to 15% when booking 30 days in advance, 10% when booking seven days in advance.
The hotel is located on Soi Soonvijai, off New Petchburi Road. It offers everything from studios to 3-bedroom suites, rooftop swimming pool, fitness room, sky lounge and café.
Visit http://amari.com/residences-bangkok.
- Outrigger Hotels and Resorts announces its Cyber Sale, offering up to 30% off standard rates.
The promotion is available at two properties: Outrigger Laguna Phuket Beach Resort and Outrigger Koh Samui Beach Resort.
The special offers will run until Dec 3 (using the promo code CYBER18) at http://outrigger.com/cyber.
- Absolute Hotel Services Group has signed a management agreement with The Culture Company to open U Samui in 2020.
The hotel will consist of 49 rooms and pool villas, restaurant and pool beach bar, swimming pool, fitness centre and spa.
Email karnjanak@bangkokpost.co.th if you have any comments to share.
