Spas do Thailand proud
Spas do Thailand proud
Thailand has claimed top honours in three categories at the Asia Spa Awards 2009 announced recently in Hong Kong.
Organised by AsiaSpa magazine, the awards were presented in 27 categories.
Thailand was voted “Spa Capital of the Year” and “Destination Spa of the Year” thanks to Six Senses Destination Spa in Phuket, and “Men’s Spa Treatment of the Year” for the deeply therapeutic and holistic “Man Space Healing Balance Massage” available at i.sawan Residential Spa & Club at the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel in Bangkok.
Thailand’s spa sector attracted more than 3.6 million clients in 2007, according to the latest Thailand Spa Benchmark Report, generating 8.3 billion baht. With a 11,240-strong workforce, its revenue has grown more than 200 per cent since 2002.
Favourite pastime
Cheap air tickets are the number one priority of people in the Asia-Pacific region surfing the Internet for travel-related shopping, according to a recent Visa survey.
Next on their priority list, the survey found, were hotel accommodation and online travel agents, with the average surfer spending US$3,085 (104,890 baht) over the past 12 months on the travel-related services, an increase of 20% compared to the previous year.
It indicated that the behaviour of people was gradually changing: when it came to air tickets more were making their own bookings directly via web sites, and they had become more selective when it came to hiring the services of middle-men.
It’s getting better
With the onset of high tourist season in Thailand, some airlines have introduced new flights connecting Phuket, while some also offer special promotions. Here is a round-up:
v V Australia (http://www.vaustralia.com.au), a full service airline of the Virgin Blue Group, launched its maiden flight linking Perth and Phuket last Sunday and will soon add Phuket-Brisbane and Phuket-Melbourne to its routes.
“We are delighted to add Thailand to our growing network and we look forward to bringing new travel and business development opportunities, both for tourism operators in the region as well as the many expatriates who travel home to Australia frequently,” said Brett Godfrey, CEO of the Virgin Blue Group.
The airline operates the Boeing 777-300ER on the routes which features 33 business, 40 premium economy and 288 economy seats.
v Thai Air Asia (http://www.airasia.com) has launched direct flights from Phuket to Chiang Mai, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Singapore, Ho Chi Minh, Jakarta and Medan.
It marked its maiden Phuket-Hong Kong flight by releasing five brown-banded baby cat sharks into the sea at Cape Panwa in Phuket.
v Nok Air (http://www.nokair.com) has added afternoon flights between Phuket and Trang – available Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays – in addition to its daily morning flight, as of Nov 19.
vTiger Airways (tigerairways.com) is offering 4.5 million seats at discount prices to fete 2010, the Year of the Tiger, with start-up prices one-way to Krabi, Phuket, Hat Yai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Perth as low as 130 baht, excluding surcharges. Bookings are now open and the travel window runs January to March.
v Emirates Airline will launch a fourth daily service to Bangkok from Dec 2 using the Boeing 777-300, which has 12 seats in first class, 42 in business and 310 in economy, to go with an additional 161 tonnes of cargo capacity per week one-way.
Travel pictorial
Due for release next April is Balloon Over Thailand, a two-part pictorial series designed to present readers with a bird’s-eye view of the country’s varied attractions and natural environment.
Compiled by Yut Wanichanond and Anthony Pertwee, a Briton who now lives in Chiang Mai, they spent decades traversing Thai skies in balloons. The first book of the series will be devoted to travel and archaeological sites like Prasat Phanom Rung, and the second deal with the people’s way of life, the natural landscape and environment.
“As a hot-air balloon pilot I have witnessed the nation in different dimensions and I wish to share it with readers,” said Yut.
“We hope to bring readers some of the amazing adventures we have had over the past 20 years,” said Pertwee.
About 200 pages thick, the book will come in both Thai and English versions.
You are welcome to contribute to the book by sharing your travel experiences, or by introducing interesting places via http://www.balloonoverthailand.com or email to info@balloonoverthailand.com. In return, you stand a chance to win prizes.
Part of the proceeds from sale of the book will go to schools in remote areas.
Chiang Khan fair
Chiang Khan, a once quiet town in Loei that’s woken up to backpacking tourists, will celebrate the 100th anniversary of its founding Dec 4-6 and hopes to use the occasion to promote local culture through native performances and fairs.
Located by the banks of the Khong River, Chiang Khan is about 580 kilometres north-east of Bangkok. Its charm lies in simple lifestyle of its people and pleasant weather all year round, although some times it can really get cold in winter.
On the cards are various stage performances, light and sound presentation, sale of local handicraft and Otop products.
For more information, visit http://www.chiangkhan.com and http://www.tat.or.th/loeicenter or call 042-812-812 and 042-811-405 .
Social networking
The Asia chapter of Hospitality Sales & Marketing Association International will organise a “Asia Connect Thailand Conference” on Nov 30 at Movenpick Resort & Spa in Phuket to encourage hotel operators to make the most use of social media web sites.
Social networking web sites such as Facebook or Twitter have grown rapidly and are now the second biggest traffic drivers to web sites after search engines, says Internet research firm Hitwise.
To catch up with the trend, the event will focus on issues and challenges faced by every management in the hospitality industry today, said Craig Fong, director of sales and marketing for Movenpick Resort located on Karon Beach.
“Knowledge gained from this event will help provide a better understanding for establishing a clear strategy to deal with these critical issues,” he said.
