Stories tagged with epbook
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Another high flier for NE Phuket
Jumeirah Private Island (Ko Raet, NE Phuket)
Jumeirah will not be gracing NE Phuket's Ko Raet with a monumental sail-shaped structure housing a hotel. Ko Raet's 400 meter private white sandy beach (legally private only after some meters beyond the high water mark according to Thai law) and the promise of no money spared on luxury seem the main attractions of the newly-announced project.
Below is the introduction of their press release. Go to (http://www.jumeirah.com/portfolio/future/) for the full report.
"Scheduled for completion in late 2008, Jumeirah Private Island Phuket, will feature 65 lavishly appointed deluxe pool villas, each with a private infinity pool and Jacuzzi, and 12 three-bedroom luxury residential villas. There will also be four restaurants and bars, as well as extensive leisure, spa and fitness facilities, including a large free form swimming pool and a 400 metre private, white sandy beach. In addition, the resort will offer a marina, a private yacht club, a tennis court, several boutiques, a business centre and a library with dedicated reading room."
Posted by: ConcernedExplorer on 12 Feb 2008, 08:28 -
Millennium Resort Patong, Phuket
"This five-star resort is set in lush tropical landscaping within an urban environment. Consisting of two wings, the Beachside and the Lakeside, the 197 and 224 rooms are furnished in rustic resort charm" according to the hotel's official website.
The hotel is located in within the Jungceylon shopping mall complex in the middle of Patong. Its location is very close to the eastern end of Thanon Bangla, Patong's main nightlife street (see 'Bangla Nights' in Exploring Phuket & Phi Phi, pp 52-53)
Millennium Resort Patong Phuket 199, Rat-Uthit 200 Pee Road, Patong, Kathu, Phuket 83150, Thailand
T: +66 76 601 999 F: +66 76 601 986
(http://www.millenniumhotels.com/th/millenniumpatongphuket/index.html)
Posted by: ConcernedExplorer on 12 Feb 2008, 07:49 -
New Gallery Opens
(Re: Royal Phuket Marina "Exploring Phuket & Phi Phi: from tin to tourism pp 158)
A new gallery called 'D Gallery' has opened in the Royal Phuket Marina. With over 220 sqm of exhibition space, the gallery will host six to eight exhibitions by leading and emerging artists throughout the year.
The gallery's inaugural exhibition will be held in March 2008 with outstanding work by emerging Thai artist Therdkiat Wangwatcharakul. The gallery open hours are 11:00 am – 07:00 pm for Tuesday - Saturday and from noon until 06:00 pm on Sunday.
Posted by: ConcernedExplorer on 20 Dec 2007, 03:12 -
Andaman Park Fee Details
Corrections/Changes: Park Fees
(Reference to 'Exploring Phuket & Phi Phi; from tin to tourism' pp 1 & 188)
The Royal Forestry Department has devised a new scale of park fees that depends on the level of attraction offered by the park.
The new fees, which have been implemented from 1 Dec 2007, are a great improvement over the previous system (a blanket 400THB fee charged for entry to all parks) that saw unrealistic pricing for many minor attractions in Thailand, as well as a double-pricing policy in which foreigners paid 20 times more than Thais. In the case of Group 1 parks the new fees for Thais have been raised by 400 percent, making the differential in fees charged between foreigners and Thais smaller (5:1) and the fee policy more equitable.
The new fee scale sees no reduction for foreigners in Group 1 parks (the fee remains at 400/200 THB for foreign adults/children between 3 and 14 years of age) but 50 and 75 percent reductions in entrance fees payable for Grade 2 (200/100THB) and Grade 3 parks (!00/50THB). Grade 4 parks are free.
It is uncertain whether fees are going to be charged on a per day basis for people staying overnight within a park domain, but practice hitherto suggests that foreign guests are likely to be charged a one-off entry fee only if staying in accommodation or camping in the park.
Group 1 parks that require the full fee of 400/200 baht for foreigner adults/children (80/40THB for Thai adults/children) in the Andaman Area (Mu Ko = group of islands):
Mu Ko Surin , Phang Nga Province (Entire Park Area) Mu Ko Similan, Phang Nga Province (Entire Park Area) Hat Noppharat Thara Mu Ko Phi Phi (all islands) Mu Ko Lanta, Krabi Province (all islands) Other areas in the above parks will charge 200 THB for foreign adults
Group 2 parks parks on the (200/100THB foreign adults/children, 40/20THB Thai adults/children)
Laem Son, Ranong & Phang Nga Provinces Ao Phang Nga, Phang Nga Province Khao Sok, Surat Thani Province Sirinath, Phuket Than Bok Khorani, Krabi Province Hat Chao Mai, Trang Province Tarutao, Satun Province Thalae Ban, Satun Province
Group 3 parks (100/50THB foreign adults/children, 20/10THB Thai adults/children).
Lam Nam Kraburi, Ranong Province Nam Tok Ngao, Ranong & Chumphon Provinces Si Phang Nga, Phang Nga Province Khao Lak Lamru, Phang Nga Province Hat Thai Muang, Phang Nga Province Khao Phanom Bencha, Krabi Province Mu Ko Phetra, Krabi & Satun Province
Posted by: ConcernedExplorer on 20 Dec 2007, 03:01 -
Phuket Airport’s ‘limousine service’ operating as usual
To those used to living at local rates in Thailand, getting anything in Phuket for 100B ( ± USD 3) might seem like a break, but for years the Phuket Limousine and Business Services Cooperative (PBC) has been offering a ‘limousine service’, as they called their communal van service, for 100B for the ±30 kilometers from the airport to main destinations in the southern part of the island (there is also an airport bus service to Phuket City for the same price). In an article in the Phuket Gazette (Limo drivers vow to fight AOT over airport service, Nov 22, 2007) the PBC announced that on August 12 they had introduced a direct service for 100B to Phuket City.
Presumably this was the same service that had been offered all along, only without the intermediary stop on the bypass road, where tourists were redirected onto vans heading for the city or for separate beach destinations on the west coast. According to the Gazette report, ‘unscheduled stops’ were made, enabling touts to sell tours and other ‘unwanted services’ to tourists, who subsequently had complained to the AOT (Airports Authority of Thailand).
The article said that the AOT was going to restrict the PBC to less vehicles (90 instead of 150) for a reduced concession fee (877,400B per month in the second year till the concession runs out end June 2009 as opposed to 1.2m currently paid per month). The article did not say that the AOT was going to offer an additional concession to another group of operators. It did say that the PCB complained that some of their staff would be shut out of operations if the AOT went ahead with its restriction.
Visitors can almost be guaranteed that things will stay the same, however, since the PCB has a ‘verbal agreement’ with the AOT to continuing running 150 vehicles until a new concession is signed. And if the AOT goes ahead and restricts the PCB? Why, Airport access roads might be blockaded if previous form is anything to go by.
Pay for a taxi and there should be no touts, unless, that is, the taxi driver himself tries to flog you a tour. If such should happen to you, politely say ‘no thank you’.
Posted by: ConcernedExplorer on 23 Nov 2007, 02:22 -
Phuket gains points in National Geographic Survey of 2007
With reference to comments on pages 230-231 of Exploring Phuket & Phi Phi
After the unhappy local reception to National Geographic Traveler Magazines 2004 rating of Phuket Island with 43 points (placing the island 97th out of 100 destinations), Thailand's tourism authorities may take some heart in the island's November 2007 rating of 46 points in NG Traveler's latest survey. The most recent survey rated 111 island destinations, placing Phuket 6th from bottom, but above Hilton Head (45), Jamaica (44), Providenciales (Turks and Caicos, 44), Ibiza (37) and St Thomas (US Virgin Isles, 37). Phuket lay within 4 points of such Caribbean destinations as Antigua (50), Aruba (48), Grand Caymen (47) and St. Martin (47), and was put on a par with Key West in Florida.
In particular praise was given for the manner in which the island recovered from the 2004 tsunami.
For Phuket, however, the key concern must be that the island is a full 11 points behind her main regional competitor, Bali, which ranked 82nd. Reviewer's comments suggested that Bali's main tourist area around Kuta represented 'the ugly face of crass commercialism', and was therefore not so dissimilar to Patong in Phuket, which was described in unflattering terms that included 'sex tourist destination', but that other less-developed parts of Bali remained magical.
Lombok, Bali's neighboring island to the east rated even higher (62 points), but reviewers hinted that its higher score was due to the lower number of visitors and the greater propriety of its Muslim population.
The lesson for Phuket is not hard to understand — the island needs to preserve what cultural identity it has (Baba Chinese and Muslim rural) and use zoning and planning to help conserve both culture and the natural beauty of that which remains less affected by commercial tourism.
Indeed the whole thrust of National Geographic Traveler's reviewers points to one of the tourism industry's main problems, which is that it is the industry itself which becomes the main destroyer of beautiful places when unwholesome greed combines with an absence of restraints (zoning, planning, a strong sense of cultural identity, etc) in tourism development.
Here is what one of Traveler's reviewers commented about Phuket:
"Chaotic development. The Thai people do not realize what a beautiful island we have. They continue to over-exploit all the island's resources. Old buildings from the pioneer settlement era still can be found downtown. However, many are not taken care of. No building code harmonizing construction with the natural settings, especially on Pathong beach (ugly high-rise building). We missed the window of opportunity after the 2004 tsunami to clean out illegal coastal development. Very sad."
Posted by: ConcernedExplorer on 16 Nov 2007, 09:59