PHUKET: Revitalization of Phuket Town’s Sino-Portuguese heritage was the topic of a seminar held by the Senate Tourism Committee on July 30, led by Phuket Senator Thanyarat Atchariyachai and Phuket City Municipality at the Metropole Hotel. Speaking at the seminar, Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupana explained that there were three major plans for the project. The first is to develop [...]

(NECN/MCOT: Songkhla, Thailand) – Fifty French tourists begin the Thailand phase of their vintage car rally in the southern province of Songkhla. Tourism Authority of Thailand welcomed the members of the vintage car rally who began their 21-day Thailand phase on Monday. A traditional Thai drum band performed as a reception while tourism officials presented gifts and memorabilia for the [...]

BANGKOK, 26 July 2010 (NNT) – The bomb blast in front of Big C Department Store’s Rajdamri branch on Sunday could affect the tourist confidence in Thailand, according the Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA). ATTA Advisor Apichart Sankary stated that the recent explosion in front of Big C Rajdamri in the heart of Bangkok on Sunday was a reflection [...]

PHUKET: All bars and nightlife entertainment venues on the island must close for the two-day Asarnha Bucha Day public holidays (today and tomorrow), Phuket Provincial Police have confirmed. A spokesperson in the Phuket Provincial Police planning section today confirmed that there will be a two-day ban on alcohol sales at all nightlife venues. Alcohol sales at retail establishments will remain [...]

BANGKOK — You can still feed elephants in Thailand’s bustling capital—but it could cost you. Bangkok authorities said Monday anyone caught handing bunches of bananas or sugar cane to the hulking beasts—proffered by their handlers to make money—faces a 10,000 baht ($320) fine. Thailand has about 2,400 domestic elephants. There is little demand these days for the animals’ traditional skills [...]

BANGKOK, 2 July 2010 (NNT) – Over 10% of tourism-related businesses in Thailand have been forced to close down as they suffer from the effect of the recent political mayhem while the rest is urging the government to promptly adopt a relief plan. Spokesperson of the Federation of Thai Tourism Association (FETTA) Charoen Wangananont said the recent political rally in [...]

Bangkok – Thai police on Thursday arrested a former Belgian policeman who had allegedly been running an extortion racket in the beach resort town of Pattaya. Marc Jacobs, 50, was arrested at his rented apartment in Pattaya, 90 kilometres south-east of Bangkok, and charged with overstaying his tourist visa by two months, Pattaya Immigration Police Lieutenant Colonel Nopon Kuldilok said. [...]

Two speedboats taking Thai and foreign tourists to attend the Full Moon Party on Koh Phangan collided off the island late Saturday night, injuring 39 people. Jor Sor 100 Traffic Radio station reported that the accident happened at 11:45 pm about two or three kilometers before the two boats reached the Rin Beach to deliver their passengers. The collision caused [...]

Charge: Man paid for sex with 11-year-old, 200+ videos recovered A retiree from Seattle already imprisoned in Thailand is facing federal sex tourism charges on allegations that he bought sex from girls as young as 11. Glenn Richard Allen, a 63-year-old raised in the Seattle area, was indicted in U.S. District Court earlier this month by a Seattle grand jury. [...]

A woman with kidney disease has died after receiving an experimental stem cell treatment at a private clinic in Thailand, and a postmortem examination of her kidneys revealed that the treatment was almost certainly responsible for her death. Last week we reported that Costa Rica’s health ministry had closed a stem cell clinic that catered to foreigners, which sparked lively [...]