Petty Pata antics over an Emeritus
BANGKOK, 9 July – Criticising the US immigration policies is nothing new, but when a former Pacific Asia Travel Association CEO and president, Lakshman Ratnapala, attempted it in his Travel Talk email despatch, recently, it raised eyebrows for entirely different reasons.
Veterans of PATA immediately were on the attack, not on behalf of Uncle Sam, but to take the former PATA CEO to task for awarding himself a lofty and honourable title.
Togetherness missing in travel industry
If there was ever a trio called Tom, Dick and Harry, you could bet confidently that they would each have a unique solution for every ill that humanity could encounter and that routinely the other two characters would reject any solution, but their own.
It’s happening right now as a throng of experts tell Thailand how to recovery from a political disaster.
Tongue tied over French visa
May 10, 2010 by Duangrudee Somboonruangsri
Filed under Blogs, News
Applying for Schengen Visa is costly for Thais and time consuming especially through the French embassy.
Apart from Bt2,727 visa fee, applicants have to pay Bt1,200 in visa service fees to the centre, which is outsourced to a private company. The service centre is about as luxurious as a Thailand Post office.
TAT stands in the firing line
UK tour operator TUI’s decision to urgently evacuate its guests from Thailand, late last week, shocked travel agency executives. One said it was a worst-case scenario, a nightmare that we all hoped would never happen.
Yet it has been heading that way for weeks, a slow but steady decline on a path of confusion and chaos that can only lead to financial ruin for players in the tourism industry.
Sa Pa: Not for all seasons
March 26, 2010 by Rapeepat Mantanarat
Filed under Rapeepat Mantanarat
It was very close to 40 degree Celcius in Thailand during a humid, steamy hot May as I hopped on an aircraft to Vietnam to visit the far northern highland town of Sa Pa.
Watch the small print
Publishers of the Exhibitors Directory for Fairs and Exhibitions in Mexico are asking Thai hotels and travel companies to assist them to update facts for their latest edition of the Expo-Guide.
Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth
ASEAN’s new tourism website http://www.southeastasia.org goes from soft mode to a full content launch at ITB Berlin this week.
Where are the TIGA’s teeth?
Pacific Asia Travel Association plugged into its new US$25,000 website, www.pata.org, yesterday, and it was bold enough to ask for feedback from the media.
Charity ride raises Bt90,000
January 18, 2010 by Don Ross
Filed under Mekong Odyssey 09
Mekong Odyssey cyclists present charity ride donations to the Prostheses Foundation of HRH the Princess Mother in Chiang Mai today.
Mekong Odyssey Trip Map
December 5, 2009 by Don Ross
Filed under Mekong Odyssey 09 Trip Map