TRAVEL TITBITS
Chiang Mai among world’s best
Chiang Mai has been voted among the World’s Top 15 Cities by readers of Travel + Leisure Magazine.
The list is based on a survey developed by the editors of Travel + Leisure and digital marketing firm Wylei, from Nov 7 last year to March 6. Respondents were asked to rate the cities they love by sights/landmarks, culture, food, friendliness, shopping and value.
Top of the list is Mexico’s San Miguel de Allende. The colonial city was chosen as the winner for the first time in the 22 years of the award thanks to its authenticity, creativity and cost-effectiveness.
Second place on the list is Charleston, the South Carolina port city in the United States. Chiang Mai is third, followed by Kyoto in Japan, Florence in Italy, Oaxaca in Mexico, Hoi An in Vietnam, Cape Town in South Africa, Ubud in Indonesia, Luang Prabang in Laos, Santa Fe in the United States, Rome in Italy, Siem Reap in Cambodia, Udaipur in India and Barcelona in Spain.
According to the magazine, the World’s Best Cities list spoke to its readers’ growing interest in Asia, as seven of the top 15 are in the region.
The magazine also announced winners of other categories, in its 2017 World’s Best Awards. For the World’s 100 Best Hotels, three hotels in Thailand are
on the list: 137 Pillars House in Chiang Mai (13th), Four Seasons Tented Camp Golden Triangle in Chiang Rai (31st) and Four Seasons Resort in Koh Samui (36th). For the World’s Best Airline, the winner is Singapore Airlines, while Singapore Changi Airport was named the World’s Best Airport.
Palawan in the Philippines is listed as World’s Best Island. For The Top 10 Best Islands in Asia, Phuket is listed seventh and Samui 10th.
Visit www.travelandleisure.com/ worlds-best.
Mekong Tourism Forum details
Nakhon Phanom will host the Mekong Tourism Forum 2018.
Organised by the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office, the event will give an opportunity for those in the tourism industry in Thailand and neighbouring countries to jointly discuss the promotion and marketing of travel and tourism in the Greater Mekong subregion, including Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, as well as provinces in China, including Yunnan and Guangxi.
“Nakhon Phanom is an ideal venue for this regional conference, as it borders the Mekong River,” said the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) governor, Yuthasak Supasorn, adding that the province also features the third ThaiLao Friendship Bridge linking Nakhon Phanom to Thakhek in Laos.
It will also be convenient for participants to travel to Nakhon Phanom, because there are daily flights operated by Nok Air and Thai AirAsia from Don Mueang International Airport, he said.
The Mekong Tourism Forum is scheduled for around the middle of next year.
This year, the forum was hosted in Luang Prabang, Laos, in June. About 350 delegates and tourism experts joined the three-day event.
Airlines update
In October, Japan Airlines will increase its flights to four daily between Bangkok and Tokyo’s Haneda Airport.
The new flight from Tokyo will depart at 12.40pm and arrive in Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport at 6pm, while the new flight from Bangkok will depart at 11.25pm and arrive in Tokyo 7.15am.
The flights will be available from Oct 29 to March 24.
Visit www.jal.co.jp/en.
Emirates offer free and unlimited Wi-Fi service on board for its platinum and gold Skywards’ members on both domestic and international flights.
The airline also provides 20MB of free data usage for two hours to Skywards silver and blue members, as well as non-members with the most frequentflyer miles.
“Emirates has made significant investments in our in-flight connectivity. Today, Wi-Fi services are available on over 200 of our aircraft, and it is a service that Emirates continues to subsidise heavily,” said the airline vice-president and COO Adel Al Redha.
Visit www.emirates.com.
Hotels update
Accor Hotels has partnered with Myanmar-based LP Holding to open three new hotels in Yangon and Mandalay.
The first hotel is Mercure Mandalay Hill Resort. The hotel will feature 206 rooms with views of Mandalay Hill, three restaurants, two bars, a ballroom and three meeting rooms. The hotel will open within the third quarter of this year.
Pullman Yangon Centrepoint will be part of Centrepoint Towers, one of the tallest commercial buildings in the city. The hotel will feature 300 rooms, two restaurants, a bar, 10 meeting rooms and a ballroom, swimming pool, fitness centre and spa.
The hotel is scheduled to be open this year.
The third property is Mandalay Hill Resort MGallery by Sofitel. The luxury boutique hotel will feature 150 rooms and villas, a restaurant, bar, swimming pool and spa which will be shared with neighbouring Mercure Mandalay Hill Resort. The property will open in 2020.
DusitD2 Seef Bahrain will be opened in Manama next year.
The hotel will be the first Dusitbranded hotel in Bahrain. Owned by Al Manzil Hospitality Group, it will offer 195 rooms with sea views, meeting facilities, kids’ club, fitness centre, spa, rooftop swimming pool and restaurants.
It will be located near Bahrain International Airport.