Category Archives: Samui News

Samui hotels in the face of serious water-shortage

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A CONCERNED hotelier has urged the local government to issue guidelines on water conservation to hotels in the face of serious water-shortage threats. Roland Henkel, general manager of the Amari Palm Reef Koh Samui, said continuous hotel and residential development could lead to a shortage of natural water even during the rainy season.

“Clear guidelines are lacking for which hotels should be forced to desalinate water from the sea and, for generating electricity, use solar panels or wind power. There is a lot of money involved but there is more money involved in rebuilding a destroyed tropical paradise like Koh Samui,” Mr. Henkel said.

Henkel said the guidelines or laws should outline measures to help prevent water shortage. “This could start with a simple step of forcing them to use efficient showers and taps, introduce rain-storage system for toilet flushing or watering.” Continue reading →

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Tourists lost in jungle rescued

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TWO Ukrainian tourists, who had lost their way in the fastnesses of a jungle near Na Muang Waterfall 2 at nighttime, were rescued by the police and civilian volunteers.

Kwenda Dema, 27, said that last Jan. 8 he and his girlfriend, Karolina Achin, 34, rented a motorbike to explore Samui island. Upon reaching Na Muang subdistrict, they decided to trek up to Na Muang Waterfall 2. They parked the motorbike at the foot of the mountain.

From the waterfall, he said, they continued trekking to the peak of the fall, and reached it at dusk. Upon coming down, they could not remember the path they had taken. They became worried when darkness caught up with them. After walking for a couple of hours in pitch darkness and still could not find their way, they called the staff of the hotel where they were billeted to ask for help.

At around 8 p.m. the police at Na Muang Service Station were notified by the Maenam Villa staff and immediately a rescue team was organized to locate the tourists. Continue reading →

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Tourist arrivals from China up by 50 percent

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The number of Chinese tourists visiting Samui has doubled since last year, according to Mr.Vichit Prakobkoson, president of the Thai-Chinese Tourism Relationship  Association. He said most of these tourists are drawn to the island by cheap package tours. Tour operators specializing on the Chinese market offer chartered tours to the island at less than Bt10,000 per tourist. The amount, he said, usually takes care of return ticket, meals and hotel accommodation,

Small planes with a maximum capacity of 200 passengers are often used to take these tourists direct to Samui from China.

Mr. Vichit said this low-cost approach to bring in tourists from China should be encouraged among other tour operators. Using this strategy, the island could bring in up to 3 million Chinese tourists a year.

During this high tourist season, which started in November, Chinese arrivals on Samui have increased by 50 percent compared with that of last year. In Bangkok, the increase has been comparatively low – at only 20 percent, Mr. Vichit said.

Since most parts of China are landlocked, Chinese tourists prefer the beaches than other attractions.  This explains why, Vichit said, Chinese tourists opt to go to Samui than Bangkok.

These tourists are flown in from China through chartered flights coming from Shanghai, Beijing and Kunming.

Vichit said the government should do its promoting the country among the Chinese by ensuring peace and political stability in the country. Political uncertainties, he said, could dampen the Chinese’s interest in Thailand. – Chat Anupan

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