Showing posts with label Tourist Attraction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tourist Attraction. Show all posts

Saturday 5 January 2019

#Cambodia - Tourists flock to military frontier


A wooden staircase with over one thousands steps, built in August 2017 to transport supplies to soldiers on the site of a contentious military frontier with Thailand, has now become an unlikely tourist attraction for many in the Kingdom.


The staircases’ 1181 steps lead to Than Temple at the summit of the Dangrek mountain range – in which Cambodian troops patrol in a long running border dispute with neighbouring Thailand – offering breathtaking views over the national frontier into the Thai countryside.


Located in Samrong town’s O’Teuk Chaol village, Oddar Meanchey province, the wooden staircase was initially built for the benefit of soldiers to transport supplies to the mountain’s peak, but it now also attracts tourists who want to experience the views from the top.


“Soldiers make a bit of money from selling food and beverages to tourists,” Oddar Meanchey provincial Department of Tourism head Thiny Mony Raksmey said.
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https://www.hotelscombined.com/?a_aid=145054
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Before reaching the temple, tourists encounter a giant ancient grinding stone mill that was carved into the mountain’s rock hundreds of years earlier, as well as the somewhat newer bunkers dug by soldiers as part of the ongoing dispute.

It is recommended that tourists refrain from taking photos or videos of military personnel on the site due to the sensitive situation.


The current Cambodian-Thai border dispute began in June 2008, but it is merely the latest in a century-long dispute between the countries involving the area surrounding the 11th century Preah Vihear Temple in the Dangrek mountains straddling northern Cambodia’s Preah Vihear province and Thailand’s Sisaket province.


Nearby Than Temple on the Dangrek mountain range, tourists are able to combine their tour with a visit to O’Teuk Chaol waterfall and Ta Krabey Temple.

Source - PhnomPenhPost

Saturday 11 August 2018

#Bangkok - Killing the Khaosan goose


Tourists will desert the area, or even Bangkok, if daytime stalls are not restored, say visitors and street vendors

Khaosan Road – the backpackers’ mecca – has it all, from cheap T-shirts to elephant-print baggy pants, from tattoos to henna painting, from budget guesthouses to massage parlours and even tour packages to southern islands.

The world-famous Bangkok destination attracts hordes of international youth with offers of street food, beer and a chaotic, lively nightlife. Just about everything and anything is available at all times of the day. 

However, the municipal authority wants to bring order to the late-night carnivalesque atmosphere.

Since August 1, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has strictly enforced the rarely-used Public Cleanliness and Orderliness Act 1992, which forbids daytime street vending. Under the recent sweep, the street stalls have been banned from doing business in front of guesthouses, cars, cafes and shops during the day. 

City Hall’s plan only allows the previous daytime vendors to hawk their goods and services on the road from 6pm until midnight. The BMA is expected to allow vendors to hawk their wares from 4pm next month onwards. 




 The plan, however, isn’t popular with tourists and shoppers. The authorities are now working to solve this roblem with a public hearing to allow street vendors and store owners to air their views.


From around 9pm to 3am, backpackers use Khaosan as “party central”, rather than a shopping fair, vendors told The Nation on a recent night-time visit. Electronic dance beats can be heard blaring from clubs and bars. 

Along both sides of the road, carts and stalls are lined up, offering late eaters pad Thai and mango sticky rice. Several smiling hawkers offer “laughing gas” or a crispy fried scorpion. Local and foreign partygoers flock the street daily. 

“It’s my first time here in Khaosan. I’d heard that it’s brilliant and fantastic,” said Matthew Bechus, as he and a friend tuck into Thai delicacies at a stall nearby. “Now that the footpaths have been cleared, it’s sad. It’s a big tourist attraction and brings income for people and jobs and everything. I hope it comes back.” 

Russel Green, a tourist from South Africa said the new Khaosan was nothing special.
“If they clear out all the stalls, there will no longer be a reason to come to Khaosan,” he said. 

Green and his friend were “disappointed” while strolling through the area in the afternoon. “I would say tourists under the age of 30 visiting Thailand only come to Bangkok to visit Khaosan Road. Without Khaosan, they will have no reason to visit Bangkok. They will go straight to Phuket,” he predicted.
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Under the new restrictions, Khaosan Road now looks like any other place in Thailand. While most of the 30-million annual visitors are foreign, not all choose to stay in the area’s hostels, guesthouses and hotels. 

Rujira Raokhekit, a Thai who came with her boyfriend, said: “I have been here many times at night for parties. I don’t usually come to Khaosan during the day, but I think today it is quieter than before.” 

The peak selling hours for vendors and stall owners used to be from 2pm to 5.30pm, vendors said. After 8pm, people usually come for food, music and beer. 

When daytime trading was banned, Bangkok officials allowed them to set up stalls from 6pm, which vendors say will only give them three hours to sell their goods. 

“After that, the music is too loud and the crowd is not in the mood for shopping,” said Sukwasa Kurattana-sinchai, who has been selling T-shirts on Khaosan since the Tom Yum Kung crisis hit Thailand in 1997. 

“Most of our customers are backpackers who came to stay in budget guesthouses. They often travel light and come here specifically to buy comfy cotton pants and sleeveless T-shirts to wear for their whole trip,” Sukwasa said, as she waved at a group of backpackers. 

She said that from about 8am until late afternoon, Chinese tourists would normally drop by Khaosan after visiting the Grand Palace and enjoy an hour-long shopping spree. Most foreign tourists visit Khaosan in the morning for souvenirs before their flights home in the afternoon. 
Most vendors believe that clearing out the stalls is a bad move. 

“The prices in shops are usually high, which is probably why the stalls are banned in the afternoon,” said another vendor as he waited to set up his bag stall at 6pm. “Now you see most tourists walking without any shopping bags.” 

If the ban continues, tourists will not bother to visit Khaosan, he said. “They won’t even stay close to Khaosan. Why should they? There is nothing to buy during the day. They could book a hotel in Pratunam or Bo Bae [two famous shopping districts a half-hour ride from Khaosan] and take a tuk-tuk to Khaosan for the nightlife,” he said.

Bangkok deputy governor Sakoltee Phattiyakul said after a meeting with related agencies on Friday that to help solve the problem, the BMA will draft a regulation allowing Khaosan vendors to trade from 4pm until midnight.

The regulation will includes pavement trading in nearby streets of Banglamphu such as Rambutri, Chakrabongse, Krai Sri, Sip Sam Hang and Tani.

Over the next 10 days, Phra Nakhon district will collect opinions from street vendors and building owners. “All vendors must register with Commerce Ministry. We will make it legal and transparent,” he said.

“We are trying to find the middle ground for everyone. The street vendors can’t have everything. They can’t expect to use the footpaths all day.” 

He added that the vendors must not block the footpaths and stalls can be no bigger than 1.5 square metres. 

“We will also ensure that there is one stall per vendor,” Sakoltee said in response to claims by Bangkok officials that some vendors owned as many as seven stalls.

 Yada Pornoetrumpa, president of Khaosan Road Street Vendors Association, said: “The officials don’t understand the situation of Khaosan. Many vendors trade in the daytime.

 “Ideally, I want Khaosan Road to open 24 hours. They think vendors are greedy. But actually, stalls could help look after the street’s hygiene.” 

Source - TheNation 

Ps, It go look like ''The hate foreigner tourists'' 

Thursday 13 July 2017

#Indonesia - Sidoarjo turns mud waste area into tourist destination.


Lusi Island is set to become the latest tourist attraction in Sidoarjo regency, East Java.

The reclaimed island, which is a result of mud dredging from Porong river estuary, will be part of Mangrove Restoration and Learning Center's area managed by the Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Ministry alongside local administration and the public.

Since 2015, the ministry has built many facilities in the area, which include pedestrian track, observatory tower, a management office, toilet and water management installation.


 “[The island] is good for mangrove tourism. It will also have karamba [floating fish enclosure] next year,” said the ministry’s directorate general for Territorial Sea Management Brahmantya Satyamurti to tempo.co.

Set on a 94-hectare of land, the island also hosts Tambak (fish farm) Wanamina. However, a large part of the island has not yet been developed. 

Brahmantya said the island was initially created to become a mud waste area for Porong River and not designed for tourism. Therefore, to turn it into an ecotourism spot, it will need sufficient sanitation, as well as clean water facilities and food and beverage stalls.
 
Source - TheJakartaPost 
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Saturday 7 May 2016

New 100 Million Baht Tourist Attraction Burned To The Ground

A brand new 100 million baht Thai-style wooden house at Ban Phayamai near Pattaya was burned to the ground on Friday morning.
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The new tourist attraction was completely destroyed after taking almost ten years to build as workers put the finishing touches to the interior before opening to paying visitors.
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Firefighters were called to Ban Phayamai in Nong Preu at around 10am and took several hours to bring the blaze under control.
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The large wooden house was built of teak and other precious wood at a cost of 100 million baht and is owned by Khunthong Ou-ngern, a well-known businessman and owner of Poipet market.
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The fire was believed to have been started by an electrical fault.

Fire crews struggle to bring the flames under control as fire rages through the yet to be opened Ban Phayamai tourist attraction in Pattaya, Chon Buri, on Friday morning. The Thai-style wooden house, which took about 10 years to build at a cost of 100 million baht, was completely destroyed. (Photo by Chaiyot Phuttanapong)
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Ps. 1 Euro = 40 Thai Baht.
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Source: Stickboybangkok
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