Officials in Myanmar have released a schedule of operations to have the historic temples of Bagan listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Bagan Archaeology Department director Aung Aung Kyaw said the final application should be ready for submission by the end of September.
Tourists on Pattaya Beach Road were confronted by the rather unusual sight of emerald green sea on Tuesday. Marine experts say the transformation from the water’s usual blue colour was caused by a wave of plankton.
Music fans in Hanoi are in store for a treat this weekend as an acclaimed Swedish jazz pianist is scheduled to play two concerts. Hakan Rydin and an all-star cast from the Vietnam National Music Academy will play live at the city’s Don’s, A Chef’s Bistro on Friday and Saturday.
The prime-minister of Thailand says he plans to use Section 44 powers to kick-start a project to build a high-speed railway line. Prayut Chan-o-cha told reporters at a media briefing yesterday he would be invoking Section 44 to get the Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima project back on track.
If proposals put forward in Bangkok get the green light, litterers could be stung with serious fines. Bangkok governor Aswin Kwanmuang warned last week that the city council was thinking about upping the maximum fine to THB5,000 for anybody caught dropping litter or not disposing of garbage properly.
A trial run of an electronic application system for tourist visas to visit Vietnam has proved to be a resounding success. The national Department of Tourism has released data showing 22,000 overseas visitors used the Immigration Division’s website to apply for their E-visas.
Authorities in Ho Chi Minh have announced the launch of cultural evenings in the centre of the city’s Pham Ngu Lao backpacker zone. Beginning on 15 July, the zone’s Bui Vien Street will be closed off to vehicular traffic on Saturdays and Sundays at 19:00 to allow performing arts shows to take place.
Thailand’s tourist division has announced the start date for the 2017 edition of the Chaiyaphum Flower Festival. In a bulletin posted up on its website, the Tourism Authority of Thailand has confirmed the colourful Dok Krachiao Festival will officially launch on 17 June.
The union of red songthaew taxi operators in Chiang Mai has announced a new set of regulations for drivers. The more than 2,300 red songthaews plying the streets of the northern Thai city will have to be reregistered as commercial vehicles by 30 August.
The Phuket Lifeguard Service has issued a warning saying several Portuguese men of war have been spotted in the sea this week. The club’s president says several of the stinging jellyfish-like species have washed onto the island’s beaches since the start of the monsoon season.
The tourism-minister of Thailand says tourism industry representatives in Laos have asked for longer operating hours at border posts between the two nations. Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul said the request was made at a recent meeting with industry representatives in Laos.
A Thai government committee has torpedoed a proposal for Bangkok’s passenger vans to be relocated back to Victory Monument. The secretary to the van operators’ association had submitted a petition to the committee which explained that the original move from Victory Monument had led to drastically reduced passenger numbers.
The board of trustees at Yangon’s Shwedagon Pagoda has deferred a planned visitor entry fee increase for six months. A MMK2,000 hike in the charge was due to come into effect on 1 June 2017 but has been put back as the trustees did not provide the correct notice period about the change.
In the recently announced TripAdvisor annual awards, Bangkok’s Wat Pho garnered a place in the Top 25 of global landmarks. The citation in the travel website’s Travellers' Choice Awards said the temple was a delightful sight that should not be missed when in the Thai capital.
Concert ticket websites have reported that tickets for the Foo Fighters in Bangkok have been selling like hotcakes. Dave Grohl and friends are not due to land in Bangkok for another 11 weeks yet online reservations agencies such as Viagogo say there are not too many tickets left.
Singapore’s Changi Airport has just inaugurated a bus link to the Tanah Merah Ferry Port. The economical and convenient buses run eight times a day in each direction with two additional departures on Saturdays and Sundays.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand has confirmed a food festival in Bangkok will go ahead as scheduled this weekend. At a press briefing last week, TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn stated that the venue for the 2017 Amazing Thai Taste Festival was the plazas around the city’s Makkasan Station.
The heatwave Hanoi is currently basking in has proved too hot for some people and they have been flocking to West Lake in droves. The scorching heat has seen the thermometer hit the 40°C mark more than a few times since the heatwave began on Wednesday.
The president of Airports of Thailand says measures to deal with any flooding at Don Mueang Airport are already in place. Responding to claims the Bangkok airport is likely to be flooded this year, Nitinai Sirismatthakarn says workers have already set up 14 water-drainage pumps.
Travellers have a new and economical means of getting from Suvarnabhumi Airport to Khao San Road. Bangkok Mass Transit Authority yesterday inaugurated Route S1. The S1 provides a convenient link between the city’s main international airport and its budget accommodation hub.