The advice on the FCO website reads:

We advise against all but essential travel to the whole of Thailand due to the increasingly volatile and tense political situation.  Violent incidents of an unpredictable nature are occurring in many parts of Thailand.

and

In the last week, protests and violent incidents have taken place in other parts of Thailand including popular tourist destinations such as Pattaya, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Ayuthaya and other locations. See the Terrorism Security section of this Travel Advice.

As a result ABTA (Association of British Travel Agents) has warned travelers that if they travel to Thailand in spite of the FCO advice their  travel insurance policies will be invalidated.

The TAT said: ‘We accept the advice against traveling to Bangkok. Although the protests are not aimed at tourists, there is major disruption. But we do believe it is excessive to advise against travel to the rest of the country.’

This article text is Copyright © MyChiangMai 2010, no reproduction without prior permission.

Thailand has received the International Association of Horticultural Producers’ permission to revive the flora festival in Chiang Mai later next year, where over 2 million visitors are expected throughout the 99-day event.

Somchai Charnnarongkul, director general of the Agriculture Department which is in charge of the project, said the “International Horticultural Exposition for His Majesty the King: Royal Flora Ratchaphruek 2011″ will take place during November 9, 2011 and February 15, 2012 on a 470-rai area in Mae Hia district.

The event is to mark the 84th birthday of His Majesty in 2011 and the 80th birthday of Her Majesty the Queen in 2012 as well as the 60th birthday of HRH Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn in 2012.

He said that the event, featuring over 2.5 million trees and plants, should boost the export and tourism sectors. Initially, at leat 10 countries will join the exhibition.

The first route planned in the 800- billion-baht programme would be a Bangkok-Rayong line, he said at an investment conference yesterday.

“I expect the [Abhisit Vejjajiva] government to stand until next year, when we will begin work on this project. It will be a programme that will serve the public for the next three or four decades,” Dr Trairong said.

The government envisions investing up to 800 billion baht from 2011 to 2032 in four high-speed routes linking each region with Bangkok, covering 2,000 kilometres of new track. Once the lines are complete, access to all corners of the country would be possible from the capital in less than five hours.

The Transport Ministry is to propose details of the investment plan to the cabinet within 60 days. Investment will be managed through public-private partnerships (PPP).

Tentative plans have allocated 56 billion baht for the Bangkok-Rayong route, 247 billion for a route from Bangkok to Padang Besar on the Thai-Malaysian border, 180 billion for a Bangkok-Nong Khai route in the Northeast and 210 billion for a Bangkok-Chiang Mai route.

Dr Trairong, who chairs a PPP committee for the Thai Khem Khaeng megaproject programme, said Rayong was picked as the priority as it was the least expensive and shortest of the four.

The Rayong route would also help support tourism and industry along the Eastern Seaboard.

“Another factor is that for the past 30 to 40 years, Rayong residents have had to bear the burden of industrial development in the region. We should now give something back to the community,” he said, adding that the high-speed train will cut travel time to Bangkok to less than one hour compared with more than three hours now by car.

He said top suppliers from Germany, France, China and Japan would be invited to bid for contracts.

Fare rates meanwhile would depend upon negotiations with private operators, although officials expect fares to the Malaysian border or to Chiang Mai to be set at around 1,000 baht per passenger with the Bangkok-Rayong route priced at around 300 baht.

Meanwhile, the State Railway of Thailand is moving forward with its own plans to improve existing rail track and crossings, procure new engines and carriages and lay another 764 km of double-gauge track by 2014. Out of the total of 170 billion baht budgeted for the programme, 4.6 billion in new investment will come this year.

Railway improvements are considered critical to help reduce logistics costs and lift the country’s overall competitiveness. By 2024, the SRT hopes to lay another 3,039 km of track to complement nearly 4,000 km now, with the country’s logistics expenses targeted to fall to 13% of GDP from 19% now.

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Low cost carrier, AirAsia, is now offering a self check-in service at several airports, including Chiang Mai.

For added comfort and convenience, customers can also utilise its web-based check-in service, the carrier said in a statement.

AirAsia said the initiative was part of its on-going mission of using the information, communication and technology (ICT) forefront to exploit technology and practice cost efficiency.

By adopting a cost effective service and liberating the traveling experience for customers, the innovative service will also avoid airport congestion, long queues and reduce waiting time at no extra cost, it said.

Dato’ Sri Tony Fernandes, Group CEO of AirAsia Berhad said “We have invested quite a significant amount to develop our ICT facilities in order to keep-up with global standards. Now, we have equipped ourselves to fully exploit the benefits of it and achieve a competitive excellence in the market. What could be simpler than going on-line and checking-in at the tip of your fingers be it via mobile or at home? This new service is relatively easy to deploy, saves cost and benefit both – guests and AirAsia. As Asia’s biggest low cost carrier with a strong domestic and extensive network within the Asean region, we believe our amazing low fares and innovative services have an edge over the masses and empower more travelers to fly with us.”

Quick and easy self check-in methods :

1) Web Check-In

All you’ll need is a connection to the internet, a printer and your travel itinerary and you’ll be able to check-in 48 hours prior and up to 4 hours before the scheduled departure time using Web Check-In. With your Boarding Pass, you can proceed straight to the Document Check Counter to stamp your boarding pass and then on to the Boarding Gate. If you have baggage to check-in, drop your baggage at the Self Check-In Counter at least 60 minutes prior to the boarding time.

2) Self Check-In Kiosks at the airport

Beat the crowd, check-in from our kiosks at the available locations below 6 hours prior and 1 hour before the scheduled departure time. You’ll need the details of your travel itinerary to check-in. With your Boarding Pass, you can proceed straight to the Document Check Counter to stamp your boarding pass and then on to the Boarding Gate. If you have baggage to check-in, drop your baggage at the Self Check-In Counter at least 60 minutes prior to the boarding time.

The airline, Air Bagan, plans to add more services to Cambodia, Thailand and China in 2010, with a service between Yangon and Chiang Mai opening last Thursday.

Chiang Mai and Kuala Lumpur are now the airline’s two international destinations, the news agency says. Phuket and Siem Reap, the destination closest to Cambodia’s Angkor Wat, are next on the wish-list, with China’s Kumming and Guagzhou.

Air Bagan, which flies to 20 destinations inside Burma, has yet to cement its reputation internationally.

The airline’s first international scheduled service to Bangkok began on May 15, 2007 and the second, to Singapore on September 7 the same year.

Both of the flight services were suspended in 2008.

The bad news is that this fair city is not in the world’s Top Ten Intelligent Communities, a rating given mainly for IT innovation and networking. Swedish capital Stockholm beat the world to this accolade, by the way.

Good news: Chiang Mai also failed to make it into the world’s Top Ten Pick Pocketing Places! In fact, in all of SE Asia, only Hanoi, Vietnam, squeezes into this list of infamy in 10th place.

Keeping your wits (and your valuables) about you at festivals, in museums and any crowded place is an especially good idea in Barcelona,

Rome and Prague, the 3 top havens for casual thieves. ‘Tourism Review’ warns especially of distractions by smartly dressed natives, children, and ‘careless’ people who cause distractions by various ploys.

All over the world, carrying minimum cash on every occasion, and locking your passport up at the hotel, are wise moves. (In Chiang Mai, night-time bag snatching by thieves on motorcycles is the crime most likely to affect tourists, say our police).

The 14th Annual ‘Travel + Leisure’ World’s Best Awards rank cities, hotels, cruises & resorts.

The awards are based on an impartial survey of readers who are asked to vote for their worldwide favourite travel destinations. The survey is made in association with Harris Interactive, an independent research firm,

Chiang Mai is a popular tourist destination for travelers from around the world. Whilst tourism figures have been down for the whole of Thailand this year, there have been increases in the number of tourists from within Asia and the Middle East.

This article is Copyright © MyChiangMai 2009, no reproduction without prior permission.

This is great news for tourists and for local residents who want to take a break to Mandalay, where it’s easy to travel onwards to many other interesting places in Myanmar (Burma).

As the main gateway to the rest of Myanmar, the Yangon Division is located in the southernmost part of the central plain and borders, Bago Division in the north and east, Gulf of Mottama in the south, and Ayeyawaddy Division in the west. Coco archipelago, which is part of Yangon Division, is situated in the Bay of Bengal. The total area of the division is 3,927.15 square miles.

If you have never been to Myanmar then it’s well worth a look. It’s a different experience from anywhere else in SE Asia and most visitors are very impressed with the warm welcome of the Myanmar people.

Myanmar has some spectacular beaches for the more adventurous traveller, including Ngapali, Ngwe Saung and Chaungtha.

Other tourist destinations near Yangon include Shwedagon Pagoda, Botataung Pagoda, Bogyoke Market and Kandawgyl Lake.

Myanmar can be very hot and humid in the summer months, and the best time to travel is in the cooler season between October and March.

Editor’s note: Our policy is to help readers with travel information. Whether readers wish to avoid Burma under the existing regime or not is entirely down to personal decisions.

This article is Copyright © MyChiangMai 2009, no reproduction without prior permission.