A new attraction has been launched in Lop Buri's Muang district
Called Talat Boran Ban Si Phak, the market features one- and two-storey wooden shophouses built in traditional Thai styles from the North, the South, the Central and the Northeast.
Owned by Orapin Jirapanwanich, the chief of Lop Buri Provincial Administration Organisation, the project is expected to promote local tourism, traditional culture and arts.
The outlet has 70 shops offering food, snacks, selected goods of One Tambon One Product (Otop) of each region, handicrafts and local-made products.
Located next to Lop Buri College of Dramatic Arts on Ram Decho Road, the market is open daily from 10am-10pm.
Visit tiewpakklang.com/6641 or call TAT Lop Buri office on 036-770-096-7.
Fine arts go digital
The Fine Arts Department has digitised its old books, magazines and national archives -- www.digitalcenter.finearts.go.th and www.archives.nat.go.th.
According to the Fine Arts Department director-general Anandha Chuchoti, the websites will be a pool of cultural and historical information of the country.
The digital centre website features 2,467 e-books published by the department, 500 video clips and a large numbers of old pictures. The service is also available for Android and iOS smartphone users.
For the digital archives, the website is managed by the National Archives of Thailand of the Fine Arts Department. The website provides more than 40,000 lists of pictures, videos, maps and old documents for research without service charge.
In addition, the Fine Arts Department launched the Smart Museum app allowing visitors to get more information about highlights of artefacts exhibited in Bangkok National Museum.
Lastly, the department also introduced virtual museums covering more than 40 museums nationwide.
The website (virtualmuseum.finearts.go.th) features 360-degree pictures allowing web users to explore the museum, as well as each exhibition room on their fingertips. Each virtual museum also has a map, history and highlights of exhibitions.
Airlines update
Thai Smile Airways will launch its first flight from Phuket to Guangzhou on Dec 1.
It will fly with Airbus A320-200 aircraft with 168 seats. The service will be available four times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
The departure flight from Phuket will be 11.05pm and the arrival time in Guangzhou will be 4am. The return trip from the southern province of China will be 5.15am and the flight will arrive at the resort island in Thailand at 7.55am.
The Phuket-Guangzhou route will be the airline's fourth destination in China in addition to the present flights from Bangkok to Changsha, Chongqing and Zhengzhou.
Visit thaismileair.com.
Bangkok Airways has signed a codeshare agreement with Vietnam Airlines.
The code-share agreement will cover both domestic and international routes. Round-trip flights operated by Bangkok Airways include routes from Bangkok to Samui, Phuket, Krabi, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Danang in Vietnam. Round-trip flights operated by Vietnam Airlines include flights from Bangkok to Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi.
Visit bangkokair.com.
Hotels update
TUI Group, a multinational travel and tourism company headquartered in Hanover, Germany, has launched Robinson Club Khao Lak, Phangnga.
Operated under the new Vitya Holding Company, the beachfront hotel is on a 175 rai plot of land. It features 320 rooms including suites and villas. The sizes start from 40m² for Double Room to 215m² for a two-bedroom Pool Villa. The hotel features four restaurants and bars, fitness, spa and swimming pools
The hotel is about 87km north of Phuket International Airport.
Visit robinson.com.
Centara Hotels & Resorts will officially open Cosi Hotel Samui on Chaweng beach on Dec 1. The hotel is about 4km south of Samui Airport.
The property will be the first Centara's new Cosi brand designed for tech-savvy travellers. The hotel will fully integrate its services with smartphone technology, said Centara CEO Thirayuth Chirathivat.
There will be no reception counter as guests can do their self check-in and check-out with the hotel app on their phones or self check-in stations.
It offers two sizes of guestrooms; 18m² and 21m². Each room is equipped with a 43-inch smart TV with internet connection. Other hotel facilities are a rooftop swimming pool, a lounge, snack bar and parking space.
Visit centarahotelsresorts.com.
Email karnjanak@bangkokpost.co.th if you have any comments to share.
