Thai north to see revenue of over 1 bln on Loy Kratong Festival

CHIANG MAI, Nov 21 (TNA) -- The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) office in the northern Chiang Mai province believes the charm of the Floating Lanterns Festival would attract more tourists this year, reeling in an income of more than 800 million baht, while the TAT office in Tak province said room reservations are fully booked for the Loy Kratong Festival at Ping River, with income estimated to be around 300 million baht. Director of TAT, Chiang Mai office, Wisut Buachum said although there are stricter measures against the use of floating lanterns this year, they would have no affect on the Loy Kratong celebrations in the province, scheduled from between November 23-26, as the festival is considered as an important cultural event, which reflects Thailand's beautiful traditions. He said that hotel reservations are 90 per cent booked, and his office is expecting a revenue of 800 million baht to be generated, or around 200 million baht daily. Mr Wisut added that tourist destinations in the area have continued to be active, especially at Doi Inthanon National Park, Thailand's highest peak, where around 2,000 visitors have been arriving each day to enjoy the cold weather, which has already reached as low as 8 degrees Celsius. Director of TAT, Tak office, Thamonwan Ruangkachorn said all of the 2,600 hotel rooms and resorts have been fully booked for the upcoming Loy Kratong Festival, at Ping River, where the office is expecting more than 300 million baht worth of revenue to be generated. Furthermore, the director said, the office has also coordinated with nearby districts to prepare to cater to the influx of tourists, as most would not just arrive in the areato enjoy the festival but to tour around the province at its natural and historical sites as well. She said that statistics showed in 2014, the province has seen a total of 1.8 million tourists, creating an income of 4 billion baht, and the office has forecast the figure would grow by around 19 per cent this year. (TNA)