Funds from this year’s event were donated to various projects including the Zoological Parks Organisation of Thailand which supports veterinary and educational projects to improve the year-round lives of elephants and mahouts in the Surin Province where ex-street elephants face ongoing hardship.

The donations have also funded South East Asia’s first ever workshop to teach mahouts and vets the benefits of Environmental Enrichment to keep elephants happy as well as the construction of a watch tower in a village whose crops are raided by elephants, allowing villagers to watch and warn other villagers of approaching elephants in a safe manner for both people and elephants.

Donations also funded a conservation education trip to a National Park for the children and next generation of hereditary mahouts to learn the importance of elephants in the wild; the transport of Thai elephant vets to international conferences; funding Thai Government aid to teach mahouts to act as veterinary assistants and provide basic first aid and other medical care to their elephants; as well as community based Human Elephant Conflict mitigation projects in two Thai and one Tanzanian National Parks and the purchase of equipment for anti-poaching rangers in a Cambodian National Park.

Other significant benefits from the money raised by the tournament include: the ongoing Thai Elephant Therapy Project which has been underway since 2009 in conjunction with Chiang Mai University’s Department of Occupational Therapy, with future clinics to include children with Down’s Syndrome and other conditions now committed until the end of 2018 as well as the funding of Asia’s first workshop to show traditional elephant trainers and camp owners the benefits of Positive Reinforcement Training for captive elephants with additional workshops this year in Myanmar reaching teams responsible for over 200 elephants.

To plan your Thailand trip to coincide with this great annual event, contact Symbiosis Custom Travel and start planning now.

Share this:

The typhoon destroyed many homes, blew the roofs off more than 25,000 others, and sank transport and fishing boats. There was also extensive damage to the provinces’ rice fields and other crop farms. Widespread blackouts were reported in the region and dozens of flights were cancelled.

The hardest hit regions include the south central provinces of Khanh Hoa, Phu Yen, and Bình Dịnh, the Central Highlands provinces of Dak Lak, Dak Nong and Lam Dong, and the central provinces of Quang Nam, Quang Trị and Thua Thien-Hue, and Da Nang City, where the first events of the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week were taking place. The Heavy rain and high tide combined to inundate many areas.

In Hoi An, many hotels were affected by the storm. Hoi An Silk Boutique Hotel & Spa experienced flooding in their restaurant situated at the basement level and we assisted in transferring their guests to a hotel in Da Nang City. Little Hoian Central Boutique Hotel & Spa is temporarily closing their resort and evacuating their guests to Da Nang as well.

In Hue, all hotels remain open and are operating regularly.

All of Phu Yen Province and Khanh Hoa Province except for Nha Trang City; and all of Bình Dịnh Province other than Tam Quan District suffered from total blackouts. Parts of Dak Lak, Kon Tum, Dak Nong and Quang Ngai provinces shared the same fate.

In Ninh Van Bay, the An Lam Retreats Ninh Van Bay has announced its temporary closure and will re-open on the 25th of November 2017. The Six Senses Resort has also informed us of their temporary closure until the 15th of November 2017.

In Nha Trang City, there is no flooding but some streets remained blocked by fallen trees. There is currently no electricity and WIFI connectivity throughout the city.

Share this:

More than 100,000 have evacuated their villages with government officials unhappy that perhaps as many as half the evacuees, acting out of fear and propelled by rumors, have fled homes located in areas considered safe from an eruption. The Governor is urging those coming from safe areas to leave the temporary camps and return to their homes or, at least, stay at a local hotel. Meanwhile, inside the “danger zone” Bali’s sacred Besakih Temple and the surrounding community have gone dark, abandoned, at least temporarily, until Mount Agung’s alert level is lowered.

The Ministry of Tourism has established a Hospitality Task Force to keep the public reliably informed on all developments related to Mt. Agung. In this connection, Bali’s Governor wants those spreading hoaxes and false news about Mount Agung charged with a crime and brought to justice.

In his efforts to keep the public reliably informed, Governor Pastika has met with foreign legations in Bali and asked them to keep their home constituencies informed that Bali is still safe for holidaymakers.

The Minister of Tourism visited Bali last week to review contingency planning and meet with Bali Hospitality Task Force’s Media Center. Minister Yahya estimates that cancellations of groups to Bali may be running between 20%-30%.

Share this:

News related to Mt. Agung dominates this week’s update. We have the latest summary update from the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources. Meanwhile, scientist say magma that has risen from a depth of 100-kilometers below the crater to now just two-kilometers below the peak, is now at an impasse, momentary or otherwise, as its tries to break through the hardened crater floor. Satellites focused on the crater have detected a large fissure and a hotspot, both of which are now being monitored closely by scientists.

Meanwhile, the Indonesia’s Minister of Tourism insists that tourism to Bali remains unaffected by the warning connected to Mt. Agung. Governor Pastika pleads for moderation in reporting on the volcano, saying that in the event of an eruption, damage would be limited to areas immediately surrounding the mountain and far removed from the densely populated parts of Bali. Road officials have surveyed roads and bridges that could be affected by any eventual explosion of Mt. Agung.

While all eyes point to Mt. Agung, we have reports on the installation of 5 early warning sirens installed on the mountain’s slopes. The TelkomGroup has plans well in hand to keep telecommunications operating in the areas surrounding Mt. Agung in any eventuality. Banks in Karangasem are working with customer who may be economically disadvantaged by the alert warnings on Mt Agung. And, Airbnb implements an “Open House” plan for people who want to provide free, temporary housing to those displaced by developments on Mt. Agung.

Bali is witnessing an unparalleled response to the hardship of those living near Mr. Agung. Balinese are helping feed and clothe the homeless, save abandoned animals, and provide housing to fellow islanders. The Anand Ashram Foundation is providing anti-stress yoga training to evacuees. And, the villagers of Tejakula in Buleleng have welcomed those seeking refuge from the mountain with dances and music.

This report curtesy of Bali Update

Share this:

Read more on Khaosod here

Share this:

The local travel industry initially believed that the tax would be postponed to 2018. However, the Royal Malaysian Customs Department recently announced that the Malaysia Tourism Tax will officially commence on 1st September 2017.

The Tourism Tax will be collected by hotels on behalf of the government. Hotels in Malaysia will not collect the tax in advance or invoice tour operators and affiliates. Instead, guests will be informed of the tax upon check-in, with the tax collected by the hotels as mandated by law.

Late check outs after 2 pm will also be subjected to an additional MYR 10.00 tourism tax for the day. The tourism tax will be indicated and itemised in a guests’ bill.

For further details, please see the Malaysian Tourism Tax website at https://myttx.customs.gov.my/CTTAX/index.html

Share this:

The restoration work will be conducted carefully to “keep the original beauty” of the cathedral and split into three phases: the roof, the interior and finally the two bell towers. The walls of the cathedral, which have been vandalized, will also be repainted. During that time, the cathedral will only open for church services.

Share this:

The 15m x 3m blue whale, which looked to be in the late stages of decomposition, captured the attention of nearby communities and beachgoers.

As groups gathered to haul off the dead whale, they noticed that its entire body was made of plastic waste found in the ocean

Share this:

The Bunong, an ethnic minority group whose livelihood and culture depends on the river and the forest, will be among the most affected by the dam.

Even before the dam is completed, Bunong villages like Kbal Romeas have been divided, as some residents accept compensation packages while others staunchly refuse to leave their land.

At a time when much of Cambodia is developing at a breakneck speed, where smartphones and BMWs have become almost as ubiquitous on the streets of Phnom Penh as saffron-robed monks, the village of Kbal Romeas inhabits a world apart. Tucked deep into the jungles of the country’s untamed northeast, the village has no convenience stores, streetlights, or paved roads. Instead, a visitor would be more likely to find a stretched snakeskin nailed to a piece of teak, drying in the midday sun as a testament to the animist beliefs of the people who live there.

Full story here.

Share this:

A low pressure system has brought heavy rain to parts of the south including the islands of Samui and Phangan in the Gulf of Thailand, and floods have also severed the rail link to the south and Malaysia beyond.

Full story on Coconuts Bangkok here

Share this:

All entertainment venues and festivals will resume operations from Monday 14 November and hotels will be able to hold celebrations and events. These may still be toned down as a sign of respect. Celebrations deemed extravagant such as those with fireworks will be restricted. Meetings and event venues will open as usual with the exception of reserved areas in Wat Phra Kaeo (Temple of the Emerald Buddha) and the Grand Palace, as they will be the venue of the Royal Funeral Rites. All other areas within the Grand Palace are now open to tourists and visitors.

Share this:

Severe flooding in central Vietnam has left at least 21 people dead and submerged tens of thousands of homes.

Worst affected is the province of Quang Binh, where at least 11 people have been killed, crops destroyed and livestock washed away.

The floods have been caused by torrential rain, but local media say sudden discharges from hydropower reservoirs worsened the flooding.

Typhoon Sarika could bring more bad weather if it strikes Vietnam.

Sarika battered the northern Philippines on Sunday, leaving at least 2 dead and more than 15,000 Displaced

Full story on BBC here.

Share this:

More from Channel News Asia.

Share this: