The Hotel d’Lyon is a new 3-star hotel recently opened in Luang Prabang. Sitting outside of town on the way to the airport, the 24-room hotel has is a good option for regional guests who may enjoy bathing in open air Jacuzzis. With room inventory being quite limited in Luang Prabang, the Hotel d’Lyon is a reasonable alternative when rooms cannot be found.
The Kabiki emulates the same design flair that has made its sister property, the Pavillion, popular, and is a great option for those traveling without kids too.
Romantic Dalat has often provided a challenge for tour operators in the past. At the luxury level, the Dalat Palace and the Evason Villas ensure that your deluxe clientele are taken care of. However, three new hotels have recently opened to provide new capacity at the Superior and First Class level. The Ngoc Lan Hotel has been newly renovated, offering Superior accommodation in its 91 rooms. Located next to Dalat’s Central market, this renovated cinema commands views of Xuan Huong Lake. The new Blue Moon Hotel has recently opened on the shores of the gentle lake, with First Class accommodation on offer in its 80 rooms.
Exotissimo Thailand is pleased to introduce our new city safaris. Available in Chiang Mai and Bangkok, they are unique day tours taking advantage of various means of public transportation. In Bangkok, your day begins with a SkyTrain ride and a public boat ride to Bangkok’s historic quarter for visits to the Royal Palace, Wat Po and the backpacker paradise that is Khaosan Road. In the afternoon, public boats and tuktuks will be used to explore the Bangkok’s network of klongs and how it connects the city. In Chiang Mai, bicycles, rickshaws and tuktuks will be used to tour the city’s winding alleyways and hills.
Located at the foot of Mount Phousi, the Centre has exhibitions on seven ethnic groups, including the Akha, Hmong, and Khmu. The on-site Le Patio Cafe provides a nice place for a mid-morning or afternoon break, or for lunch itself.
Just south of Siem Reap, the Sunrise Children’s Village was opened in 1993 by an Australian woman. At first, it was supported by donations and has since grown into the Australia Cambodia Foundation. Its location makes it perfect for an afternoon visit after a morning of exploring the temples or the Tonle Sap.
While visiting the Ruluos Group of temples, there is a small orphanage and foster home for local children. There, they are taught a simple education, fed a basic but healthy fare, and taught traditional leatherworking skills with which to make a living. The kids are always welcome and glad to interact with foreigners, sometimes giving gifts to tourists themselves.
The Cambodian Orphan Save Association (COSA) is supported in part by La Residence d’Angkor. COSA aims to take care of Cambodia’s most vulnerable citizens, young abandoned children and the children of families too poor to support them. The orphanage takes care of over 30 children at present, and they are planning on building a school and create educational programs in agriculture and the arts.
Please come visit Ms. Maeve Nolan, Product Manager of Exotissimo Vietnam; Ms. Soontarut Wattanahongsiri, Product Manager of Exotissimo Thailand; Mr. Sok Lieng, Inbound Supervisor of Exotissimo Cambodia; and Ms. Thida Myint, Sales Manager of Exotissimo Myanmar. Our booth will be confirmed shortly. Please click here to setup a meeting.
Exotissimo Myanmar has already begun providing relief services. We sent a four-person team to the hard-hit Irrawaddy River delta to assess the situation and provide immediate and direct aid. Once on the ground, our team found that families really appreciated the private donations coming direct to them. We began our efforts with funds from Exotissimo Travel and the Appletree Group, and will continue as long as these funds and those from generous donors last.
On 10th May, our team visited a village opposite the western part of Yangon where 1300 families were affected by Nargis. 300 families were made homeless by the cyclone and diarrhea has already broken out among those in the public shelters. The government plans to setup a water purification facility. Exotissimo will build a small medical clinic to help the village. The 25 ft X 25 ft facility will cost 4000 USD, and be staffed by a volunteer doctor and nurse. Local Exotissimo staff donated their own personal resources to the victims of Nargis here.
On 11th May, Exotissimo sent a truck to Phyapone and Maubin towns in Irrawaddy River Delta. In these two towns, there are many victims taking shelter in monasteries and rescue camps. Upon arrival, our staff will personally distribute goods totaling 6000 USD, including food, clothing, mosquito nets and blankets.
Most parts of Yangon are now getting back to normal with electricity becoming available. Gradually, many shops and restaurants are opening. The transport is back since all roads are open. Important attractions are also back to normal such as Bogyoke Market (Scotts Market), Shwedagon and Sule Pagoda. National Museum and Kaba Aye Pagoda are still closed but will open soon.
Yangon is safe now and we would like to take this chance to report on hotel situation there. Even though most of places affected by the cyclone are busy with cleaning up fallen trees, branches, leaves and other wind-blown debris, there also are hotels undamaged, with services readily available.
Park Royal: The hotel was not damaged and it is fully operational with electricity, telephone and Internet all working as normal.
Summit Parkview: The hotel was not damaged and electricity, telephone and Internet are all working as normal.
Traders Hotel: The hotel was not damaged and it is fully operational with electricity, telephone and Internet all working as normal.
Strand Hotel: The hotel was not damaged and it is fully operational with electricity, telephone and Internet all working as normal.
Sedona Hotel Yangon: The hotel was not damaged and electricity, telephone and Internet are all working as normal.
Inya Lake Hotel: The hotel was not damaged and electricity, telephone and Internet are all working.
Chatrium (previously Nikko) Hotel: The hotel’s main building and garden were not damaged. Electricity, telephone and Internet are all working as normal.
And below are those hotel slightly affected by the cyclone. Some are back to normal operation with limitations while some are sill closed due to both the cyclone and low season.
Governor’s Residence: The hotel property itself sustained some damage, while there are a few guests during this time due to the low season. The hotel is unlikely to resume operations for at least 2 months. All guests and staff are safe.
For another property, the Road to Mandalay, it is still closed due to the low season. The ship now is in Yangon and was badly damaged.
Kandawgyi Palace Hotel: The hotel faced no major damage and therefore guests can stay there without being disturbed. Some windows and roofs are broken, yet these need only minor repair work. Electricity, telephone and Internet are all working as normal.
Savoy Hotel: The hotel has been operated with generator with limited hours, and therefore the phone lines are not working properly at the moment. The hotel has been trying to get power as soon as possible. Internet connection is also not working.
Thamada Hotel: The hotel faced only minor damage. Elevators are not working at the moment but electricity and telephone are working.
Phnom Penh welcomes another boutique hotel this spring, the Kabiki. It is located near the Royal Palace right in the middle of Phnom Penh, and consists of 11 well-appointed rooms, two pools, a large garden with play area and family rooms complete with bunk beds.
Everyone raves about Laos’s natural beauty and the wonderful temples that dot the country. We at Exotissimo Laos believe that the various peoples of Laos are worthy of further exploration. The Arts and Ethnology Centre in Luang Prabang is a great introduction the various cultures that make peaceful Laos their home.
While exploring Cambodia’s rich past, many of our guests find themselves searching for ways to contribute to the country’s present and future.
This month we are pleased to announce that we have a new product manager in Vietnam, Ms. Maeve Nolan. She is no stranger to the travel industry having worked for Exotissimo for the last eight years as Travel Agency Marketing Manager. Born in the northern highlands of Scotland and raised in Australia, Maeve has called Vietnam home for the past 10 years and her wealth of local knowledge and love of the region give her invaluable insight into the areas vast product potential.
Exotissimo Travel will be attending TTM, Thailand Travel Mart 2008, the largest annual B2B tradeshow in Thailand. The show will be held during June 5th – 7th, 2008 at Impact Muang Thong Thani, Bangkok, Challenger 3 Hall.
Exotissimo has set up an emergency fund with a donation of 20,000 USD, and over 15,000 USD has been donated by our generous travel trade partners. This fund will be managed by Exotissimo until we find a trusted and effective NGO or charity to take over.
Exotissimo Travel would like to say “Thank you very much” on the behalf of the poor victims in Myanmar for all the kind support and every dollar donated to help them through this difficult time.