Exotissimo News Blog

Bangkok - 28 November 2008: 16:30pm

Currently, the Suvarnabhumi Airport and Don Muang Airport in Bangkok remain closed. Many rumours about the political situation and potential opening of the airports have been going around but nobody really knows when both airports will open.

The Thai Police have been ordered to open the airport but do not appear to be taking any real action yet. We are not optimistic that the airport will open before Sunday.

In the meantime, some international airlines have decided to use U Thapao Airport in Pattaya (1.5 hour drive away from Bangkok) for landings and departures. The following airlines have announced the temporary shift of their flight operations to U Thapao Airport:

Thai Airways (1 flight to India and 1 flight from Korea)
Cathay Pacific
Eva Air
Austrian Airlines
Air Berlin (LTU)
Nok Air (to Kuala Lumpur)

Attention – It is extremely difficult to reach airline offices in Bangkok due to the busy lines. Exotissimo CANNOT change flight dates in the PNR of clients if the booking is made overseas. This is only possible if the booking has been made by Exotissimo or if Exotissimo/the client manages to reach the airline office.

Please check the PNR of your clients and try to rebook in the GDS (airline reservation system such as Amadeus or Galileo) to another flight. We suggest you to try booking a flight from Suvarnabhumi Airport or Don Muang Airport that is not before 2 December. If you can rebook your clients for a departure flight from U Thapao (airline code: UTP) or from any other airport in Thailand (Phuket – HKT for example), please do so and let Exotissimo and your clients know immediately so we can arrange for their transfers to that airport).

Meanwhile Exotissimo will try to change tickets from our side but keep in mind that not all extra flights from UTP will appear in the GDS and not all airlines can be reached.

The situation in Bangkok and in the rest of Thailand remains calm. Most clients also seem to understand the situation and that they will have to bear the extra costs. Today, several clients decided to extend their holidays in Thailand by another 3-4 days to beaches such as Hua Hin or Ko Samed, hoping that the situation would be solved after their short holidays. As one French client put it, “While staying in Thailand, it’s better to make the best of it and enjoy the beach. That’s better than staying and waiting for day-by-day news in a hotel in Bangkok.” At this moment, we agree that this will be the best option – head to the beach for a couple of days and hope that the situation improves soon.

We are very sorry for the inconveniences caused and can only hope for your kind understanding.

The Exotissimo team will continue to inform clients about the situation and re-arrange their planned itineraries. The office will be open the whole day on Saturday and Sunday.

Best regards,

Exotissimo Travel Team

Dear Partners,

Bangkok - 27 November 2008: 16:00pm

Currently, the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport remains closed and Don Muang Airport in Bangkok was closed since last night. The atmosphere in Bangkok (and other places in Thailand) is normal. It is not clear when the airports will open and airlines will start flying again. Some airlines have cancelled their flights till at least 18:00pm this evening, while some till 18:00pm this Friday, 28 November 2008.

Exotissimo has been constantly in touch with our clients and most have opted to continue their sightseeing as normal. Clients who were supposed to use the Bangkok airports have been re-routed and offered alternative routes, for example Chiang Mai – Phuket direct flights, overland transfers between Siem Reap and Bangkok, night train from Bangkok to the border with Laos or overland transfers from Bangkok to Khao Sok or Phuket. This is definitely not the most ideal arrangement but the general mood amongst our clients is that they will just deal with it and adopt the Thai “mai pen rai (nevermind)” thinking. Several clients decided to cancel their Thailand or regional travel plans and instead opted to stay for a week at a beach near Bangkok like Ko Samed or Hua Hin.

Our guides, operations and reservations teams are staying in touch with our clients all the time and are assisting with booking additional services (like hotel accommodation). Our partner hotels have been very cooperative and understanding and are either waiving cancellation fees or offering special prices for extensions. We advise all clients to keep the receipts for the extra costs incurred so that they can try to claim these costs later from their airlines or travel insurance companies.

Clients who are staying in Bangkok or at one of the Thai beaches while waiting for a flight back home have given their flight ticket details to the Exotissimo ticketing team. We are now trying to re-book them for possible flights in the comings days. We urge clients who has gotten any news directly from their airline or those who have not given their ticket details to Exotissimo to contact our 24-hour operations emergency department (Tel: 0066-818672806 – when in Thailand call 08-18672806).

We hope that all international and domestic airlines will be able to resume their flights soon again.

Best regards,
Exotissimo Travel Team

Dear Partners,

Bangkok - 26 November 2008: 17:00pm

Currently, the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport remains closed and it is not clear when it will open again. Exotissimo Thailand has contacted all clients in Thailand to inform them about alternative itineraries of either flying to different airports or travelling overland.

Domestic flights
Our reservations and operations teams are trying to re-book domestic flights to other airports or arrange overland services for our clients. If the domestic flight ticket was not booked by Exotissimo (but by clients directly or by agents), we will advise clients to buy new tickets and try to get refunds for any un-used tickets at a later stage.

International arrival flights
Some international and domestic flights are being diverted to Don Muang Airport in Bangkok (which is still open), Oo Ta Pao Airport in Pattaya or other airports in Thailand or Southeast Asia). It is very difficult for us to get reliable information about re-routing from international airlines at the moment. Please inform our operations department (Tel: 0066-818672806) if you know of any changes in routing for your clients so as to ensure that we can pick them up at a different airport.

Transit
Exotissimo is not able to reach any clients who are currently in transit at Suvarnabhumi Airport (for example, on the way to Cambodia or other destinations). We hope that the ground staff of the affected airlines will give them as much comfort and information as possible.

International departure flights
Exotissimo is rendering full assistance to clients with international departure flights by contacting their airlines and checking when they can fly out. We are also assisting clients with extension of accommodation arrangements and negotiating with the hotels involved to keep the costs low.

Extra charges
If extra costs are incurred for accommodation extensions or purchase of new flight tickets, Exotissimo advises clients to pay themselves and keep the receipts for claims requests with their airlines or travel insurance companies later. Extra costs for short transfers and guides will not be charged.

Un-used services
Several airlines have already confirmed to give full refund for any cancelled services (to be claimed at the agent who issued the ticket). Several of our partner hotels are also showing flexibility in waiving cancellation fees. Exotissimo will always try to avoid cancellation fees and give refunds for unused services if our suppliers (hotels, airlines etc) give a refund.

We sincerely hope that the situation changes for the better and that the airport will open again soon. One of our operations staff is now stationed at Suvarnabhumi Airport to keep us informed of the latest developments and updates.

In general, clients have showed kind understanding to Exotissimo regarding the current situation and are cooperating very well with our suggested alternatives but of course nobody is happy with it.

The rest of Bangkok is peaceful and business is going on very much as usual away from the airport and government areas.

Best regards,
Exotissimo Travel Team

Dear Partners,

Bangkok - 26 November 2008: 10:00am

We are writing to inform you that the main Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport has had to close today due to political protests in Bangkok targeting the airport.

All flights out of Thailand from Suvarnabhumi Airport are temporarily suspended. However, many domestic flights have been diverted to Don Muang Airport which remains open. We remain hopeful that Suvarnabhumi will reopen later today.

Arrivals

There are still some flights arriving at Suvarnabhumi and also at Don Muang Airport. Our operations team have been working since yesterday evening and through the night to ensure that all clients arriving in Thailand are met safely and transferred to their hotels.

Departures and Onward Domestic Travel

We have been in contact with all clients in-country to discuss and find solutions to their travel arrangements.

We are assisting all clients departing Thailand today to extend their stay until their flights are rescheduled.

We are doing our best to reroute all domestic travel plans that were using Suvarnabhumi Airport by either going through Don Muang Airport or by land transfers if necessary. We have been in contact with guides / clients to organise alternative travel arrangements and will continue doing so for the coming days. Exotissimo operations and guides will also provide maximum assistance to clients and to ensure they receive as much information as possible.

As we have offices in Bangkok, Phuket and Chiang Mai, we have staff on the ground throughout the country communicating with our clients. We reassure all clients in Thailand that they are safe and Exotissimo is here to give our clients as much assistance as they need.

Please rest assured that all clients are safe and that in the rest of Bangkok, daily life is as normal. These protests are highly targeted and are aimed at dislodging the current government. Last nights’ protests were mostly non-violent despite the news reports and protest leaders have announced they do not wish to harm anyone especially foreigners in Thailand.

The rest of Bangkok is peaceful and business is going on very much as usual away from the airport and government areas.

We will let you know as soon as we have more news.

Best regards,
Exotissimo Travel Team

This month, we are pleased to present Thmor Roung Waterfall, a new site just officially opened to visitors. It is located in the Kompong Seila district of Koh Kong province, about 123km from Phnom Penh. The Thmor Roung Waterfall is an ideal place to visit for people travelling overland between Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville / Koh Kong. This waterfall has four levels and we recommend the 1- 2km jungle trek from the 3rd step upstream to the 2nd and 1st step, also known as Thmor Roung (Cave). Along the way, there are huts for visitors to relax in and a small local restaurant. Please contact cambodia@exotissimo.com to book this tour.

Exotissimo Travel Thailand has been inspecting many new and existing hotels during the last season and refined the list of preferred hotels in every destination. There are many distinct advantages of using these preferred hotels:

* They are great value for money regardless of the class category.
* They are selected based on objective criteria accessed by travel professionals and genuine feedback from thousands of our customers.
* Knowing and working with us regularly, they consistently provide high service standards for the Exotissimo clients (which is always better should there be a problem, a request for an upgrade or fulfilling a special favour for your client).
* They offer an extra or unique touch, may it be the boutique atmosphere, good location or better rates.
* Exotissimo has allotments with many of these hotels.
* Should you be undecided on which hotel to suggest to your clients in a certain location in Thailand, you can be sure that Exotissimo preferred hotels always make good suggestions.
* The fact sheets (with information, pictures and descriptions) of most of the preferred hotels are made available on the travel trade section of our website for your easy reference.

If you would like to receive the latest list of Exotissimo preferred hotels, please send an email to our product manager Soonie at soonie@exotissimo.com.

Discover the fascinating world of Northern Laos with Exotissimo’s ‘Authentic Laos’ tour. This unique trekking excursion is designed for the intrepid and open-minded traveller with a keen sense of adventure and eagerness to participate in sustainable tourism. Trekking deep into the highlands, participants get to experience ethnic hill tribe culture in its rawest and most authentic forms amidst sweeping sceneries of verdant vegetation growth and cascading waterfalls. The 8 days / 7 nights tour winds through Luang Nam Tha, Muang Sing, Pakbeng and Luang Prabang. For more information, please contact laos@exotissimo.com.

Exotissimo’s latest and southernmost office in Phuket was opened on 1 October! Heading the team of three in our Phuket office is Christophe Lopez who has lived on the island for more than 15 years. The team is currently developing signature and exciting excursions to showcase clients the best of Phuket and southern Thailand. Located at 100/19 Moo 5, Chalermprakiat Rama 9 Road in Phuket town, Exotissimo Phuket looks forward to welcoming all at the new office. Please contact Christophe at christophe@exotissimo.com for more information.

We are pleased to announce Olivier Marchesin as the General Manager of Exotissimo Cambodia, effective from 1 October 2008. We believe that Olivier’s wealth of work experience and depth of understanding of Asia will be an invaluable asset to our organisation.

Born in France, Olivier graduated with an MBA in Tourism and Hotel Management and Development from Nice University. He started a career in the travel industry in the Philippines, where he piloted Viero Travel from 2000 – 2004, establishing a unique range of tours for expatriates. He then moved to China as Managing Director of Lao Tai Shan, a destination management company (DMC) specialising in high end leisure and Incentive Travel and was based in Hong Kong and Beijing for four years prior to joining Exotissimo.

Olivier’s varied and practical experience and love for Asia and the Asian travel industry perfectly equip him to manage Exotissimo Cambodia. He will oversee all facets of operations, including product, reservations, sales and marketing. Olivier can be contacted at omarchesin@exotissimo.com.

Tet, or the Vietnamese New Year, is the most important and popular holiday in Vietnam. For 2009, Tet will fall on 26 January. It usually lasts for three days and is marked by huge celebrations throughout the country. Tet is traditionally a time for family reunions and pilgrims, so many Vietnamese will take the opportunity to return to their hometowns to celebrate the occasion with their families. Most shops and businesses close for at least a day during this festive period. From our past experiences, securing bookings is more difficult during this period and a premium applies. We would like to remind all agents to confirm bookings for this period as soon as possible.