The legendary Orient Express train could be operating into Cambodia in the near future if negotiations between the Phnom Penh government and train operator Eastern & Oriental Express (E&O) are successful. According to E & O management the company has to expand eastwards because there is nowhere else to go. A continuous track from Bangkok to Phnom Penh via Arunyaprathet, Poipet and Sisophon is already in place although the Cambodian section of track would need to be upgraded to take the heavy Orient Express train. It may be possible one day to combine a luxurious rain journey on the Orient Express with a visit to the fabled temples of Angkor Wat in northern Cambodia.

Hanoi’s Noi Bai International Airport will put a new, modern terminal into operation in the first quarter of 2001. According to French experts the new Noi Bai terminal will be one of the four most modern in South East Asia. TheT1 terminal, built at a cost of US$102 million, will cover an area of 74,400sq.m, with the main area covering 53,000sq.m and the remaining area comprising the ground floor and warehouses. To be completed in three phases over the course of 10 years, the terminal will first have the capacity to serve two million travellers a year, and then be expanded to handle four in 2003 and six million by 2005. As of late November 2000, approximately 90% of the work on the first phase had been completed, and the remaining 10% is expected to be finished by the first quarter of 2001.

International tourism experts met recetly to map out a master plan to preserve Cambodia’s ancient Angkor temples which will come increasingly under pressure from the massive influx of visitors expected over the coming years. The three-day meeting organised by the Word Tourism Organisation, focused on the issue of cultural tourism at the temple complex in Siem Reap, in north western Cambodia. The Cambodian Prime Minister, Hun Sen, said in his opening address that within a few years, one million international tourists were expected to visit the World Heritage protected site annually. However this will bring increased pollution from vehicles transporting visitors to the site, littering, and general wear and tear.

Quality hotel rooms have always been in short supply in Shan state especially during the peak season between November and March. Now with the recent opening of the new 4-star Lake View Resort Hotel the situation should improve considerably. The Lake View has 20 tastefully decorated international standard guest rooms all with a lake view as the hotel’s name suggests. Natural materials such as teak and rattan have been used extensively in the construction and vegetables and herbs grown in the hotel gardens are used to prepare the delicious Burmese, Chinese and western dishes servfed in the hotel restaurant. Being situated in Khaing Dine village on the western shore of Inle Lake means that there is direct access by road from Heho Airport, one hour’s drive away. Another hotel recently opened on the shores of Inle Lake is the Paradise Hotel. The Paradise consists of 50 cottages built on stilts over the lake on the eastern side opposite the village of Mine Tawk. Access is by a 20 minute boat ride from Nyaung Shwe. Like the Lake View, the 3-star Paradise is also well furnished utilising natural materials. The hotel boasts two restaurants, serving Burmese, Chinese and western dishes.

Reaching Phnom Penh and Cambodia from Vietnam will soon be possible by river thanks to the Victoria Hotels & Resort Group. Starting with an inaugural trip for inbound tour operators and journalists in January 2000, the Victoria Chau Doc Hotel will make the journey using its new speedboat, the Victoria Sprite. The comfortable, 10-seater Victoria Sprite will transport passengers directly from the Chau Doc hotel’s private jetty to the Cambodian border and then on to Phnom Penh. The journey will take approximately 4 hours in total. The Victoria Sprite also links the Victoria Chau Doc Hotel to the Victoria Can Tho Hotel on a request basis.

Travelling around Myanmar gets easier every day and since November 2000 Air Mandalay has started operating a third aircraft on lease from a Danish airline. Myanmar’s other private airline, Yangon Airways, has also put a third aircraft into the air in past 12 months which means that the capacity of these two airlines covering the most important tourist hubs in the country has increased enormously. With easier access to prime destinations such as Bagan, Inle Lake, Mandalay and Ngapali Beach visitors will hopefully be tempted to spend more time travelling in Myanmar in the future.

Qantas is considering running direct flights between Australia and Vietnam and has opened a second representative office in the country. The airline operated in Vietnam for one year in the late 90s but pulled out during the regional financial crisis.

Direct air links are to be forged between Hong Kong and Danang for the first time with the launch of a twice-weekly service operated by Vietnam-based Pacific Airlines in late December 2000. Travellers arriving on the flights will be able to secure a visa on arrival at Danang International Airport with just 24 hours notice. The tourism authorities in the central region are also looking into the feasability of launching direct flghts between Singapore and Danang by the end of 2001. Other planned air links to Danang include Kunming and Siem Reap, scheduled to begin in 2001 and Vientiane and Mandalay targeted for 2002.

The German-managed, two-storey Wagon Wheel Restaurant has recently opened on the Phnom Penh riverfront with magnificent views over Tonle Sap and the Mekong River. Besides the restaurant’s open-air balconies there are two air-conditioned dining rooms with seating for up to 50 diners. The restaurant serves a large variety of western and asian dishes.

Ho Chi Minh City’s Caravelle Hotel and Elegant Resorts have joined forces to promote Vietnam as a new destination for leisure travellers. Elegant Resorts is one of the most prestigious privately owned leisure operators in the United Kingdom and Caravelle general manager Stephen O’Grady is positive that the alliance will not only bring more visitors to the Caravelle but also Vietnam as a whole.

Vietnam Airlines and Japan Airlines opened a new route between Tokyo and Ho Chi Minh City on 2 November 2000. Four flights will service the new route, two from Ho Chi Minh City and two from Tokyo, with departures on Thursdays and Sundays.

The Vietnam-based Best Hotels Alliance (BHA) has recruited 12 new members, bringing its total membership to 19 hotels. The new members are the seven properties of the Victoria Hotel Group, including the Victoria Siem Reap, scheduled to open in 2001. By the end of the year, the alliance expects to add a further eight hotels in regional gateway cities which will feed tourists to Vietnam. A further 10 hotels are expected to come on-line in 2001 in Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and China.

A new international standard golf course has opened at the Pun Hlaing Golf Estate in Yangon. The 18-hole course and housing development, one of Asia’s most impressive residential golf estates, is just eight miles north west of Shwedagon Pagoda. The course was designed by Gary Player and features a computerized irrigation system, sports centre, club house and landcaped gardens covering a total area of 652 acres.

There was a significant increase in the number of foreign visitor arrivals in Vietnam during the third quarter of 2000 with major increases in Chinese (a year-on-year increase of 55 percent), Japanese (+25.8 per cent), British (+19.8 per cent) and Taiwanese visitors(+11 per cent).