Avani Hotels In Thailand Unveil New Hybrid Meetings Solutions

With remote and hybrid work becoming the new normal at the workplace, Avani Hotels & Resorts in Thailand are introducing a host of technology-based MICE products to make the transition to a more digital environment as seamless as possible.

With demand for ZOOM, Microsoft Teams and other video calling apps on the rise, Avani has expanded into digital services to offer event planners such solutions as online attendee management, interactive polling, rental of live streaming equipment and services of a dedicated on-site technical team.

Available packages range from “Mini Meet” with up to 10 on-site attendees and 100 online participants to “Conference Pro” with 50 on-site and 500 online participants, six guest speakers and multiple 4K cameras. Creative production services such as digital backdrop design and waiting room visuals are also available, allowing event organisers to plan their inter-connected events efficiently. Allow Avani’s meeting professionals to handle all the technical aspects of the hybrid meeting. On-site participants will enjoy traditional hospitality in the form of theme coffee breaks and meeting spaces designed to inspire.

Read more at https://www.hospitalitynet.org/news/4105360.html?utm_source=pocket_mylist

Thailand’s Tourism Sector Seeks to Reopen Country by 1 July

Inbound international tourism sector in Thailand says vaccines are a game-changer that allows for the reopening of the country and for quarantine requirements to be dropped.

Leading international tourism companies in Thailand have launched a campaign to reopen the country’s borders from 1 July 2021.
 
The #OpenThailandSafely campaign was launched 2 March with the support of over 15 major companies including YAANA Ventures, Minor Group, Asian Trails, Capella Hotels and Resorts, EXO and many others. [The full launch list is here]
 
The Open Thailand Safely campaign has laid out its arguments in a petition which will underpin a formal request to the Royal Thai Government to respond favourably to the rollout of Covid-19 vaccination programmes underway in Europe, USA and other Thailand tourism source markets.
 
The petition is open to anyone in Thailand or around the world who would like to see the country reopen.
 
The campaign argues that 1 July is an appropriate date for five reasons: the majority of citizens in many source markets will have been vaccinated by then; it gives time to Thai medical authorities to vaccinate both front line staff in hospitality settings in Thailand and/or vulnerable citizens around the country; it gives international travellers time to make travel plans and bookings; the date gives time to airlines, hotels, tour operators and others to start marketing and sales and get ready for tourism operations to commence; and it will take Thailand at least a year, and maybe longer, to return to the large numbers of international visitors that it had before the Covid-19 crisis.
 
To ensure the safe reopening of Thailand, the petition argues that “international tourists can be asked to satisfy any safeguards the Thai Government may require. This may, for example, include showing officially recognised proof of a Covid-19 vaccination from their home country, purchasing health insurance, showing proof of a negative Covid test within 72 hours of departure, and so on.”
 
#OpenThailandSafely was the initiative of leading Bangkok-based private sector travel companies YAANA Ventures, Minor Group and Asian Trails.

The CEO of YAANA Ventures, Willem Niemeijer [pictured right], said: “The 1 July reopening would be a strategic opportunity for Thailand to show a leadership role among Asian countries and prepare the way for a solid recovery of the Thai economy in 2022.” 

In the coming days, the Open Thailand Safely campaign will also send the 1st July request to Thailand Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha, the Minister of Tourism and Sports, Mr Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, and the Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Mr Yuthasak Supasorn.
 
According to the Bank of Thailand and official sources in Thailand, tourism, pre-Covid, was worth about 2.9 trillion baht (US$96.5 billion). Some 39.7 million international visitors in 2019 helped sustain up to 8.3 million jobs. However, arrivals fell to 6.7 million in 2020 making between two and four million people unemployed.
 
Meanwhile, destinations such as Seychelles, Maldives, Greece and Sri Lanka have either opened borders already or are in discussions to do so in light of successful Covid vaccine rollouts in their key source markets.
 
People can sign the petition for Thailand to reopen on 1 July at www.OpenThailandSafely.org.

For more information www.OpenThailandSafely.org.

2019 MIST Winners Announced

This year, MIST was held in Bangkok together with the new Travel Startups Asia Forum, featuring startup stories from successful travel ventures and MIST Alumni. The opening keynote was given by Senator and former Minister of Tourism and Sports of Thailand HE Mr Weerasak Kowsurat who linked the importance of innovation and entrepreneurship to tourism development in Thailand and the Mekong Region. The closing keynote was given by founder of Nok Airways Mr Patee Sarasin, who gave valuable insights from his experiences in starting an airline in Southeast Asia.

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