High Season Should Bring Recovery for Chiang Mai

Is the high season of 2009 in Chiang Mai going to see a recovery from the economic crisis? The Chiang Mai tourism industry really hopes so, but as room reservations are still lagging behind, they are very cautious about the outlook. Especially bookings from foreign tourists are still very low, and although more local travelers are expected, this might not be sufficient.

Traditionally the high season is from November to April. Normally most foreign tourists book their rooms well in advance, but now seem to hold back, as there is still much doubt about the prospect of economic recovery. As a result, the reservations are not what they used to be.

But tourism operators have not lost their optimism, as the Thai Hotels Association’s Northern Chapter expects that local travelers will compensate for the foreign tourists. However, in many cases they plan their trips on a much shorter notice. Whether the local travelers will come in numbers to compensate for the loss of the foreign tourists remains to be seen, but they will certainly be welcomed by the local operators.

The expectation is that the average occupancy rate for this year’s high season will not be higher than 65%, according to Kanog Suvannavisutr, the president of the association. The rate was 67% during the high season of last year.

“Apart from the hotel oversupply problem, global economic problems, local political instability and the H1N1 flu are key factors dragging down Chiang Mai tourism,” he added.

The most expensive five star hotels are suffering the most, because of heavy competition from four star hotels. The latter offer rooms at very attractive rates, in most cases half of those of the five star hotels. According to Mr. Kanong their occupancy rate dropped to just 20%, which is far from sufficient.

Beside that, there are many four star hotels which offer conference facilities. As Chiang Mai is a popular destination for conferences, it has acquired itself an attractive position in this market, thus generating more business too. With very attracttive low-season rates of around 1,500 Baht per night, they were even able to reach 50% occupancy rates, which is an excellent performance.

The hotels at the lower end of the market are coping quite well. With maximum rates of about 800 Baht per night, they are very attractive for local travelers and foreign backpackers.

But there are other competitors in the market. Although the law does not allow apartment to rent out rooms on a day by day basis, more and more tourists are attracted by apartments when they travel to Chiang Mai. The hotels in Chiang Mai also need to take this kind of competition into consideration.
Mr. Kanong stated that “despite complaints made by hoteliers, apartments still accommodate guests on a daily basis. This is because the fine is small”.

The tourism industry is slightly optimistic and is counting on an improving economy in 2010. As a result, all tourists, but especially foreigners, should have a higher budget for traveling at their disposal. As Chiang Mai is a very attractive destination, the tourists should definitely come back, when the situation improves.

Chiang Mai History

A city and a region steeped in tradition and history, Chiang Mai has weathered seven hundred years of fascinating history.

There has been continuous habitation in what is now Thailand for over 10,000 years. Thailand lies between the two great civilisations of India and China and it has been much influenced by the both. Coastal trade came up the river to Siam, as the old capital now known as Ayutthaya, was called. Elephants or ox carts also carried goods across the narrow isthmus to avoid the long and pirate infested route through the Malacca Straight.

Over the centuries great Empires rose and fell in South East Asia – most of them being maritime states feeding off the merchants who traded along the coast. Such was Srivijaya based, some say, in Sumatra, the Khmer Empire of Angkor and the powerful kingdoms of Burma. Far to the north lay China, which sometimes stretched its tentacles down to the south.

Lanna, as the kingdom whose capital was called Chiang Mai, sits right in the middle of all these powers – a land-locked country surrounded and divided by forests and great mountain ranges straggling down from the Himalayas.

By 1300 A.D. the Thai people, moving out from the peripheral areas of China, had established themselves in the northern parts of Thailand. The two most important Thai kingdoms were Lanna and Sukothai, which was, a hundred years later, absorbed into Siam based at Ayutthaya. By the middle of the fifteenth century Lanna was firmly established, it fought successful wars against Siam over disputed territory and it became a major centre of Buddhist studies, hosting the Seventh World Buddhist Conference in 1477. Chiang Mai was also the key market on the trade routes from Yunnan to the Burmese ports where goods arrived from, and were sent to, India and beyond.

In 1557 the Burmese attacked the Thai world, utterly destroying Siam and turning Chiang Mai into a vassal state. For the next two hundred years Chiang Mai was an impoverished backwater cut off from the rest of the world and neglected by its rulers – it disappeared from the pages of history.

In 1767 Burma struck at Siam again and reduced the great city of Ayutthaya to a pile of rubble and it never recovered, the capital was recreated at Bangkok. Slowly the kingdom of Siam recovered under the new Chakri Dynasty.

Chiang Mai, after being deserted for twenty years following the Burmese onslaught, was gradually repopulated and willingly gave its allegiance to the king of Siam. But the journey up the river to Chiang Mai was slow and difficult so that the Prince of Chiang Mai was virtually an independent ruler. The first American Presbyterian missionary to reach the north from Bangkok in 1867 records that the journey took him exactly three months. McGilvary’s mission brought in the modern age – as well as, largely unsuccessfully, spreading the gospel, he also introduced modern medicine and education.

Towards the end of the century British teak companies in Burma began to seek concessions in the north of Thailand. There were frequent conflicts with the Prince who saw nothing wrong with leasing the same concession to two different people. Problems with the missionaries and the teak companies together with fears of British and French intentions along the borders finally forced the Bangkok Government to take firm control of Chiang Mai and the rest of the north in the 1890′s. All real power was removed from the Prince and the last hereditary ruler died in 1939. In 1921 the railway blasted its way through the encircling mountains and Chiang Mai became an integral and loyal part of Siam, or Thailand as it came to be called in 1949.

The inhabitants of Chiang Mai are, as one would expect in a city situated at the crossroads of mainland South East Asia, a very mixed lot. The people living in the valleys think of themselves as Thais with a difference – they have their own distinct language and are in fact a mixture of Mon, Lawa, Lao and Thai Lue amongst others. To the west live many Shan and Karen while in the mountains, over the past hundred years, tens of thousands of hilltribe people have settled after fleeing from troubles in Burma, Laos and China – Hmong, Akha, Lisu, Musser, Yao and the long necked Padaung. There are also many overseas Chinese, Chin Haw Muslim traders from Yunnan and increasing numbers of Europeans and Americans who have come to live in the beautiful and gentle valley of Chiang Mai.

with thanks to : http://www.chiangmainews.com/

Chiang Mai Loy Kratong Festival 2009

Chiang Mai Municipality will host the grand annual Loy Kratong Festival titled ‘Chiang Mai Yeepeng Festival 2009’ all over Chiang Mai city. There will be many activities to attract you to join: Northern lantern and Kratong parades, singing contest, beauty pageant, Vessontara Sermon, Miss Yee Peng contest and much more.

Below you will find the schedule for the upcoming events of Chiang Mai Loy Kratong Festival, which will be held from  31 October – 3 November 2009.

with thanks to : http://www.city-now.com/