|
|
   |
|
|
|
|
|
|
This has been an exciting year for us and we hope it has been good to you as well. During 2006 we gave ourselves a new name, launched India programs, added new destinations and activities in Thailand, Cambodia and China, added numerous new hotels, and welcomed many, many return guests. If you have never visited our retail office in Bangkok, you might know our names, but not our faces. So here we are... Standing: Nut, Joe, Douglas, and Bobby. Seated: Kate and Chutima (Bhu). Miss Fu took the photo. She does not stand in front of a camera too often. We have a Purple Dragon shirt in your size. The story is below. The Sliding Greenback Wheeee. The value of U.S. dollar has been tumbling steadily downward for almost one year. Not long ago a buck was worth around 41 Thai baht. Today, it is worth about 35.5 baht. In other words, the baht has increased in value more than 15% against the dollar. The economy of the world's richest nation seems to be slowing down. The Bush administration is encouraging a cheap dollar to make imports more expensive and prices of American products cheaper abroad. What does this mean to you? To begin with, the price of a holiday in Thailand is slightly more expensive than it was a year ago. Nevertheless, Thailand is still a huge bargain compared to many, many other holiday destinations with less to offer. If you normally spend Euros or Pounds Sterling, our prices for programs in other countries are actually dropping since most of our local contracts are in US dollars. For customers who do not like the idea of paying in dollars, we are in the process of adding Euro, pound and baht prices to our website. This will take a while. In the mean time, however, please ask for a price quote if you wish to pay in other currencies. Suvarnabhumi Redux
The unbelievable thing about Suvarnabhumi is that it has already reached 100% capacity at just under 80 flights per hour. Recent stories in the Bangkok Post suggest that the old Don Muang airport may be reopened to relieve congestion. One way or another, Don Muang may be back in business sooner than expected. Some government officials believe that the new airport is plagued with shoddy construction which may force parts of the facility to be shut down for repairs. It has been suggested that building contractors took a lot of liberties with the engineers' drawings, used substandard materials, or just plain did not know what they were doing. This has noting to do with the scoundrels who used to run the country, of course. Airline News Thai Airways has just inaugurated service from Bangkok to Varanasi four days a week. That is great news for people who want to take our Path to the Ganges package. No more connections with long layovers in New Delhi, the world's most decrepit airport. Moghul emperor Shah Jehan built it 1632. Even though the airplane had not been invented yet, he somehow knew the city would need something like that. The problem is, nobody has cleaned for fixed anything since it first opened and there is only enough parking for about twenty camels. Bangkok Airways has recently added a "Blue Ribbon Class" to its flights between Bangkok and Phnom Penh. You can read more about it on Douglas' new blog (story below).
If you are in or near Vladivostok, you will be thrilled to know you can now fly
to Bangkok on Vladivostok Avia. If you live in Khabrovosk or Irkutsk or just any
other major city in Russia you can connect through Vladovostok. We knew you
would want to know.
Our Holiday Gift to You If you are a Club Sanook Member and someone who likes to plan in advance, we have something to celebrate the Holidays with. Choose three or more of our packages for travel between 1 April and 30 September 2007 and we will give you 5% off the most expensive, 10% off the next most expensive and15% off the least expensive. You must book and finalize payment by 28 February 2007. Discounts apply to all-inclusive packages only but do not apply to VIP or Ultimate price levels, and can not be combined with other discounts or offers. You have to ask for this discount when you make your reservation since we will not extend it automatically. Purple Bloging Everybody seems to have a blog these days. Our internet guru told us Purple Dragon would rank higher in search engines if we had one, too. Since it is something that most people are not likely to read, we think it is a good place for Douglas, our Managing Director, to share his views on life. He will also share regular news about what is going on with Purple Dragon and in our part of the world, sometimes-witty insights occasional beauty secrets. www.purpledrag.com/blog.htm New on Purple Dragon's Website
Cruise the River of Kings by Luxury Boat. If you are looking for a unique Thailand experience as well as incomparable luxury, we have recently added River of Dreams to our collection of Bangkok programs. You spend three days or more on a magnificent private boat with your own chef and valet and cruise north to the Ayuttaya, historic temple villages and a look at country life along the river. The Manohra Dream is very private, with only two luxurious cabins. This is a great trip for a honeymoon or a small group of friends.
Where to Stay
We constantly fine-tune our programs and we
listen closely to what our customers have to say about the hotels we use. Here
are two hotels we have added to our packages. We know you will love them:
222 Silom The Coveted Purple Dragon Polo Shirt
Can At Last Be Yours
The news you have been waiting for...
Our Purple Points program will begin at long last in January. Past guests will
receive a gift of points based their previous travels with us. Points can be
redeemed for discounts, upgrades, books or even one of our divine purple and
white polo shirts. If you are a Club Sanook Member you will receive a personal
email about this early in 2007.
About This Newsletter
You are receiving this newsletter
because you are a former guest, because you have asked for information about our
company, or because you have registered as a Club Sanook Member. Our list is
very private. We do not share it with anyone. However, If you do not wish to
receive future email from us, we will remove you promptly at your request. Just
remember, points you may have accrued in our Club Sanook program will be lost.
If you are not already on our subscription list for this newsletter or our
periodic postcards
just
click here to
become a Club Sanook Member. It's fun, it's free and it takes only moments to
join.
Would you like to read the previous issue?
Copyright © 2006 Club Sanook. All rights reserved.
|
From
Us to You
Last September we promised to give you our feedback after we experienced Bangkok's new airport for ourselves. Now that most of us have been through the place at least twice, we are ready to
join the chorus of people who have found plenty of blemishes, from lack of
toilets and lack of proper signage to filthy windows. Once inside the main terminal building you might as
well be in a shopping mall. Wide walkways and broad public areas were sacrificed
to make room for more shops than you can imagine. Getting to your gate could involve a walk equivalent to
four or five city blocks. There are no moving sidewalks or motorized shuttles. The
expansive departure gate areas are really quite ugly and depressing. After passing through customs when you arrive in Bangkok, the arrival hall
is utter chaos, as hundreds of people try to connect with passengers in half the
space than should have been allowed. It's very
easy to miss your driver if you exit the wrong door. Our biggest complaint
is that there is nothing Thai about the airport. It lacks the warmth and soul
that the Land of Smiles is famous for.
