Latest News

A colourful parade of private airplanes will be flying in from
Malaysia and other parts of Thailand for a festival at the Phuket
Airpark in Pa Klok on January 15 and 16. People are welcome to come
and see the sleek aircraft and meet the pilots. More earthly beauty
will also be on display, with the Miss Phuket Airpark bikini contest
set to be staged in the airpark's clubhouse.
 
Call 076-529543 for more information.

The Royal Phuket Marina is hosting an Arabian dance party featuring
belly dance performances, some of which the audience is welcome to
join. The action takes place on the boardwalk at Les Anges restaurant
from 8pm onwards on December 18.
 
For reservations and more information call Melissa on 081 090 1879 or
Murat on 081 797 3364

The bays of Phuket will soon have even more sparkle with the sight of
some of the world's snazziest superyachts, which have begun arriving
for the Asia Superyacht Rendezvous from December 16-18.
 
Among the yachts joining the event, which is by invitation only,
include 50-metre Perseus, 74-metre Silver Zwei, 36.7-metre Maverick
II, 36.1-metre Vie Sans Soucis, 53-metre Noble House, 38-metre Ananta,
and 40.3-metre My Lady Arraya.
 
The superyachts will be joined by sailing vessels on two sailing trips
to and from Pansea Beach and Surin Bay on the 17th and 18th. On-board
cocktail soirees and parties at exclusive Phuket resorts are among the
activities planned.

The historical district of Phuket Town will make for a charming
backdrop to the island's first-ever Phuket Street Show Festival from
December 17 to 19. Thalang Road in Old Phuket will be turned into a
walking street, where performers from all over the world will provide
entertainment delights alongside vendors selling delicious fresh food,
handicrafts and other local goods.
 
Among the performers are the Acrobuffos, described as 'laughmakers,
street players and knockabout philosophers', and the Tissue Act
acrobatic troupe, both from the US, the Korean circus group Funniest
and the flying Brazil BMXes.
 
The festival runs from 5pm to 11pm each day. See
www.phuketstreetshow.com for further details.

Phuket King's Cup regatta cancelled its final day of racing today
after a number of yachts were washed ashore in overnight storms.
Crewmen struggled in the surf at Kata Beach this morning to dislodge
their yachts from the sand and tow them to safety.
 
Closing events and the prize awards ceremony will be held as planned
this evening at Kata Beach Resort. Ray Roberts and his Evolution team
clinched a win in the Racing Class in a battle against his usual foes
in this hotly-contested Asian Yachting Circuit event. (Pic by Guy Nowell).

The streets of Patong Beach are set to be even more lively than usual
with the Phuket Carnival set to run from December 15 to 20 at various
locations around the resort town. Events include music concerts
featuring a broad range of music from brass bands to Thai pop stars,
Thai traditional song and dance performances, art displays on the
beach and cabaret acts.
 
The carnival celebrates the arrival of the tourist high season and
endless days of sun. Most of the action will take place along Bangla
Road and at Loma Park on the beach.

Tomorrow marks the start of the eight annual Tour de Thailand charity
bike event, in which cyclists make a 1900-kilometre ride from Chiang
Mai to Phuket to raise money for Operation Smile Thailand.
 
The journey will take cyclists from the jungle-clad mountains of the
north to the deep blue Andaman Sea of the south with many stops along
the way. Each participant will need to pay a registration fee to join
and raise a minimum 15000 baht for the charity, which provides free
surgical treatment to children and young adults who suffer from facial
deformities.
 
Phuket is the last stop on the tour, which finished on January 1. For
more information on Tour de Thailand and Operation Smile visit
www.tourdethailand.com.

The wife of British Prime Minister David Cameron was reported to have
thrown a 'temper tantrum' upon being told that their planned Christmas
holiday to Thailand was cancelled. It was seen by many as a public
relations disaster in the making for the Camerons to enjoy a five-star
break so soon after the government made huge budget cuts.
 
But while Samantha and David Cameron will miss out on a relaxing stay
at a Phuket resort, their fellow countrymen are still arriving in
droves. More than half a million UK visitors arrive to Thailand each
year, among the top-ten groups of visitors to the country.

The world's top athletes are set to compete in two major sporting
events over the next week, starting with the the 17th Laguna Phuket
Triathlon on November 28 followed by the island's first Ironman 70.3
Asia Pacific Championship on December 5. "Close to 1,000 international
entrants are expected for each event and global attention will be
focused on Phuket. This will be a sporting and tourism showcase of the
best that Thailand has to offer the world," said Laguna Phuket
Triathlon event director Debbie Dionysius.
 
Professional athletes will be joined by amateur racers and those just
out to enjoy the tropical sun in a range of fun sporting activities,
training sessions, entertainment and social events planned for the
whole week.
 
For further details see www.lagunaphukettriathlon.com.