Krabi Villa's Blog

Krabi bucks the national trend of falling visitor numbers

Krabi bucks the national trend of falling visitor numbers

Krabi province in Thailand continues to boom in 2015 despite the reported 20 – 25% decline in tourist arrivals countrywide, and the expected drop in the Russian market.

The new year in Krabi started well with a 20% increase in traffic at the international airport (year on year) over the holiday season, and the main tourist hub of Ao Nang Beach gaining recognition as one of the world’s top five “Destinations On The Rise” in the TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Awards, which are determined by readers of the world’s most popular travel reviews site.

Meanwhile Krabi Riviera Co. Ltd cemented its position as the leading provider of vacation rental villas in the Ao Nang area, expanding its portfolio to 23 properties, including 5 waterfront villas. “Ao Nang continues to provide the widest range of tourist infrastructure in Krabi, from accommodation to shopping, dining and leisure activities,” says Pierre-Yves Loriers, the managing director of Krabi Riviera. “This recent award proves what we have known for a long time: it’s the most popular place to stay in Krabi. And our focus on providing villas in this particular area means occupancy has risen, bucking the nationwide trend of falling sales in 2014 – 15.”

Recent appointment Vishal Pawa as Villa Supervisor reflects Krabi Riviera’s push towards becoming more environmentally friendly. The Thai-Indian Pawa studied hotel management in Australia and spent three years working as a Marine Conservation Project Manager for the voluntary youth program Projects Abroad in Krabi.

“Having seen first hand the damage tourism is wreaking on the local environment, I am helping the company to take a greener path,” says Pawa. “Even small steps such as introducing recycling into the villas; finding alternatives to toxic cleaning products; or switching to LED lighting can have an impact across 23 properties that currently use a lot of resources.” 

Guests will be encouraged to participate in the energy-saving by turning off lights and air conditioning when not in use. The company also plans to offer “green” tours and excursions in the future.

Krabi Riviera is also benefiting from Pawa’s experience in event co-ordination, as more clients are requesting private functions, team-building retreats and weddings at the company’s villas. “Vishal’s hospitality background and international perspective – not to mention his fluently spoken Thai and English – make him a great asset,” says Loriers. “We have been able to expand the number of services we can provide and offer ‘full package’ vacations to the increasing number of guests who require this.”

With the peak season of Chinese New Year coming up in February, business does not look like slowing down anytime soon: Ao Nang - and Krabi Riviera Co., Ltd - are truly “on the rise”.
Posted Jan 17, 2015