Phuket Vice Governor Pichet Panapong presided over the opening ceremony at Plai Laem beach, joined by Charoon Kaewmukdakul of the Phuket Tourism and Sports office, Phuket Sports Association President Thammawat Wongcharoenyos, Phuket City Deputy Mayor Prasit Sinsaowapak and Srisoonthorn Mayor Chalermpol Kerdsub.
The event comprises tournaments in six sports ‒ beach football, futsal, beach volleyball, woodball, petanque and swimming ‒ to be held through December.
All events are being held under the measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The events scheduled to be held are as follows:
- Dec 4-6: Beach soccer match at the end of the Saphan Hin cape
- Dec 7-9: Futsal match at Gymnasium 1 Saphan Hin
- Dec 10-12: Beach volleyball at the tip of Saphan Hin cape
- Dec 15-17: Football match at Phikanesuan Park at Saphan Hin
- Dec 20-22: Petanque competition at the Saphan Hin Petanque Stadium
Mr Jaroon of the Phuket Tourism and Sports office said, “This event is a sports activity that focuses on mass sports, traditional sports, children, youth and senior citizens, to promote exercise, good health and quality of life in all situations, including during the COVID-19 epidemic.”
Vice Governor Pichet focussed on the income to be generated from tourism through the event.
“Phuket provincial government has a policy to organize various activities to promote and stimulate the economy in the tourism and sports sectors so that people, shop owners and other business people can earn income from tourism,” V/Gov Pichet said.
“This is another type of tourism activity that is gaining popularity with both Thai and foreign tourists, who can travel to the Phuket area to enjoy. Phuket is ready to welcome athletes and tourists to come to Phuket to join and enjoy the events, and to help increase income for Phuket Province,” he said.
SHA travelling show
Also underway at Saphan Hin is the “Traveling in Thailand with Confidence in SHA” event organised by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).
The event opened yesterday, with Apichai Chatchalermkit, Deputy Governor for TAT Tourism Products and Business, officiating the opening ceremony.
The event aims to highlight the businesses operating in full compliance with SHA standards in five provinces: Phuket, Chonburi, Nakhon Ratchasima, Chiang Mai and Ratchaburi.
“The event is to build confidence that tourists can use the service safely, with emphasis on allowing tourists to experience the uniqueness of each locality leading to the distribution of income throughout the five regions in the country,” Mr Apichai said.
“We need to open up to a new perspective of tourism. This will lead to the restoration of tourism and generate income to spread throughout the national economy.
“The country has eased its COVID-19 measures. This is a good sign for travelling, otherwise many tourists would refrain from traveling to experience a variety of cultures, taste the unique flavours of local cuisine as well as creating happiness from traveling in beautiful tourist destinations,” he said.
The event itself will be a “travelling show” with the Phuket event currently underway being the first edition to be held in the country.
The show will be held in each of the five provinces as follows:
- Phuket: Dec 3-5, at Chalermprakiat Park Rama 10 at Saphan Hin
- Chonburi: Dec 17-19, at Central Pattaya Beach, in front of The Base Central shopping mall
- Nakhon Ratchasima: Dec 24-26 at the Mayfair Event Ground
- Chiang Mai: Jan 7-9, at the Central Festival shopping mall
- Ratchaburi: Jan 14-16, at the Pracha Phatthana State Reservoir
The show will be open from 4pm to 9pm on each day at each location.
The event comprises four main zones.
The SHA Pavillion serves as a trade show zone of SHA-certified operators offering promotions and tourism products at special prices, while the Gastronomy Zone features selected food and beverages famous in each area, with presentations and demonstrations by invited chefs to create a special menu for the participants.
The Premium Craft Zone features vendors selling premium craft products from communities and startups, and the DIY Zone highlights DIY activities of each area.
Live music will also be performed as part of the ongoing event.
The event is strictly limited to 500 people at a time, and visitors must wear a mask and observe social distancing and other COVID-prevention measures at all times.