Chiang Mai ‘ready for tourists next month’

CHIANG MAI – Chiang Mai will be ready to welcome tourists in November in time for the high season, deputy governor Tosapol Phuanudom said on Thursday.
He made the pledge after a meeting of a public-private sector group set up to discuss development in the provinces of the Upper North: Chiang Mai, Mae Hong Son, Lampang and Lamphun. The huge post-flood clean-up effort in Chiang Mai was among the topics discussed.
Many locations in Chiang Mai were severely affected by the recent flooding, including homes, schools, hotels, factories, hospitals, restaurants and tourist attractions, with estimated total damage of about 5 billion baht, Mr Tosapol said.
Participants in the meeting on Thursday agreed to press the government for more rehabilitation funds at the mobile cabinet meeting that has been scheduled for Chiang Mai on Nov 26, he said.
Work is continuing in Chiang Mai to rehabilitate many tourist attractions so that they can reopen during this busy time of year. Everything is expected to return to normal starting in November, he said.
Financial assistance from the government to flood victims in Chiang Mai so far has totalled more than 100 million baht, Mr Tosapol said.
Damage to hotels and lodgings in the floods was estimated to be around 500 million baht, said Paisan Sukcharoen, president of the Thai Hotels Association Northern Chapter. About 90% have undergone immediate restoration and should be ready to open by November, he said.
“The fact that the room booking rate has increased significantly during this time is encouraging,” he said.
“If you do not book any hotel room in the city of Chiang Mai in advance, you might not get a place to stay because the booking rate now is over 90%,” he said, adding that the cool weather is another factor bringing people to the North.