KRABI will receive four Tiger Air Boeing 737 flights a week direct from Singapore from October 25 as the province gears up for high season.

Bookings for December-February were running at about 60 percent, said Itirid Kingkawe, President of the Tourist Association of Krabi. He anticipated the rate would rise to 80 percent.

''Most of our customers are from Scandinavia or other parts of Europe,'' he said. ''We are hoping the Singapore flights will broaden the market for Krabi.''

Long-haul flights have suffered generally, Khun Itirid added, with many destinations trying to encourage more travel within the region.

''Guests from Europe are also not staying as long,'' he said. ''Once, people would come for three months. These days their visits are shorter and they are spending less money.''

Krabi has 15,000 rooms and its appeal, a mixture of nature and quality accommodation, is similar to that of its neighbor, Phang Nga.

Prime attractions are Ao Nang, the departure point for more remote destinations that sometimes can only be reached by water.

Phi Phi, Lanta and Phuket are all popular excursions from Krabi.

Environmental issues continued to grow, along with the number of tourists, on Phi Phi especially, he said.

Krabi would recover, along with the world's economy. ''It's a long way to Bangkok and the problems of the deep south from here,'' he said.