PHANG NGA looks set for a better high season than last year, says the provincial Governor, Yiamsuriya Pausuk.

He told Phuketwan bookings were up by comparison with 2008. Another 300 resort rooms will be added to Phang Nga's stock of 4000 rooms before December 1.

Scandinavia and Germany continue to be the source of most tourists. The emerging markets of Japan and Korea seem to have fallen away since the airport invasions in Phuket and Bangkok in 2008.

Phang Nga has in force construction zones for resorts that are aimed at controlling future development while maintaining the province's environmental attractions.

Unlike Phuket, jet-skis and beach vendors are banned in Phang Nga. Beach loungers are permitted, but only within or close to the boundaries of resorts.

Governor Yiamsuriya said that the kinds of bars and nightlife that people found on Phuket were absent from Phang Nga, which concentrates on maintaining its appeal as a natural destination.

Hills roll close to the coast along the Andaman, giving visitors the option of both beaches and waterfalls in national parks, all within a short distance.

The scale of resorts is also limited now to smaller boutique style establishments, aimed at maintaining the qualities that make the province distinct as a destination.

''We are putting a special plan in place now to commemorate the 2004 tsunami on December 26,'' Governor Yiamsuriya said.

''Because it is the fifth anniversary, this year will be very significant. We expect many survivors and the families of some of the victims to return.''

While Phuket has 10 times the population of the Khao Lak region, 10 times as many people died in Phang Nga as on Phuket during the tsunami.

The result is that the event remains more deeply remembered there, and the awareness of the need for tsunami vigilance also appears to be more ingrained.

The fishing village of Nam Khem (salt water), where more than 800 died, has two of the region's most significant tsunami memorials, including two trawlers that were swept inland, and a permanent exhibition of photographs.

Talk of a new airport on Kho Kor Kaew, an island off Nam Khem, has been put to one side for now, the governor said. The island is the site of a World War Two airfield, constructed by the Japanese.

''With airports on Phuket and Krabi, there is little point in considering expanding to Phang Nga until those options are fully extended. That will be in 15 years or more,'' he said.

As well as requiring a large budget, a new airport would challenge the province's priority principle of putting environmental considerations first, he said.