NOK AIR is now offering flights from Bangkok to Phuket or Chiang Mai for 2990 baht return, with one hotel night, breakfast and transfers included.

While there are some conditions, the special deal throws open the door to more bargains that are likely to promote and drive domestic tourism in Thailand between now and November.

WE RECENTLY rode with a busload of Thai tourists, visitors from up north to Phuket, so we could gauge first-hand what they were experiencing. Believe it or not, some of them had never seen the sea before.

As expected, there were plenty of Oooohs and Aaahs at the sight of the magnificent Phuket ocean. It may actually be the Andaman Sea, with other countries on its shores, but to these visitors, in will always be the Phuket sea.

And when the tour bus stopped for a closer inspection, a couple of expats repairing their yachts at Boat Haven marina on Phuket's east coast were caught by surprise, then given the star treatment in the way that only a busload of Thais can.

A succession of trippers insisted on having their photos taken alongside these real, live farang masters of the seven seas. How could the people back home be expected to believe you, if you don't have a photo as proof that you've been there, done that?

Expats mixing with Thais is taken for granted on Phuket. So is the sea. But then, is Phuket really typically Thai? Far from it, says former Tourism and Sport Phuket regional director Promchote Traivate.

The former Phuketwan Man of the Year now holds a posting in Chiang Rai, and retains a keen eye for developing tourism links between Thailand's north and south.

He makes the point that while people talk about Thailand, it's a huge and diverse nation. The Bangkok-centric nature of its media means there's often a lack of big-picture projection, in much the same way as CNN and the BBC were accused of concentrating too much attention on a couple of city blocks during the red rallies.

Seldom was the point made that apart from a few thousand protesters, soldiers and police and inconvenienced workers and residents, the rest of the country was mostly functioning normally.

So it is with domestic tourism. We watched with interest as the bus tourists saw how batik was made in a Muslim village, then shared a Muslim meal. Some of the villagers even speak a version of Thai that we could not always understand.

The village visit presented an intriguingly different version of Thailand to this busload of Thais.

Khun Chote says most Thais in the north's heavily populated regions don't realise that Phuket has a thriving, large and peaceful Muslim community. All they read and see on television is about the conflict in the deep south provinces.

The big picture for Phuket looks bright, especially if more Thais can be encouraged to go see their own country first. Khun Chote is targetting especially groups and organisations who turn seminars into bonding trips.

One group from Patong municipality, for example, recently flew to Sydney for a seminar. While overseas experience is useful, Khun Chote believes that Thai organisations also need to fully explore the diversity in their own country.

So hop on the bus, or the plane. Check it out.