A daily wrap of Thailand news, with a Phuket perspective, plus relevant reports from national and international media.

smh.com.au There are 32 new hotels with 4600 guest rooms set to open on Phuket and neighboring Phang Nga in the next two years. Taxi rage in Phuket is rife, with almost daily cases of violence directed towards tourists who baulk at demands for tips or unknowingly park in an unmarked taxi spot.

southalltravel.co.uk TAT estimate that 90 to 100 percent of hotel rooms [on Phuket in New Year] near the popular beaches in Patong and Karon were booked out, with the majority of visitors taking flights to Thailand from countries such as Australia and Russia.

cnn.com A United Airlines flight from Chicago to Frankfurt, Germany, was diverted to Toronto after the pilot dumped a cup of coffee on the plane's communication's equipment. The unwanted liquid triggered a series of emergency codes, including one for a hijacking, according to Transport Canada.

scmp.com A record 36 million people visited Hong Kong last year, a 21.8 percent year-on-year jump from 2009, according to provisional official statistics.

bignews.biz The Yamu, a luxury villa and hotel resort on Phuket, has secured financial backing from Singaporean investment group Hotel Properties Limited and the Thai KS Group in Thailand. The news comes after construction of the Yamu Hotel was stopped during the recent economic downturn. Construction will restart with the Yamu Hotel scheduled to open in early 2012.

sbwire.com Thai residential property developer, Amari Estates Company, has won the lease management contract for Herathera Island Resort in the south Maldives. The four star resort is surrounded by a lagoon and has long, white, sandy beaches. It is the only resort on the island of Herathera and guests arrive via a speedboat ride from the airport.

breaking travelnews.com Carlson has signed a second Radisson property in the Maldives. The $91 million, 281-villa resort, owned by Three K International Private Limited, is expected to open in the third quarter of 2012 on the island of Naagoshi. The Radisson Plaza Resort Maldives, Naagoshi will feature contemporary villas over land and water.

bangkokpost.com The Tourism Authority of Thailand aims to be fullly digital by 2015 to maintain its competitive edge in the region. Information searched with Google will be studied to find out which destinations are the favorite subjects of search by tourists. The study has found that Bangkok is the favorite subject of searches in Southeast Asia.

nationmultimedia.com The sedan driven by the underage girl involved in a Bangkok tollway crash that killed nine van passengers last week belongs to a woman who owns a garage and lent it to a third person, police said. Witchuta Worrakhajit has been summoned by police for an interview about her ownership of the white Honda Civic, which was registered in Phuket.

reuters Researchers have documented yet another health benefit for circumcision, which can protect men against the AIDS virus, saying it can protect their wives and girlfriends from a virus that causes cervical cancer. Wives and girlfriends of circumcised men had a 28 percent lower rate of infection over two years with the human papilloma virus or HPV, which causes warts and cervical cancer, they reported in the Lancet medical journal.

thestar.com Former leader Thaksin Shinawatra has kept a low profile since being ousted in a military coup September 19, 2006, but spoke to the Toronto Star in an exclusive interview from his Mideast exile. ''My life is really relaxed,'' he said. ''I have lots of people coming to see me.''

todayonline.com With elections looming, the younger sister of exiled former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra could be following in her brother's footsteps, a spokesman for the opposition Puea Thai party said. Yingluck Shinawatra, 43, however, has yet to decide on whether she wants to run while her chief rival, Mingkwan Saengsuwan, is busy canvassing members of Parliament.

reuters.com Indonesia's government is considering building another airport near Jakarta as the capital's main flight hub will not be able to accommodate future passenger growth in Southeast Asia's biggest economy.

malaysiasun.com Malaysia has taken a slight tumble down the Economist Intelligence Unit's 2010 Democracy Index, slipping three places to number 71 out of 167 countries, with its overall score dropping from 6.36 points in 2008 to 6.19 last year. This places Malaysia squarely in the ''flawed democracy'' category, along with 52 other countries that received overall scores of between 6 and 7.9 out of a maximum of 10 points.

thejakartaglobe.com Indonesia expects to see significant progress in the work of the Asean human rights body during its chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this year. Rights activists criticized the body as a powerless commission that focused on promoting, rather than protecting, human rights.

webnewswire.com Thailand will host a trade fair, Health Food and Ingredients Thailand 2011, on March10-13 at Impact, Muang Thong Thani, Nonthaburi province. Thailand Food Conference 2011 will also be held concurrently. Health food products and food ingredients will be featured in more than 700 booths, under the concept of Creative Food, Creative Thailand.


Bangkok Hospital Phuket, Phuket City
Time: 8am to noon
Next to parents, doctors and nurses rival teachers as the next-best carers, and the treats are always easy to find at Bangkok Hospital Phuket. The special attraction will be performances by the Joe Louis Puppet Theatre, which moved from Bangkok to Phuket last year.

Saphan Hin Park, Phuket City
Time: 8am-3.30pm
This huge park in Phuket City always produces a Children's Day to rival the best, with plenty to see and do. Kids dress up too, to perform on stages dotted around the grassy areas. Usually the army drops by to provide some artillery to clamber on. Runs late, but the kids tend to tire by afternoon. Expect about 9999 others to be there.

Rassada Municipality, Phuket City
Time: 8am-noon
A great stretch of open space and playground equipment to suit all ages. One of the secrets in Phuket City's green administrative zone, close to the Governor's Mansion. Magicians, a comedy show from Bangkok and a local band should make it lively.

Provincial Hall, Phuket City
Time: 8am-3.30pm
The star attraction: singer Ice Saranyu. The generous Phuket Provincial Administrative Organisation will be catering for up to 10,000 kids on the broad lawn at Phuket's administrative hq. Present galore, including 70 bicycles for lucky children.

Vichit Municipality, near Phuket City
Time: 8am-noon
Suan Sri Phuvanart Park will be the site for the Vichit municipality to treat local children to a day to remember. Adults may not forget it, either.

Loma Park, Patong
Time: 8am-3pm
Kathu Municipality is one of the island's most progressive and Children's Day leaves them with nothing to do except make the children happy. An amazing 18 stages will be found across the park and the football field. Four hundred scholarships are to be resented.

SriSunthorn, Thalang
Time: 8am-3pm
Look for lots of amusements and tasty food along Thepkasattri Road. The Old Car Club has promised a show. There will be ATVs for children to take for a spin, and a karaoke corner.

Navy Area 3, Cape Panwa
Time: 8am-3pm
Phuket's protectors are actually the softest guys in uniform when it comes to children and taking care of turtles. Children will be able to scramble onto HTMS Bangpakong and watch some navy displays, as well as enjoying the indispensable generosity of Navy style treats.



Until January 9 Phuket Red Cross Fair, Saphan Hin park, Phuket City
Until January 9 Pimex boat show, Royal Phuket Marina
January 15-16 Phuket Air Park fly-in, Phuket
January 18 John Gray annual Phang Nga Bay cleanup
January 22 QSI International fun run day at Bang Wad Dam, Kathu
January 23 Great Phuket Rubber Duck Race Day, Laguna Phuket
February 3 Chinese New Year Festival, Phuket
February 8-10Old Phuket Town Festival, food and walking street fest
February 9-13 The Bay Regatta - Phuket, Phang Nga, Krabi
February 23-26 Phuket Gay Pride Festival, Patong
February 25-26 Phuket International Blues and Rock Festival 2011
February 26-27 Phuket Spicy Soccer 7s, Phuket International Academy
March 14-19 ADFEST 2011 at Movenpick Resort, Phuket
March 27 Earth Hour commemoration on Phuket
April 13-15 Songkran Festival
May New PPAO Hospital to open, Phuket City


Fourth Asia Beach Games, Phuket