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Champasak Cleans Up for ASEAN Tourist City Status
Champasak District is aiming to achieve ASEAN Clean Tourist City certification by 2020. The UNESCO World Heritage Listed Old Town of Luang Prabang became the first site in Laos to be awarded the standard earlier this year. According to the Vientiane Times, Champasak’s goal was revealed at a workshop on Dissemination of Information on the Asean Clean Tourist City standard held in Champasak province from September 27-28. The workshop was organised by the Tourism Development Department under the Information, Culture and Tourism Ministry and supported by Regional Economic Integration of Laos into Asean, Trade and Entrepreneurship Development (RELATED, GIZ). It was attended by 60 representatives from the tourism sector of state and international organisations and tour operators. “The dissemination workshop is to help prepare for the conditions to meet the Asean tourism standard,” Tourism Development Department deputy director general Mrs Phonmaly Inthaphome told the gathering. “This is also to improve our tourism facilitation and services to meet the global standard and be able to proceed along with other countries.” The participants, including authorities from Champasak, learned about conditions, indicators and processes for the clean tourist city standard. They will work on these issues and frame an action plan to prepare for achieving the standard by 2020, she said. “Earlier this year, the award of the first clean tourist city standard to Luang Prabang is significant for endorsing the quality of our tourism in the eyes of domestic and international tourists.” The Project Director for RELATED under Lao-German Development Cooperation (GIZ), Dr Hartmut Janus, said Luang Prabang was the first Lao municipality to fulfil the requirements of the Asean Clean Tourist City standard, announced during the Asean Tourism Forum held at Chiang Mai in Thailand in January. “The Luang Prabang – Handle with Care Project, co-financed by the EU in the context of the EU SWITCH Asia II programme, and implemented by GIZ, substantially contributed to this great success. “We are delighted that two stakeholders from Luang Prabang have joined us during this workshop to share with us their experiences on an increased provision and consumption of sustainable tourism products to preserve Luang Prabang as (it is) a fragile destination,” Dr Janus said. The task of achieving a second Asean Clean Tourist City in Champasak is challenging, he noted. The standard contains seven main indicators, 28 sub-indicators and more than 100 standards. It can only be achieved if all stakeholders across Laos and in Champassak province work closely together, he said. Cooperation between public and private sectors, and between different departments within the public sector, is a crucial factor to attain the Asean Clean Tourist City standard. It is important to involve all relevant sectors and stakeholders from the beginning, to raise their awareness, to create ownership and to elaborate upon an action plan for overall progress, he said. Source: Vientiane Times
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Lao Tourism Eyes Coffee
More than 40 representatives from the state tourism sector, international organisations and tour operators attended a workshop on coffee-related tourism product development in Champasak Province. The workshop was organised by the Tourism Development Department under the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, and supported by Related, GIZ. “This is the first workshop that is being participated in by the tourism sectors of state, private and international organisations to discuss and exchange ideas to create plans for priority activities to improve tourism products,” Deputy Director General of the Tourism Development Department, Phonmaly Inthaphome, said. “The tourism products firstly have to incorporate tourists’ needs and the tourism products that we already have. The development of coffee-related tourism products on Bolaven plateau covers the three provinces of Champasak, Sekong and Salavan.” She said daily tourism programmes on the plateau ranged from a half-day to three or four days, adding that programmes will also benefit the three provinces. Workshop participants will continue to discuss and determine the direction of advertising to widely access markets. Director of the Related, Dr Hartmut Jamus, told the workshop, “There are many stakeholders together here, and I would like to encourage you to use this opportunity to exchange views with other stakeholders on the development of coffee-related tourism products and to learn from stakeholders what the clients or travel agents want.” Dr Jamus added, “The representatives of the tourism sector should learn which coffee-related tourism products already exist, and talk with representatives of the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism to see how we can cooperate in order to develop coffee-related tourism products on the plateau in the next two years.” The development of coffee-related tourism products would benefit both the coffee and tourism sectors, he said. They will help coffee stakeholders to generate additional income and to stabilise their income. “We have Laos-Germany cooperation projects in the south of Laos, and many German people love drinking coffee, but a lot of them don’t know how the coffee gets to the cup, and that they can learn about the process of making coffee or who the people are behind this process,” said Dr Jamus. “So they are willing to learn about the process of making coffee during their stay in Laos.” A day before the workshop, the participants visited a coffee plantation on Bolaven plateau in Paksong District of Champasak province for a study tour. Source: Asia News Network
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Pullman Luang Prabang and Friends Without A Border Hosts Half Marathon Gala Dinner
The second annual Run for Children: Luang Prabang Half Marathon Gala Dinner will be held at Pullman Luang Prabang on 19 October 2018. The gala dinner is a fundraising event consisting of a formal sit-down dinner, live and silent auctions and musical performances. All of the proceeds will go to providing free, high quality and compassionate healthcare for the children of Laos. The Gala Dinner is held in conjunction with the Half Marathon taking place in Luang Prabang on 21 October 2018. Runners will weave through golden temples and past the serene banks of the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers. The number of runners has been increasing each year and this year, over 1,600 runners from all over the world are expected to participate in Luang Prabang. In attendance will be Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice of York, granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II of England. Her Royal Highness is a philanthropist and a big supporter of charities related to children’s welfare and education. She is also an avid runner and was the first in the Royal Family to complete a marathon, running with friends to raise money for charities. The Half Marathon and Gala Dinner are organized by the non-profit organization, Friends Without A Border (FWAB), which has established the Lao Friends Hospital for Children (LFHC) in Luang Prabang three years ago. Since opening in 2015, LFHC has treated more than 48,000 cases and 30,000 children. “We are so excited to be partnering with the beautiful new 5-star Pullman Hotel for our biggest event of the year, the Lao Friends Hospital for Children’s second annual gala”, said Nicole Pagourgis, Executive Director of FWAB. Pullman Luang Prabang features 123 guest rooms, suites, and a two-bedroom villa scattered amongst infinity pools, watercourses and tumbling streams. The resort is also home to Luang Prabang’s largest conference centre that boasts floor to ceiling glass windows with natural light and features state-of-the art meetings and events facilities that can cater up to 300 guests. Its outdoor patio is perfect for alfresco events and pre-dinner cocktail functions. The Gala Dinner will be held at the Pullman Luang Prabang’s Nam Khong Ballroom and pre-dinner cocktails will be served in the outdoor patio. In addition to the Gala Dinner, special events surrounding the Half Marathon will also be held at Pullman Luang Prabang including a BBQ party on 20 October 2018, and Sunday Brunch on 21 October 2018, right after the half marathon. A portion of the proceeds will also go to LFHC and Friends Without A Border. “In line with AccorHotels’ Planet 21 initiatives, Pullman Luang Prabang is committed to supporting the local community especially the Lao Friends Hospital for Children in creating a sustainable and positive impact to the health of Lao children”, said Jean Marc LaFosse, General Manager of Pullman Luang Prabang. Pullman Luang Prabang is the first Pullman to open its doors in Laos. The 16-hectare resort opened in July 2018 and overlooks a lush greenery with a backdrop of beautiful mountain views and paddy fields along meandering streams and ponds in the rustic countryside. For more information on Pullman Luang Prabang’s Marathon room package and activities, please visit www.pullman-luangprabang.com/special-offers/, email H9112@accor.com, or contact +856 71211 112 for general enquiries or reservations.
