160 Chinese Couples to Tie the Knot in Cha-am

A total of 160 couples from China are to tie the knot in the first such joint mass ceremony to be held in the Thai beach resort of Cha-am on Oct 10. The couples are the first batch of 999 couples who have signed up for five-day, four-night packages to get married and enjoy a memorable honeymoon in Thailand. All the ceremonies will be held between now and 2013. The first wedding ceremony and party will be held at the Dusit Thani Hotel, Cha-am. Meticulous attention to detail will see the ceremony merging all the Chinese customs and traditions with some of the popular traditions of Thailand. The full regalia will include the bridal procession, the gift parade, watering conch, the anointing of the forehead, wearing the sacred thread, and wedding photography. The ceremonies will be followed by Thai cultural performances, a group picture of all the couples in front of the hotel’s Royal Dusit Hall, and the wedding reception with families and friends. The following day, the happy couples will depart for their respective honeymoons to various parts of Cha-am, Hua Hin and other locations in Phetchaburi province. To be covered by 15 invited Chinese media, the entire event is being co-ordinated by the Tourism Authority of Thailand East Asia region and the TAT’s five offices in China, along with tour operators and hotels in Hua Hin and Cha-am and nearby attractions. Said TAT Governor Suraphon Svetasreni, “We expect this ceremony to receive wide coverage in the Chinese media and stimulate further interest in the Chinese market about getting married in Thailand. At the same time, it will also help us promote destinations such as Hua Hin and Cha-am which are still relatively unknown in the Chinese market.” Located less than 200 km south of Bangkok, Cha-am is equally popular with young couples and families, both tourists and Thais. It became Thailand's first beach resort after a train line was laid in the 1920s to provide access from Bangkok and King Rama VII established his summer retreat in the area. The royal retreat is open for public viewing. With a 5 kilometer-long beach that features numerous activities, Cha-am and the nearby township of Hua Hin boast some of the country’s best spas and health and wellness retreats. There has been a significant increase in the number of Chinese couples and honeymooners in Thailand as a result of the TAT’s efforts to move beyond the traditional tour groups to more specialised niche markets. Most of the wedding ceremonies are held in Bangkok and the TAT is seeking to promote other destinations such as Cha-am and Hua Hin as well as Pattaya, Phuket, Rayong, and Chiang Mai. Weddings and honeymoons is a very specific niche-market targeted at young couples and workers in the early stages of their careers. With most of the basic costs pre-paid as part of the package, the couples and honeymooners are free to spend their discretionary funds on value-added products and services, such as spa treatment and shopping. Chinese visitors to Thailand totalled 1,721,247 in 2011, up 53.38% over 2010. China is now the largest visitor source-market for Thailand. In January–August 2012 Chinese visitors totalled 1,685,896, up by 35.38% over the same period of 2011. From tatnews