Outstanding Thai boutique hotels conferred special awards

BANGKOK - A total of 25 outstanding Thai boutique hotels were presented with awards at a glittering ceremony presided over by the Minister of Tourism and Sports, Mrs. Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul.

Jointly organised this year by Krungthai Card Public Co., Ltd. (KTC), Bangkok Airways, Thai Rent A Car and TripAdvisor, the awards are designed to reward the quality and standard of SME boutique hotels, and help them become more widely known both within Thailand and abroad. Other partners were Travel Channel Thailand, PPTV and 23 Perspectives.

This year’s theme was ‘Think Green’ for which the main deciding criteria was participating hotels’ efforts in preserving the environment while maintaining service excellence.

Congratulating the winners, Tourism Authority of Thailand Governor Thawatchai Arunyik said, “In recent years, Thailand has seen a huge growth in these exclusive boutique properties offering privacy, luxury and relaxation. These awards are an excellent way to reward their efforts and boost their business in an era of intense competition.”

Applications were open from November 2013 to February 2014, from hotels ranging in size from 3-79 rooms; showing superior design and unique, innovative ideas, and being environmentally friendly (Think Green). The four location categories were 1) Seaside, 2) Mountain and Forest, 3) River and Lake, and 4) City.

This is the third year in which the awards have been organised. There was a two-year break since the last awards in order to allow more time for applying hotels to improve their products, landscaping, design and service standards before the inspection process.

This year’s first-time involvement of TripAdvisor has given it fresh impetus by linking the use of online media to achieve rapid and sustainable growth at lower cost.

The following is a full list of the Thailand Boutique Awards Season III 2014-15 award winners:

Outstanding Product Awards
Hmong Hilltribe – Community Award
Phunacome Resort – Green Award
The Library Hotel – Innovative Award

City
Blu Monkey Hostel – Basic Design City Hotel
I u Dua On The River – Luxury Design City Hotel
Tamarind Village Chiang Mai – Luxury Design City Hotel
Baan Noppawong – Basic Thematic City Hotel
Ping Nakara Boutique Hotel and Spa – Luxury Thematic City Hotel

River & Lake
Villa Moreeda – Basic Design River Hotel
Sala Rattanakosin – Luxury Design River Hotel
500 Rai Floating Resort – Basic Nature River Hotel
The Float House River Kwai – Luxury Nature River Hotel
Marndadee Heritage River Hotel – Basic Thematic River Hotel
Praya Palazzo – Luxury Thematic River Hotel

Mountain & Forest
HOTEL des ARTISTS Khaoyai – Basic Design Mountain Hotel
Sala Khaoyai – Luxury Design Mountain Hotel
Rai Saeng Arun – Basic Nature Mountain Hotel
Ramrimna – Luxury Nature Mountain Hotel
Lanjia Lodge – Basic Thematic Mountain Hotel

Seaside
Baan Ploy Sea – Basic Design Seaside Hotel
Paresa Resort – Luxury Design Seaside Hotel
Chongfah Resort – Basic Nature Seaside Hotel
Paradee – Luxury Nature Seaside Hotel
Paree Hut Resort – Basic Thematic Seaside Hotel
Devasom Hua Hin – Luxury Thematic Seaside Hotel

sourced:traveldailynews.asia