Tour-operator giant NS Tour plans three more hotels and an entry into river cruises, a bus-rental service and a museum business, splurging more than Bt1 billion on the projects.

Managing director Suparerk Soorangura said the hotels would be in Bangkok and the provinces.

Its first hotel project will be in Mae Hong Son's Pai district, an existing property being redeveloped as a natural resort with a hot spring.

Then it will buy an old apartment in Bangkok and start a boutique hotel called the Hotel de Bangkok.

A similar enterprise is planned for the island of Koh Yao, which is in Phang Nga province.

"On the three hotels I plan to spend at least Bt1 billion," said Suparerk.

NS Tour currently operates seven hotels in the country, in Trat, Lampang, Hua Hin, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Kanchanaburi.

Suparerk is a former president of the Association of Thai Travel Agents and one of the key persons in Thailand's tourism industry.

Suparerk has been running his travel agency for more than 26 years.

He spoke of exploring other potential business opportunities, including one in adventure-related activities.

He is considering starting with the cruise business, by investing in the luxurious Inland Cruise Ship on the River Kwai in Kanchanaburi, which has 10 cabins meant primarily for foreign tourists.

NS will open a Thai-Burmese museum, in which it has invested Bt10 million, in Kanchanaburi, near World War II cemeteries and the bridge over the River Kwai.

The company also owns more than 70 buses and 80 vans.

"I've long been a travel agent, and now I want to become an investor," he added.

NS Tour is billing itself as a new one-stop venture capable of the full range of services from hotels to transportation, river rafting and museum visits.

Suchat Sritama

The Nation