Young hotshot tries his hand at resort
Komkrit Chantaravisoot poses in the front of the backdrop of his newly opened luxury Santhiya Resort and Spa on Pha-gnan Island.
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Young executive Komkrit Chantaravisoot has been tapped by his family to run its new Bt500-million luxury resort on Koh Pha-ngan in Surat Thani province in addition to his current charge of running a business that builds knock-down teak homes.
Komkrit plans to officially launch the new Santhiya Resort and Spa on December 17 following a soft launch last month. Komkrit, only in his mid-twenties, is managing director of Santhiya Koh Pha-ngan Resort and Spa Co Ltd, which operates the resort, in addition to the same post at CVS Thai Modern Home. Komkrit's family, which is building the new resort, also owns another resort on Koh Pha-ngan as well as one on nearby Koh Chang. It is also in the midst of building a hotel in Chiang Mai. His family is letting him prove his mettle by running the show at Shantiya Koh Pha-ngan Resort. Santhiya Resort & Spa occupies 43 rai and features traditional Thai styles villas built from teakwood from CVS Thai's factory. The resort has 140 rooms and villas. Room rates per night range from Bt4,800 to Bt25,700. The resort is currently operating only 58 rooms and will for another 18 months until the rest of the resort is built out. "We expect Santhiya to become a renowned attraction for high-end tourists on Pha-ngan Island, which is still more serene place than Samui Island," said Komkrit. He said the main resort guests were currently drop-in travellers. There are no guests from tour agencies because of the difficulty in getting to the island this time of year. Travellers can choose either to pay approximately Bt8,000 for a round-trip Bangkok-Samui air ticket, which includes a speed-boat journey from Samui to Pha-ngan. Or they can choose to pay less for a round-trip Bangkok-Surat Thani flight with a ferry ride from Surat Thani to Samui and a speed boat to Pha-ngan. Guests also have to travel on unpaved roads from the speed-boat pier to the resort. Despite the difficult journey, Komkrit said he was confident that both the island and his resort had a bright future as a luxury destination and that he would provide direct speedboat service to the resort within the next few months. He said visitors would be impressed by the natural scenery of the island and the resort. Komkrit said Samui used to be a place for backpackers and that it would take about five years to make its name as a luxury destination. He said the resort would spend Bt4 million on marketing this year, most of which would be used to attend travel trade fairs in Thailand and abroad as well as arranging its own marketing activities. The company plans to link with travel websites and travel agents to get in front of prospective customers. It also plans to offer a one-day trip with a spa package at the resort for travellers on Samui Island. At the same time, the resort will apply for membership in the international Small Luxury Hotel Owners of the World network. Komkrit said that the resort had an occupancy rate of 60 per cent. Komkrit predicted that 90 per cent of the resort's customers would be foreigners, with the rest local travellers, the majority of which will be honeymoon couples. Around 80 per cent of foreigners are expected to be European, while the rest will be Asian. The resort expects revenue of Bt25 million this year.
Nitida Asawanipont The Nation Pha-ngan, Surat Thani
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