THE 5 FINALIST TEAMS  |
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The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) launched The Ultimate Thailand Explorer campaign on 1 September 2009 inviting travellers from around the world to send in video clips to win a chance to travel in Thailand.
Five teams from across the globe were offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: 6 expenses-paid days exploring the sights and attractions in five of Thailand’s world famous holiday destinations: Bangkok, Phuket, Pattaya, Chiang Mai, and Koh Samui.
The campaign attracted 365 teams from 59 countries. After a preliminary selection, only 25 teams remained. Internet users from all over the world were then invited to vote for their favourites. This led to the selection of 5 final teams who will compete for the winning title by completing the esteemed mission of promoting Thailand to the world through online media.
The finalist team for each of the destinations are FlyPhuket for Phuket, AubParkThailand for Chiang Mai, Sabai Sabai for Bangkok, Team B2 for Pattaya and Love Samui for Koh Samui.
Each day, the finalist teams will visit the many fantastic attractions and activities at their chosen destinations and then share their experiences with the online community by uploading videos, photos, and stories on various websites including, youtube, facebook, twitter, and blogs.
Online voting for the team that produces the most exciting and informative videos about the attractions and activities in their destination will determine who are the Ultimate Thailand Explorers. Participating teams and registered voters are eligible for more than $25,000 in cash, travel awards, and other fantastic prizes.
By sending the teams to these top destinations and allowing real travellers to showcase the exciting attractions and activities to the rest of the world, The Ultimate Thailand Explorer campaign, an exciting concept in integrated online travel marketing, aims to ensure other travellers that Thailand is still a premier tourist destination and inspire them to visit Thailand and experience it all for themselves.
Team members arrived in Thailand on 8th December and attended a meeting with TAT about the mission they will undertake from the 10th – 17th December. On the 9th December, TAT hosted an Welcome Party at the Amari Watergate Hotel to officially introduce all competing teams to the media and also to allow all team members to meet with tourism entrepreneurs that have sponsored the campaign.
For more about The Ultimate Thailand Explorer Finalists, please click here. |
TEAM PHUKET
Name: FlyPhuket
Country: France and Poland |
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TEAM CHIANG MAI
Name: AubParkThailand
Country: United States of America (USA) |
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TEAM BANGKOK
Name: Sabai Sabai
Country: United Stated of America (USA) |
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TEAM PATTAYA
Name: B2
Country: United Stated of America (USA) |
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TEAM KOH SAMUI
Name: Love Samui
Country: The Philippines
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Mr Suraphon Svetasreni, Deputy Governor Marketing Communications, said, “TAT received an overwhelming response for this online PR project. Within a period of 6 weeks, travellers from 59 countries expressed interest in the campaign and a total of 356 teams participated by sending in their video clips. The campaign received more than 17 million views and as much as 70,334 votes were casted. Most importantly, our PR campaign gained the highest share of voice in these past 2 months as evident from the 79,500 clips found in the media all over the world.
"The battle for the first Ultimate Thailand Explorers kicked off in early December and this will definitely be the highlight of the campaign as we will be able to follow and cheer for these final contestants on their missions through each team’s personal Webblog. The team that can best promote Thailand and receive the highest number of votes will be crowned winner. Through these online efforts, teams will be able to promote Thailand to the rest of the world; as well as to inspire and show fresh perspectives to travellers worldwide. This is also the main objective of our campaign.”
The main purpose of the campaign is to enhance the positive perceptions about Thailand, to help regain tourists’ confidence in travelling to Thailand, and to create a more clear and balanced understanding of the conditions in Thailand to the worldwide media, especially through online media, such as bloging and social networking sites that have an impact on tourists’ travel making decisions.
THE ULTIMATE THAILAND EXPLORERS FINALISTS
PHUKET: Team Fly Phuket
Team member
Emilia Plak
Age: 32
From: Warszawa, Poland
Occupation: Emilia is passionate about flying, leading her to found her own paramotor and paragliding school in Warsaw, Poland to teach people how to fly. She often travels with people to fly and to meet friends. Winter is the perfect season to travel with paramotors, when European countries are cold and snowy, so Emilia searches for sunny and beautiful landscapes to take pictures and videos during this time. Her love of meeting new people and experiencing local cultures led her to get involved with an orphanage association of Tibetan refugees children in India and this past year, Emilia finished 4th overall in the Paramotor World Championships.
Mathieu Rouanet
Age: 32
From: Le rouret, France
Occupation: Mathieu specializes in flying light aircraft and has made a career of it. His occupation includes paragliding, paramotoring, hot air ballooning, motorized hot air ballooning, and base jumping. In most of these disciplines he’s an instructor and tandem pilot, and is invited to demonstrate his skills at dynamic flight exhibitions worldwide. Mathieu also uses these machines to film his adventures and provide high quality footage for TV shows, documentaries, and institutional films. He is also a major player in the development of paramotor materials as a test pilot. Promotion of the sport is a big part of Mathieu’s occupation and he does so by travelling every winter. Mathieu also enters many international competitions and has captured World, European, and French Championship titles.
About Fly Phuket
Mathieu and Emilia are a couple who met two years ago through the paramotor community. Although they live quite far away from each other (France and Poland), they find many occasions to meet: in competitions and while travelling.
In fact, distance is not a major problem as Mathieu is an adventurer in many ways and loves to travel and meet new people. The planet seems small to him because of his thirst for exploration. Flying makes his life a dream and he gives inspiration to a large public with his lifestyle and adventures. Emilia is a very sporty girl, bringing a very feminine touch to two mostly male dominated sports: paramotoring and motorbiking. She’s not shy, but is curious about everything, and this behavior brings her out of her country often.
Why do Mathieu & Emilia choose to go to Phuket?
Mathieu and Emilia believe that flying is the best way to see the beauty of a landscape, and they believe that Phuket is one of the most beautiful ones in the world. It is very suitable for take off and landing, especially on Phuket’s beaches and nearby islands. Showcasing these treasures of the planet is their goal. Furthermore, Phuket provides a lot of sporting activities that will allow them to explore every corner of the island from many different angles: underwater, on a boat, while hiking, or by quad (motorbikes). They also feel that Thailand’s food is one of the best cuisines in the world and the famous Thai hospitality and friendliness will allow Mathieu and Emilia to experience the culture of the country firsthand.
CHIANG MAI: Team AubPark Thailand
Team member
Aubrey Hang
Age: 24
From: Bangkok, Thailand
Occupation: Aubrey graduated with a BFA in Graphic Design and a BFA in Art Education from Michigan State University. She is currently a nursery teacher at a wonderfully diverse international school in the heart of Bangkok. She also does freelance design: everything from website layout to logos.
Parker Lynch
Age: 26
From: Bangkok, Thailand
Occupation: Parker is an English major from Indiana University who is currently teaching K3 (Kindergarten ages 4-6) at an international school in Bangkok. He plans on getting his Masters degree soon in Screenplay Writing.
About AubParkThailand
Aubrey and Parker are both seasoned world travellers. Both are from Detroit, Michigan, yet they did not meet until they separately moved to Bangkok, Thailand. Aubrey was already living here for 2 months when mutual friends put Parker in touch with her before he moved to Thailand. After a month of exploring the city, Aubrey and Parker found that they were the perfect travel companions and started dating. Aubrey and Parker have now lived in Thailand for over 15 months and have hosted over 20 guests from the States.
Aubrey studied photography and art in Rome, Italy where she lived for four months during university on a study-abroad programme, which sparked her interest in living abroad. Parker backpacked around Europe for two months and became enamored with the adventurous lifestyle of travelling. They are a couple who aren’t afraid to try new things; they love street food as much as they love trying different gourmet restaurants. Their youthful energy and knowledge of Thai culture makes them the perfect team to guide people through beautiful Chiang Mai.
Why did they choose to explore Chiang Mai?
Aubrey and Parker previously visited Chiang Mai together and they loved it. They didn’t have enough time to explore everything they wanted to and they are particularly interested in going to the Chiang Mai Zoo to see the newborn Panda, Lin Ping. Aubrey and Parker would also like to spend a day at the Elephant Nature Park caring for rescued elephants, and would like to go white-water rafting, take a meditation course, experience a northern Thai cooking course, take Muay Thai lessons at Lanna Muay Thai Boxing Camp, mountain bike down Doi Suthep, hike to hill tribe villages, and of course, wind down their adventures with a northern Thai massage.
BANGKOK: Team Sabai Sabai
Team member
Curtis McElhinney
Age: 40
From: Playa del Rey, United States
Occupation: Curtis is a freelance photographer whose work is on display at www.angelsofthecity.com and www.curtisvision.com.
Mark Kates
Age: 40
From: Playa del Rey, United States
Occupation: Mark is an account executive/educator with Jarrow Formulas LLC a manufacturer and distributor of superior wellness and nutritional products.
About Sabai Sabai
Curtis and Mark are neighbours in Playa del Rey, California who became friends while Mark was scoring music for Curtis’s show on Bangkok entitled, “City of Angels. Two Cities-One Name: Bangkok-Los Angeles.”
Mark’s creative spirit spills over into video as well as music, while his sense of adventure has taken him on travels throughout North and South America. Curtis, who lived in Bangkok while photographing the city, desires to portray the loving spirit of the people: the true magic and wealth of Thailand is its people. Curtis and Mark view the Ultimate Thailand Explorers competition as an adventure and they wish to bring this adventure to everyone’s homes and inspire them to travel to Thailand in the future.
Why did Curtis & Mark choose to travel to Bangkok?
Although Curtis knows a bit of Thai (“nitnoy”) and knows his way around Bangkok, the real reason Team Sabai Sabai is the perfect choice for the competition is their combination of creative skills with video, still cameras, music, social media and their desire to showcase the true spirit of Bangkok. For Curtis and Mark, Bangkok is a city comprised of millions of people who live harmoniously with each other more so than any other city of its size. Team Sabai Sabai wishes to show the world a city of love and happiness, thus their team name: Sabai Sabai (“Happy Happy”)
PATTAYA: Team B2
Team member
Benjamin Reed
Age: 27
From: Orlando, United States
Occupation: Benjamin is a corporate trainer for a training and development organization who travels around the United States and the world to deliver customer service and leadership training. Benjamin is also an amateur blogger who shares travel stories and tips on www.adventureswithben.com
Brian Sommer
Age: 29
From: Orlando, United States
Occupation: Brian is a physical therapist for an outpatient clinic in the Orlando, Florida area.
About B2
Benjamin and Brian have been partners for over 6 years. They have a home in Orlando Florida, where they have a pet dog and pet fish. Benjamin and Brian live an ordinary life like many Americans do. They love to travel both abroad and in their home town, where they work hard to seek out local attractions that many Orlando residents miss. Following the credo “there is an amazing world out there for those that choose to seek it”, Benjamin and Brian like to show everyone how fun and easy it can be.
Why did Benjamin and Brian choose Pattaya?
Benjamin and Brian have travelled to Europe and Africa together, but have never been to Asia together. Travelling is important to them because it serves as an opportunity for them to reconnect with each other and experience new cultures. They bring these experiences back home to their friends and family to expand their worldview. Benjamin and Brian specifically chose Pattaya because many Americans are familiar with Bangkok and Phuket, but have never heard of Pattaya. They want to show Americans that Thailand has a lot more to offer than they are aware of. By entering this contest, Benjamin and Brian hope to reach out to many more individuals than they could by simply travelling on their own.
Web site: http://ultimatethailandexplorers.com
KOH SAMUI: Team Love Samui
Team member
Michael Paul Cocuaco
Age: 29
From: Zamboanga City, Philippines
Occupation: Michael is a businessman with a passion for customer service. He owns and personally manages a travel agency called 888 Ticketworld. Started in 2005, 888 Ticketworld is known for Michael’s personal touch– designing customized tour packages for his clients.
Jennifer Caspe
Age: 35
From: Zamboanga City, Philippines
Occupation: Jenny is a freelance magazine and TV writer, photographer, TV producer and video editor. As a storyteller, Jenny has written for numerous local and international magazines, and has received awards for her portrait, news and travel photos. As a TV professional, she has conceptualized subjects and written for a variety of shows.
About Love Samui
Michael and Jenny are longtime friends and online chat-mates who fell in love and got married around one year ago. Since Jenny was stationed in Manila and Michael was in his home province in southern Philippines a big chunk of their courtship was spent online. They communicated via instant messaging and social networking sites, posting pictures and letters to communicate their love for each other. Their love story has been featured twice on Philippine television. Aside from sharing a deep faith, Michael and Jenny both have a penchant for good food, books, spa treatments, travel and adventure.
Why did Michael and Jenny choose Koh Samui?
According to Michael and Jenny, “Travelling to Thailand feels like coming home to the warm embrace of a dear friend.” They had both travelled to Thailand separately in their teens and were enamored by the gentleness and hospitality of the Thai people. Michael and Jenny enjoyed the distinct flavor of the food: breakfast was a meal Jenny looked forward to during her stay because her hotel served a big feast fit for a king. Michael couldn’t get enough of the spicy food and Jenny, the mangosteen. They travelled to Bangkok and Pattaya separately during their first visit to Thailand when they were teenagers and at that time had never even heard of Koh Samui.
A few years ago, Jenny was channel surfing when she chanced upon a cable TV report on Koh Samui. She saw the sandy white beaches, spa resorts and the scenic views and concluded that Koh Samui is Thailand’s well-kept secret. She told herself that they would visit the place one day. While doing research on Koh Samui, Michael and Jenny discovered that Samui has so many natural wonders, man-made adventures and attractions to offer. Since they are both nature enthusiasts, adventurers and animal lovers, they knew it was the place they wanted to visit and promote. |
