THE FLAVOURS AND FRAGRANCES OF CENTRAL THAILAND: A CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND MARKET ACCESS PARTNERSHIPS PROJECT (CSR-MAP) PILOT ROUTE

AWARDS WON
BY THAILAND

THAILAND’S UNIQUE
ROYAL PROJECTS
By Imtiaz Muqbil,
Executive Editor Travel Impact Newswire

ARTS OF THE KINGDOM V
A Magnificent Exhibition of Rare Traditional Thai Crafts
By Sirikit Institute at Chitralada Villa
At the Ananta Samakom Throne Hall, Dusit Palace

THAI GOLDSMITH GALLERY
2nd floor of the SUPPORT Arts and Crafts International Centre (SACICT)
Bang Sai district,
Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province
Open from Monday – Friday, 10.00 - 17.00 hrs.
Free admission

RATTANAKOSIN EXHIBITION HALL
Experience the Best of Bangkok in a Day

GREEN LEAF
Environmentally-friendly

THE SMOKE-FREE HOTEL PROGRAMME

THAI HOTEL STANDARD
STAR RATING

MAE FAH LUANG ART AND CULTURAL PARK

THE HALL OF OPIUM/
GOLDEN TRIANGLE PARK

I-SAN HOTEL ASSOCIATION

THE FLAVOURS AND FRAGRANCES OF CENTRAL THAILAND:
A CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND MARKET ACCESS PARTNERSHIPS PROJECT (CSR-MAP) PILOT ROUTE

SERVICE AND SUSTAINABILITY ROUTE HIGHLIGHTS IN CENTRAL THAILAND
Pilot Route:
Amphawa / Samut Songkhram – Phetchaburi – Nakhon Nayok
The sustainability of the route lies in its essences of cultural heritage and the preservation of traditional Thai life, supporting communities’ natural resource management, art, wisdom, architecture, agriculture, gastronomy and wellness.

Day 1: Amphawa / Samut Songkhram
06:00	Breakfast at the Radisson hotel’s restaurant
07:00	Leave the hotel and proceed to Samut Songkhram
08:30	On arrival at Samut Songkhram, we will visit Mae Klong Market. Local trains run through 8 times daily. As the train approaches the station, many vendors hastily raise their awnings, fold up their umbrellas and pull their stalls away. The hidden railway tracks suddenly appear. After the train has passed, everything is set in their previous position. The name of the market “ Talad Romhup ” is derived from the vendors closing their umbrellas.
09:00	We travel on to coconut plantations to see how villagers produce traditional coconut sugar which is a main ingredient for Thai desserts and a natural condiment in authentic Thai cooking. We see the whole process of natural sugar production, from climbing up a coconut tree to retrieve its nectar, collecting sugar in bamboo containers hung overnight, stirring in a large black iron pan over a wood fire until ready. You can taste a favorite local Thai dessert made from fresh coconut milk and coconut sugar.
10:00	Next, we visit Wat Phummarin Kudi Thong, located on the bank of Mae Klong River. The remarkable attraction is the Kudee Thong (Golden Hermitage) built by the father of Khun Nak, Queen of King Rama I, the founder of present Chakri Dynasty. She was the Mother of King Rama II, the great patron of arts and culture which have become national heritage.
10:30	We hop on board a boat to see agricultural villages along the Mae Klong River, passing various kinds of tropical fruit orchards - coconut groves, pomelo and lychees, and ancient style Thai houses rarely seen nowadays in the communities of Amphawa and Bang Noi. Many riverside communities become crowded floating markets during the weekends. Our trip ends in Bang Noi where you can walk around and see traditional lifestyle.
11:30	Our next stop is the Community of Bang Phlap, well- known for its sweet, organic pomelo orchards. This community is a popular place to learn about local wisdom of chemical free agriculture, how to transform unused parts of fruits or plants into charcoals and wood smoke vinegar, conventional ways of fruit and vegetable preservation as well as the community’s profit sharing system which raises funds for their children’s education.
11:45	We visit pomelo orchards where guests can learn how to plant organic pomelos and produce organic fertilizer. A local, authentic Thai lunch will be served at the community. After lunch, we will learn how the villagers preserve fruits and how they produce a variety of interesting products.
13:30	Proceed by van to the Amphawa riverside community.
14:00	Next, we visit Baan Khanom Thai community (literally the sweets village) where guests will see demonstration of how to make traditional Thai desserts using methods specified in the poetry composed by King Rama II
15:00	Proceed to Baan Amphawa Resort and Spa, a Green Leaf Hotel in Samut Songkhram which is approximately 2 hours' drive from Bangkok. Baan Amphawa Resort and Spa is a Thai style house resort in the midst of lush green orchards and coconut plantations, by the riverside of Mae Klong River. Overnight at Baan Amphawa Resort and Spa.

Day 2:
Samut Songkhram – Phetchaburi

06:30

We offer alms to Buddhist monks at the resort’s pier.
Breakfast at the resort’s restaurant

08:00

By van, we start our journey along the “Salt Road” to visit the Salt Learning Centre and learn about traditional methods of producing salt from sea water. The Centre is one of six universities of local wisdom and knowledge, which exist to support the transmission of cultural heritage to the next generation, especially local Thai children who lack opportunities.

09:00

Proceeding along the Salt Road, we see lots of salt farming, local food stalls, dried fish and strange multi-storey buildings which are homes for thousands of swiftlets whose nests are made of solidified saliva and are the basic ingredients of "Bird’s nest soup” a very expensive Chinese dish.

A few short stops will be made at

	a cottage factory of handbags made from freshwater fish skin
	Swiftlets’ condominium
	Wat Nai Klang where you will see a beautiful Thai style house dismantled from the old capital city and assembled here by the command of King Taksin the Great in order to thank to the people of Ban Laem who looked after his Royal Mother during the war.