It’s that time of year again (No, not Christmas, silly); the time when many hotels and resorts fire up their off-season price list. It’s absolutely incredible what some of the hotels and resorts… resort to… to get people to stay during the off-season. Just recently a popular newspaper did something a little unorthodox to try and save people money. They posted some late summer vacation destination bargains. That in and of itself is not the unorthodox part. The unorthodox question arises because they named the discount travel company that you can book through for these deals.

It read like an article, not an advertisement; even though that’s exactly what it was. Regardless of whether or not the whole thing was kosher is neither here nor there; the point of the matter is that you can now save big on big name beach resorts and hotels. At this late stage of the game I’m finally starting to realize why my family always took vacations right before school started again, or actually pulled me out of school for a few days shortly after school began again.

The savings in the offseason are available in most of the online travel sites as well, such as Expedia, travelocity, and Orbitz. The benefits of these travel sites is that they also offer coupons to go along with the discount. A travelocity promo code may give you $50-$100 off a vacation trip. An orbitz coupon can also save you significantly as well.

The savings are pretty incredible, I will admit. Here is a list of the daily discounted charges and destinations that were published recently in the paper in question (most ‘expensive’ to least):

• The Bahamas $151: Free or almost free things to do; visit the beach… any one of them… Such as Cabbage Beach-most popular shoreline beach or Cable Beach, visit the historical landmark Gregory Arch, stop in at Junkanoo for the biggest Christmas (Boxing Day) and New Year’s celebration of your life, tour the stunningly beautiful Versailles Gardens, climb the 65 step Queen’s Staircase or take in the flamingo pink colored buildings in Parliament Square.
• San Juan Puerto Rico $140: Free or just about free; how about a quick nine holes at Punta Borinquen Golf Course, tour Río Camuy Cave Park, see the four lighthouses in El Morro, El Portal tropical forest center, walk through the lush, tropical foliage of Jardin Bota’nico or the Butterfly Art Garden and for the kids Playa del Dorado.
• Myrtle Beach South Carolina $133: More or less free; there are endless parks and playgrounds, the Alligator Adventure Walk is fun, check out the South Carolina Hall of Fame, walk through the The Horry County Museum or the Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum, and of course there’s always the oceanfront Boardwalk and even a beach or two.
• Saint Lucia $131: Free or pretty much free; enjoy Reduit Beach, Marigot Bay (popular Hollywood shoot area), and local vendors’ Castries Market (well, at least it’s free to look).
• Bonaire $129: Free or just about; go snorkeling in the crystal clear waters off the beach, visit their National Park, stop in at the Artesian Market’s Donkey Sanctuary or check out the Butterfly Farm.
• Daytona Beach Florida $113: Free or practically free; taste your way through the Angell and Phelps Chocolate Factory Tour, enjoy the Atlantic Center for the Arts, listen to band shell concerts or take in the South East Museum of Photography.
• Panama City Beach Florida $105: Pretty nearly free; you can always find someone who will be interested in a game of beach volleyball, football or Frisbees, participating in the Strawberry Festival in February (very off-season), goal snorkeling, enjoy the annual Jazz Festival, Emerald Coast Cruizin’ (a classic cars event), and rises and sunsets.
• Fort Lauderdale Florida $104: Free or thereabouts; the walk through the Anne Kolb Nature Center, spend a day on the Hollywood Oceanfront Boardwalk or Riverwalk, catch up on your African American history and traditions at the Old Dillard Museum, or stop in at the Fort Lauderdale Swap Shop on Sunrise Boulevard with its 14 screen drive in theater.
• Clearwater Beach Florida $100: Free or inexpensive; go Phantom Sportfishing, see Caladesi State Park or Caesars at the Beach, be fascinated by the Clearwater Marine Aquarium and for the kids McKay Park Playground Clearwater Beach and if you dare take a ride on the world’s largest speedboat (The Sea Screamer).
• Wilmington North Carolina $87.00: Virtually free; (this place is a history buff’s dream come true) take in all of history’s Moores Creek National Battlefield, God’s Acre, Lewis Wells Cameron Art Museum, Fort Fisher State Historic Site and Brunswick Town State Historic Site.

So take advantage of these bargains on sites like Travelocity or Orbitz, if you don’t think these are bargains, try checking out the peak season prices. Surprise!

More and more westerners are making Thailand their home. We all bring with us our own set of core values deeply rooted from our upbringings and the societies from which we come. They are the rules by which we live our lives; the principles and moral guidelines that govern our actions and decision making process. We do not all have the same set of values but whatever values we hold, the likelihood is they are different to those held in Thailand.

Many ex-pats in Thailand are the breadwinners for their families, own their own businesses or are employed in management positions. We therefore often find ourselves in a position of authority or influence over Thai people. This leads us to a dilemma. To what extent should we enforce our own set of western values onto the Thai people over whom we have influence?

I greatly respect and enjoy Thai culture. I happily embrace many of the values of my new homeland. However, I also have my own set of values and I cannot leave them all behind just because I am now in Thailand. Many of them are too deeply entrenched in my psyche. Enforcing my set of western values into my life inevitably means also forcing them into my wife’s life. My wife is Thai and does not always believe in the same things I do.

A good example of westerners and Thais holding contrasting values is the subject of road safety. Most Thais do not believe in wearing crash helmets or seatbelts. They usually do wear them but they do so to avoid a police fine rather than for the sake of safety. Westerners generally accept that safety precautions are a good idea. We may not like our governments enforcing them on us by law but still we believe in the principle of taking safety precautions.

It is easy to understand the reasons for this difference in outlook. Thais are fatalistic. It is part of their Buddhist religion. They believe that what will be, will be. If something is going to happen then it will happen and there is little you can do about it. In the west, we believe in controlling our own destinies. We believe our actions have implications that will affect future actions.

So we have a possible cause of contention. I know some ex-pat westerners who will not start their car until all their passengers have put on their seatbelts. I know others who will not take pillion passengers on their motorbike unless they wear a helmet. These are not only commonly held western safety principles but also laws of Thailand. But still these westerners are forcing their values on Thais who do not hold the same values. We are coming to their country and forcing them to act like us. Is this right?

I have no doubt that our western outlook is the right one on this subject. I am sure most accidents are avoidable and if not you can at least take safety precautions to reduce their impact. However, that is not the point. It is not a question of who is right or wrong but whether it is right to force western values on people in our host nation who do not believe in them. One of my moral beliefs is that it is wrong to force my beliefs on other people. So I take the attitude that if people want to ride in my car or on my motorbike without taking safety precautions then it is their choice.

But what if you are responsible for that person’s safety? What if that person is a child?

When we had our first child I assumed we would buy a baby seat for the car. It is what we would do in the west. My wife was surprised when I suggested we go shopping for such an item. Why would we want to strap our baby into the back of the car? She would hold the baby while I drove.

I still believed a baby seat was a good idea so we went shopping. Of course, you will not find baby seats in most Thai shops. They are something most Thais would not think of buying. We went to look at the selection in Robinsons Department Store. They were expensive and they all needed rear seatbelts to attach them. Our car does not even have rear seatbelts so as well as buying the baby seat we would also have to get the car modified. At this point I accepted we would not buy one.

I still believed we needed one but it was just proving too hard working against the Thai belief that we didn’t. Even the sales girls agreed it wasn’t necessary.

There are many ways that westerners settling in Thailand bring parts of their home country’s lifestyle with them. In Phuket we can get western style houses, furniture, kitchens, appliances and satellite TV. I love Thai food and in our household we eat Thai food most of the time but still sometimes I want to eat western food. That will never be a problem in Phuket.

There is nothing wrong with building your own little piece of home in your new country if that is what you want. The problem is when your home values start invading the lives of Thai people who do not want them.

Western culture is very invasive. We see western fast food outlets popping up all over Thailand. High profile advertising campaigns make them seem trendy and exciting ignoring the fact that the food is not as good or nutritious as the local fare. The result is lots of little fat Thai children. New 7-eleven convenience stores are popping up in every neighbourhood while the local Thai grocery stores close. The Christian religion has a history of vigorously promoting itself in non-Christian countries. The United States has a policy of promoting ‘the American way’ across the globe.

We seem to have an ingrained belief in our own rightness. We do not easily accept other nation’s cultures or values. We expect them to change to be more like us. It is an issue about which we need to be careful when living in another culture. We do not need to lose our own identities and values but we do need to find a way to integrate them into our lives without smothering the local culture or offending local people.

The author has lived in Phuket, Thailand for seven years. If you want to read more about the colourful island of Phuket then visit Know Phuket where you will find more articles and visitor information.

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Over one million tourists a year visit the Thai province of Nakhon Nayok. Remarkably, 95% of them are Thai.


If you ask westerners to name tourist destinations in Thailand, most would list the famous beach resorts such as Pattaya, Phuket and Koh Samui. Some might even mention the cities of Bangkok and Chiang Mai. Those that really know the country may mention places like Kanchanaburi, Pai, The Golden Triangle and the smaller islands and beaches. Absolutely nobody would mention Nakhon Nayok.


Yet this small Thai province, only 100km east of Bangkok, is one of the most visited destinations in Thailand. The area is renowned for its waterfalls, rivers and forest.


It sits at the foothills of Khao Yai National Park, which is one of the finest natural attractions in Thailand. The cool mountain water that flows out of this park feeds the rivers and waterfalls of Nakhon Nayok.


Every weekend, thousands of Thais flee the heat of the city to play in the refreshing water of Nakhon Nayok’s famous waterfalls such as Sarika and Nang Rong.


Others picnic by the stream, under the towering trees of Wang Takhrai Botanical Gardens.


However, it is the latest attraction that has really seen tourism in the area boom.


The completion of the Khlong Tha Dan Dam in 2005 has been a huge boost to Nakhon Nayok’s tourist trade. The dam is the biggest in Thailand and the biggest of its type in the world. It is an imposing structure and an attraction to tourists in itself. Its biggest benefit is that Nakon Nayok River now has water all year round. Nakhon Nayok’s tourist trade had always been seasonal, relying on the rainy season as the waterfalls dry up to a trickle during the dry season. The construction of the Klong Tha Dan Dam means they can now release water into Nakhon Nayok River all year round.


Other attractions in Nakhon Nayok include rafting or kayaking down Nakhon Nayok River. There is also trekking around the forested foothills of Khao Yai National Park or even 3-day treks right into the heart of the park. Nakhon Nayok has plenty to offer for those looking for soft adventure sports.


Thai tourists have enjoyed visiting this area for a long time. Surely, it is only a matter of time before western visitors start to discover the charms of Nakhon Nayok.


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