By most standards the most recent high sea son was a good one for the tourist industry in Krabi. This was a relief for those who suffered through the tsunami and a couple of lackluster years.

The 2007-2008 season, at this early stage, promises to be another strong one.

Barring any major disasters, man-made or otherwise, the number of tourists should continue to expand in number and in countries of origin.

The Department of Civil Aviation, which operates Krabi International Airport, recently released statistics for April 2006 showing a 72.6% increase in the number of passengers from April 2007.

Talking to tour agents and hoteliers, the common theme is “not enough rooms”. What a change from 2005! The talk about town is also that the number of direct flights from international destinations will expand from three – currently Singapore, Stockholm and Oslo fly direct – to 10.

The additional seven cities are rumored to include Seoul, Taipei, Hong Kong and Frankfurt. As no contract details have been released, no confirmation can yet be made, however.

However a “Welcome to Krabi” sign in Korean and some Koreans recently looking for real estate might lend credence to Seoul as a new source of customers.

The opening of the 276-room Sofitel in Klong Muang and the palatial Krabi Success Resort, along with expansions at several existing properties, are helping to solve the possible room shortage.

A number of villa projects are on line or just completed to help satiate the demand for larger family-type accommodations required by many visitors from northern Europe.

A lot can happen between June and the beginning of high season in November, but it is clear that the demand for rooms is strong, even at this early stage. So lets hope for clear sailing until next high season.

Power to the islands: Since the announcement of the installation of underground power lines that will supply electricity to Koh Sriboya, Koh Jum and Koh Phi Phi, there has been an increase in investor interest in some of the lesser-developed areas.

Koh Sriboya and Koh Jum have been sleepy islands with little habitation outside of sea gypsy villages and fishing communities.

A recent tour of the islands confirms that interest has been piqued there, but to the outsider it still looks very much like an untouched, prisitne paradise.

In fact, one senior government official from Phuket remarked, “There’s nothing like this left in Phuket.”

The west coast of Koh Jum is seeing some low-density bungalow colonies and small resorts under construction.

There is also the occasional villa protruding from a hillside, some with fabulous sea views and backdrops of the islands and karsts the area is famous for.

Otherwise the area seems mostly untouched, with no tourists in sight.

There are rumors, however, that some of the bigger hotel groups have started to look at the area, so what will we find five years from now? Hard to predict, but my guess is it won’t be an undeveloped paradise for long.

We received an email from some concerned residents on Railey Beach saying that the coral in front of Tonsai Beach had been dynamited, supposedly to make the beach accessible to boats at low tide.

Inquiries were made to many locals in the area, but no one seems to have any concrete information – or maybe they just weren’t talking.

If anyone has any substantiated proof or details, I would like to hear about it. My email is ltr@loxinfo.co.th