Hong Kong travel agencies consider cancelling Thailand tours in wake of earthquake
Some travel agencies in Hong Kong have considered cancelling tours to Thailand in the coming weeks after its capital was rocked by a 7.7 magnitude earthquake in neighbouring Myanmar, while at least two Bangkok-bound flights operated by Cathay Pacific were diverted back to the departing locations.
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The Travel Industry Council, a federation of local trade associations, said there were about six Hong Kong tour groups, involving fewer than 100 people, travelling in Thailand during the quake on Friday, all of whom have been reported safe.
'All of them are safe,' said the council's executive director Fanny Yeung Shuk-fan. 'We have not received any request for assistance from tour groups or travellers. We have not received any reports about tourists getting injured or trapped.'
Worldwide Package Travel Service, or WWPKG, however was considering cancelling all tours to Bangkok in April. It has no tour group in Thailand at the moment.
Yuen Chun-ning, WWPKG's chief executive officer, said: 'We will have some tours to Bangkok during the Easter holidays. We will be keeping an eye on the situation there. If the attractions or tourist destinations suffer damages so that they are not suitable for tourists to go, we may consider cancelling the tours.'
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The strong earthquake hit central Myanmar around midday on Friday. Tremors were also felt through northern Thailand and down to the capital Bangkok, where residents ran into the streets as buildings shook.
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