More information at http://a-thai-village-homestay.weebly.com

What Is a Home Stay in Thailand? Home stay is a way to experience first hand the Thai’s way of life in a rice farming village environment, learn about their culture, and enjoy their favorite foods and the natural surroundings. Thailand is the most popular tourist destination among the South East Asian countries. Unfortunately, this sector (home stay) is in its infancy.

Often home stay is not the traveler’s preference when they travel in their homeland or abroad. Most of the time, guesthouses, budget, or high-class hotels seems to be the choice. Is it precedence or the home stay idea is not so wide spread yet?

Here are the interpretations of some Home Stay guests.

“A unique opportunity to live with a Thai family and learn about their everyday life. It has allowed me and my family to learn from first hand experience about the education, farming practices, culture and values of Thai people and to enjoy their hospitality, including traditional home made Thai food”

“I was welcomed into a warm and loving home and fed scrumptious meals! My room was certainly a home away from home with what is possibly the most comfortable mattress in the country”.

“They are excellent hosts. We really felt at home and were very well looked after. You cannot get this service from a hotel at any price”.

By living with a Thai family, you will learn:

• Most travelers never know, why most Thai women are attractively slim.

• Why Thailand is known as the “Land of Smiles”.

• What is the significance of a Thai wai (hands are put in front of the face)

• Inside out experience about the education, culture, and the Thai people’s value.

• More than you could ever learn on your own of a Northern Thai village lifestyle.

• A home-away-from-home experience.

• The Thai’s natural talent of making you feel at home instantly.

• The true and wonderful Thai experience.

• The volumes of knowledge and the amazing dishes.

• The flexibility with your plans.

• What is a memorable stay means to you.

You will find that even those on moderate budgets can afford to travel regularly and enjoyably. Most importantly, you will have a more culturally impressive experience, one that you will always remember than a high-class tour.

Need more advice: http://a-thai-village-homestay.weebly.com

The Doers, arrive with expectations: they line up at the museums to see the important pieces, take the open-topped bus tour around the city to get their bearings, climb all the things that are there to be climbed, see all the things that are supposed to be seen, and, if they do all that, walk away thinking “mission accomplished”.

The Watchers, on the other hand, prefer a less mapped out experience. They’re the kind of traveler who could ‘spend a whole afternoon in one café, sipping coffee after coffee or beer after beer, chatting to people, and watching the city’s life go by’.

The Wanderers, are those with no fixed ideas on what to do, or where to go. There is no real purpose for traveling, it’s just another place in which to do what they want to do at home – hang out, get drunk, and lie in the sun. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

Now, which category do you belong or are you some what in the middle?

Eric is host to travelers vacationing in Northern Thailand.
Check this out: http://a-thai-village-homestay.weebly.com
Email: boshem28@gmail.com

1. When entering a Thai home, or temple, it is customary to remove your shoes. This is not simply a religious custom but has practical implications. Also, do not point your feet at anyone or use it to indicate anything.
   
   
2. The King and all the Royal Family are held in extremely high regard by all Thai people and due respect is required. This also applies to money, or any other object bearing the King’s image. Above all, do NOT put your foot on money.
   
   
3. Any insult to the Buddhist religion or Buddha icons or images can carry heavy penalties. Again, respect must be shown at all times and, when visiting temples, appropriate clothing must be worn. When entering a temple you are requested to dress appropriately. Singlets and shorts are not acceptable. Also touching any part of a monk, or his robes, is strictly taboo.
   
   
4. A ‘wai’ is when hands are put in front of the face as a gesture of greeting or respect. It has many meanings and visitors are advised only to reply to a ‘wai’ rather than ‘lead the way’. It is never proper to ‘wai’ to servants or children although it is appropriate to ‘return’ a wai.
   
   
5. Always observe extreme caution with your money and valuables. Such things as passports and credit cards should not be carried externally and all leading hotels provide secure safe systems. Shoulder bags and handbags may be especially vulnerable.
   
   
6. It is advisable not to drink tap water. Bottled or carbonated water is cheaply and readily available.
   
   
7. If traveling in a taxi or tuk tuk it is usual to settle the fare before you begin your journey.

1. When beckoning waiters, or anyone, do so with your palm down and fingers straight with an up and down movement. Never clap, snap your fingers, or whistle.

2. Do not accept offers of food, drink, candies, or free trips from strangers or taxi drivers.

Author:
Eric Thitaporn has been the home stay host to many travelers vacationing in Northern Thailand for more than five years.

Detail information: http://a-thai-village-homestay.weebly.com

Mail to boshem28@gmail.com

He spoke about his business plans for the future. Traveleyes is the world’s first tour operator who offers independent travel for those who are visually impaired. It also caters for sighted travelers who would act as eyes for those who are blind. In return, sighted travelers are given subsidized rate. 

How did he set up Traveleyes?
It was set up from scratch. Amar Latif said, “I was blind but I wanted to see the world and I knew there were so many exciting things out there to experience and I wanted to do this independently instead of tagging along. Then I realized if it doesn’t exist you either do without or re-build it yourself so I decided to build it myself and that’s how Traveleyes was formed”. 

There were not many travel opportunities available that he wanted, so he did a little experiment. He took a normal person with him and subsidized his flights, on the basis that he would be the driving force behind what they were doing. He obtained a copy of Lonely Planet and made it accessible to him. He went to Malaysia and Thailand and it worked really, really, well. He thought if this works for him, it’s bound to work for hundreds of other (impaired) travelers. The sighted person had a good time as well. Having done this for a few years, it’s not just the price that is attractive to sighted travelers but they get to meet people from all over the UK and all over the world. They get to make friends for life. It is a holiday that provides more of a purpose; when you are building a picture of places in your own head, you retain that image rather than just glancing at something and forgetting what it looks like. 

How does it work?
As the tour operator, they worked with various airlines, depending on destinations. They worked with two operators on the ground, then draw up itineraries and packages to make it the most cost effective. The sighted traveler is the eye for the blind and in return, they travel for a subsidized rate. Whenever possible, Amar Latif go on the trips as the tour guide. Some customers have taken aback that there’s a blind guy showing them the world. 

His priority for the business is the quality of the holidays. The holidays are hand crafted. Both the blind and sighted travelers get the most out of their holidays because the sighted traveler is not a carer, they are the eyes and companions, it is a partnership. 

How many people do they cater?
They were catering to a few hundred people and were looking to expand. Their customers are mostly from the UK. They are planning to expand internationally to offer the same service in other countries. The service does not exist in the States, Canada, or New Zealand. Traveleyes wants to open the doors for whom doors have always been close. 

There are plans to encourage corporations to get involved with Traveleyes.
They are working with a few corporations to develop a Traveleyes scheme as part of their equality and diversity program. They can sponsor their staff to be the eyes of blind travelers and end up with a more informed workforce. 

What is the company’s future in 10 years time?
He hopes in ten years, Traveleyes is the household name all over the world, not just with the blind travelers but with sighted travelers as well.

About the author:
Eric has been the home stay host to travelers vacationing in Thailand for many years.

Detail information: http://a-thai-village-homestay.weebly.com

Mail to boshem28@gmail.com

Spacious and airy Thai bedroom.

Most Thai village homes are constructed of wooden planks, sitting on wood or concrete pillars as foundation. The flooring is of polished wooden planks. One such house is named Som’s House.

Som’s House is a raised wooden home with a Western seating flush toilet, located in a rice farming community in Chiangrai, Thailand. The house has a 285 square feet wood flooring furnished room with an adjoining balcony to relax and read. It can accommodate 4 adults comfortably. A common area and a spacious garden to interact with the host. The public buses and the two-bench-buses (songteaw) are a 5 minutes walk from the house.

Here are some comments having home stayed in a Thai house.

• “A real experience of being in Thailand in the relaxed and safe environment of a Thai family home”.
• “Accommodated four adults and a three-year old child with ease. A lovely tidy clean house (with a western toilet).
• “Thank you for having me stay with you in your home and giving me a true and wonderful Thai experience”.
• “I got to see Thai daily life from the inside out, something you won’t get by staying at a hotel or just going on a tour of a village. A home stay is definitely the way to experience Thailand”.
• “We really felt at home and were very well looked after. You cannot get this service from a hotel at any price”.

More information can be found in here:

http://a-thai-village-homestay.weebly.com

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