Saung Oo Festival to be held at Ngapali Beach on Nov. 14

By DMG 08 Nov 2021

DMG Newsroom
8 November 2021, Thandwe 

To promote a local tourism industry that was hard-hit by the Covid-19 pandemic and political instability, the Saung Oo Festival will be held at Ngapali Beach on November 14. 

With Covid-19 infection rates in decline for weeks, the festival is being organised to let the world know that tour and travel services in Arakan State have resumed, said U Tin Tun Aung, director of the state’s Directorate of Hotels and Tourism. 

“We are persuading travellers by holding the festival at Ngapali Beach so that tourism in the state will recover,” he said. 

A mini-marathon, bike race, beach volleyball, greased pole-climbing and tug of war competitions, and sand painting are among the activities to be included in the festival. 

U Tin Tun Aung reminded prospective travellers, festival attendees and service providers that they must adhere to Covid-19 prevention regulations. 

Since there have been few visitors during the pandemic, hoteliers are facing losses and have laid off many of their staff. 

Arakan State’s preeminent beach destination, Ngapali in Thandwe Township saw a noted uptick in visitors last month. 

Arrivals to Thandwe Airport included 756 local visitors and 23 foreigners in September and 3,784 local visitors and 104 foreigners in October, according to figures from Arakan State’s Directorate of Hotels and Tourism. 

“Some people visit by vehicles and some visit by plane to Thandwe. So, we can operate our business when there are visitors,” said U Myo Thet, owner of Htay Htay restaurant and guesthouse in Ngapali town. 

In 2020, domestic and international travellers to Arakan State declined by 25% compared with 2019 due to regional instability and the coronavirus pandemic.