Green is good on the wallet
Thailand’s  green season rings in some amazing discounts

Terri Roamer

You could argue that travel marketers have been tinkering with the weather when they tell us we are heading at high speed towards the “green season.”

“What’s that,” you might ask, wondering if colour coding is in place to steer us comfortably through the seasons. Colour coding the weather might give us “amber” for Thailand’s hot season and possibly a smudging of sky blue for the cool season to encourage us to don a light jacket in the evenings.

But as much as we like to whine at the marketing savvy of travel professionals, we should recognise that renaming the rainy season green brought with it some benefits that lighten the load on the traveller’s wallet.
As long they described the damp journey through June to October as rainy it conjured up images of incessant and destructive monsoon storms, the kind that appear to have no end in sight other than to soak you to the skin and float you to the sea for good measure.

So we are entering the green season. Cynics will point to the clouds and say why bother it will rain whatever you call it and that is why the landscape is a lush deep green.

They have a point, but we are not going to worry about the ominous grey clouds. Armed with our umbrellas we will strike out into the green season to hone our golf game at remarkable discounts.
There are far more golfers than we might assume and  they head for Thailand’s shores whatever the weather, or season, but there is nothing like a down-to-earth discount to shake off even the most reluctant raindrops of doubts.

There are more discounts amassed in Thailand during the green season than you could ever imagine, but the ones related to golf are possibly the most impressive.

That’s because golf is really a year-round game, but it might take a few price incentives to tempt your average golfer to play through the so-called green season.

Rain or shine, the focus is on Thailand’s oldest beach destination, Hua Hin, which has slowly emerged, since the early1900s, into a world-class golf destination with 10 competition rated courses all within a few kilometres of beachside hotels.

World-class might sound costly, but not if you accept the invitation to tee-off during the green season when Hua Hin and neighbouring Cha-am host the annual two-month long Golf Festival.

We can chatter all we wish about green this and green that, but when the focus is on striking that little white ball as far as the eye can see, there is nothing like a fantastic deal on green fees and a discount rate at your favourite hotel to lift your game.

The annual Golf Festival targets golfers residing in Asia and based on past festivals the trend is for two to three days’ golfing, usually over long weekends. Groups of three to five golfers travel from Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan or Hong Kong to capitalize on the discounts. Informal clubs of expatriate golfers travel from Hong Kong for their annual friendly competitions.

Does it rain? Sure it does, but it hardly matters to golfers who have the protection of huge umbrellas and the comfort of golf carts to take them between the holes.

If a storm blows in from the Gulf of Thailand they repair to the nearest watering station to quaff chilled beer and flirt with the caddies. Usually by the second glass a sunny halo penetrate the clouds to signal play can resume.

The green season golf festival runs for the entire months of August to September at 10 golf courses and involves 25 participating hotels that agreed to a single rate based on their star-category. Green fees are pegged at Bt800 per round excluding caddy and golf cart fees at all the courses.

Golf is packaged with hotel rates, around 50% off peak season quotes. There are two rate categories set at Bt990 and Bt1,990 for single night’s accommodation including breakfast for two ( Sunday to Thursday).
It has to be a winning combination as 25 hotels eagerly signed up for the festival deal. Depending on their star-rating they either fall into the Bt990 or Bt1,990 category.

Check carefully as many of the Bt990 hotels offer great value at beach locations and offer service levels far beyond what you would expect for the rate.

If the family tags along some of the Bt1,990 hotels will offer more services tuned to families, perhaps a larger swimming pool and garden and the luxury of onsite spas.

There are 10 participating golf courses all offering a round at Bt800. They are: Eagle Milford Golf Club; Royal Thai Army Sports Centre Suan Son Pradipat Golf Course; Imperial Lake View Resort & Golf Club; Majestic Creek Golf & Resort; Sawang Resort & Golf Club; Kaeng Krachan Country Club & Resort; Springfield Royal Country Club; Palm Hills Golf & Residence; Banyan Golf Club and Royal Hua Hin Golf Course.

If there was no other green season bargains out there I would reckon the Golf Festival has the rates and track record to carry the season. Yet there is more to green season travel as destinations across the country including Bangkok are offering special rates.

Serious weather watchers should note that further south, Samui Island, on the Gulf of Thailand, escapes the brunt of green season rain mid-May to August, while Phuket Island in the Andaman Sea faces strong southwest winds and driving rain all the way to October when the winds shift and west coast bays are once more as tranquil as a lake.

In contrast, the rainy season on Samui starts in earnest mid-September and continues to late December, when it is possible to gain rate incentives.

Green season discounts on Phuket Island may not be as attractive as other beach destinations, but they are usually good enough to cut the cost of accommodation by Bt1,000 a night in three to four-star resorts.
There are other advantages such as the open spaces on beaches, the surplus of deck chairs, fewer people in entertainment spots and shopping malls. There is even enough sunshine in the day to top up a sun tan.
When the daily monsoon clouds drift in usually at the same time of the day, they bring a refreshing break with cooler temperatures.

Even the torrential rain storms have an appeal for some visitors mainly from dry region countries in the Middle East. The monsoon squalls sweep in from the Andaman Sea reducing visibility to just a few metres. Sheets of rain smack the surface of the water moving inland over the sand dunes, bending palm trees and rattling roof tiles on shops and beachside restaurants. As quickly as the storm sweeps across the wide bays, it moves on towards the mainland, leaving behind freshness in the air and an eerie calm.

 It is not advisable to swim in any of Phuket’s west coast bays during the green season. But there are alternatives such as joining organised treks to national parks, enjoying a round of golf or hiring a car to explore nearby mainland destinations such as Phang Nga and Krabi.

Green season discounts go beyond hotels, car rentals and domestic airfares to the mega malls and department stores that participate in the annual Amazing Thailand Grand Sale 15 June to the end of August, nationwide.

Usually the discounts on shopping vary from 50 to 80% depending on the department stores and location. The popular destinations for grand sale discounts are Bangkok, Pattaya, Hat Yai, Phuket and Chiang Mai.
In Bangkok, grand sale shopping is made easy by the convenient sky train links and the air bridges from stations to clusters of department stores and malls. It could not be easier to part with your holiday cash, while gaining some very healthy discounts on branded goodies.

An unusual green season discount that is available this year for a very special reason is linked to Chiang Rai’s 750 year anniversary.  Through to October hotels in this far-north destination, famous for its artist community and hill tribe heritage, are offering rooms at a flat Bt750 a night to mark the year-long anniversary celebrations. There are a few exceptions on the offer, but if the hotel’s management has embraced the celebration spirit, the Bt750 offer is on the counter until the peak season dawns.

Green season is prime time for at least one adventure activity, white water rafting for the very obvious reason that the country’s mountain rivers are running fast and furious.

The prime rivers venues for this exhilarating sport are in Phitsanulok, Prachinburi, Mae Hong Son and closer to Bangkok in Nakhon Nayok province.

It all goes to show there is very sound reason to take up the invitation to explore Thailand during the green season. It might be wet, but it won’t leave your wallet hung out to dry.