A Few Words From Me
There was no issue last week, and I owe you a short explanation: I spent most of it getting back to Bangkok, a journey that always takes longer than the flight suggests. I arrived to serious flooding, and water is still standing in up country Bangkok and the provinces around it, with Ayutthaya and Pathum Thani among the hardest hit and more rain forecast over the coming days. I don’t want to turn that into a story, partly because it isn’t mine to tell and partly because the people affected are better served by official updates than by a travel newsletter, but if you are due here this month, the Tourism Authority of Thailand is publishing visitor information as conditions change, and allowing extra time for road journeys is common sense.
That is the backdrop to a fuller issue than usual, since it covers the fortnight I missed. Hilton has opened its first Tapestry hotel in Vietnam and I have been picking at its green claims, Thai airports are changing their checked-bag rules on the same Friday Bangkok takes a holiday for the IMF meetings, fewer than half of Bali’s visitors are paying the tourist levy, and Cambodia has topped an ecotourism ranking in a year when its visitors have stayed away. The What’s On section is longer than usual too, because I owe you two weeks of it and there is plenty happening across the region, whatever the weather. As always, tell me what you are seeing where you are, particularly if you are in one of the flooded areas, and I will pass on anything useful.
This Week in Southeast Asia
Hilton Opens a Riverside Resort in Hoi An. Green Claims Stay Modest.
Hilton has opened NHAAN Resort & Spa Hoi An, the first Tapestry Collection by Hilton hotel in Vietnam, and on paper it ticks plenty of boxes. Acclaimed Vietnamese architect Vo Trong Nghia has put 174 rooms among the nipa palm waterways of the Co Co River in Cam Thanh village, using locally sourced stone and timber and big windows to frame the view. Hoi An Ancient Town is about five kilometres away and Cua Dai Beach 750 metres.
Nipa palm channels like this one surround Cam Thanh, where the resort stands.
The green credentials, as the developer describes them, are modest: LED lighting, design that makes use of daylight, and an on-site glass-bottling system to cut single-use plastic. Dat Phuong Group also says Hilton puts local hiring above 95 per cent, drawn from Hoi An and Da Nang. We found no third-party sustainability certification, so for now these are the operator’s own claims, and a Hilton collection hotel is not automatically a green one.
The stay leans on local craft, with pottery, woodcarving and lantern-making workshops, countryside bicycle tours, a rooftop spa and four restaurants and bars. Rooms start at VND 2,386,000 (about US$91 or £68), room only, with free changes up to 24 hours before arrival, and an opening offer for stays until 15 December adds 5,000 Hilton Honors points for three nights or more plus late check-out until 2pm.
I’d judge it on who it employs and what ends up in the bin, rather than on the architecture. Before you book, ask which suppliers are local and whether the glass system covers all of the resort’s drinking water. The answers will tell you more than the brochure.
Thai Airports Can Now Open Your Checked Bag Without You
From Friday 16 October, Thai airport staff can open your checked bag without you there if screening flags something suspicious, prohibited or dangerous. It won’t happen routinely, each inspection is filmed, and a notice goes inside the bag afterwards, so at least you’ll know.
The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand advises against packing valuables, fragile items or important documents in checked baggage, and airline notices recommend TSA-approved locks. I’d keep my passport, medication, electronics, jewellery and anything I couldn’t replace in my hand luggage. If your bag is opened, keep the notice and tell your airline before you leave the airport.
The rule starts on a busy day in Bangkok. The IMF and World Bank are holding their Annual Meetings from 12 to 18 October with more than 15,000 delegates expected, and the Cabinet has declared Friday 16 October a holiday in the city to ease traffic, help travel and tighten security. Build in extra time for the airport run and check your airline’s baggage notice before you go. If you need help, the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s visitor line is 1672.
Fewer Than Half of Bali’s Visitors Pay the Tourist Levy. Here’s How
Bali’s IDR 150,000 tourist levy (about US$8.40 or £6.25) has been in force since February 2024, and compliance had reached only 43 per cent by August 2026, up from 35.4 per cent in 2025. The governor, Wayan Koster, said in August that international flights would start carrying an announcement from late August reminding passengers to pay.
You can pay before you fly through the Love Bali website or app, and a QR voucher arrives by email to scan on arrival. If you haven’t, there are counters at Ngurah Rai Airport and Benoa Port, and at hotels and attraction entrances. It’s paid once per trip and it’s separate from your visa fee. Holders of KITAS and KITAP permits, student, diplomatic and Golden visas are exempt, as are airline and ship crews, but exemption isn’t automatic: you have to apply through Love Bali at least five days before you arrive, and a decision follows within three days.
Skip it and you may get a verbal warning, then a written one, and attractions can refuse you service. The money is substantial, IDR 369 billion in 2025 and IDR 235 billion in the first eight months of 2026, and as we said in Issue No. 27 of Unmasked Weekly, it’s meant to help fund environmental protection, so it’s fair to expect some of it to reach places like Sanur’s struggling reef.
My advice is to pay online before you fly and keep the QR voucher handy. It takes a few minutes, and it beats hunting for a counter after a long-haul flight.
Cambodia Tops a Regional Ecotourism Ranking While Its Visitors Stay Away
US News & World Report ranks Cambodia first in Southeast Asia for ecotourism and 17th in the world, the sort of result that looks good on any tourism ministry’s wall. Laos comes 22nd, Thailand 33rd, Malaysia 42nd, the Philippines 60th, Indonesia 67th, Myanmar 74th, Singapore 77th and Vietnam 89th.
Prek Toal’s floating village, where the bird sanctuary is the draw and the water level decides when you can visit.
The score draws on deforestation, linguistic diversity, natural attractions, protected areas, species richness, sustainable trade and World Heritage sites, and Cambodia’s environment minister says the country manages 73 protected areas covering more than seven million hectares, about 41 per cent of its territory. That is a measure of land and wildlife. It says nothing about whether a lodge pays local guides or whether a trail is open to visitors.
Meanwhile, international arrivals fell 46 per cent year on year to 1.99 million in the first seven months of 2026, according to the Tourism Ministry, which puts it down to negative publicity, friction on the Thai border and higher fuel prices. We asked in August whether Siem Reap can afford to wait for the right tourists, and a ranking doesn’t change that question.
If the ranking tempts you, put three questions to any eco-stay before you book: who owns it, who guides the walks, and where the entry fee goes. Prek Toal, a floating village and bird sanctuary on the Tonle Sap, is a good place to start. Community-based visits there run through the non-profit Osmose and village-run operators, you can go from September (though bird numbers are lower early in the season), and low water makes the sanctuary hard to reach after February.
What’s On
This Week
Phuket Vegetarian Festival – Phuket, Thailand | 10-18 October
Nine days of processions, fire-walking and vegetarian street food centred on Phuket Town’s Chinese shrines, free to watch, with the Go Teng pole-raising on the evening of 9 October opening the festival. Processions close roads from early morning, so plan your transport before you go.
MassKara Festival – Bacolod, Philippines | 1-18 October
Bacolod’s festival of smiles fills the city with masked street dancing, pageants and night parties, and the main events run from 9 to 18 October, with closing ceremonies on 25 October.
Pchum Ben – Cambodia | 10-12 October
Cambodia’s ancestor festival ends its fortnight of temple offerings with a three-day public holiday set by royal sub-decree, when families head back to their home provinces, so expect quiet cities, busy roads and pagodas full of offerings if you’re travelling then.
Coming Up
Ubud Writers and Readers Festival – Ubud, Bali, Indonesia | 21-25 October
Ubud’s literary festival returns for five days of talks, book launches, workshops and performances under the theme Samarasa: Awareness, Empathy, Action, with sessions across central Ubud and ticket details on the festival’s official channels. Book your room early, because Ubud fills up.
Hoi An Lantern Festival – Hoi An, Vietnam | 23 October
On the 14th day of each lunar month, Hoi An’s old town closes to traffic, the electric lights go dark and lanterns drift down the Thu Bon River. The old town is about five kilometres from the resort in our lead story.
Boun Suang Heua Long Boat Racing – Mukdahan, Thailand | 23-26 October
Teams race traditional long boats for the Royal Trophy on the Mekong as part of Mukdahan’s Buddhist Lent festival, along the river embankment between Sala Khao and the Indochina Market pier.
Luang Prabang Half Marathon – Luang Prabang, Laos | 24 October
The twelfth Run for Children raises money for Lao Friends Hospital for Children, the country’s only free paediatric hospital, with 21km, 14km and 7km races through a UNESCO World Heritage city. Online registration is open at luangprabangmarathon.com.
Bangkok Art Biennale – Bangkok, Thailand | 29 October-28 February 2027
The fifth Bangkok Art Biennale, themed Angels and Mara, spreads work by Thai and international artists across temples, museums and public spaces in the capital.
Worth Reading
If the levy story has you wondering what else has changed for visitors to Bali, our piece on why Bali’s Content Creators Now Need a Visa. Here’s What That Means. covers the other rule worth knowing about.
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