From September 12-16, 2012, the Thai seaside town of Hua Hin will be taken over by some friendly giants and royalty from around the world for annual King’s Cup Elephant Polo Tournament! For the 11^th year in a row, Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas will host the event in an effort to raise money for their giant neighbors.

Transforming from a small two-day event to now one of Thailand’s major and internationally most loved events, elephant polo teams from all over the world will travel to Hua Hin to compete in the tournament, many of which have royal celebrity players. The event will also feature a grand opening parade in Hua Hin town center, a Tournament Draw & Cocktail Party at the Anantara Hua Hin Resort & Spa, a celebrity Grand Auction Gala dinner, and end of tournament celebrations on the field.

Fundraising from last year’s events has been donated to three projects in Thailand. The first is to continue to support research and clinics using elephants in therapy sessions for children in Thailand living with autism. In addition, the money raised has also been used to launch the first and only elephant hospital in southern Thailand, as a human-elephant conflict project between between Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation (GTAEF) and the Elephant Conservation Network (ECN) charity who works in a wildlife reserve in Kanchanaburi.

For more information on this year’s King’s Cup Elephant Polo, please visit www.anantaraelephantpolo.com

When you think of Labor Day, perhaps boats, beaches, and barbeques jump to mind. But at Anantara Hua Hin Resort & Spa, Labor Day this year is all about the elephants! The 2011 King’s Cup Elephant Polo Tournament begins this Monday, September 5 and lasts until Friday, September 11. The tournament will be celebrating its 10-year anniversary at the resort and, like with any big birthday party, there is a lot to look forward to… The elephants won’t be the only ones trumpeting, as it all kicks off with a spectacular opening parade featuring a brass band. Some very special guests will also be in attendance, including polo-loving members of various European and Asian royal families, an all-women elephant polo team, the Spice Girls, and New Zealand’s professional rugby team, the All Blacks. We can’t wait to see how it all plays out!

Do you have what it takes to be the 10^th annual King’s Cup Polo Tournament’s newest…and youngest reporter? If so, Anantara wants you! Anantara is now taking Facebook submissions for their Roving Elephant Reporter contest. They are looking for a talented reporter between the ages of 7 and 15 to cover the daily action on the polo field along with behind-the-scene interviews with Anantara’s Director of Elephants, John Roberts, elephant veterinarians, and elephant polo players. But that’s not all, the young reporter will also get the chance to explore the exotic beauty of the royal seaside town of Hua Hin, Thailand, and report back on their adventures, such as visiting the teak wood palace, Maruekhathaiyawan, one of the oldest and most treasured royal palaces in Thailand, trekking through a local vineyard by elephant, and participating in a kids-only Thai cooking class. The chosen Roving Elephant Reporter and a chaperone will win a seven day, seven nights all expenses paid trip to Thailand and stay at the luxurious Anantara Hua Hin.  If you have what it takes, follow the instructions below, and we will see you in Thailand!

To enter: upload as follows a short video, between one to two minutes in length, to Anantara’s Facebook page

• Go to www.facebook.com/anantara and “Like” the page;
• On the page wall where it says Share, click the Video icon;
• From here, either record a video using your webcam or upload a pre-existing video detailing why your child should be chosen as Anantara’s Roving Elephant Reporter;
• Alternatively, mail the video on a CD to:

I Want To Be An Elephant Reporter
Anantara Hotels
18^th Floor Berli Jucker House, 99 Soi Rubia, Sukhumvit Soi 42
Bangkok 10110
Thailand

To win: the contestant with the best video entry as voted by our elephant experts will be invited to spend seven fun-filled nights on a full-board basis with an accompanying adult at Anantara Hua Hin Resort & Spa. This includes round-trip flights, accommodation, daily activities, and transport.

The Following Terms & Conditions Apply:

• Must be between the ages of 7 and 15 years to enter
• Videos must be between 1 to 2 minutes long
• Videos must be done in English
• Entries must be submitted by August 1^st, 2011
• The competition winner will be announced on August 4^th, 2011
• Contestants and their chaperones must be available September 4 – 11, 2011
• Contact organizers for full terms and conditions



Introduced to Thailand by Anantara in 2001, the King Cup’s Elephant Polo Tournament is turning ten along with the Anantara brand! The annual tournament will be held September 4-11 in the royal seaside town of Hua Hin. The charity tournament has expanded from a two-day event with six participating teams into a week-long extravaganza with twelve participating teams and players from at least fifteen different countries! Although the event has grown, the tournament has managed to remain true to its charitable roots. To date, the tournament has raised over $300,000, primarily for the National Elephant Institute which provides medical care, sustenance, employment, and mahout training for Thailand’s elephant population.

In honor of the birthday celebration, Anantara Hua Hin is offering an Elephant Polo Package from September 3^rd-11^th that includes accommodations, daily breakfast for two, daily lunch at the polo pitch, roundtrip transfers between the hotel and pitch, and premium spectator access. Package rates begin at $254 per night in a Premium Garden View room before tax and service charge. Additional nights will be based on the Best Available Rate with breakfast.

Attending the tournament is a must, so start packing your finest polo attire!

The Metropolitan Bangkok created the ultimate survival kit – it’s “Songkran Package” includes bed, breakfast, a welcome drink at the Met Bar, and a complimentary shuttle to the festivities. Guests are given their “Songkran Survival Kit” which includes a water fun and a bottle of water.

Anantara Hua Hin has a luxurious way to celebrate. Tonight, the resort will host a special monk merit ceremony and an all you can eat buffet with noodles, som tum, and kai yang, followed by the infamous “sanook” water fights. Tomorrow April 14^th, aka Family Day, little ones dine for free. On April 15^th, wrap up the holiday at the Sai Thong Beach Restaurant with a lavish seafood barbecue with a live band.

Who wants to pay for a to-go coffee every morning on vacation? When you’re only alternative is the less-than-appealing packets of instant coffee and powder creamers, what’s a traveler to do? A recent article from USA Today observed that hotels are offering a more sophisticated approach to our society’s caffeine addiction with in-room amenities that really make the cut. Stay at an Anantara Hotels, Resorts, & Spas properties in Bali, Thailand, the Maldives, or the UAE, and get the cream of the crop; all 12 have Nespresso machines in each room. Let the buzz begin!

We are pleased to report that the Anantara Spa at Anantara Hua Hin Resort took home the gold for an Outstanding Performance this week at the 8th annual Thailand Tourism Awards.  Situated along the Gulf of Thailand, the Hua Hin region first came on the scene as in the 1920’s as a royal retreat and its early glamour is still evident today. An exclusive group of Bangkok residents have second homes along the coast as a quick city escape (think of it as the Hamptons of Thailand).

If a luxury spa retreat sounds enticing, the Anantara Spa should not be overlooked. Treatments combined ancient Eastern healing traditions fused with contemporary holistic therapies designed to address full body, mind, and soul healing and total relaxation. For instance, the Hua Hin Signature Journey includes a floral foot ritual, turmeric scrub, shower, and sand compress massage. Plan a visit and see for yourself just what all the fuss is about – it won’t disappoint!

Photo from: paradizo.com

Anantara Hua Hin Resort & Spa, located along the idyllic coast of the Gulf of Siam in Thailand, has teamed up with local Siam Winery and internationally renowned artist Christopher Hogan in a collaboration everyone can raise a glass to – and the first of its kind in Thailand.

At a tasting of Moonsoon Valley Wine at the resort last year, guests (Mr. Hogan was among them) at Hua Hin were so enamored with the local flavors from just down to road that he became inspired to create a label reflecting the wine’s natural surroundings and the beauty of Thailand.

Launching a little more than a year after his first sip, Mr. Hogans’s three limited editions bottles embody the lush tropical gardens of the resort and Thailand’s stunning marine life.  The series is made from white shiraz, red shiraz, and colombard. In keeping with the local flavor, all three have been specially designed to pair well with the cuisine of Thailand and are best tasted alongside a traditional meal. We’ll drink (and eat) to that!

Ananatara resident spa guru and unofficial Ramadan expert, Liz Smailes, shared her advice with us on incorporating the relevant messages behind the holy celebration into daily life.

The focus of this month is all about detoxification of your body and habits—and through her travels around the Gulf Peninsula, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Southern Philippines and Thailand Liz has developed wonderful detox plans and recipes.  Detox has never looked so good! First, she advises fasters to get about 7 to 8 hours of sleep each night during the program, avoid prolonged exposure in the sun, have a sensible breakfast before the fast/sunrise, and drink fresh detox juices and lots of water throughout the day. Being mindful of these tips will help jumpstart your new, healthier routine!

Once you’ve finished your cleanse, don’t just jump back into your old daily routine. Liz’s post-detox menu looks like this, and is similar to what Muslims will eat after Ramadan:

• First Day: Add a raw salad in the mid-day meal along with soups.
• Second Day: Add backed or boiled potato, rice (without any seasoning and heavy sauces) along with soups
• Third Day: Add steamed vegetables along with soups
• Thereafter: Start back with your normal diet, but maintain your favorite fresh juices as part of your daily intake.

Follow Liz’s advice and you’re guaranteed to have a much cleaner body on the inside. And with a visit to one of Anantara’s fabulous spas, it will be very easy for the new you to be reflected on the out.

 Liz also shared some of her favorite, and most effective, juice recipes that both new and seasoned fasters enjoy.

 Start with a pre-sunrise drink made from:

• 2 springs of parsley
• Small handful of wheatgrass
• 4-6 carrots
• 2 celery sticks
• 1 apple
• ½ beet

Finish the day with her sunset concoction:

• 1 Green Apple
• 2 cucumbers
• 2 Celery stalks
• ½ deseeded Indian bitter gourd

For any smokers looking to finally kick the habit, Liz also shared her detox juice to help you stop craving the nicotine:

• 1 Apple
• 300 grams Pumpkin
• 1 handful of lettuce
• Sprouts of alfalfa

 Interior of Sea.Fire.Salt. at Anantara Phuket Villas

Congratulations are in order for the Bangkok-based Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas! We raise our glasses to the 5 amazing establishments that were featured in the 2010 Wine Spectator Restaurant Awards.  The new recipients include: Fuddan Fusion Grill at Anantara Dhigu Resort & Spa; Geckos Restaurant, Anantara Veli Resort & Spa; Baan Thalia, Anantara Hua Hin Resort & Spa; and Sea.Fire.Salt. at Anantara Phuket Villas.  Special praise is due to Anantara Bophut Resort & Spa, after winning its fifth straight Award of Excellence for its delicious Italian eatery Full Moon. Cheers!