Phuket luxury beach resort in Thailand

Environment:
Our beach resort is small for a very good reason. This way we can offer individual service to each and every guest, and also ensure that we are not overburdening Phuket's natural environment.

A policy of energy use minimization is applied across the resort including guest rooms. Hotel employees must ensure that they switch off all lights and computers when not in use. Guests are encouraged to do the same in their own rooms. Reuse of towels and linen from the guest rooms is also encouraged.

We purchase ingredients, food and perishable foodstuffs from suppliers that carry as much stock as possible. The fewer suppliers, the fewer the carbon emissions created in delivery. On laundry services, we encourage our guests to re-use towels and linen, when appropriate, by having an environment care card in guest every room.

We are using 100% non-toxic products (made from local herbs) for pest & termite control in the entire resort including guest rooms. For laundry, we outsource it to a local laundry shop located near the resort to save travelling time and gasoline. This also supports local people living in the area. Non-toxic products are used for pesticides and fertilizers. These are also products made in Thailand, so assisting the local community.

Left-over food is donated to the Soi Dog Foundation (stray dog shelter) in Phuket to assist feeding abandoned animals. We recycle cans, glass and paper and are implementing a paperless policy wherever possible. We give our guests information about the conservation of the natural environment via the in-room guest compendium. Marine activity tours highlight the conservation of coral and marine life.

Community:
We purchase at least 85% of our vegetables locally; 75% of meat and 85% of seafood. We make the most of the natural abundance of fish and fruit on Phuket island in our menus. We endeavour to reflect the diverse cultures of Thailand in our meals. We encourage guests to visit and eat in local restaurants, subject to their compliance with government hygiene and cleanliness standards.

On employment, local people from Rawai/Chalong are preferred, if their qualifications are right for the job. Our employees are mostly recruited from Phuket, all with local knowledge. We take people on visits through local villages where we make an effort to introduce our guests to villagers and their way of life. Several staff training programs are conducted according to the need of each staff. One recent training program was “Team Craft” to heighten staff’s teamwork capabilities. We carry out programs for all levels of staff, such as “Train the Trainer”, “Team Building” and “English Skills”.

We use services from local people as much as we can. We support local fund-raising events by engaging with the Phuket Lions Club. The plan is that we will become one of the sponsors of the Phuket Sunshine Village, a Phuket orphanage. Donation boxes have been placed in the reception area so that guests can contribute.

We also arrange cultural tours incorporating visits to local temples and OTOP (cottage industries) to support grass-root community revenue generation. Because public transportation in Phuket is minimal and low quality, we don’t encourage our guests to use public transport unless accompanied by a local guide or hotel staff. We do, however, encourage guests to use local services whenever appropriate. For example, our fishing trips and sightseeing tours are operated by local fishermen and local people. We also engage the local sea gypsy community to assist with beach cleaning.