Tourists pack major attractions in Thailand on New Year’s Eve

BANGKOK, December 31 (TNA) - Celebrative atmosphere prevailed in Thailand on the New Year’s Eve on Wednesday, when tourist destinations including temples and mountains were packed with local and foreign tourists as they prepare for the New Year countdown tonight. The Phra Borommathat Doi Suthep Temple in the northern province of Chiang Mai was crowded with visitors from China and other parts of Thailand. They climbed up 300 stairs to worship holy spirits for good fortune at the temple which sits on top of the 1,676-metre-high Mount Suthep. Hat Yai district of southern Songkhla province was also packed with Malaysian visitors who arrived there on the chartered train number 954 (Kuala Lumpur-Hat Yai). Countdown events are organized at three locations in the district. In Phitsanulok province, a large number of tourists visited the Phu Hin Rong Kla National Park, situated in its Nakonthai District, to experience cold weather and witness red maple trees. The local temperature dropped to 13 degrees Celsius this morning, while maple leaves at national park were turning red, creating a spectacular sight for tourists. In the western province of Kanchanaburi, local authorities organized an alms-giving event on the River Kwai Bridge to commemorate war prisoners who had died during the construction of the bridge. A candle-lit New Year countdown event will be held on the bridge tonight. Chaiyaphum province also saw an influx of tourists who flocked to visit the Mor Hin Khao, or the Stonehenge of Thailand, in the Phu Laenkha National Park to experience cold weather. There will be a New Year countdown event tonight. (TNA)