Tourists Caught in India and Thailand : Kathika Travel Website

By Amanda Kendle

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Just when you think the world seems a little bit calmer, there’s chaos again and travelers are again getting caught up in the middle of things. This week all the major news has been coming out of India and Thailand, where terrorism and demonstrators have been severely disrupting life for locals as well as tourists. If you’re planning travel to these regions then check government advice carefully before departing.

Terrorist Attacks in Mumbai

On Wednesday this week, a well-coordinated group of terrorists carried out simultaneous attacks at various sites around Mumbai, India’s largest city. At the moment, a group calling themselves the Deccan Mujahideen are claiming responsiblity for these attacks but since they are a previously unknown terrorist group, there’s still more information to come.

The attacks in Mumbai took place in hotels, a cafe, a movie theater, a railway station and at the police headquarters, among other locations. Tourists were of course most affected at the two hotels where explosions and shootings took place: the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower Hotel and the Oberoi Trident Hotel, where tourists were also involved in hostage situations. A number of foreigners were injured and so far it seems that around nine were killed, including four Australians and others from Britain, Japan, Germany and Italy.

The after effects are still continuing to affect travelers with a lot of airlines suspending flights in and out of Mumbai.

Protests and Airport Closures in Thailand

Not for the first time this year, protests and riots in Thailand have grown to such a large scale that they are now again severely affecting tourists. The protests are being led by the People’s Alliance for Democracy or PAD, who are protesting against the Thai government.

The latest move by PAD is to close the two main airports of Bangkok. This began on Tuesday this week when hundreds of PAD members blocked the roads into the Suvarnabhumi International Airport and as a consequence, all the flights in and out of Bangkok were soon cancelled – thousands of travelers were left stranded and at this stage, appear to be still trapped within the airport; anyone else who had planned to fly out of Bangkok this week is obviously unable to leave.

Many major governments have now warned their citizens not to fly to Thailand. With Thailand being such a popular vacation place this is likely to cause plenty of travel chaos for those who may have booked their Christmas or New Year vacations on a Thai beach.