BANGKOK, March 13 (TNA) – The Grand Palace and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok were still lively and crowded Saturday with foreign tourists who said they were not worried about the ongoing Red Shirt demonstrations despite the main protest venue being not far away from Bangkok's prime tourist destinations.

According to one tour guide, travellers have been advised to avoid locations where the Red Shirt activists of the United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD) are protesting, while backpackers around Khao San Road area said they were not afraid of the planned rally and regularly followed the news from local residents.

The guide said that not many European travellers had cancelled their Thailand trips, but that those who had cancelled were mostly Asian tourists, who instead went to Thailand's neighbouring countries.

"I'm not concerned. I take advice from my tour guide, and I don't think there'd be any violence," said Darren Simpson, a Canadian tourist who arrived in Thailand two days ago.

A guesthouse owner on Khao San Road, a haven for backpacker tourists, said about 10 per cent of room bookings at her place were cancelled, while the other tourists were waiting to see the situation for another one or two days. She said the current problem was that backpackers could not get to Khao San Road and could not pass through Rajdamnoen Avenue, where the main Red Shirt rally was held.

Meanwhile, Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) public relations director Sugree Sithivanich said there were no reports on emergency situations involving violence or other disruptions since a Help Centre for tourists and a 24-hour Call Centre, Tel. No. 1672, were opened on the 17th floor of the TAT headquarters on New Petchburi Road during the anti-government Red Shirt demonstrations until March 23.

He said there were only tour operators calling to ask for directors where they could be able to bring tourists, and one foreigner asking about insurance to foreign travellers in case of violence. (TNA)