Air Astana yesterday took delivery of its first Embraer E190-E2, which features a special snow leopard livery meant to draw attention to the threat of extinction faced by the wild cat.
The Embraer plane arrived at Nursultan Nazarbayev International airport in Astana clad in the eye-catching livery, which Air Astana says reflects its intention to improve ecological protection for endangered species such as the snow leopard, native to mountain ranges in the Kazkhstan’s south.
This is the first of five Embraer E190-E2 aircraft to be delivered to the Kazakhstan airline following an order placed in August 2017.
The new generation aircraft will gradually replace older Embraer E190s in the airline’s fleet. The carrier currently operates nine Embraer E190 aircraft on domestic and low-density regional services, with the first aircraft having entered service in 2011.
The twin engine, single aisle Embraer E190-E2 belongs to the family of upgraded E-Jets, said to offer lower operating costs, emissions and noise levels, with a range of more than 5,000km.
While seen as an alternative, El Nido does not have the capacity to absorb Boracay volume in the summer peak season
Another tourist destination in the Philippines, El Nido in Palawan, is up for rehabilitation but without the complete shutdown as imposed in the case of Boracay, much to the relief of the travel trade.
“I think they saw that the rehabilitation of Boracay needed more planning and cannot be done with an iron hand,” said Jojo Clemente, president of the private sector consultative body Tourism Congress of the Philippines (TCP).
While seen as an alternative, El Nido does not have the capacity to absorb Boracay volume in the summer peak season
“They learned from the Boracay experience that there should be a better way of rehabilitating (a destination), that instead of closing everything in one go, it can be done selectively or in phases,” he told TTG Asia.
Clemente welcomed measures pronounced by tourism secretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat to impose a carrying capacity, as well as fix the wastewater, sewage disposal and other environmental problems the tourist destination is facing without closing it down.
Puyat is part of the inter-agency task force that also includes the heads of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Department of Interior and Local Government who visited El Nido and Panglao in Bohol last week to get rehabilitation work off the ground.
Clemente further shared that Puyat is consulting regularly with his organisation, TCP.
Approving the government’s new tack, he foresaw the rehabilitation of El Nido and other destinations to “be much better in terms of planning and giving stakeholders ample time (to comply)”.
The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), which frowned on Boracay’s closure, has proposed to “close or heavily fine only those establishments that are proven to have violated environmental codes”.
It also proposed that “erring officials be charged or removed from service”.
Jose Leviste, PCCI director for environment and climate change, speaking to TTG Asia at the sidelines of the recent PCAAE 6th associations summit in Subic, emphasised the need for “gradual, not abrupt rehabilitation” of El Nido, “otherwise the patient might have a cardiac arrest”.
In the early days of the government extending rehabilitation efforts beyond Boracay, Clemente observed that tourism stakeholders in El Nido are already working on alleviating the environmental impact to avoid the possibility of being closed down.
As many as 500 million guests may potentially have had their personal information exposed in an illegal hack of its Starwood database that began since 2014, Marriott International announced on Friday.
The company said in a statement that for 327 million guests, personal information compromised could include some combination of name, mailing address, phone number, email address, passport number, date of birth and Starwood Preferred Guest account information among other personal details.
Security of 500 million Starwood guest records potentially compromised
For others, the information could include credit card numbers and expiration dates, but those numbers were encrypted, the hotel chain said.
There are two components needed to decrypt the payment card numbers, and at this point, Marriott said it has not been able to rule out the possibility that both were stolen.
Marriott said it learned about the breach after an internal security tool sent an alert on September 8. That was when a probe was launched and the unauthorised access discovered. It was only on November 19 that Marriott was able to decrypt the information and determined that the contents were from the Starwood guest reservation database.
The incident has already been reported to law enforcement, and the company has also notified regulatory authorities.
The hospitality giant said that it has been sending emails to affected guests beginning Friday.
Properties under Starwood include Sheraton, Westin, W Hotels, St Regis, Four Points, Aloft, Le Méridien, Tribute, Design Hotels, Elements and the Luxury Collection.
“We deeply regret this incident happened,” said Arne Sorenson, Marriott’s president and CEO. “We fell short of what our guests deserve and what we expect of ourselves. We are doing everything we can to support our guests, and using lessons learned to be better moving forward.”
Sorenson added that resources will be devoted to phase out Starwood systems, and accelerate the ongoing security enhancements to the Marriott network.
Marriott bought Starwood in 2016 for US$13 billion, and 30 hotel brands currently fall under the Marriott umbrella. It is the largest hotel chain in the world with more than 6,700 properties in 129 countries and territories.
Rendering of a guestroom at the upcoming hotel in Clark
Come 2019, Radisson Hotel Group and Best Western Hotels & Resorts will be opening one property each in Iloilo and Angeles City respectively.
The Radisson Hotel Group is scheduled to open its third Park Inn by Radisson hotel in 1Q2019. Standing next to the SM City Iloilo in Mandurriao, the hotel is a 20-minute drive from Iloilo International Airport.
Rendering of a guestroom at the upcoming Best Western hotel in Clark
The Park Inn by Radisson Iloilo will offer 200 keys, as well as facilities such as an all-day dining restaurant, a self-serve section for on-the-go goodies, gym, and swimming pool. For events, its main function room can accommodate a maximum of 100 guests, while the al fresco space by the poolside can cater to smaller evening functions.
The Radisson group currently has 22 hotels in operation and under development in the Asia-Pacific region.
Over in Angeles City, a tourist destination near Manila, the SureStay Plus by Best Western Regency Angeles City Clark will feature 56 guestrooms with an array of amenities which include an outdoor pool, restaurant, cafe, and business services.
The property is slated to open in 2Q2019 on Surla Street, and is the first SureStay-branded hotel in the Philippines.
Best Western currently operates five hotels and resorts all across the Philippines.
Garuda Indonesia will restart its Jakarta-London Heathrow direct services on December 13, after suspending the service on October 29.
The thrice-weekly flights will utilise the Boeing 777-300ER, and will offer two classes.
Ari Askhara, president director of Garuda Indonesia, said in a statement that the reopening of the route was made possible following the company’s cost structure management.
“The reopening of the service is also part of Garuda’s move to develop the international route network, especially when the Indonesia to UK traffic is growing in line with the UK market to Indonesia,” Ari said.
Data from Statistics Indonesia showed that the number of arrivals from UK to Indonesia, particularly via Bali, ranked fourth after China, Australia and India. It also revealed that between January and September 2018, arrivals from UK reached 210,062, which was nine per cent higher than the same period last year.
While acknowledging the bulk of the UK traffic headed to Bali, the announcement made no mention of any Garuda service to Bali.
Instead, Ari said: “We are confident that the growth of arrivals (to Indonesia) has the potential to support the development of (Garuda’s) Jakarta-London service.”
The Indonesian flag carrier also expects that the service will help capture the Kangaroo route between Australia and Europe.
The Inside Access offers bespoke dining and private events
Food and hawker fare have long been a selling point for Singapore, but now tourism and hospitality players are cooking up a storm of elevated gastronomical experiences to entice visitors to the city.
The Inside Access offers bespoke dining and private events
Singapore in recent years has seen a brimming culinary calendar populated with the likes of the Michelin chef series, Singapore Food Festival and Sentosa GrillFest, Beerfest Asia, Whisky Live, World Gourmet Summit, Singapore Restaurant Week and Oktoberfest, with scores of celebrity restaurants and F&B pop-ups thrown into the mix.
For example, F&B distributor Mead – which supplies premium Japanese imports to restaurants such as Tippling Club and Cut by Wolfgang Puck – has taken to introducing special sake pairing and food tasting sessions with its restaurant partners.
Andre Chalson, managing director of Mead, shared: “Events like this round out the Singapore culinary legend. It’s all about storytelling, our story as a nation of food aficionados. To truly live up to that reputation, we must continue to embrace all food cultures and hold events like this, to give communities access to new culinary delights.”
Additionally, hoisted by high-profile events such as the Trump-Kim summit in June, as well as the popularity of book-turned-movie Crazy Rich Asians and TV series Masterchef Singapore, more players are raising the bar even higher for culinary experiences.
Arron Lim, founder of The Inside Access, commented: “With the premiere of Crazy Rich Asians, there will probably be a surge in travellers interested to check out what sort of luxury experiences there are in Singapore.”
The Singapore-based curator recently launched Insider Experiences, a menu of bespoke private events that brings renowned chefs and restaurant partners to any venue, including on a yacht with its newest Chef On Board series.
Lim added that exposure on the golden screen can also open up opportunities for attractions beyond traditional luxury, from Singapore’s “urban landscape to (its) dining scene”.
The movie, for example, inspired food tour company Wok ‘n’ Stroll to launch a Crazy Rich Asians – “Behind the Scenes” Food Tour in August. Its itinerary treats participants to local food mentioned in the novel and movie, such as carrot cake, roti prata and Malay cakes at venues like Newton Hawker Centre and Joo Chiat; as well as more upscale venues like Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant New Ubin Seafood at CHIJMES and LeVeL33 Craft-Brewery Restaurant & Lounge.
“Singapore looks so attractive and sexy in the movie. We wanted to give the audience the experience of being a crazy-rich Asian for one evening,” shared Wok ‘n’ Stroll founder and CEO Karni Tomer.
For hospitality giant AccorHotels, Singapore’s burgeoning identity as a culinary destination has become an opportunity to enhance the group’s F&B strategy. Amir Nahai, CEO food & beverage and lifestyle, AccorHotels, said: “Our F&B (offer) was not where it needed to be. There were a lot of opportunities to improve it for our guests. We’ve embarked on a big transformation,” he said.
Part of this transformation was the acquisition of hotel groups such as Fairmont, Raffles and Swissôtel over the past three years, which has brought AccorHotels “an element of luxury to its F&B”, said Nigel Moore, director of F&B, Fairmont Singapore & Swissôtel The Stamford.
He added: “What we’ve set out to do is position our restaurants as standalone restaurants. In the past, hotel restaurants had bad lighting, bad drinks and unsociable spaces, where you only went because you were a hotel guest and didn’t know where else to go.
“Now, in our luxury (properties), we don’t cookie-cut. So you won’t find the same restaurant in a Fairmont in Mumbai as in Singapore or New York. People come to our restaurants because they like the atmosphere and the food.”
Exemplary of this is the highly anticipated reopening of Raffles Hotel Singapore next year, which will launch 10 culinary spaces, including four new concepts BBR by Alain Ducasse, La Dame de Pic by three Michelin star chef Anne-Sophie Pic, yì by Singapore MasterChef Jereme Leung and Butcher’s Block.
Lifestyle brand naked Group has made three executive appointments for its resort business – naked Retreats.
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Han Zantingh
Charles Young
Caspar P Schmidt
Heading naked Retreats as CEO is Han Zantingh, who has more than 20 years of experience managing business and lifestyle brands. In his new role, he will manage naked Retreats’ business performance and development, and create more opportunities and possibilities for the naked brand. Prior to joining naked, he was most recently vice president of marketing at Carlsberg China, and was previously managing director, Asia for Brainjuicer, and TAG Worldwide.
Taking up the COO role is Charles Young, who joins naked Retreats with over 25 years of hotel management experience, having worked for seven different brands from Hyatt to Marriott. He will focus on the operation and management of naked Retreats, lead customer service, as well as accelerate business development throughout China and the world.
In the position of CEO of naked Retreats international business is Caspar P Schmidt, who joins the naked Group from Sydney’s boutique hotel brand Veriu, where he was ground COO. He previously also spent 13 years with Toga Far East Hotels in several senior management positions in Australia and Europe. With more than two decades’ experience in the hospitality industry. Schmidt is responsible for all commercial operations of naked Retreats’ overseas businesses.
Location
Mytt Beach Hotel is the newest Pattaya property of the A-One Hotel Group, its sleek steel-and-glass exterior rising over its trio of lower-rise sister properties next door.
From its location in north Pattaya, the 236-room hotel is just steps from the beach and Teddy Beach Museum, while a short tuk-tuk ride or 10-minute walk will lead to Terminal 21, the latest retail attraction in Pattaya.
Rooms
I stayed in the 32m2 Deluxe Ocean room, which paid homage to its beach location with motifs of blue ocean swirls punctuating its white-and-beige interiors. The expansive window, nearly extending to the floor, was a constant fascination for my one-year-old who was eager to look at the surrounding buildings, sky and sea.
The bed was a decidedly plush and comfortable affair, and afforded a good night’s sleep even though it was shared with a toddler. Overall, comfort is found in good measures throughout the contemporary styled room and well-equipped toilet.
F&B
The Kitch, the all-day dining restaurant on the ground floor, is the main focal point of Mytt Beach Hotel’s F&B offerings. The cascading light features, marble walls and floorings, red and grey chairs, plus triangle carpeting come together to make a sumptuous setting.
The Kitch, the hotel’s all-day dining restaurant
On the weekend that I visited, The Kitch was a soft bustle of activity in the morning, filled with mostly domestic families as well as leisure tourists. The buffet breakfast spread also featured a good variety of dishes. The Mood Bar, set opposite The Kitch in the striking lobby, offers an inviting spot for coffee and drinks with its curved chairs in purple and grey.
Facilities
An infinity swimming pool is perched on the 12th floor, offering a great vantage point to take in panaromic views of the paragliding and speedboat action in the Pattaya sea. A indoor baby pool and the Melt Bar are tucked adjacent to the main pool.
Other recreational facilities include the Moon Spa, Move fitness centre and The Living Room executive lounge.
View from the 12th floor swimming pool
The 1,000m2 Vertical Ballroom, which can be divided into three separate rooms, is likely the biggest event and function space in Pattaya, accommodating up to 1,500 pax for cocktail receptions.
Service
The hotel is fronted by warm and friendly staff. We were attempting a family self shot whilst in the pool, when a station manager walking by immediately rendered assistance.
Verdict
Outstanding for its price point, topped with great hospitality and interior design. My pleasant time in this hotel made me look at Pattaya in newer light – one that is hippier, contemporary and friendly to families.
No. of rooms 236 Rates From 3,500++ baht (US$106++) Contact details
Tel: (66) 38 259 510
Email: info@mytthotel.com
Soneva Resorts’ new Twin Otter seaplane will start flying guests beginning mid-December from Malé international airport to its two resorts in the Maldives – Soneva Fushi and Soneva Jani.
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The DHC-6 Twin Otter has been completely overhauled, and now sports Soneva’s purple branding colour. In addition, seats have been reduced from 19 to 10 (eight front-facing and two-rear facing) with two additional fold down seats plus two pilot seats. A return trip costs US$1,100.
Sonu Shivdasani, CEO and joint creative director, added in a statement: “The plane will be exclusively reserved for Soneva guests, which means that we can be quite flexible with regards to the operating schedule and luggage limits.”
