A Grand Prix event will be held in Hanoi from April 2020, the first new race to be announced under Liberty Media’s takeover of Formula 1.
The event forms part of Formula 1’s strategy to broaden the appeal of the sport and to reach new audiences around the globe, while also demonstrating a “firm commitment to Asia”. The event is already established in Singapore, China and Japan.
The first new event since Liberty Media’s takeover of F1 will be a street race around a 5.565km track in Hanoi
Hanoi city promoter, Vingroup, secured a multi-year deal to host the Grand Prix, which will begin as a street race using a 5.6km track in the heart of the city.
It will work with Hanoi city authorities and the Formula 1 Motorsport department to bring the event to fruition.
Chase Carey, chairman and chief executive, Formula 1, commented: “Since we became involved in this sport in 2017, we have talked about developing new destination cities to broaden the appeal of Formula 1 and the Vietnamese Grand Prix is a realisation of that ambition.”
Nguyen Duc Chung, chairman, City of Hanoi, said: “(Securing this deal with F1) is a demonstration of Vietnam’s ability to host events on a global scale and attract tourism to the country. It provides an opportunity for inward investment to Vietnam and importantly to bring the exciting wheel to wheel racing of Formula 1 to the people of Vietnam.”
On top of bringing social benefits such as job creation, infrastructure upgrades and potentially more international events being hosted in Vietnam, the event also provides an opportunity to “proclaim the first Vietnamese car manufacturer, VinFast, to millions of audiences around the world”, Nguyen Viet Quang, vice chairman and CEO, Vingroup, shared.
About 60 establishments in Boracay have been issued with notices of violation
The Philippine trade is observing a strong pent-up demand for travel to Boracay from January 2019 onwards, but what’s less clear is whether the popular beach destination, which reopened last month after a six-month closure, is ready to cope with the visitor influx.
Alta Briza Resort Boracay is already fully booked from January till March, director of sales and marketing, Teody Espallardo, told TTG Asia.
Trade players continue to question the destination’s readiness to receive tourists
“Boracay has an appeal of its own. During its six-month closure, tourists were diverted to Cebu and Bohol but they (the two destinations) did not replace Boracay,” Espallardo explained.
Coast Boracay and Blue Marina Resorts general manager, Randy Salvador, said the domestic market currently dominates visits to the island but the foreign market will likely catch up in 1Q2019.
“This quarter we expect South-east Asian nationalities and by early next year, we expect more Europeans, Americans and Australians,” Salvador said.
Still, hotels, resorts and travel agencies are managing tourists’ expectations by informing them beforehand that while Boracay’s beaches and waters have been cleaned up, the main road’s construction is still ongoing. Moreover, transport can be a problem and only 157 hotels out of 500 have been accredited and reopened at press time.
Wholesaler Blue Horizons Travel and Tours (BHTT) disseminated to overseas agents a two-page report* detailing the situation to protect itself from complaints and refunds especially from “sensitive” source markets like Europe, a major one for the company, said senior sales and marketing manager Marjorie Aquino.
Tourism Congress of the Philippines president Jojo Clemente said it’s good that the pent-up demand for Boracay is from January onwards, as this buys the island some time for further rehabilitation before the arrival of more tourists.
Clemente, however, is concerned about the absence of night lights on the beachfront. Lights nailed to trees have since the island’s closure been removed as part of broader environmental rehabilitation efforts.
“Another accident waiting to happen” is the “dangerous” use of a wooden plank for passengers disembarking from boats, Clemente said. Safer options should be provided for visitors to get on and off boats, he demanded.
Espallardo’s concerns are how the authorities will monitor the carrying capacity of 19,000-plus tourists per day and confusing statements from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, which is in charge of the island’s rehab, which can change “on a daily basis”.
* The new ayes and nays in Boracay per BHTT’s overview report:
Ayes ‘One entry, one exit’ policy – before taking the boats to Boracay, tourists need to queue up at the tourism information counters outside the terminal building, log in their names, present their resort voucher/confirmation then ‘rubber stamped’ on the arm with the insignia that says ‘verified’. The guard at the pier will check this mark before allowing tourists to board the waiting boats.
Nays On beaches – sunbeds, umbrellas, cocktail tables and couches; smoking and drinking; hawkers and vendors; beach parties, fireworks display and sand-making activities.
Water and land activities – diving, ATV driving, island hopping and parasailing
Malaysia is planning generous budget allocations to tourism, including RM100 million (US$24 million) in matching grants to support the private sector in promotional and marketing campaigns overseas.
The country’s finance minister, Lim Guan Eng, announced plans for the grant scheme while tabling the 2019 Budget.
Grants to encourage private sector players to promote the destination overseas
The scheme could help the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia to achieve its target of 30 million foreign tourist arrivals by 2020, contributing RM100 billion in tourist receipts. Last year, the tourism industry contributed 14.9 per cent of the national GDP or RM201.4 billion.
For some inbound tourism players, grants are much needed as international marketing can be a costly exercise.
Uzaidi Udanis, president, Malaysian Inbound Tourism Association, said: “The cost of promotions is not cheap. For example, to participate at WTM in London, each tour operator has to spend at least RM30,000 for three days.”
Moreover, Sutra Group of Companies managing director, Syed Razif Al-Yahya pointed out the private sector’s complementary role in destination marketing.
He explained: “Tourism Malaysia may not have a physical presence in certain overseas markets due to budget constraints but inbound operators strong in those markets could apply to use the funds to do their own marketing.”
Lim further shared that half the country’s tourism tax proceeds, estimated at RM50 million, will be shared with the state governments to encourage and assist tourism activities in these states.
In addition, the government will make available RM500 million worth of loan facilities via the SME Tourism Fund with SME Bank at a two per cent interest subsidy. This will assist handicraft makers and homestay operators to expand their businesses.
The finance minister added that the federal government will provide tax free incentives to Swettenham Pier in the form of duty-free shops in a bid to improve cruise tourism.
Moreover, the Langkawi’s duty-free island status will be further expanded and enhanced, while Pangkor Island will become the country’s second duty-free island after Langkawi.
Meanwhile, to encourage domestic tourism, the government proposed to impose a departure levy for all outbound travellers by air starting June 1, 2019.
The proposed rate is two-tiered, RM20 for outbound travellers to ASEAN countries and RM40 to other countries, which the government said is consistent with Thailand (US$20), Hong Kong (US$15) and Japan (US$10).
Grab's Anthony Tan (left) with Hyundai Motor Group's Euisun Chung
Hyundai Motor Company and Kia Motors Corporation will invest an additional US$250 million into Grab as the three enter a partnership to pilot electric vehicle (EV) programmes across South-east Asia.
Under the EV partnership, Grab and the Hyundai Motor Group affiliates will also bring together stakeholders from the EV industry to collaborate on measures to improve EV adoption and awareness in the region.
Grab’s Anthony Tan (left) with Hyundai Motor Group’s Euisun Chung
Grab, Hyundai and Kia will launch a series of EV pilot projects in South-east Asia, starting with Singapore in 2019. The pilot projects will focus on utilising EVs to maximise cost efficiencies for Grab’s driver-partners.
The deal will see the carmakers add 200 vehicles to Grab’s fleet, according to a Straits Times article.
The partnership will also include working with regional stakeholders including governments and infrastructure players to improve EV infrastructure in the region, such as through the building of a network of quick-charge stations.
In addition, the partners will explore the development of customised maintenance packages to Grab EV drivers and conduct research into how EVs can be most efficiently deployed in South-east Asia under its hot and humid climate conditions.
The three companies will further explore how to customise EVs to optimise them for mobility service platforms.
The additional investment builds on Grab’s existing strategic partnership with Hyundai and brings Grab’s current fundraising raised to US$2.7 billion. Grab is on track to raise over US$3 billion by the end of this year.
Investors in Grab’s current financing round include Booking Holdings, Microsoft, Toyota, and global financial institutions such as OppenheimerFunds, Goldman Sachs Investment Partners and Citi Ventures.
Hyundai first invested in Grab in January, and the two companies proceeded to exploring collaborations in the EV sector.
Grab’s latest initiative expands its cooperation with the Korean automotive group to include Kia.
In August, Grab announced a partnership with Singapore’s energy utilities provider, SP Group, to use SP Group’s public EV charging network for its EVs.
“As home to one of the world’s fastest growing consumer hubs, South-east Asia is a huge emerging market for EVs,” commented Youngcho Chi, Hyundai Motor Group’s chief innovation officer and head of strategy & technology division.
In a departure from its by-invite tradition, the 2019 WTTC Global Summit, set to take place in Spain’s Seville on April 3-4, is now open to industry professionals keen to attend the event.
This will be the first time industry professionals will be able to attend WTTC’s annual summit by paying a recovery fee — interested participants can write to summit@wttc.org for further details. Until now, the summit has been by invitation only, encompassing WTTC members and travel leaders.
The skyline of Seville at dusk
The 2019 summit will be centred on the theme of Changemakers to “(outline) a future vision of travel & tourism with the pioneering individuals and disruptive ideas that will make it happen”, Gloria Guevara, WTTC president & CEO, said in a statement. Entrepreneurship, innovation, and inclusivity will be at the core of conversation throughout the summit.
WTTC has revamped the Tourism for Tomorrow Awards categories to introduce a special Changemakers Award to mark the summit’s theme, alongside the Social Impact Award, Destination Stewardship Award, Climate Action Award and Investing in People Award.
Applications for the Tourism for Tomorrow Awards are open and will close on November 14, 2018. Visit wttc.org/T4TAwards for category guidelines, case studies on past winners, and the application form.
Meanwhile, destination hosts Ayuntamiento of Seville, Turismo Andaluz and Turespaña are leveraging the WTTC Global Summit to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the departure of the first circumnavigation of the world, which set out from Seville.
Juan Espadas, Mayor of Seville, said: “The global summit will demonstrate the extraordinary economic and tourist potential of Seville. It offers a great opportunity for entrepreneurs to recognise the possibilities of investment in the city and for tourists to see Seville as a destination of global importance.”
Francisco Javier Fernandez, tourism minister of Andalusia, added: “The WTTC Global Summit is a great opportunity to continue strengthening the international positioning of Andalusia, which is known as one of the world’s leading tourism regions.”
Luxury tour operator Scott Dunn has named COO Sonia Davies as global CEO, an appointment that will take place with immediate effect.
Former CEO Simon Russell will relocate to San Diego in the spring and take up the role of international director to further develop Scott Dunn’s global expansion. Scott Dunn Asia CEO, Chang Theng Hwee, will continue in his role of spearheading growth to further establish the brand in the region.
Davies joined Scott Dunn in London in January 2018 as COO, leading the company’s global business operations of marketing, people, IT and product. Most recently she also managed the acquisition and integration of Asian-based tour operator Country Holidays, which now trades as Scott Dunn in Singapore and Hong Kong.
She has worked across a number of different industries, including chief commercial officer at private aviation company NetJets and European Change Director at Sysco.
These roles, along with eight years in strategy consulting at Bain & Company and The Parthenon Group, have given Sonia significant experience leading and working with UK based, as well as pan-European and global teams.
The guide identifies innovations that help Singapore hotels address manpower challenges
The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and The Hotel Innovation Committee (HIC) yesterday unveiled a slew of projects that encourage technology adoption and innovation by hotels.
Supported by STB, HIC launched the Smart Hotel Technology Guide outlining the vision of a smart hotel and relevant technologies already available to help realise this vision.
HIC’s guide identifies innovations that help Singapore hotels address manpower challenges
The guide puts forth a vision of a smart hotel as one that allows guests to check-in independently and asses their room through a smart device, with a robot delivering their luggage to the room.
A video analytics system supporting facial recognition could zero in on a guest leaving the hotel with a suitcase and send an electronic bill to the guest to complete the check-out process.
Food and drinks consumed from the minibar could be automatically computed in the bill, eliminating the need for a manual stocktake.
The guide also features case studies of hotels and organisations that have successfully implemented such innovative solutions.
According to a joint statement released by STB and the Singapore Hotel Association (SHA), which leads HIC, the vision “is no longer a pipe dream… as many of the technology solutions required are already available in the market today”.
Technologies identified in the guide include real-time marketing distribution and review tracking solutions, artificial intelligence, machine learning and predictive analysis, biometrics recognition and video analytics, the Internet of Things, among others.
“It is critical for the hotel industry to look beyond the present and learn to innovate and be future-ready,” said Ong Huey Hong, STB’s director of hotels and sector manpower.
While many hotels are already working towards learning to innovate and be future-ready, she said they may have limited capacity to explore and evaluate the many solutions available.
“Hence, the guide and the directory are very good starting points for solution providers to showcase their offerings to the industry and for hotels to search for smart solutions that best meet their needs,” she added.
To facilitate link-ups between hotels and technology vendors, HIC also launched the Hotel Technology Directory. To date, more than 70 local and foreign vendors with solutions ranging from facial recognition to Internet of Things can be found on the directory, providing hotels with a one-stop portal to source for technological solutions and start their transformation journey.
With the first Smart Hotel Technology Guide focussed on front-of-house operations, plans are underway to create a version targeting the back-of-house in 2019.
Other collaborations between STB and HIC planned include a new Hotel Innovation Challenge, which will seek innovations in emerging solutions covering areas including big data, blockchain technology and sustainability, on top of housekeeping and F&B jobs.
As well, Workforce Singapore, in partnership with STB and SHA and supported by the Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union, has embarked on a Job Redesign Project to develop a Job Redesign Toolkit for the hotel industry. Slated for publication in the first half of next year, the JR Toolkit will complement the hotels’ transformation journey by helping them identify opportunities for job redesign.
Alongside these efforts, the new Advisory Committee on Human Capital Progressive Practices for Hotels, led by SHA and supported by STB, WSG, FDAWU and NTUC’s Hospitality and Consumer Business Cluster, will also work with the hotel industry to develop more progressive human resources practices to equip the industry with a future-ready workforce.
The travel information publisher forays into trip planning
The travel information publisher now also offers trip planning services by local experts
Travel publisher Rough Guides will from winter 2018 start creating bespoke trips “packed with personality and adventure”.
In addition to Rough Guides books, blog, and podcast, the company now also offers bespoke itinerary planning by a local expert.
“As our readership has evolved over the years, we’re conscious that not everyone wants to travel the same way… As part of our commitment to continue to serve adventurous travellers of all ages, we’re proud to launch our tailor-made trips,” commented CEO Rene Frey.
Belitung, a new alternative to Bintan for Singaporeans seeking getaway
Hopes are high that Belitung will soon join the ranks of Bintan to become a getaway destination for Singapore travellers, with Garuda Indonesia’s newly launched service linking the Lion City to the east Sumatran island.
On October 29, the Indonesian flag carrier commenced four-times-weekly services between Singapore and Tanjung Pandan in Belitung, operated with a Bombardier CRJ 1000 aircraft.
Belitung, a new alternative to Bintan for Singaporeans seeking getaway (photo credit: Tiara Maharani)
Over the last three years, Belitung has emerged as hot destination for locals, with domestic tourism driving tourism growth of over 25 per cent.
Arief Yahya, Indonesia’s tourism minister, said that scheduled flights to Belitung could unlock greater tourism growth and investment, especially given that infrastructure is already “very good and continues to be developed”, coupled with the “extraordinary natural and cultural potential” in the destination.
Pikri Ilham Kurniansyah, Garuda Indonesia commercial director, said: “Belitung could be an alternative to those who are already bored with Bintan. With a less-than-an-hour direct flight from Singapore, Belitung is a perfect short getaway destination.”
He added: “This (new service) is just the beginning. If the demand increases, (there is potential of it becoming) a daily flight.”
The new flight is lifting hopes of Belitung’s ascent to the international stage among the destination’s tourism stakeholders.
Karmila Santy, chairman of the Association of The Indonesian Tours and Travel Agencies (ASITA) Belitung Chapter, added: “What we have long dreamed of has finally been realised. Last year we collaborated with the government to organise a charter flight with Sriwijaya Air. From this charter flight, a network was formed, and the market also began to realise that there’s a new destination (option). But the charter is no longer running and we lost the market.
“This Garuda service going to convince people to take a vacation to Belitung.”
In the near future, ASITA Belitung Chapter plans to conduct a sales mission in Singapore as part of efforts to attract more international visitors.
Karmila also hopes that the Garuda Indonesia flight will spark the development of flight connectivity to Belitung by encouraging more airlines to open routes from other countries. “Hopefully it can be from Malaysia, China and others.”
Sharing Karmila’s enthusiasm is Fhia LF, director of Belitung Archipelago, who made a sales call to Singapore with a few other agents following Garuda Indonesia’s announcement of the inaugural service on October 29.
“We directly contacted clients in Singapore and are actively promoting Belitung. Our mission is to introduce Belitung, so that people know that (this) beautiful destination exists.”
With greater awareness of the destination, visitors “will come”, she foresees.
Meanwhile, Arief shared that the Ministry of Tourism will provide promotional support for airlines or entrepreneurs looking to bring international visitors to Belitung.
From left: Standard's Amar Lalvani, Sansiri's Apichart Chutrakul and One Night's Jimmy Suh
The Standard, a boutique hotel brand, and One Night, a last-minute boutique hotel booking app, are expanding in Asia – first starting with Thailand.
The foray of both brands into Thailand was unveiled yesterday by Sansiri, coming on the back of the Thai real estate giant’s recent expansion into the global hospitality, technology and lifestyle industries through an investment worth US$80 million in six global brands.
From left: Standard’s Amar Lalvani, Sansiri’s Apichart Chutrakul and One Night’s Jimmy Suh
Apichart Chutrakul, CEO, Sansiri, said: “In November 2017, we announced our investments in several global brands that are leaders in the hospitality, technology and lifestyle businesses as part of Sansiri’s move to expand our collaborative, multi-disciplinary portfolio beyond real estate development. I’m delighted to share that only one year on, the investment has helped to fuel impressive growth that will see two of the brands – The Standard and One Night – expand into the lucrative Asian markets, with Thailand as their first port of call.”
He added: “The strategic partnerships with such strong and exciting brands will strengthen Sansiri’s core real estate business… The arrival of both The Standard and One Night in the Thai market marks another important step to be followed by several more in the future.”
The Standard has doubled its secured global footprint following Sansiri’s acquisition of a 35 per cent stake in the parent company for US$58 million. The boutique hotel brand currently boasts a portfolio of six properties and a combined 1,200 rooms (including the soon-to-open London property).
Ten properties are slated to open across the world over the next few years, as part of its five-year plan to develop 20 hotels globally in urban and resort locations, including London (opening 1Q2019), Paris, Milan, Berlin, Lisbon, Prague, Madrid, Chicago, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Atlanta, Dubai, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Bangkok, Phuket, Hua Hin, Jakarta and Bali.
Amar Lalvani, CEO, Standard International, said: “Our first hotel in Thailand will be in Phuket where we will also introduce the first Standard Residences product in partnership with Sansiri. Thailand is a particularly attractive market with the growth in visitors, and the fit with The Standard brand giving its thriving culinary, fashion and arts scene. We have chosen to open our regional office in Bangkok to oversee all of our operations in Asia and the Middle East.”
Commenting on the launch of Bangkok for One Night, Jimmy Suh, the app’s president and co-founder, added: “Bangkok represents the ideal market for One Night – a last-minute hotel booking app offering a highly curated collection of the most sought-after independent hotels at the lowest rates.”
One Night, which is operating in 15 major cities in the US and London with over 170 independent hotels, is projected to be in 30 cities by year-end 2019, including more cities in Asia and Europe.
