Koh Yao Yai in Phang Nga Bay currently lacks international-brand hotels
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has partnered Soraya Development Company to bring the InterContinental Yao Yai Resort to Phang Nga Bay’s largest island, which lies between southern Thailand’s mainland and Phuket Island.
Scheduled to open in early 2020, the new-built 170-key InterContinental Yao Yai Resort will offer four main room categories, including 72m2 ocean view rooms, one of which is a suite offering panoramic views on the top floor, complete with plunge pool; and rooms and suites in a family-designated buildings featuring water slides, pool access and the Planet Trekkers Programme.
Koh Yao Yai in Phang Nga Bay will welcome an InterContinental hotel in 2020
In addition, guests can choose from tropical villas – 18 one-bedroom units situated on the lagoon and creeks – and beachfront pool villas – comprising 10 one- bedroom, one two-bedroom, and one three-bedroom units that boast unblocked ocean views.
The property will feature three restaurant and bar outlets, a gym, pool, spa and resort centre, a Water Facilities Centre, high-end transfers to and from the hotel, as well as meeting facilities and wedding arrangements. Special occasions can also be arranged at the private sandbank during low tide periods.
The hotel will be situated half an hour from Phuket and Krabi airports as well as Phuket and Krabi private piers, and 700m from Bird-Nest Island and Phang Nga Island.
Following a trial in the first half of 2017, The Fullerton Hotel and The Fullerton Bay Hotel Singapore have replaced all printed compendiums in guest rooms with Samsung tablets housing the Tapendium Digital Concierge Solution.
Using the e-compendium technology by Tapendium, guests can browse and request the hotels’ in-house services; order room service with intuitive menus that recommend complementing dishes and drinks; book hotel restaurant tables and spa treatments; as well as research Singapore’s tourist attractions and events.
The app shows you all you need to know about the hotel’s offerings
Giovanni Viterale, general manager of The Fullerton Heritage, said: “From January to October 2017, we received a high guest satisfaction rating for the new in-room digital concierge service, which also acts as an e-Compendium. In the long-term, this will deliver cost savings and drive sustainability as part of our efforts to become a more environmentally conscious organisation.”
Bringing luxury to the great outdoors, Pavilions Hotels & Resorts will in June 2018 launch pop-up tented camps nestled in Mongolia’s Orkhon Valley National Park.
Throughout the summer season, The Pavilions Mongolia will offer 20 luxurious gers (circular Mongolian tents) and activities such as horse riding, archery, fishing, photography, mountain biking and kayaking.
Luxurious tented accommodation for guests
Gordon Oldham, founder and CEO of The Pavilions Hotels & Resorts, said: “With its collection of traditional Mongolian gers this unique camp offers complete cultural immersion with a wide range of outdoor activities, including many traditional Mongolian pastimes, in a truly spectacular setting.”
Travellers interested in learning about the traditional nomadic lifestyle can also take part in workshops on carpet making and cashmere production, or attend Mongolian horse races, polo matches (polo training sessions with ‘chukkas’ and instructors are also available) and traditional archery competitions.
Experience local and traditional activities and take in the great outdoors
The Pavilions Mongolia will serve as a convenient base from which to explore Orkhon Valley National Park, which is home to some of Mongolia’s natural wonders. On a daily basis, guests can head out on foot or on horseback to discover the rolling green hills, lush valleys, dense forests and swirling rivers that surround the camp.
In addition, guests will be offered day trips to historical sites such as Karakorum, the first capital of the Mongol Empire; Khar Balgas, the ancient capital of the Uighur Empire; and Tovkhon Monastery, either by 4×4 vehicle or on horseback.
The Pavilions has joined forces with The Genghis Khan Riding & Adventure Camp, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to the preservation of Mongolian culture and providing education and support for local children.
The majority of the proceeds from The Pavilions Mongolia goes to The Genghis Khan Riding & Adventure Camp, a non-profit supporting the preservation of Mongolian culture and providing education to local children such as through summer camps and English lessons.
The 360km journey from the Mongolian capital, Ulaanbaatar, to The Pavilions camp takes guests on a scenic six-hour drive.
Rates start from US$600 per adult and US$420 per child (two to 16 years of age), including all meals, daily activities, massages and yoga classes.
Location
The only hotel in Vertis North shopping mall stands in Quezon City, a burgeoning business district with varied entertainment, dining and retail options. The hotel is a stone’s throw from the MRT North Station, in the heart of an ever-expanding shopping area. Trinoma Mall sits beside the MRT and serves as a meeting point for groups, buses and coasters to Clark in Pampanga and other provinces up north.
Club Room
Rooms
Departing from the boutique scale of the six older Seda hotels, Seda Vertis North’s 438 keys is nearly double the number in other Sedas.
In the minimalist yet inviting Club Room are two comfy beds and a spacious en suite suite bathroom. A thoughtful touch is the triangular sofa with round accent table that easily holds a meal or a laptop. Paired with an ottoman, the table can be transformed from dining to meeting or working purposes.
Facilities
Compared to other Seda properties, the hotel has a bigger ballroom at 700m2 and more function rooms.
In the lobby, several kids milled around the wooden table with Mac computers. Families larked around the pool area, while business people utilised the club lounge. Other facilities include a spa, a gym and areas for morning yoga and Zumba.
Pool area
F&B
After a taste of creative pica pica (finger food) at Shoot Up Roofdeck Bar, including choclate-coated crunchy chicharon (fried pork rinds), we were expecting a special treat when we were invited to the Chef’s Table. Still, we were unprepared for the extent to which chef Kerpatrik Boiser went to make this lunch the most memorable part of our staycation.
After we were seated at the country-style ballroom kitchen, the team got to preparing an eight-course feast. All courses did not disappoint, but worthy of special mention was the melt-in-the-mouth foie gras served with braised beef. The red-wine marinated pears, goat’s cheese and balsamic dressing in our salad whetted appetites, while the chocolate ala Bomb was a delightful ice cream surprise.
The Chef’s Table gets a 10 for the venue, presentation, creativity and service, without detracting from food and flavour.
Service
Great. We remember the chefs who could also sing, the reception staff who looked for our goddaughter when she arrived late via MRT, and the lady at the Club Lounge who allowed us to enjoy breakfast beyond the appointed time.
Verdict
This homegrown hotel brand proves that it is on par with foreign brands.
No of rooms 438 Rates From US$106/night Tel: (63) 2 739 8888
Flight Centre agents will use Amadeus Selling Platform Connect and integrated mobile and business intelligence capabilities
Amadeus has announced it will be one of the partners providing distribution technology for Flight Centre Travel Group’s business across 17 countries in EMEA and Asia.
Flight Centre will also be a driver customer in the creation of Amadeus’ new NDC-enabled solution, as well as give input into its design for travel sellers.
Flight Centre agents will use Amadeus Selling Platform Connect and integrated mobile and business intelligence capabilities
This means travel sellers like Flight Centre will be able to give customers a richer choice of fares and the option to book NDC-powered ancillary services within an already familiar working environment, according to Amadeus.
Flight Centre’s travel agents will adopt Amadeus Selling Platform Connect and integrated mobile and business intelligence capabilities in the following markets: EMEA (the UK, Ireland, Netherlands, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, South Africa, Namibia and the UAE) and Asia (Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia and India). In Australia and New Zealand, Amadeus will also provide technology solutions for some of Flight Centre’s OTA businesses.
Rajiv Rajian, executive vice president of business travel at Amadeus, said: “As we progress on our NDC-X programme, we’re also evolving our entire travel platform to bring together all relevant content from any source (GDS, NDC, proprietary APIs, and aggregators) to be distributed via any channel or device. The first evolution of our platform is underway and will give travel sellers, like Flight Centre, access to more content, and will give airlines (greater) flexibility to distribute their products and offers.”
Amadeus is aiming to attain NDC level three certification as an aggregator this year, followed by delivering a first fully scalable solution to travel sellers worldwide in 2019.
Grab says the Uber app will continue to operate for two weeks, while Uber Eats will run until the end of May
Grab is acquiring Uber’s operations and assets in South-east Asia including Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
The move marks Uber’s further retreat from international operations, following the sale of its China business to local rival Didi Chuxing in 2016 and Russian business to Yandex last year.
Grab says the Uber app will continue to operate for two weeks, while Uber Eats will run until the end of May
As part of the deal, Uber will take a 27.5 per cent stake in Grab and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi will join Grab’s board.
The online-to-offline company will integrate Uber’s ridesharing and food delivery business in the region into Grab’s existing multi-modal transportation and fintech platform.
Anthony Tan, Grab’s group CEO and co-founder, said the acquisition “marks the beginning of a new era” and the merger will drive better cost efficiency and services for customers in the region.
However, the Competition Commission of Singapore (CSC) stated that it has not received notification of the merger, reminding that along with Singapore’s competition laws, it prohibits mergers that may result in a “substantial lessening of competition”, the Singapore’s Straits Times reported.
CSS indicated it could “require the merger to be unwound or modified” to prevent an erosion of competition”.
In a statement, Grab said it believes the acquisition will add to vibrant and competitive ride-hailing, delivery and transportation spaces, and stated it will make a merger notification to CCS.
The ban is widely supported in Australia (photo credit: Stanislav Fosenbauer / Shutterstock.com)
A ban on climbing one of Australia’s iconic tourism sites has been accepted as a necessary decision by local tour operators, with some calling for restrictions on even more sacred sites in various parts of the country.
The Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park Board will impose a ban on the controversial practice of climbing Uluru, also known as Ayers Rock, in the heart of the Northern Territory’s “Red Centre” from October next year.
The move has prompted speculation that other sacred sites would follow suit, sparking a debate between those who want to protect the sites and those who want respectful visitors to continue to have access to these locations.
The ban is widely supported in Australia’s tourism sector (photo credit: Stanislav Fosenbauer / Shutterstock.com)
But Intrepid Travel’s regional director Brett Mitchell thinks the decision to ban the Uluru climb for them is uncomplicated. “For us, that decision should have come a lot sooner,” he said.
“Yes, it’s a (bucket list thing for some travellers) to get to Uluru but once you’re able to explain why it’s sacred, those that might have been inclined to climb it will conclude that it’s a no-brainer not to climb it. So we haven’t had any negative feedback in that sense.”
The ban has long been supported by Tourism Central Australia, where CEO Steven Schwer believes the change won’t impact tourist numbers to the region. “The (tourist demand to climb Uluru) used to be a lot more prevalent than it is these days,” he said.
“Less than 20 per cent of all visitors who enter the park now climb the rock and the numbers are continuing to diminish. And what’s interesting is there are far more people who complain that the rock climb is still open than those who complain about it being closed.”
More than 300,000 people visit Uluru every year, with tourists choosing to climb the rock despite a sign by the traditional land owners expressing their wishes for visitors to avoid climbing the spiritually significant landmark as that is seen as offensive to the Anangu people.
Advocates for the ban have also cited safety issues, pollution and environmental degradation. There have further been reports of visitors disrespectfully stripping on the rock or using it as a toilet because of the lack of facilities.
“There are so many other ways you can experience the Ayers Rock these days that there’s no reason to climb it,” said Schwer. “There are segue tours around the base, also bike tours, helicopter flights, camel tours, the SkyShip which is an aerial experience, a Sounds of Silence dinner (to name a few) so it’s really just not necessary anymore to climb to feel like you’ve been there and experienced it.”
Mitchell would also welcome restrictions placed on other sacred sites in Australia like Purnululu National Park in Western Australia or Gariwerd National park in Western Victoria’s Grampians area. “Mass tourism is a concern and particularly in Australia where we’ve just got a very fragile environment. It’s a growing issue globally,” he said, adding that tourism has an important role to play in sustainability.
Ronnie Lan, general manager of Great Holidays, which specialises in inbound tourists from China, says his clients will be disappointed about the ban but will accept it. “It’s just the way it is,” he remarked. “I don’t think it will sway tourists to other destinations because Uluru is (quite) unique.”
The ban has also put into question continuing access to climbs on hiking attractions like Wollumbin-Mount Warning in North-east New South Wales and St Mary Peak in South Australia’s Flinders Ranges.
Building awareness of the Prince brand beyond Japan (photo credit: Prakhob Khonchen/Shutterstock.com)
Half a year since acquiring Australia’s StayWell Hospitality, Japan’s Prince Hotels is set to make its mark beyond its home ground, with two new brands about to be unveiled and plans to more than double the combined portfolios in 10 years.
For Prince Hotels, which has a stronghold in Japan, the acquisition has given it geographic diversity, and hence better “protection from peaks and declines, economic time frames and environments”, said Stan Brown, former executive vice president of Prince Hotels and now chairman and director of StayWell Holdings.
“The biggest difference is the risk is not just in Japan anymore. One example is right after the (Tōhoku) earthquake in March 2011, it was very difficult for hospitality players in the country, and for Prince especially because we didn’t have hotels in other regions,” he elaborated.
Making Prince brand better known outside Japan (photo credit: Prakhob Khonchen/Shutterstock.com)
The goal is to grow the combined StayWell and Prince portfolios from about 88 properties today to 250 in 10 years, approximately 100 of which will be outside Japan and 150 of them StayWell hotels. A check on the hotel websites shows Prince now has seven overseas hotels, while StayWell’s full portfolio of 36 is outside Japan.
“Prince and Seibu have expertise and talent in Japan, but not (beyond). StayWell, operating in eight countries, brings (the relevant) expertise and language skills to the table,” Brown noted.
But a larger and more diversified portfolio is just one part of the strategy. Victor Osumi, managing executive officer of Prince Hotels, said: “One of the main reasons for expansion outside Japan is to create brand awareness, which will feed inbound business to Japan. Inbound used to be 20 per cent of total business, and we now have 36 per cent. It’s becoming a huge piece of business, but we want that to continue to grow.”
With Singaporeans making up 800,000 of Japan’s inbound visitors and other South-east Asian markets fast growing, “we really need the brand in Singapore and Bangkok”, Osumi continued.
Simon Wan, president and director of StayWell Holdings, added that Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur are also on the expansion map. Beyond South-east Asia, expansion will also take place in Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Taiwan, Oceania, the Middle East, Europe and the US.
To build recognition for Prince outside of Japan, the company will introduce a new five-star brand, which Brown says will have the name “tweaked a bit but with Prince still the key component”.
Another new lifestyle concept will be rolled out, with properties piloting a mobile app that allows users to select rooms and enjoy quicker check-in, Wan told TTG Asia. Such innovations, he said, are long overdue in the hospitality sector and would allow hotels to better cater to the needs of today’s guests and wrest bookings back from OTAs.
Brown further shared: “The parent company has a stronger balance sheet, so it will allow us to develop (while) still keeping the brands that we have. Prince has significant brand equity – probably the most of any brand in Japan, so we’ll keep Prince within Japan.”
He added that StayWell brands likewise “will stay”, with slight tweaks to the Park Regis brand.
Even as the company expands, Brown hinted that its moderate scale will remain a strategic anchor, adding that the portfolio will be kept to around half a dozen brands.
“Because of the big players and the consolidation that has occurred, you have saturation in given markets. A lot of owners look at us as (not having that) saturation so they get much quicker response when dealing with us. This has been one of our key strategic successes,” Brown said.
Offering more destinations on their joint network, greater schedule choice and increased frequent flyer benefits
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has reauthorised an existing partnership between Qantas and Emirates until 2023.
The approval came on the heels of Qantas inaugurating Perth-London services, a more direct alternative to the traditional routes with stops in Dubai, Hong Kong or Singapore. The Australian carrier on Sunday also swapped Dubai for Singapore as a stop along its popular Sydney-London route, in addition to a recent announcement to enter into a partnership with Singapore Airlines and Changi Airport to promote Singapore as a preferred transit point.
Offering more destinations on their joint network, greater schedule choice and increased frequent flyer benefits
Signalling a continued importance of Dubai connections from Australia, the renewed joint business agreement will see Emirates and Qantas offering more destinations on their joint network, greater schedule choice and increased frequent flyer benefits, according to Thierry Antinori, Emirates’ executive vice president and chief commercial officer.
Qantas International’s CEO Alison Webster commented: “With three options to get to Europe; via Perth, Singapore and Dubai, and greater frequency across the Tasman, the ACCC’s decision allows us to continue to jointly provide the best network, the best service and the best frequent flyer programmes for millions of customers travelling between Australia/New Zealand and the UK and Europe.”
No lifeguards despite after a company was contracted to provide the service
The International Surf Lifesaving Association (ISLA) is requesting for the US State Department to issue a level three travel advisory warning of the “extreme danger” in waters surrounding Phuket, according to a report by The Phuket News.
A level three advisory cautions travellers to avoid travel due to “serious risks to safety and security”.
No lifeguards despite after a company was contracted to provide the service
Factors considered in ISLA’s decision include “the global drowning epidemic”, the south-west monsoon in May that makes Phuket’s waters dangerous and the fact that hundreds have drowned in the waters in the past decade.
Moreover, ISLA pointed out that the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organisation (PPAO) does not provide professional ocean lifeguard service despite collecting money form US citizens for the service in the form of a hotel tax.
Quoting an ISLA resolution, The Phuket News reported: “ISLA requests that this level three travel advisory remain in place until the existing internationally certified lifeguard force is fully funded, operational, and able to provide lifeguard services that meet international standards.”
The Phuket News also understood from Daren Jenner, ISLA’s warrant marine safety officer – Phuket specialist, of the controversy surrounding PPAO’s “quick and quiet” awarding of a 13 million baht contract to Laikhum to provide 98 lifeguards on the destination’s beaches from March 1 through September 30, announced only on February 28.
Laikhum has yet to post any lifeguards at any Phuket beaches. Under the contract, the company cannot do so until it has provided a list of names of the lifeguards it will hire to the PPAO for approval.
Update [March 27, 14.30]: The original article was updated to correctly reflect the value of the contract awarded to Laikhum.
