A Thai soldier on duty following the bomb blasts. Credit: Facebook/สามล้อกู้ภัย บรรเทาศูนย์สอง

THE United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) have condemned the spate of bombings perpetrated on Thai soil last week.

A series of coordinated bomb attacks hit popular tourist spots such as Hua Hin and Phuket between August 11 to 12, leaving at least three dead and many more injured. The bombs struck during Thai Queen Sirikit’s birthday, a national holiday, and days prior to the first anniversary of Bangkok’s Erawan Shrine attack.

“We would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to the victims, their friends and families,” stated WTTC’s president and CEO David Scowsill.

“Having spoken with Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul minister of tourism and sport from Thailand about the security steps being taken from the government, we are confident that the situation will stabilise and return to normal very quickly, as it has done after challenges in the past.”

He added: “Despite the bomb attack at the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok in August 2015, Thailand’s visitors grew by 20 per cent last year to 30 million travellers and the money they spent grew by 25 per cent over the same period. The country will continue to be a key tourism destination for travellers.”

Unwavered by the incident, the two international tourism bodies are also going ahead with upcoming plans to hold key travel events in Thailand.

“Thailand is one of the most consolidated tourism destination in the world. A destination where people of all cultures unite and enjoy tourism and its strong potential to foster development. We are fully confident that this will continue to be the case and we look forward to meet in Bangkok on September 27 for the official World Tourism Day celebrations,” said UNWTO secretary-general, Taleb Rifai.

“More than ever we need to work together to make a great success out of the celebrations of World Tourism Day, this will be the best expression of support and union against these hideous acts.”

Concurring, Scowsill said: “We are looking forward to supporting Thailand on September 27 at the official World Tourism Day celebrations, and to holding the prestigious WTTC Global Summit in Bangkok in April 2017.

“It is important to remember that tourism is a force for good: it brings people from different cultures and backgrounds together, something that Thailand as a destination manifests beautifully.”

FEARS that the acceptance of Chinese yuan in Cambodia may fuel the circulation of fake currency have been raised by tourism-related businesses.

The country’s Ministry of Tourism had earlier in June urged businesses to accept Chinese currency as part of its ‘China Ready’ initiative.

It hopes the move will help attract more Chinese – Cambodia’s second largest market after Vietnam – to the country, with the ultimate aim of luring two million tourists from China by 2020.

However, some are worried it could lead to more counterfeit notes circulating the country, as well as losing out on exchange rates.

Sok Chenda, general manager of Mekong Guesthouse, said: “We already have problem with US dollars that are not real. How will we know if the yuan is real? This could be a big problem.”

Kimhean Pich, CEO of Discover the Mekong, adds that problems could arise through fluctuating exchange rates and a lack of knowledge about the yuan.

“It needs much more thought than deciding one day to accept a foreign currency,” he said, adding that promotion of the country’s own currency, the riel, should take priority.

The US dollar currently accounts for an estimated 83 per cent of total transactions and more than 90 per cent of banking deposits in Cambodia.

The Gongbei Port of entry. The city of Zhuhai in Guangdong is a major border crossing between Macau and China

VISITORS from Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia who attempted to enter China from Hong Kong using a 144-hour convenience visa were rejected by Chinese immigration officers since earlier this month.

No advance notice or reason was given for the action. Agents interviewed speculate that security is being stepped up to eliminate the threat of terrorism ahead of the G20 Leaders Summit to be held in Hangzhou from September 4-5.

“I understand a handful of group visitors were rejected last weekend without any advance notice,” said Holiday World Tours’ managing director Paul Leung. His Hong Kong-based agency sends several hundred group visitors from South-east Asia across the border every week.

“The visa issue definitely affects our business. Now, I have to inform our clients to apply for a China visa and this means additional cost to them. So far, Guangdong authorities have told the Travel Industry Council that the suspension is due to system upgrades, but there is no sign of when the service will be reinstated. Rumours are that it is a security concern, but nobody can verify.”

Operators in Macau are also facing the same obstacle. Estoril Tours Travel’s director of sales Johnny Choi, said: “As reported in the newspapers, visitors from Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand have been rejected and this is obviously related to the G20. We have about 1,000 guests from South-east Asia travelling to China with this convenience visa so the impact to our operations (is huge).

“We earn less but there is nothing we can do about government policy. For those who can’t proceed to China, they either extend their stay in Macau or travel to Hong Kong at additional cost as their group fare tickets are fixed with dates.”

Choi added that the visa service will resume on September 15, according to hearsay.

Olivia Au, general manager of Century Holiday International Travel Service Shenzhen, said the company had groups rejected at Gongbei in Zhuhai last weekend so all travel arrangements in China had to be cancelled. It even had to bear extra accommodation costs when putting the groups up in Macau.

She said: “An urgent meeting was called up (on August 11) by the authorities but there is no explicit answer to explain why and which countries are affected. However, we were told the situation will be back to normal after September 15.

“As it takes time to apply for visas, I reckon large operators like us may lose 2,000 pax on average during this period. We recommend South-east Asian clients apply for Chinese visa before departure because nobody can guarantee (entry). Frankly, this is not uncommon as our government had in the past ramped up national security when staging iconic international events.”

Launched in November 2000, the 144-hour Convenient Visa enables foreign nationals in Hong Kong to visit Guangdong for a maximum of 144 hours (six days) via entry points in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, Zhaoqing, Huizhou and Shantou.

Visitors must join a tour organised by a registered travel agent comprising a minimum of two persons and a maximum of 40 persons.

JAPAN and China holds the potential to be the strongest source market for Singapore during the Great Singapore Sale (GSS) period, which comes to a close this weekend, according to findings by market research consultancy Kadence Singapore.

Respondents from Japan and China indicated they were “highly likely” to fly to Singapore during the period. The two markets also showed greatest awareness, with 85 per cent and 84 per cent of people, respectively, indicating their knowledge of the retail event.

Explaining the findings, Patrick Young, Kadence Singapore’s insight director said that the Japanese are more avid travellers in general. The fact that many airlines ply between Japan and Singapore also contributed to the result.

Additionally, the price of airfares may also be factored in seeing as travellers for the GSS are likely to be deal-savvy individuals. This means the availability of low-cost flights could also affect traveller decision making processes.

The appointment of UnionPay as the official card for this year’s GSS shows that the Singapore Retailers Association, organisers of the event, are stepping up efforts to lure more Chinese shoppers to the city-state as well.

However, the retail scene in Singapore has been sluggish, with year-on-year retail sales figures for June, the month when the GSS usually begins, being on the decline over the past two years, according to Singapore’s Department of Statistics.

Retail business outlook is also dim. While the July-December period is expected to see an improvement of 7 per cent over the April-September period in terms of net weighted balance, the July-December period is predicted to see a sector performance of negative 8 per cent compared to the same time last year.

Young suggests taking into account “certain nuances between the countries” so that brands taking part in the GSS can better cater to individual markets and thus boost their allure.

“For the Japanese there is a big focus on omiyage, which is a culture of taking home a souvenir for friends and family. So how much is the GSS tailored to these small but significant items that the Japanese will buy?”

“It’s not so much tying in with UnionPay or a similar brand, it’s more about having in your portfolio products which can relate to that market,” he added.

Young also cited the upcoming Singapore Grand Prix as a good example of how an event is able to better lure visitors by going beyond its core demographic.

The annual racing event attracts not just sporting fans but a large number of international visitors by staging concerts, parties and family activities. The GSS could do something similar to lure arrivals beyond shoppers alone.

“What else can we do to broaden the GSS beyond sales?” he said.

GSS 2016 runs for 10 weeks from June 3 to August 14 this year, the longest sale period for the annual event to date.

INDONESIA’s Ministry of Tourism is inviting small travel start-ups and hotels to take part in the upcoming PATA Travel Mart (PTM) 2016.

The ministry’s deputy minister for international marketing development I Gde Pitana said during a press conference in Jakarta yesterday that the trade show will be an excellent platform to get them to network with international buyers.

“Having PTM in Indonesia is a big opportunity for businesses in Indonesia to gain international experience with buyers,” he said.

“However, many of them have small promotional budgets. Therefore, we invite them to take part as sellers at the Indonesian pavilion with a very special price offered by PATA.”

The offer is only open to members of the Indonesia Hotel and Restaurant Association and the Association of the Indonesian Tours and Travel Agencies.

Additionally, companies need to have been in operation for at least one year and not more than five years. As well, hotels have to be individual properties.

“They will not be getting pre-scheduled appointments, naturally. However, they will have access to the buyers’ list and will be able to request for appointments directly online or during the onsite buyer-meet-seller session,” added Pitana.