TRADE players in East Malaysia are excited that the recent boost in new air services linking Sabah and China will pave for more robust two-way traffic between the two destinations.

AirAsia will begin daily services between Kota Kinabalu and Wuhan from January 22, 2016, while China Southern Airlines will introduce thrice-weekly flights from Guangzhou to Kota Kinabalu from December 1.

Meanwhile, Malaysia Airlines and Universal Charter have entered into an agreement to operate 180 charter flights between Kota Kinabalu and Tianjin, Nanning and Chengdu from December 15 until March 31, 2016.

Earlier, Spring Airlines resumed four-times weekly charter flights between Shanghai and Sabah since October 25.

Welcoming the surge in China-Sabah air links, Mint Leong, managing director of Sunflower Holidays, said: “We have come out with new Sabah itineraries involving islands and beach holidays. Sabah is an easy sell as it has lovely beaches and clear waters.”

Malaysian outbound players are also keen to tap the new air connections to venture into other parts of China.

Apple Vacations & Conventions group managing director, Desmond Lee, said: “The new flights allow us to do quality in-depth tours to exotic locations. For example, from Chengdu we can go further and include tours to Tibet and from Wuhan we can also offer Yangtze cruises.”

Recognising a potential challenge in getting traffic from Kota Kinabalu’s small outbound market, Mayflower Acme Tours deputy general manager – channel management, Abdul Rahman Mohamed, commented: “We welcome the charter flights but the charterers should get the Malaysian outbound travel agents involved to form a consortium to fill up the empty leg from Kota Kinabalu to China.”

CONSTANCE Hotels and Resorts in 1H2015 has recorded double-digit growth from the Chinese outbound market to its properties in Mauritius and the Seychelles, driven by good air accessibility and visa-free access for Chinese travellers.

The business forecast for its two properties in Mauritius and the Seychelles remains rosy for 2016, said Tsang, especially as Britain’s Prince William and Princess Catherine had spent their honeymoon in the Seychelles in 2011, raking up great interest from the Chinese market to visit the destination.

On the other hand, its two properties in the Maldives, Constance Halaveli and Constance Moofushi, saw a single-digit drop in Chinese guests in 1H2015.

Carol Tsang, regional marketing director for Constance Hotels and Resorts Hong Kong Office, explained: “The ‘heat’ to visit the Maldives had cooled since mid-2015 and with the current political instability, I foresee a slowdown of Chinese traffic to the Maldives in 2016.”

As suspended chartered flights from China may not resume once stability returns to the Maldives, Tsang expects the numbers of Chinese guests to drop on a bigger scale compared with the past three years. Marketing focus will hence be placed on attracting repeat travellers and families from China instead of first-timers and honeymooners, she added.

In spring 2015, Constance Hotels and Resorts had established an office in Beijing to market its overseas properties in China, in addition to hosting fam trips for the trade and media as well as active participation in roadshows organised by Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority and Seychelles Tourism Board across different Chinese cities.

EASTERN European countries courting the Chinese market are keen to develop more niche tourism products next year to attract wine and gastronomy aficionados, golfers and wellness travellers from China.

“Educating the travel trade in Eastern Europe on the interest and travel needs of the Chinese traveller will be an ongoing process,” said Zsuzsa Vincze, a representative of the China-Central and Eastern European Countries Economic and Trade Cooperation Network formed last year.

She added: “China is an emerging market for Eastern Europe, and the growth is mainly driven by direct flights from Beijing to Prague, Budapest and Warsaw.

“We would like to encourage more direct flights from Shanghai and Xi’an to fly to Eastern Europe, as that will encourage more arrivals from China,” she said.

Since the launch of Air China Beijing-Budapest services via Minsk on May 1, Vincze told TTG Asia e-Daily that Hungary has enjoyed a 44 per cent year-on-year growth in tourist arrivals from China. There were approximately half million Chinese visitors to Eastern Europe in 2014.

Vincze said the network is educating East European hotels and restaurants to become more Chinese-friendly by rolling out facilities like hot water, free Wi-Fi and Chinese menus.

The network also works closely with China National Tourism Administration to promote tourism between China and Central and Eastern Europe.

According to Vincze, the Chinese counterparts will provide product presentations in Eastern Europe next year to promote different regions in China including Kunming and its surroundings.

Additional reporting by S Puvaneswary