MYANMAR’s Ministry of Culture has banned visitors from ascending Bagan’s temples and pagodas, save for five of the largest ones, namely Pya Thet Gyi, Shwe Sandaw, South Guni, North Guni and Thitsar Wadi.

The ministry had earlier issued a complete ban, but allowed for some concession after tour operators voiced concerns over tourist arrivals. Bagan is famed for its sunsets and sunrises.

The blanket ban was issued six days after a video of people dancing on Bagan’s pagodas surfaced, and the ministry sought to prevent the ancient sites from structural damage and to condemn what was regarded as disrespectful tourist conduct.

“We can’t accept this type of behaviour on the top of the pagodas. At the same time, watching the sunrise or sunset from these sites is one of the main tourist activities in Bagan, which we make a point to highlight in our itineraries,” said Phyyu Phyu Mar, spokesperson for Seven Star Travel and Tour.

Mar added that there are ways to preserve the ancient cultural sites while still allowing access, such as more systematic regulations or the building of sunset towers.

Aye Kyaw, managing director of Ruby Land Travel and Tour, agreed that a full ban was not the only option, citing the example of one of Cambodia’s temples. He said: “(Out of concern) that the temple will not be able to withstand (the influx of tourists), metal railings and stairs were built so that visitors were not walking directly on the temple. Provisions have also been made to limit the number of people that can access certain areas of the temple at one given time.”

Bagan is known as the temple fairyland of Myanmar. From the 11th to 13th century, more than 13,000 Buddhist temples, pagodas and monasteries were constructed in Bagan’s 42km2 plain, of which around 2,200 temples and pagodas have been kept intact while another 2,000 remain in ruins.

THE Hong Kong government will be allocating a budget of about HK$380 million (US$49 million) to boost dwindling arrival numbers to the autonomous region, according to the financial secretary’s 2016/17 budget speech yesterday.

Apart from waiving license fees for 1,800 travel agents, 2,000 hotels and guesthouses as well as 27,000 restaurants and operators for a whole year, the government will also subsidise the implementation of information technology (IT) for small and medium-sized agencies through a HK$10 million fund.

Michael Wu, managing director, Gray Line Tours, welcomed the move and estimates that more than 1,500 agencies will be eligible to apply for the IT subsidies.

“The subsidy targets agencies with less than 50 staff who can’t afford IT initiatives like websites and online business development. Through the Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, successful applicants may have half of their IT investment subsidised by the scheme,” said Wu.

However, Angela Ng, managing director of Blue Sky Travel Service is also concerned about maintenance costs that comes after the initial implementation.

She said: “I currently use social media which requires regular updating. If I build a company website, it will also require regular updates and uploads so it means more expenses to bear in the long term.”

Torsten Edens

DIETHELM Travel has promoted Torsten Edens to the newly-created position of group operating director, reporting to Lisa Fitzell, group managing director.

Edens joins Diethelm Travel’s headquarters in Bangkok from his previous role as managing director of Diethelm Travel Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.

He will primarily be responsible for leading Thailand operations, as well as working across all of Diethelm Travel’s destinations to ensure best practices and improve intra-company operations.

Concurrently, Hans van den Born stepped down from his position as managing director of Diethelm Travel Thailand on February 19.

In announcing the changes, Fitzell said: “Hans has played an integral part in Diethelm Travel’s success since joining the company in 2010, and we wish him all the best in his future efforts.

“And with Asia’s inbound growth forecasted to continue outperforming other regions, Torsten’s role will be vital in further positioning Diethelm Travel at the forefront of new opportunities.”

AVERAGE hotel room rates in Asia-Pacific escalated last year, with Tokyo, Sydney and Singapore being the three most expensive cities for hotel bookings, according to research released by corporate travel solutions provider HRS.

The HRS Annual Asia-Pacific Hotel Price Radar indicated that average room rates in Tokyo rose by 30.3 per cent to S$269 (US$191) in 2015, and in Sydney by 6.92 per cent to S$266 and in Singapore by 11.3 per cent to S$262.

In fourth place was Melbourne, which saw a decline of 19.5 per cent in average room rates to S$232. The only other city in the top 10 spot to see cheaper hotel prices was Kuala Lumpur with a 5.6 per cent decrease to S$105 on average per night. Meanwhile, Jakarta saw the greatest year-on-year increase with a 34.8 per cent hike to S$139.

Todd Arthur, managing director APAC at HRS, said: “The rise in business-related travel drive hotel rooms demand, and cities with the top hotel room rates indicates the business hotspots within the Asia-Pacific region.

“Hotel room rates increases are driven by higher levels of business confidence, and our findings are synonymous with the GBTA Foundation’s prediction of global business travel spending to increase 6.5 per cent over 2014.”

The study also finds business travel being relatively unaffected by crisis events. While the Bangkok bombings had impacted leisure travel in some ways, HRS data shows that the city witnessed a 31 per cent increase in room rates in 2015.

As well, hotel nights in Beijing increased by 22.2 per cent despite the city’s smog crisis which appeared in late 2015.

(From left) Juthaporn Rerngronasa, deputy governor for International Marketing, TAT, and Ivan Walter, CEO, GTA

THE Tourism Authority of Thailand, which has “fundamentally changed” its marketing plan to focus on quality experience rather than arrival numbers growth, has roped in GTA and partners to drive upscale travel to the Kingdom in a pledge signed yesterday at the ‘g meet’ in Bangkok.

TAT deputy governor Juthaporn Rerngronasa said TAT is focusing on enhancing a “Thainess” image, one that conjures a quality leisure destination in which visitor experience and length of stay, not numbers, count.

The new emphasis should yield an eight per cent increase in tourism revenue to US$66.5 billion, US$43 billion of which is from the international market, she said.

As part of the new plan, there will be increased focus on digital media and content marketing, including an Amazing Stories initiative, a move to target specific higher-yield niches including luxury travel, cruise market, health/wellness, honeymoons, golf and community tourism.

ASEAN is on TAT’s radar, with plans to promote weekends and road travel in ASEAN with Thailand as an anchor.

GTA’s CEO Ivan Walter said the pledge is more than just a symbol. “We believe that through our partnership, we will be able to encourage more upscale travellers to visit Thailand to appreciate indigenous travel experiences – lavish accommodation and personalised unique on-the-ground excursions. But most importantly, we want people to enjoy pleasant interactions with Thai culture, its environment and its greatest asset – its Thai people.”

Other GTA partners that have joined the commitment include AccorHotels, AIS, Caissa Touristic, Compass Hospitality, Derbysoft, Far East Hospitality, Flight Centre, JTB, MakeMyTrip, Metglobal, Minor Hotel Group, Onyx Hospitality Group, SiteMinder, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Thai Airways International and Tuniu.

Tan: Sabah safe for tourists

THE Malaysian Association of Tour & Travel Agents (MATTA) has expressed regret over the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s decision to raise the terrorism threat level for the islands off Sabah from ‘general’ to ‘high’.

The advisory warned “against all but essential travel to all islands off the coast of eastern Sabah from Kudat to Tawau, including (but not limited to) Lankayan, Mabul, Pom Pom, Kapalai, Ligitan, Sipadan and Mataking”.

Tan Kok Liang, inbound vice president, MATTA, said: “The travel advisory was based on a high-profile kidnapping in May last year. But crime and terrorism can happen anywhere and anytime. It is a global issue not exclusive to Sabah.

“For example, a group of terrorists killed 130 people and injured another 368 in Paris last November but there was no travel advisory against visiting France or the capital city, and rightly so.”

Tan added that he was prepared to host stays for those issuing travel advisories so that they can report on the actual safety and security situation, instead of creating fear and frightening tourists away from Sabah.

He also said that reports from the ground indicate there are no imminent threats to the public.

“The travel advisory would be more fair and balanced if the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office had verified information with the Malaysian Ministries of Home Affairs or Foreign Affairs,” he said.

Walter: New ownership will help us

GTA anchors itself on a Vision 2020 as parent Kuoni Group puts itself up for sale and travel distribution continues to be fast changing.

The largest business unit of Kuoni pondered out loud its future yesterday, hosting an inaugural ‘g meet’ in Bangkok where it flew in a select group of suppliers, clients, technology companies and media to openly discuss the future of intermediaries.

Kuoni’s Board of Directors is supporting a takeover bid by Swedish private equity company EQT.

Meanwhile, competitor TUI is also seeking to sell Hotelbeds, with EQT speculated as a suitor. All this, along with current disrupters such as Airbnb and yet-unknown ones, is enough fodder to overturn a cart. But GTA’s CEO, Ivan Walter, stays rooted with a vision of GTA being the market leader by 2020 as “the world’s easiest travel distribution partner to do business with” – which he said is not as easy as it sounds.

The market is huge, complex and fragmented, said Walter. “Our mission is to reduce the complexity in the next few years. We have spoken to suppliers and clients in a structured way, asking them: What is it that you find painful? What is it that we could streamline, facilitate and make easier?”

A lot of components needs to happen before a room or an excursion can be sold to a client, he pointed out. “So how do we engage our technology partners to make it a rounded, easy and seamless experience? How do we embrace mobile, or help facilitate clients who do not have the funds to go digital? How do we evolve our portfolio so that the inventory, rates, products are relevant to clients and suppliers? We have over 200 million requests on price and availability every single day, how can we mine this data to benefit us all? How can we mobilise a sales effort to deliver business to suppliers and destinations that they find hard to get by themselves?”

The intermediary hotel market is worth US$170 billion, said Walter, and while giants like Expedia and Priceline are taking a lot of share, there are thousands of smaller players out there who try to innovate and give a different digital experience. “We can facilitate their growth (through inventory, technology, HR support, etc),” said Walter, alluding to the vast opportunities that exist for GTA.

But to fulfil the vision, GTA needs to invest in technology and people. In an interview with TTG Asia, asked whether the Kuoni sale clouds the vision, Walter said on the contrary, “new ownership will help us” in terms of resources to grow organically and inorganically.

“As well, today we are part of a listed company, which means obligations to communicate results and meet shareholders/analysts’ expectations. In a private environment, the obligation is less, so we can actually focus a lot more on mid and longterm targets to get us to where we want to be,” he said.

A Kuoni Group statement said EQT “is committed to invest” to enable the company to grow and strengthen its position as a leading service provider to the global travel industry and governments and to further increase its profitability. Group CEO Zubin Karkaria together with the current management team will continue to lead the company.

Asked if morale is affected with Kuoni first selling of its tour operating division, then the current sale bid, Walter said: “Absolutely not as people (within Kuoni) see the opportunity that we can move faster. We are in a growth market. It’s good news for everyone.”

– More reports in TTG Asia, April issue