HERITAGE and culture is everywhere but travel marketing firm MyTravelResearch.com is throwing the spotlight on importance of developing heritage products that will net dedicated history buffs and incidental heritage tourists alike.
In a travel opinion piece, co-founder Carolyn Childs explains that while visiting Starbucks or riding the metro can be considered culture, heritage and culture tourism is “when the trigger for the trip is to visit a place to understand aspects of its history, people, buildings, food, music and customs – its culture”.
These are the dedicated heritage and culture tourists, whom research has shown spend about 10 per cent more than general leisure tourists. The more experienced and educated ones in this demographic can blow up to 36 per cent more in travel expenditure than regular tourists, said Childs.
UNWTO data reports that heritage and culture contribute roughly US$327 billion every year in Asia-Pacific and supports the livelihoods of up to 70 million people, indicating the importance of heritage to tourism here.
As MyTravelResearch says: “Your culture is your brand.”
So how can a destination attract heritage and culture tourists?
Childs advises: “Work with your community to check suitability. Create an inventory of experiences. Ask yourself, is it feasible? The things you have to get right are: agreed objectives, financial planning, proximity to markets, quality and authenticity of products and experiences, interpretation and story telling.
“In short, plan it thoroughly, know your market, be distinctive, go for quality, tell stories, package and theme them, and then measure your progress.”
As Singapore’s thriving hospitality sector grapples with a tightening labour pool, hotels are embracing technological solutions to overcome manpower shortage
Despite Singapore’s land constraints, new hotels continue to pop up on the city’s hospitality scene, sending hoteliers scrambling to innovate their services to balance the labour equation.
According to a CDL Hospitality Trusts report, more than 3,200 new hotel rooms will come online in Singapore this year, and a total of 8,703 new rooms are expected to become available from 2015 to 2017. It added that new room supply will likely grow at a compound annual growth rate of 4.9 per cent from 2014 to 2017.
New hotels that debuted in Singapore last year include the 250-key One Farrer Hotel & Spa, the 134-key Sofitel So Singapore, as well as the 502-key Hotel Jen Orchardgateway Singapore.
Major openings this year include the 654-room South Beach hotel, the 500-room Genting Hotel Jurong, the 300-room Park Hotel Farrer Park and The Patina, Capitol Singapore with 157 rooms.
This begs the question of how hoteliers are coping with manpower shortage, an urgent issue that has plagued the industry over the past few years.
To tackle this, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) recently launched the Hotel Productivity Centre (HPC) in March to help the hospitality sector achieve productivity-driven growth.
Set up as a dedicated competency centre within the Singapore Productivity Centre (SPC), the HPC is designed as a one-stop resource to help hotels address challenges through productivity and innovation solutions.
The HPC seeks to benefit hotel industry through applied research (prototyping and evaluating new technologies, services and solutions); consultancy (diagnosing and solving targeted challenges faced by hotels); benchmarking (comparing Singapore’s hotel industry against international standards); training; and sharing of best practices (educating industry on innovation and productivity best practices).
STB assistant chief executive, Yap Chin Siang, said: “Singapore’s hotel industry is at a critical juncture currently. With rising competition, labour constraints and changing workforce aspirations, hoteliers are facing more pressure than ever to innovate. It is thus timely that an independent, dedicated resource is launched to formulate sustainable growth solutions.”
To kickstart the HPC’s programmes, SPC – which has experience and expertise in implementing productivity initiatives across the retail and F&B sectors – will also work with Republic Polytechnic to bring to the table expertise in capabilities and innovation.
Urging hoteliers to make use of the new HPC, Yap said: “The launch of the HPC is also a key milestone on the hotel productivity roadmap as we strive to foster a culture of innovation, and transform the industry through systematic improvements in productivity.
“We hope that hotels will fully tap on this resource to prototype new technologies and solutions,” he added.
For its first project, the HPC is working with Millennium & Copthorne’s Studio M hotel to devise a sustainable solution to overcome the hotel’s front desk and housekeeping service challenges, and roll out service innovations to enhance the overall guest experience.
Several hotels have already invested in technological innovations to reduce their dependence on workers.
Arthur Kiong, CEO, Far East Hospitality, said: “We must obviously look to technology to improve productivity. (However), this is much easier (to implement) in our new hotels that are currently in the design stage.”
With six hotels scheduled to open over the next three years in Singapore, Kiong said: “We are leveraging on our scale to streamline back end operations and processes. Technology adoption is done strategically and never piecemeal.
“To achieve the required productivity, innovation must start from the customer profile, expectation, product design and finally, the guest experience that we conceptualise,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Crowne Plaza Changi Airport has already started to replace part of its manual labour with new equipment since 2012 and automated some labourious cleaning work, which have since shaved 40 per cent off in time taken to perform related tasks.
For example, the hotel now uses ride-on scrubbers to substitue the manual task of mopping corridors and outdoor floors, as well as scrubbers to replace the task of cleaning toilet floors in guestrooms. Housekeeping staff are also provided with personal digital assistants loaded with information on rooms to clean for the day.
Dina Chong, Crowne Plaza Changi Airport’s director of human resources, said: “This is not just a more efficient way of working but also provides our staff with relevant skills training and knowledge.
“We now face an improvement in terms of our workforce and have sufficient manpower which is on par with what we have budgeted. There are still gaps to fill, but manpower supply is healthy across departments,” she said.
Ibis Singapore on Bencoolen has last year implemented a new mobile conceirge system for guests to access easy self-help solutions.
As 73 per cent of front-desk questions are regarding local recommendations and information such as weather and flight information, front-desk receptionists are often tied up with answering such questions from guests.
Said Jade Stunden, executive assistant manager at ibis Singapore on Bencoolen: “With this mobile concierge, (guests) can find all the information they need just by using this system and can take their time to also browse local eateries and attractions.”
However, Stunden emphasises that the option of approaching their hotel service staff remains available, as not every guest is tech-savvy.
She said: “As long as the guest has the choice of technology or people then you cannot go wrong. Removing all reception staff and having only automated check-ins, for example, would kill the industry.”
In selling your tour operating businesses because you want to focus on the divisions that have ‘attractive longterm potential’ – isn’t that admitting there’s little future in tour operating?
That’s not our message. Tour operating has a bright future. A lot of the business we want to focus on serves tour operators. GTD (Global Travel Distribution, a B2B provider of accommodation and land components, ie, GTA) and GTS (Global Travel Services, comprising Group Travel and Destination Management Specialists) have tour operators as customers, so we absolutely believe in that business model.
Peter Meier
So why exit tour operating?
We believe that in a fast-changing environment, we’re better off focusing on the global B2B businesses where we have a leading position. It does not mean we’re becoming a single leg company: GTD, GTS and VFS (Visa Facilitation Services) are all different businesses. But selling the outbound units (Kuoni Switzerland, UK, Benelux, Scandinavia/Finland, Hong Kong/China and India) reduces complexity for us. It does not mean they are bad or there is something wrong with them. It’s like having children…or say, even for you as a journalist, can you can follow one, two, three companies? Yes. But can you follow a thousand?
But you don’t have a thousand, only a handful of divisions.
Yes, but they are all very different businesses. Kuoni Switzerland for example operates in a mature market, while the tour operating model is different in the Nordics. Those six units don’t buy or sell together, so we have six IT systems, six ways of distribution, etc. And that’s only tour operating. Now add the GTD, GTS and VFS businesses, and the question becomes, can you handle that complexity?
Our conclusion was, sure we could develop the tour operating side, but if we develop everything at the speed of 40 while the world is changing at 50, we would be in deep trouble with all the businesses.
So you pick the few you can focus on and go at a speed of 50.
60! (laughs)
And you chose the ones with the most upside.
Yes, from our perspective, the growth in travel is clearly going to come from Asia, where the middle class is rising. We want to focus on businesses where there is more growth potential than those outbound units which are dominated by Europe, a mature market with limited prospects.
That’s the thing – so why should anyone buy them?
We’re not looking for someone who will have to fix a troubled child, but someone who can take the business to the next level.
It’s different back in 2012 when we exited some of our loss-making tour operating businesses in Europe, ie, Kuoni Italy, Spain, our activity in Russia, etc. In our view, they were far too small, did not have good standing in the market and would not make sufficient money even in good times. So we said at the time we’d either find new owners or close them.
In this case, the businesses are money-making. Sure, the business in the Nordics last year was not money-making for certain reasons, including a super perfect weather in the Nordics, but it was money-making for 10 consecutive years. Overall, the businesses have a certain size and position in their markets.
How much upside do they have?
There is a lot but of course it depends on the market. If you take the smaller markets such as Benelux or Hong Kong, of course it’s fair to say the upside is limited even though they have good market positions. If you take the larger markets like the UK, where the market is large and the brands are premium, the potential is good. We started some years back doing our own retail stores in the UK; we have a partnership with John Lewis (chain of department stores throughout Great Britain) and all this paid off.
When we informed the local management in the UK about the sale, they were not unhappy actually. They had seen in, say, budget discussions, when they wanted to open a couple more stores and we said, OK, you could do half, we like your plan – but your sister or brother has a better and more attractive plan. We’re not helping them at all and so it’s a big opportunity for them if an owner comes along and really focuses on that business – they can grow much faster than if they are second priority in the Kuoni group.
So who will buy you think?
I believe companies who have a similar agenda to us – they want to focus. They are already playing in those markets and they want to grow the business even more by buying something that has the same synergies or can be vertically integrated.
When you choose children to give away, does it hurt?
It is emotional, particularly Kuoni Switzerland – the mother of all our activities. But when we were in decision mode, the emotion had to stay outside of it. It is our job as managers to go by the facts, though it is important we respect those emotions. Investors could see the story but for those in Kuoni Switzerland, it was tough and they had a double shock as, the next day, the Swiss National Bank decided to give up the peg to the euro.
How do you continue operating something you know would be sold?
It’s important people don’t think once we’ve made the announcement, we put the brakes on the outbound businesses or hold back doing something thinking ‘maybe the new owners would not like it’. No, we continue with the plans and activities for all the divisions, including outbound, that have been defined in the budget we want to achieve this year. All the MDs report to Rolf (Schafroth), who is not at all involved in the sale.
What’s your plan for the ‘new’ Kuoni?
GTD, which is managed by Ivan (Walter), knows where it wants to run and will run fast. Similarly, VFS; I was in Dubai and again I saw how innovative they are. The new area is GTS; we want the Group Travel and Destination Management Specialists units to come together but this is something we can build on only after we have progressed with the sale of the outbound units.
With the proceeds from the sale, will you be on a buying spree to strengthen your GTD and GTS divisions or even create another new core business?
For this year, our priority is to find new owners of the outbound units. Once we’ve done that, we will look at what the potential avenues are.
The world is crying with Nepal. But far from being a valley of lost hope, a new Nepal could rise from the ashes of the monster earthquake
Flickr-Bhuwan Maharjan
In the face of a tragedy that looks hopeless and desperate, industry members are envisioning a new Nepal rising from the ashes of the 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck an area between the capital Kathmandu and the city of Pokhara on April 25, the worst since the one that hit Nepal in 1934.
As the world watched in horror at the mounting loss of lives and crumbling heritage monuments, industry players said humanitarian aid is of course the top priority, but believe the disaster is an opportunity for Nepal to rebuild itself later.
As a destination, Nepal was seeing growth. Adventure tour operator Intrepid Travel was enjoying a rise in bookings every year since peace was declared with Maoist insurgents end-2006, said co-founder Darrell Wade. When the quake struck, it had 160 clients either in Kathmandu or on mountain treks, and counts itself lucky the travellers and staff were safe, as getting them back to Kathmandu then home was a feat due to disrupted telecommunications and road/air services.
Likewise, Nepal was doing “extremely well” this year for Marco Polo Reisen, after the long-awaited return of wide-body longhaul flights from Europe by Turkish Airlines. The study tour operator had various small groups strolling through the city at the time of the quake, which made it more difficult to locate them all. Fortunately, a number of the clients had given Marco Polo their mobile numbers before the trip and the operator was able to gather all of them at an agreed meeting place. “Until their departure they stayed in the ground floor of the hotel and finally left the country as planned on Monday evening. The most difficult thing throughout these days was keeping the contact with our local partner due to the non-functional landlines,” said Marco Polo’s managing director, Holger Baldus.
Political stability and arrivals growth gained the attention of foreign investors and, according to Nepal’s Department of Industry, foreign investment commitments in the tourism sector rose a whopping 389 per cent to Rs1.75 billion (US$26.8 million) in the first five months of the current fiscal year over the same period in 2013/14. Commitments were received for 50 tourism projects from investors from 22 countries, twice as many the 23 projects pledged in 2013/2014 fiscal year. The investors were from 22 countries, including Asia-Pacific countries such as China, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Malaysia and South Korea. Among the projects were hotels, casinos and adventure tourism activities.
But what Nepal needs, even before the earthquake, are the ‘basics’ – proper roads, vehicles, toilets, etc, which rotted over the years as tourists stayed away due to its political instability, said industry players. This is why they are pinning hopes on a rebuilding effort “with a vision”.
“Infrastructure has to be restored as soon as possible – but with a vision!” said Baldus. “This catastrophe has to be seen as an opportunity, as (poor) transportation has always been critical, even on the main trunk routes. Flight safety and road safety have to be improved, not only for tourists but for every single person in Nepal.”
David Keen, CEO of Quo Global, a branding agency, called for a “leader” in the rebuilding effort.
“It is critical for the government to repair quickly the damage to base camps at Everest. Adventurers understand the risks with mountaineering but require basic facilities that can be repaired and even improved upon for the next climbing season. I believe this is an opportunity and a marketing opportunity for the country.
“The tourism industry demands a leader who will be able to turn the destruction into a road to recovery and eventually an opportunity. I would think that leader could well come from outside of Nepal,” said Keen, adding that one of the tragedies is the government, and particularly the tourism authority, are ill-equipped to deal with the extensive crisis management required for the industry. Yet, unless Nepal reacts quickly, its image will have a longterm association with tragedy, which will make the recovery period longer, said Keen.
“The loss of World Heritage Sites in Kathmandu is irreparable and so heartbreaking. Yet the magic that is Kathmandu and Thamel will sustain. Ironically it is most likely the hardy backpackers – the original founders of tourism to Nepal – will return quickly and the perception of the country and its recovery will be reflected through them. Very important, therefore, for Thamel to be restored as efficiently as possible as this will be the source of both income and perception in the near future,” Keen said.
PATA CEO Mario Hardy added that Nepal must not let up on marketing and be forgotten. “The first priority is for Nepal to focus its attention on the basic humanitarian help, then rebuild its infrastructure and hopefully find some external assistance to rebuild its historical sites. Despite these tragedies, and the financial burden they may bring to the nation, it is important for Nepal to continue to market the destination and be present at trade shows. Often we see a destination cutting its marketing spending after a tragedy, which is the wrong approach. It needs to carefully think about the messaging, but relations with the media is also key.”
At press time, TTG Asia could not get through to Nepal tourism industry players. PATA, too, was not able to get any feedback from its Nepal chapter members due to a challenge with communications.
Humanitarian aid has been forthcoming, with some US$21 million raised globally as of April 29. The tourism industry has not shied away: Intrepid, for example, started an appeal on Day 2 of the disaster and raised A$208,000 (US$167,000) within 36 hours, and growing. The amount raised goes directly to Nepal, with Intrepid paying for all the administration costs, apart from contributing significantly itself.
PATA Foundation has established a Nepal Earthquake Tourism Recovery Fund, to which it has contributed US$10,000. “Without question, we anticipate a great need for reconstruction of iconic heritage and culture sites as well as interventions to help people and organisations rebuild their tourism businesses,” said PATA Foundation chairman Peter Semone.
Quo Global was exploring the possibility of helping to create a brand initiative to bring back tourism to the country.
Said Intrepid’s Wade: “As an industry and a travelling public, we have a responsibility to pitch in when destinations need assistance. Apart from being a normal humanitarian response, we also have a vested interest to help each other out. If we act together in our support it’s like a built-in insurance policy – you never know when you’ll need that support yourself.”
Added Marco Polo’s Baldus: “We should not leave Nepal alone. Although the quake will have its impact on the rest of the season, the country and its people deserve our full support. Tours to Nepal, especially to Kathmandu Valley, may look different in the future, but Nepal remains a fascinating country worth visiting. Consequently help has to come from all possible sides.”
Keep faith, said Brett Tollman, CEO, The Travel Corporation, pointing to how Japan, for example, recovered faster than expected from the tsunami.
Said Tollman: “We need to keep faith in the great capacity of the human spirit and heart to grieve, recover and then move on, stronger and more resilient than before.
“If we look back on some of the awful natural disasters of just the past 10 years, in almost every case much recovery has been achieved, and tourism has slowly but surely recovered and returned. Just look at Japan and how the recovery happened faster than expected, in many cases without government involvement as the locals got on with it. Today, inbound tourism is as strong as ever, and one hears of capacity problems with hotels, airlift and more.”
This article was first published in TTG Asia, May 15, 2015 issue, on page 16. To read more, please view our digital edition or click here to subscribe.
A SECOND earthquake shook quake-devastated Nepal yesterday, killing at least 48 and injuring over 1,100 people, according to Nepalese authorities.
News agency AFP reported that the 7.3-magnitude earthquake hit north-eastern Nepal at 19km deep, only to be followed by another 6.3 magnitude tremor half an hour later and subsequent aftershocks.
While two major buildings were destroyed in yesterday’s disasters, the districts of Dolakha and Sindhupalchowk absorbed most of the damage, as it did in the April 25 earthquake.
According to AFP, a US Marine Corps helicopter on deployment for earthquake relief nearby was reported missing. Six US Marines and two Nepalese soldiers were on board at that time.
AFTER years in the doldrums, the Network of Independent Travel and Allied Services Philippines (NITAS) has re-emerged with a new direction to foster a culture of networking and arrange B2B transactions between its members and wholesalers.
NITAS’ name change from the original Network of Independent Travel Agencies Philippines and new logo came into effect this month, and gives a more accurate reflection of what it does, said vice president Angel Ramos Bognot.
The NITAS will promote networking not just among travel agencies, hotels and airlines, but also with hospitality schools, restaurants, handicraft shops, and so on, both locally and abroad.
Agencies from Vietnam, Thailand and Sri Lanka have indicated interest in joining, Bognot said.
The group is also actively organising business fam trips that will include meetings with wholesalers rather than just the usual site inspection, as it did with a fam trip to Osaka in February.
More trips are being planned in collaboration with Philippine Airlines and Turkish Airlines.
NITAS is also working on inviting its partners and suppliers to Travel Business Exchange for networking so they can do marketing, promotions and selling on-site, Bognot said.
Formed in the early 2000s, NITAS had over 1,000 members during its prime but was overtaken by the National Association of Independent Travel Agencies until former officers revived it nearly three years ago and formed chapters in Cebu and Mindanao.
INDONESIA would do well to mimic Bangkok’s experience in maintaining hotel rates at a reasonable level for a quicker recovery in the face of falling demand.
This was a key point raised by Jesper Palmqvist, area director of Asia Pacific for STR Global, who was speaking at the Hotel Investment Conference Indonesia in Jakarta yesterday.
“As seen in 2014 in Bangkok, where demand and occupancy took an even bigger hit than currently seen in Indonesia, hotels managed to not drop rates too much and as a result when demand came back, overall performance was up to normal standard quite quickly,” he said.
An STR Global Report also highlighted that there is still room for Indonesia’s room rates to grow towards levels befitting at least the major cities. It also noted Indonesia’s progress in doubling average rates over the last 10 years and moving away from rates generally regarded as “too low”.
After years of consistently strong growth in average daily rate alongside stable occupancy, the Indonesian government’s memo issued last November brought visible drops in demand and occupancy in many destinations across Indonesia by limiting government expenditure on conferences and meetings held in hotels.
As seen previously in China, centrally imposed cuts in government spending for meetings and travel that require hotel stays tend to have a very swift and wide-ranging effect on demand.
Furthermore, while Indonesia as a whole has seen occupancy remain fairly flat in the last seven years, with hotels working to improve daily rates, a surge in new supply most notably in Jakarta and Bali has left an impact on the industry.
STR Global figures showed that the number of people needing a hotel stay was down by five per cent year-on-year and occupancy tumbled 12 per cent in 1Q2015, even as national room inventory continued to grow at eight per cent.
Said Palmqvist: “The good news is rates remain positive compared to 1Q2014 at 3.4 per cent (in Indonesian rupiah). This number would most likely have been higher without the demand drop, but it’s still sending a positive signal of confidence from the hoteliers in the first few months.
ACCOR will launch a new lifestyle brand in Singapore with the opening of ibis Styles Singapore on MacPherson in 4Q2015.
The hotel will share an address with the upcoming MacPherson shopping mall as part of the same complex, situated on the corner of MacPherson and Aljunied Road. It is 20 minutes from Singapore Changi Airport.
Guests can make use of the 298-key hotel’s features including a 25m free-form pool, restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating, pool bar and gym.
A free shuttle service to the city’s attractions will also be available.
The ibis Styles on MacPherson is owned by LVND Hotels, a consortium made up of Lian Huat Group, Nobel Design Holdings and 2E Capital.
INDIAN arrivals to Malaysia for this summer season have improved from last year despite the appreciation of the US dollar against the Indian rupee, said travel agencies that TTG Asia e-Daily spoke to.
Arokia Das, senior manager, Luxury Tours Malaysia, said: “We’re seeing pent-up demand from tourists who didn’t travel last year because of the Indian elections. We’ve also put in more emphasis this year on the luxury segment by customising products as this market is less volatile compared with the mass market.”
Meanwhile, Nanda Kumar, managing director of Hidden Asia Tours & Travel said: “For the family segment, tour packages that are selling well are those that include a theme park component such as Sunway Lagoon in Selangor or Legoland Malaysia Resort in Johor (Bahru). Tours combining Malaysia and Singapore are also doing well.”
Luxury Tours Malaysia has seen a 20 per cent year-on-year increase in demand for this summer, while Hidden Asia Tours & Travel has seen a 10 per cent increase in business from India as compared to last summer.
A Aruldass, managing director of Tourland Travel, said forward bookings for incentives from India from July onwards have also seen signs of increase.
He said: “One of the challenges for Malaysia is competition from neighbouring countries that are offering e-visa such as Singapore or visa-on-arrival such as Hong Kong and Thailand.
“Feedback from travel consultants from India is that the process of getting a Malaysian tourist visa is too long and that the visa processing fee is expensive.”
INDONESIAN hoteliers are putting on their thinking caps to find ways to keep business afloat amid a challenging year that has seen the continuous development of new hotels and a dampened meetings sector.
Recent government regulations to cut officials’ travelling budget and limit the number of meetings held in hotels has taken its toll on the hospitality sector, and forced hotels to rethink strategy.
East Java hotels that participated in B2B tabletop sessions at Majapahit Travel Fair (MTF) in Surabaya last week told TTG Asia e-Daily they were looking at growing their share of leisure market from neighbouring countries.
Oval Hotel Surabaya, for whom a major source of revenue is the meetings business, is one of them. Said executive assistant manager Lenna Martika: “The dip in the government meetings (business) has made us turn to other markets instead, leisure being one of them.”
She said participating at MTF was one way to achieve the target.
Similarly, JW Marriott Hotel Surabaya is diversifying into areas through partnerships with tour operators, OTAs and corporate travel sources. Satriya Tanuwidjaya, the hotel’s director of sales, said: “We are coming up with special offers for tour operators and corporates at this show.”
In the nation’s capital, Indonesia Hotel and Restaurant Association (IHRA) Jakarta Chapter is planning to join forces with the Jakarta City Government Tourism Office and other parties to create special programmes for tourists.
Linda Muchlis, IHRA Jakarta board member, explained: “Jakarta does not have a stop-over package and we need to create some.
“The city has the Jakarta Great Sale festival, which is gaining popularity not only among Indonesian travellers but also among those from neighbouring countries. We will tie up (with the retail association or shopping malls) for additional programmes.”
Despite Singapore’s land constraints, new hotels continue to pop up on the city’s hospitality scene, sending hoteliers scrambling to innovate their services to balance the labour equation.
