TOKYO will get a new luxury hotel in summer 2016, although analysts warn that the Japanese capital is still short of high-end accommodation.

Seibu Holdings has announced plans to open the Prince Gallery Tokyo Kioi-cho hotel on the site of the Grand Prince Hotel Akasaka in the city’s Chiyoda Ward. The 250-room hotel will occupy the top six floors of a 36-storey building, which will also house offices, retail outlets and residential units.

The most luxurious property in the Seibu group’s hotel portfolio, rates are reportedly significantly above the 20,000 yen (US$170.73) per night average in a Tokyo hotel.

That is unlikely to put visitors off, however, as Tokyo faces a shortage of rooms at all price points.

A study conducted by CBRE in November determined that if inbound tourism continues growing as anticipated and meets the government’s target of 20 million visitors in 2020 – when Tokyo will host the Olympic Games – there will 14,000 people without accommodation in the city every night of the year.

The shortage of hotel beds is slightly less acute in Osaka where the shortfall is around 7,000 people per night.

“Whenever we interview investors and hotel brands, the number one market where they want to be in Asia is Tokyo, and the city is in the top five in the world,” said Arthur Buser, executive managing director of CBRE.

“We believe that anyone who can build a hotel in Tokyo should go ahead and do so and that they will do fairly well.”

New luxury hotels that have recently debuted in Tokyo include the 329-key Millennium Mitsui Garden Hotel and the 84-unit Aman Tokyo.

TRAVEL consultants attending South Beach’s last North Asian roadshow pit stop in Hong Kong yesterday welcomed the leisure complex’s launch in April, saying it provided one more option for customers going to Singapore.

The showcase had travelled to Beijing, Taiwan and Hong Kong and will continue on through South-east Asia for the rest of the month, to be followed by India, Australia and the UK later on.

Wing On Travel, deputy general manager for South-east Asia and longhaul operations, Simon Ma, said his clients tend to stay in five-star hotels when in Singapore and South Beach is a new option. “Singapore is home to a range of hotels, from heritage hotel and integrated resorts to this new (development). It’s good to have something different.”

Lotus Tours, general manager, sales for corporate, whole and retail, David Law, said: “This creates more noise for the destination. Apart from business travellers, South Beach can also tap travellers who want an individualised place and premium experience.”

South Beach Consortium CEO, Aloysius Lee, commented: “The integrated resorts (Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands) have been up for five years and hotels in town are quite full, especially for luxury hotels, which enjoy 85 per cent occupancy.

“It’s difficult for consultants to make bookings there so our property comes at the right time. It will coincide with Singapore celebrating its 50^th anniversary of nationbuilding, so there will be a lot of promotions (for the travel industry).”

South Beach also held a roadshow in Tokyo earlier this month to entice the Japanese market.

CAPITALAND-OWNED serviced residence operator The Ascott Limited last week launched another handful of new properties and has plans to further its regional footprint.

Ascott has opened the 203-unit Citadines DPulze Cyberjaya, its first property in Malaysia’s Multimedia Super Corridor; the 136-unit Citadines Grand Central Sri Racha in Thailand that is also the group’s 10^th property in Thailand; and Somerset Central TD Hai Phong City in Vietnam, the ninth Ascott in the country.

Lee Chee Koon, Ascott’s CEO, said: “Last year, we opened 17 properties and added 28 with over 4,800 apartment units to our global portfolio. Besides expanding through acquisitions, management contracts and leases, we secured our first franchises in Vientiane and Bali. We also formed strategic alliances in China and Australia to accelerate Ascott’s growth.

“In 2015, there will be no let-up in our expansion. We are on track to achieve our target of 40,000 apartment units worldwide by the end of this year and aim to have 80,000 units by 2020.”

Ascott intends to continue building its portfolio in cities in Asia, Europe and the Gulf region.

INTERCONTINENTAL Hotels Group (IHG) will operate the 268-room Holiday Inn Busan Seomyun, the first IHG hotel in South Korea’s second-largest city of Busan.

Located in the city’s CBD Seomyun, the hotel is a short drive from the international airport, city hall and the Busan International Finance Centre.

When it opens in 2017, Holiday Inn Busan Seomyun will feature a fitness centre, a rooftop swimming pool, meeting rooms and a business centre, a lobby lounge and all-day dining restaurant on the 20^th floor.

The hotel is owned by SiLee and will be managed by IHG. Karin Sheppard, COO, Australasia, Japan and Korea and AMEA franchising, said: “There is thriving tourism across South Korea’s major cities and as its second-largest city Busan is also one of the fastest-growing destinations in the country.

“We’ve identified a number of opportunities for growth and are especially pleased to be entering Busan with one of our most well-loved brands, Holiday Inn.”

There are also plans for the redevelopment of the area surrounding the hotel to convert it into a lifestyle hub including Busan Central Park and SSH Boulevard Park.

IHG currently operates eight hotels and resorts in South Korea under its InterContinental and Holiday Inn brands.

GENTING Jeju Casino officially opened its doors yesterday as Genting Hong Kong’s first gaming facility in South Korea.

Located in the Hyatt Regency Jeju Hotel, Genting Jeju Casino is equipped with world-class gaming facilities that include 29 gaming tables and 16 slot machines.

The gaming facility is jointly owned by Landing International and Genting Hong Kong in a 50-50 split.

The casino is Landing International’s pioneer casino project.

Yang Zhihui, chairman of Landing International, said: “The opening of Genting Jeju Casino marks a big step forward on the company’s development of integrated resort and tourism properties in the global markets.

“As one of the most striking landmarks in Jeju, Genting Jeju Casino is expected to drive tourism and retail growth in the city, further enhancing Jeju’s leading position in South Korea’s tourism.”

SRILANKAN Airlines has halted all flights through the country’s secondary airport to “rationalise” scheduled operations, part of a wave of changes sweeping the Sri Lanka after a government overhaul earlier this month.

A statement issued by the airline said it would be able to save US$18 million by adjusting services to Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) – increasing Middle East flights while cutting “underperforming routes such as Moscow”.

Following incumbent president Mahinda Rajapaksa’s failed bid to secure an unprecedented third term, ceding his post to opposition candidate Maithripala Sirisena, Sri Lanka has seen an immediate shake-up in government and a probe on corruption.

Built in his hometown and taking Rajapaksa’s name, the airport has ended up generating a colossal loss. “(SriLankan) was losing massive amounts of money by operating flights to this airport (which was) built at a cost of nearly 27 billion Sri Lankan rupees (US$205.5 million) in an area of 2,000ha,” an aviation ministry official said, declining to be named.

Industry officials, who also refused to be named, said that Mihin Lanka, Flydubai and Rotana Jet are the other carriers using MRIA. “But this will stop now that SriLankan is not flying,” one official predicted.

With airlines set to stop using MRIA, officials said the facility could be converted into a flying school and used for capacity building in the aviation sector.

NORTH America is Myanmar’s next big target and the Myanmar Tourism Federation (MTF) last Saturday inked a three-year contract with US-based marketing agency, Solimar International, to attract more tourists.

Both parties will work to position the South-east Asian nation as an undiscovered destination for North American travellers and draw high-value, low-impact tourists to ensure tourism in Myanmar remains sustainable over the long term.

To achieve this, Solimar’s task is five-fold, said Phyoe Wai Yar Zar, joint secretary-general of MTF and chairman of Myanmar Tourism Marketing.

Solimar will run the recently launched MTF office in Washington DC to field inquiries from tourists, trade and media; promote Myanmar in the media and organise press trips for US media; develop strong relationships between Myanmar and North American travel operators; create an online presence for MTF; and attend trade events in North America on MTF’s behalf.

The contract is the first time Myanmar is promoting itself with support from an international tourism marketing agency, said Phyoe Wai Yar Zar.

THE Hotelplan Group has emerged as a suitor for Kuoni Switzerland.

CEO Thomas Stirnimann confirmed with TTG Asia e-Daily “we are looking at it” when asked if the company was keen to buy Kuoni Switzerland.

“I guess we would be the best owner by far,” he said when asked for his views on who would be the likely buyers of the outbound businesses Kuoni has put up for sale.

If the deal goes through, Hotelplan would consolidate its position in Switzerland, where it is the second-largest tour operating company after Kuoni.

Asked about the future of the tour operating business, Stirnimann said: “We can only say that it is working out well for us, but you needed to adapt a couple of years ago. Today there is no more B2B or B2C business but only business with which you serve all channels.”

Now that Kuoni has made known its intention to sell its outbound units, a few sources interviewed speculated that potential buyers could be the bigger players in the Middle East, private equity companies, or other non-travel related investors.

“I would be surprised if any of the larger travel groups in Europe purchased them given their current directions, although maybe Flight Centre might see value in their global expansion plans,” opined Chris Bailey, senior vice president sales & marketing Centara Hotels & Resorts Thailand.

On who they wished would buy, several Kuoni groundhandlers in the region are wistful.

“There are not many companies that invest in customer care and training like Kuoni does. Many talk about it but pass it to the ground agency to carry it out. Kuoni ensures the ground agency understands what the brand stands for, how important the customer is to Kuoni and why you should be proud to be part of the Kuoni group. The annual training for our staff looking after Kuoni customers are well organised and gives our staff a sense of pride to be a part of Kuoni,” said Judy Lum, group vice president sales and marketing, Tour East Singapore.

Lum wished Kuoni would reconsider. “I had hoped they would synergise the model of GTA with Kuoni tour operating and be the first to be able to give the consumers what they expect as a holiday, yet deliver the efficiency in the booking process for the customers of today. I know the business models of GTA and Kuoni are different worlds but they serve the customers of the same planet who expect a lot from each,” she said.

A source lambasted Kuoni for the sale announcement. “I do not think that it is wise to announce a sale of a company when you have no buyer.

“Firstly you demoralise your own staff, secondly you discourage existing and new clients to book with you, and thirdly you devalue your own company image/share value,” said the source.

Centara’s Bailey shared some of that sentiment. “All situations like this have an impact on the staff (I have seen a few myself [as a tour operator before]), however upbeat the message from management. It’s the fear of the unknown and potential change that always disrupts people’s attention to their day job.

“On the other hand, as I said before, if staff can be engaged with the change and kept in the loop with regular updates, then they can go the extra mile during this transition period.

“The other threat is of course from the competition as it’s often an opportunity to cherry pick talent and or commercial arrangements in such times.”

Kuoni contracting managers contacted by TTG Asia e-Daily on the impact on them did not respond at press time.