THE all-suite Hansar Bangkok has rolled out new full- and half-day meeting packages which are valid until September 30 this year.

Priced at 2,000 baht (US$62) nett per person/day, the full-day deal includes use of a meeting room from 09.00 to 18.00, Wi-Fi Internet access, LCD projector, audiovisual equipment, DVD player, plasma TV, meeting stationery, full-day supply of cookies, tropical fruits, Elefin cappuccino, espresso, tea and fresh juices, as well as two coffee breaks with three items and lunch.

The half-day option is priced at 1,500 baht nett per person/day. It offers meeting groups almost the same features as the full-day package, but with only one coffee break.

To qualify for these packages, a minimum booking of 20 guests is required.

Accommodation rates are from 5,591 baht nett per night, inclusive of breakfast, complimentary mini-bar items and Wi-Fi Internet access. For groups, a minimum booking of 10 rooms applies.

Contact sales@hansarbangkok.com or nina@hansarhotels.com for more details.

HONG Kong Disneyland Hotel has introduced a series of perks for events booked at its premises between April 1 and August 31 this year.

For every 20 paid delegates, one can meet for free at the hotel. A Hong Kong Disneyland premium will also be given to each delegate. Meeting experiences will be enhanced with a refreshment break item tailored to carry the company logo, while planners will enjoy a 50 per cent discount on meeting games.

Furthermore, a 15 per cent discount on Hong Kong Disneyland merchandise will be offered to all delegates.

These perks come with a meeting package priced at HK$825 (US$106) per person, excluding a 10 per cent service charge. Package features include use of a meeting room from 09.00 to 17.00, basic meeting equipment and stationery, set/buffet lunch, two refreshment breaks, all-day flow of coffee, tea and candies, and one ticket to the theme park per delegate for admission after 16.00.

Terms and conditions apply.

Visit www.disneymeetings.com/hongkong/ for more information.

JEFFREY Tan has been appointed director of events at Pan Pacific Singapore, overseeing MICE, group rooms, catering sales, banquet operations and event services for the hotel.

Armed with a decade of experience, Tan has worked at The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore and Marina Bay Sands. He was most recently involved in MICE sales and attractions at Resorts World Sentosa.

Tan is no stranger to Pan Pacific Singapore. He was with the hotel’s sales team from 2006 to 2008, and joined the Singapore sales team in 2009.

“Being an experienced hotelier, Jeffrey is the right candidate…to help us drive our business even further,” said Scott Swank, general manager of Pan Pacific Singapore.

TOURISM New Zealand, which has recently shifted more of its attention to the international business events segment, has scored two major event wins.

Sharing the good news with TTGmice e-Weekly during the New Zealand Week in Kuala Lumpur late March, Mischa Mannix-Opie, regional manager South & South East Asia for Tourism New Zealand, said Auckland had won hosting rights to the Asian Patent Attorneys Association Council Meeting 2017. The event is expected to attract 1,600 intellectual property lawyers, primarily from the Asia-Pacific region, and generate an estimated economic value of NZ$4,095,200 (US$ 3,531,966) for the destination.

New Zealand’s second win is the Asia Pacific Wind Engineering 2017, secured by the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Auckland University. Some 300 delegates are expected and the event will generate an estimated economic value of NZ$850,750.

Mannix-Opie described the business events sector as “a high value market segment”.

“International conference delegates spend an average of more than NZ$3,000, compared with the average leisure visitor who spends on average less than NZ$3,000,” she explained.

She identified China, India, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand as key MICE markets for Tourism New Zealand. The tourism board intends to focus efforts on courting corporate incentives and conferences from Singapore, and on corporate incentives from the other Asian markets.

Tourism New Zealand is also hoping to encourage more business events delegates to stay on for leisure.

These objectives are supported by the Tourism New Zealand’s 100% Pure New Zealand – Beyond Convention campaign which was launched globally last September, targeting associations, conference organisers and corporate decision-makers in key markets such as the US, Australia, China and South-east Asia.

Tourism New Zealand also works closely with a dedicated business events team in various initiatives to grow quality leads. These include sales calls, training, attendance and coordination of the sector at trade shows, familiarisation trips for decision-makers, and the development of online content and sales tools. It also manages the Conference Assistance Programme, on behalf of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, which is aimed at securing international conferences to New Zealand.

HAVING seen double-digit growth in MICE year-on-year, Star Cruises is on course to further grow the business with the delivery of its two 150,000-tonne mega cruise ships in 2016 and 2017.

Michael Goh, senior vice president, sales of Star Cruises and sister company Norwegian Cruise Line, said MICE now contributed between 20 and 30 per cent of total business.

“The mega ships will allow us to offer an even bigger ‘wow factor’ to events on board with their state-of-the art MICE facilities including dedicated MICE function rooms, larger spaces, simultaneous translation, Wi-Fi everywhere, etc,” Goh told TTGmice e-Weekly during the inaugural cruise of SuperStar Virgo, which is being homeported in Hong Kong until October 26.

The mega ships will have capacity for up to 4,500 passengers and their ongoing design planning includes some 33 F&B outlets, compared to the 75,338-tonne SuperStar Virgo which can accommodated up to 2,500 passengers and has 11 F&B outlets.

New MICE programmes introduced by Star Cruises include the launch of a cruise and cycling tour in Penang in 2013 for 60 members of a special interest group. Participation numbers are expected to double this year.

Star Cruises which inaugurated a Singapore SME top executives networking two-night cruise with 50 passengers 12 years ago, is targeting 700 passengers this year. The event features overseas speakers and is open to overseas business associates, Goh said. The Bosses Network Learning Cruise is aimed at Chinese SME chiefs in Singapore.

“When our cruise ships get bigger, our creative team will have the ability to cater to the changing needs of our corporate customers,” Goh noted.

Siemens, high-end houseware firm Grohe, cosmetics and multi-level marketing, pharmaceutical and insurance companies have held incentives and corporate events on board its ships.

“A China MICE buyer wanted something different and new to reward 600 of its top-end performers and we held a special event in front of SuperStar Virgo’s funnel, where 150 bottles of champagne were popped,” he said, adding that the space can be used for a function of up to 600 people.

Yu Yong Jie, director and general manager of Oriental International Travel Service, in Shenzhen, the first to offer cruising on Star Cruises in 1999, said the homeporting of SuperStar Virgo in Hong Kong would help grow its MICE-cruise business.

In August last year, Oriental organised a cruise incentive for 1,300 employees of one of China’s largest wine and liquor companies.

Yu, who was on the inaugural Hong Kong-Kaohsiung cruise, added: “Cruise incentives are still new but are growing among consumer product companies. We offer land tours to Taiwan, and the concept of combining a cruise to Taiwan with a cycling tour is an interesting idea.”

REED Panorama Exhibitions (RPE) is bringing three global events into Indonesia this year and expanding an existing one.

The Indonesia Transport Supply Chain and Logistics and the Mining & Engineering Indonesia will both take place from October 29 to 31 at the Jakarta International Expo.

RPE president director, Michelle Lim, explained that the transport and logistics event is a clone of Reed’s event in France while the mining and engineering show was brought from Australia.

“There are a lot of cross-border collaboration within the group (based on) what (a destination’s economy) needs,” Lim said, adding that the exhibitions will be customised for the market.

These events are focused on the trade, with exhibitors expected to come from Indonesia and all over the world. Buyers are expected to be locals.

“We will start by targeting Indonesian buyers and gradually bring in regional ones,” she said.

RPE is also planning to host the Indonesia Toys, Games & Comic Convention (ITGCC) which will take place in October or November. This pop culture event, which will feature exhibitors like Marvel and Disney, will target both trade and consumer attendees.

“We have been successful with Comic Con in the US and Australia, and had brought it to Singapore (the Singapore Toys, Games & Comic Convention),” noted Lim, who added that the shows tended to draw fans of certain brands who would attend as buyers.

For example, Comic Con has a community that follows the show and some 40,000 fans in the social media who have helped in communicating developments.

“(ITGCC) is a bit different because it comes with exclusives, where (some) exhibitors launch and sell products at the show,” she said.

While the dates and venue for ITGCC are yet to be confirmed, Lim expects the show to draw 100 exhibitors, half of which will be from Indonesia, and some 50,000 buyers and visitors.

Meanwhile, RPE will launch Mega Build Indonesia this week, from April 17 to 20. The event combines the existing Renovation & Construction Expo and KERAMIKA, a ceramic industry exhibition in partnership with the Indonesian Ceramics Industry Association. It will occupy the entire Jakarta Convention Centre.