VIETNAM-based Luxury Travel will raise the curtain tomorrow on joint venture company Asia Premium Travel, marking the debut of Cambodia’s first high-end tour operator.
Headquartered in Siem Reap with a branch in Phnom Penh, Asia Premium Travel will offer upscale inbound/outbound operations, luxury adventures and custom tours, among others. Luxury Travel is the main shareholder in the new tour operator.
Explaining the rationale behind a Cambodian joint venture operation, Pham Ha, CEO of Luxury Travel, said: “Luxury tourism is booming in Cambodia, and our luxury bookings to Cambodia increased remarkably last year and continued to rise in 2013. We have series bookings for 2014.
“We have two friends who are passionate about developing quality tourism in Cambodia and are tourism experts with vast local knowledge, (while) I have the market (reach) and know-how in luxury travel.”
Increased air and overland links as well as the fact that foreign travellers prefer combining Vietnam and Cambodia within their itineraries has also given rise to Asia Premium Travel.
“Asia Premium Travel will receive Luxury Travel’s customers as its main source of customers at the beginning,” said Pham Ha.
But Cambodia can look forward to tapping the global market in the near future. Qatar Airways now runs a daily flight connection from Doha to Phnom Penh via Ho Chi Minh City, while Dragonair will start a thrice-weekly seasonal service between Hong Kong and Siem Reap on October 29.
Luxury accommodation options in Cambodia are increasing in number, Pham Ha pointed out, citing Song Saa Private Island in Sihanoukville and Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra in Phnom Penh.
MICE would also be a key target market for Asia Premium Travel. Said Pham Ha: “MICE holds a lot of potential for Cambodia, especially in Siem Reap (which has) more luxury hotels, international brands and air links. Siem Reap is the place to be for any MICE organiser with its affordable prices. We will focus on this segment through our joint venture.”
Cambodia received some 3.5 million foreign arrivals last year, a 24 per cent year-on-year rise. About 75 per cent of tourists were from the Asia-Pacific region, 16 per cent from Europe and the rest from other parts of the world.
