THE Crimson Resort & Spa Mactan in Cebu has achieved Muslim-friendly status, the second hotel in the Philippines to attain the accolade after Manila Marriott Hotel first got it earlier in May.

Leading halal travel authority CrescentRating gave the resort a commendable rating of five – the highest score being seven – for catering to the needs of Muslim travellers property-wide.

“(The high score) means we are able to provide more than the basic services and facilities, including halal food, Qurans, Qiblas, prayer mats, a prayer time guide and facilities like a bidet and female attendants, among others,” explained the resort’s general manager Kristofer Quadros.

Crimson Resort & Spa Mactan already received halal certification for its kitchen last April. CrescentRating then assessed the resort facilities for compliance to the specific needs of Muslim travellers for the entire property. The resort’s staff are also trained to cater to the needs of Muslim travellers.

“We now see a number of Muslim-friendly setup requested by guests through our website. This is free-of-charge and can be requested in advance upon booking or can also be done upon check-in,” added Quadros.

“With this service, we are able to better prepare the rooms for our Muslim guests. And we are optimistic to see more of these as promotion efforts kick in.”

THE fastest growing source of cruise passengers worldwide is Asia.

The region experienced an unprecedented 24 per cent increase to 2.08 million people from the region taking an ocean cruise last year, according to the lastest Asia Cruise Trends study conducted by Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA).

China accounted for almost half the region’s cruise passengers, with 986,000 Chinese passengers taking a cruise in 2015, up 40 per cent from 703,000 in 2014.

This figure makes China the world’s fastest growing source nation for cruise passengers in 2015, with source markets like Hong Kong (126,800), India (125,900), Japan (179,900), Singapore (182,700) and Taiwan (228,700) also in the lead.

Consequently, sailings in the region have increased with 1560 sailings scheduled for 2016, up 43 per cent on last year. This is achieved with 60 ocean cruise ships sailing in Asia versus 52 operating in 2015.

In terms of passenger capacity in Asia, the industry has seen a 54 per cent increase year-on-year, with the number expected to reach 3.2 million by the end of 2016.

“The cruise industry has been nimble and responded quickly to the demand for cruise travel in Asia by delivering cruise ships with amenities and experiences tailored to Asian travellers,” said CLIA president and CEO Cindy D’Aoust.

“Asian cruise travel has also become an enticing way for international guests to visit Asia’s fascinating destinations in a comfortable and convenient way.”

CLIA’s report also showed that passengers from the region continue to prefer shorter ocean cruise lengths. In 2015, almost 30 per cent of passengers continued to choose cruises two to three nights in length and half chose four to six night cruises.

Meanwhile, almost a fifth of passengers chose extended cruises of seven to 13 nights. As a result, the average length of cruises offered in the region has increased slightly from 5.2 nights in 2014 to 5.3 nights in 2015.

Cruising in Asia includes more than 204 destinations across 17 countries. Japan remains the most popular destination country with 1526 port calls in 2016, followed by China (850), South Korea (745), Vietnam (466) Malaysia (422) and Singapore (391). The most visited port in 2016 will be Jeju Island with 460 calls.

“China, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea and Vietnam are the top five destinations in Asia, experiencing more than 4,000 calls in total,” said CLIA Asia secretary general David Goh, citing the report.

It was further revealed that 84 per cent of Asian passengers cruised within the region with 38 per cent of all cruisers being aged below 40 years.

HOSTS of short-term private accommodations, such as via Airbnb, can now engage GuestReady for a range of operational services.

Targeted at shared economy hosts, homeowners and investment property owners, the startup provides services such as laundry, cleaning as well as check-in and check-out of guests.

It also offers property management, which includes guest communication, maintaining listings on multiple short term rental sites, and ensuring the property generates the maximum possible yield. This is not unlike the way traditional hotel operators work.

“As the short-term rental industry is maturing, there is a natural need for more efficiency, professionalism and standardisation,” said the company’s CEO Alexander Limpert.

“Especially with business travellers, the property and any service related to a stay need to be of immaculate quality. For non-professional hosts, this is hard to achieve, which is where we step in.”

GuestReady officially launches today in six countries in Europe and Asia, namely London, Paris, Amsterdam, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Hong Kong. There are plans to expand to other markets soon.

The startup is backed by Switzerland’s Swiss Founders Fund for an undisclosed sum.

INDONESIAN airlines are now allowed to fly to the US after a safety ban lasting nearly a decade got lifted, officials announced yesterday.

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has upgraded Indonesia’s aviation safety rating after various assessments determined that the industry has met international standards.

“After 10 years of efforts, we finally passed it,” said Mohammad Alwi, director general of air transportation at Indonesia’s Ministry of Transportation in an interview with Antara news agency.

The announcement was made just as national carrier Garuda Indonesia plans to open services between Jakarta and the US cities of New York and Los Angeles in 2017.

The lift also opens opportunities for the Indonesian flag carrier to form more codeshare agreements with Skyteam member airlines.

The FAA imposed the ban on Indonesian airlines in 2007 due to the country’s lack of “law and regulations necessary to oversee air carriers in accordance with minimum international standards”.

THE series of bomb blasts that rocked several resort towns in Thailand during the August 12 Mother’s Day weekend had caused considerable concern among the international tourism community but travel specialists in the country are not expecting lasting fallouts.

Hamish Keith, group managing director at Exo Travel, told TTG Asia e-Daily: “The direct feedback we have received from our clients is that although this was a tragic and highly regrettable event, it is unlikely that travellers will avoid Thailand and as long as there are no more bombs in the next few weeks then bookings will not be seriously impacted.”

“Since the event we have had two minor cancellations but otherwise all forward bookings are largely unaffected,” he added.

“Of course there will inevitably be some impact on future bookings, however our experience of previous events is that Thailand will bounce back quickly and Exo Travel Thailand is looking forward to a very busy high season.”

Also keeping an optimistic front is Lisa Fitzell, Diethelm Travel’s group managing director, who is confident that things will return to normal fairly quickly.

She said: “We do expect (a slowdown) in new bookings in the next few weeks, but we are hopeful if things remain calm it shouldn’t impact the high season, which was looking strong for us and significantly up on last year.”

While PATA CEO Mario Hardy expects some small impacts in the short term as travellers may consider other destinations in the wake of the recent Thai bombings, he is confident that Thailand’s tourism industry is “remarkably resilient with an enviable bounce-back factor”.

What is clear, however, is that safety and security now should take precedence for the Thai trade after these “game-changing” incidents, posited Bill Barnett, managing director of C9 Hotelworks, in his latest newsletter.

“Hoteliers (in Phuket) now have a strong mandate for the safety of our prized possession tourists, as does the government,” he wrote.

“In the aftermath of the bombings, what will likely change in Phuket and other similar destinations is that like Bali, hotels will now put safety and security on the front burner. Barricades will be constructed, perimeters secured and bomb sniffing dogs deployed.”

According to Anthony Lark, president of Phuket Hotel Association, the majority of member hotels have not reported any significant loss of business from cancellations and are exercising diligence in upgrading security measures in cooperation with the local authorities.

“I believe Destination Phuket is – and always has been – resilient to crisis and this is no different,” he added.

UNWTO secretary-general Taleb Rifai has reiterated confidence in Thailand’s hosting of the upcoming World Tourism Day on September 27 while World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) president and CEO David Scowsill also confirmed that Thailand would remain the host for the WTTC World Global Summit in April 2017.

In its latest press statement, Thailand’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports maintains its target of 2.4 trillion baht (US$69.3 billion) of tourism revenue in 2016, compared with 2.2 trillion baht generated in 2015 when 29.8 million tourists visited the Kingdom.

V AIR, a subsidiary of TransAsia Airway, will suspend all services from October 1 as the Taiwanese LCC commences merger with its parent company.

As a result, all ticket sales for flights on or after October 1 will be stopped. The airline will continue operating all scheduled flights until September 30.

For flights booked past the cessation date, V Air is offering either free transfers to flights on TransAsia Airway on the same route, or a full refund.

Passengers who booked Osaka and Okinawa routes will be transferred to a TransAsia Airways service on the same date or on the closest date within seven working days. An online form is also available for those who wish to apply for a refund before August 31.

Chiang Mai and Fukuoka route passengers will be transferred as well to a TransAsia Airways flight. Similarly, transfers will be made based on original flight dates or closest possible dates. An online form is also available for those who wish to apply for a refund before September 15.

Passengers who booked Bangkok, Busan and Nagoya routes will get a full fare refund, including ticket price, additional charges, airport taxes and surcharge.

V Air was established in November 2013 as a short-haul low-cost carrier, mainly serving links from Taiwan to Japan, South Korea and Thailand.

AS part of consolidation efforts in South-east Asia by Tourism New Zealand (TNZ), the national tourism promotion agency has decided to close its Thailand office by end-2016.

It’s two employees located in Bangkok will also finish their term in December, stated TNZ.

Revealing the reason behind the move, chief executive of TNZ Kevin Bowler, said: “With this decision we will consolidate our focus in South and South-east Asia, with particular emphasis on generating value from the India market. We will continue to support Thai Airways but again, with greater focus on its connection into India.”

Over the coming months, staff will continue to deliver activity and plan ahead to ensure continuity is achieved in Thailand over the full financial year, added Bowler, who recently announced his departure from TNZ with effect from October 28.

“The limited investment we have been making in the market is making limited impact but stretching our resource and focus,” he further explained.

“We need to be sure that our investment is targeted toward the greatest opportunities available, and is delivering the best return possible which is the reason for this decision to close.”

According to TNZ figures, visitor arrivals from Thailand remain modest, having grown from 17,000 in 2006 to 24,000 in June 2016.

TRAVEL prices are predicted to inflate only marginally next year as geopolitical and economic uncertainty weigh in.

Latest research by the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) and Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) reveal that emerging market performance, financial market turbulence, geopolitical risks, uncertainty surrounding Brexit, potentially fluctuating US interest rates and oil prices could impact the travel industry most.

“While business travel repeatedly demonstrates its resilience, the high level of global uncertainty we face heading into 2017 means travel buyers have to be more nimble and flexible than ever in crafting travel programmes,” said Jeanne Liu, GBTA Foundation vice president for research.

“The outlook shows only marginal increases or flat travel prices, but for 2017, the key to building successful travel programmes will be watching and reacting to an ever-changing global landscape.”

Airline prices are projected to increase only slightly, by 2.5 per cent, in 2017, while fares may actually fall below 2015 levels in some markets due to continued low oil prices.

Meanwhile, ancillaries will have an increasing impact. Its share of global airlines revenue has grown to 7.8 per cent in 2015, up from 6.7 per cent in 2014 with the trend set to continue.

On the hotel front, Asia-Pacific is expected to see prices fall slightly, by 0.6 per cent, while in Eastern Europe, prices will fall 2.4 per cent. Western Europe will see prices increase 1.8 per cent and Middle East and Africa rates will fall slightly, by 0.5 per cent. Overall, North American hotel prices are expected to rise by 4 per cent, largely due to an inventory crunch on the west coast.

Traditional hotels will remain a mainstay for corporate travellers over sharing economy providers due to the importance of room service, laundry and security. The study further expects the impact of mega hotel mergers on prices to be felt only in 2018.

In the MICE space, a modest increase in cost per attendee, per day, for meetings and events are expected for Asia-Pacific and North America. Europe is expected to remain flat and Latin America will see a decrease of 10 per cent.

Group sizes will increase marginally in the 3-6 per cent range for Asia-Pacific, Europe and North America, while remaining flat in Latin America.

“We are seeing relatively low, inconsistent and in some cases fragile economic growth,” said Kurt Ekert, president and CEO of CWT.

He advised: “Travellers and travel managers need to understand their travel patterns and spend, and be alert to the impact of economic uncertainty and volatility. Proper planning will put them in position to make changes when necessary, and to avoid downside financial risk.”

A Thai soldier on duty following the bomb blasts. Credit: Facebook/สามล้อกู้ภัย บรรเทาศูนย์สอง

THE United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) have condemned the spate of bombings perpetrated on Thai soil last week.

A series of coordinated bomb attacks hit popular tourist spots such as Hua Hin and Phuket between August 11 to 12, leaving at least three dead and many more injured. The bombs struck during Thai Queen Sirikit’s birthday, a national holiday, and days prior to the first anniversary of Bangkok’s Erawan Shrine attack.

“We would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to the victims, their friends and families,” stated WTTC’s president and CEO David Scowsill.

“Having spoken with Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul minister of tourism and sport from Thailand about the security steps being taken from the government, we are confident that the situation will stabilise and return to normal very quickly, as it has done after challenges in the past.”

He added: “Despite the bomb attack at the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok in August 2015, Thailand’s visitors grew by 20 per cent last year to 30 million travellers and the money they spent grew by 25 per cent over the same period. The country will continue to be a key tourism destination for travellers.”

Unwavered by the incident, the two international tourism bodies are also going ahead with upcoming plans to hold key travel events in Thailand.

“Thailand is one of the most consolidated tourism destination in the world. A destination where people of all cultures unite and enjoy tourism and its strong potential to foster development. We are fully confident that this will continue to be the case and we look forward to meet in Bangkok on September 27 for the official World Tourism Day celebrations,” said UNWTO secretary-general, Taleb Rifai.

“More than ever we need to work together to make a great success out of the celebrations of World Tourism Day, this will be the best expression of support and union against these hideous acts.”

Concurring, Scowsill said: “We are looking forward to supporting Thailand on September 27 at the official World Tourism Day celebrations, and to holding the prestigious WTTC Global Summit in Bangkok in April 2017.

“It is important to remember that tourism is a force for good: it brings people from different cultures and backgrounds together, something that Thailand as a destination manifests beautifully.”