INDIA’S travel trade is anticipating sops and tourism-related reforms from the new government, formed by the winning Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) that had identified tourism as one of five engines of growth for the economy in its election manifesto.

“BJP was the only party which had put tourism in their manifesto. The industry is confident that the new government will stop the discrimination against tour operators and exempt them from service tax, just as exporters are exempted based on their foreign exchange earnings,” said Subhash Goyal, president, Indian Association of Tour Operators.

“We expect that the new government will announce a uniform taxation regime that will benefit the entire industry,” added Ranjan Kumar Mishra, managing director of Odisha-based Eastern Voyage.

Rajiv Vij, managing director & CEO, Carzonrent New Delhi, too, hoped there would be favourable announcements for the organised car rental services sector that would “benefit the end consumer and also service providers. ”

Madhavan Menon, managing director, Thomas Cook India, said: “We are expecting prioritisation on key issues like safety and infrastructure. Political stability and a focus on economic growth and social development will be vital for the travel and tourism industry.”

MÖVENPICK Hotels & Resorts has signed a management agreement with an existing property on Koh Samui as part of its expansion strategy for Thailand, which will see the Swiss hotelier expand its footprint to as many as nine properties within the next few years.

The Passage, a 50-key property on Lam Yai beach, will be renovated at a cost of 20 million baht (US$616,732) and rebranded as Mövenpick Resort Laem Yai Beach Samui, which is due to open on November 1, said Tossaporn Satitwittayakul, executive director of Thana Group, the property’s owner.

An additional 23 rooms and villas will be added within three years.

Andreas Mattmüller, COO, Middle East and Asia at Mövenpick, said this brings the operator’s hotel count in Thailand to three, with two more properties to open by the end 2015.

“We would like to have (a total of) eight or nine hotels in Thailand within the next few years,” he said, adding that while Thailand is a current focus for the management company’s regional expansion plan, there will be similar developments in Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines in the near future.

“Thailand is very fortunate in attracting visitors from diverse markets,” said Mattmüller. “There is an increase in travel from the Middle East. Intra-regional travel from Hong Kong and Singapore is very strong for both Koh Samui and Phuket. We’re also yielding good results from our sales offices in China, Japan and Russia.”

Mattmüller said the current political problems in Thailand have not affected Mövenpick’s position on the country, though it has delayed the opening of the new resort in Pattaya.

The Samui opening will be its third property in Thailand followed by Mövenpick White Sand Beach Resort Pattaya and Mövenpick Suriwongse Hotel Chiang Mai next year.

Negotiations are ongoing for additional properties in Hua Hin, Samui, Bangkok and Phuket, added Mattmüller.

ACCOR has clinched management agreements for two new-build properties in the buoyant hospitality scene of Singapore. Both Novotel Singapore on Stevens and Ibis Singapore on Stevens will open end-2016.

The two hotels will debut as part of lifestyle property developer Oxley Gem’s combined project, making them Accor’s largest hotel development in Asia-Pacific when open.

Situated a few minutes’ drive from Singapore’s shopping belt Orchard Road, the project will also offer easy access to the city’s central business district and international airport.

Novotel Singapore on Stevens will open with 254 rooms, F&B outlets, a swimming pool and fitness centre, as well as meeting facilities including a 500-seat ballroom and meeting rooms.

The 528-key Ibis Singapore on Stevens will come with a lobby bar/café and gym.

Michael Issenberg, chairman and CEO, Accor Asia-Pacific, said the addition of Novotel Singapore on Stevens and Ibis Singapore on Stevens will bring Accor’s Singapore portfolio to nine hotels.

eNETT International has introduced a new system of payment to travel agencies in Singapore that aims to simplify supplier payments while making it safer and faster for them to respond to customers.

Virtual Account Numbers (VANs) are automatically generated 16-digit MasterCard numbers for each booking transaction and enable automatic reconciliation at point of sale. VANs have been successfully implemented in Europe.

Payments are available in 27 currencies, including the Singapore dollar, and foreign currency conversions are provided in real time for price certainty when booking.

According to Anthony Hynes, managing director and CEO of eNett International, a joint venture between Travelport and PSP International, VANs protect agencies against supplier default, reduce costs in manual reconciliation, lessen foreign exchange exposure and give agencies the opportunity to earn a rebate on transactions.

Said Hynes at a Travelport and eNett industry seminar at the Fullerton Hotel Singapore today: “Current trends show that agencies are demanding access to dynamic content that require immediate payments.

“If an agency only makes supplier payments by cash, credit or debit, they might not be able to access a range of content that gives their customers the best rates, including net-commission rates. Or, if they pay by corporate cards or store cards, they might incur significant reconciliation issues, together with opaque foreign exchange and international transaction fees.”

INTERNATIONAL travel wholesaler Tourico Holidays is making Asia its priority by beefing up its Asia-Pacific team with seven new hires this month.

Neil Emerson, senior vice president of global product development, Tourico Holdings, said the seven new product managers are strategically placed in Vietnam, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Thailand and South Korea as part of the company’s “major investment plan” in developing Asia-Pacific.

The US-based company currently has offices in Tokyo, Beijing and Hong Kong.

Emerson said: “Asia is absolutely a priority in our global expansion plan as we are signing more airline clients and regional clients in this region.

“The majority of travel for Asian travellers is within Asia, hence as we develop our Asian client base, it is key that we have the product to meet their demand,” he added.

These seven product managers belong to the first batch of graduates from the new Tourico Holidays Travel Academy. Emerson said: “This new group will help to establish strong relationships with hoteliers to meet the growing demand of our expanding Asian client base.”

Since initiating its global expansion plan in 2013, Emerson said Tourico Holidays has acquired nearly 600 new clients and travel inventory demand has skyrocketed.

In a press release announcing Tourico Holdings’ financial results for its first quarter of 2014, the 20-year-old company reaped a record 79 per cent year-on-year increase in earnings.

Tourico Holdings attributed this top line revenue growth to the sharp increase in demand from hotels – including a 29 per cent surge in hotel bookings and a 25 per cent rise in roomnights.