TAIWAN and Singapore are to sign an open skies agreement soon, according to The China Times.
The Taiwan-based paper quoted Taiwan’s Civil Aeronautics Administration director-general Yin Chen-Pong as saying: “We will soon sign a new aviation agreement with Singapore that will completely open up our skies.”
A report in Singapore daily The Straits Times yesterday quoted sources in Taipei as saying that talks were nearing conclusion, and that the signing was due to take place next month.
THE INDONESIA Ministry of Culture and Tourism is pooling resources and leveraging on partnerships to make its presence felt in China despite its small budget, with expectations that such a model will be extended to other focus areas in the future.
The NTO will cooperate for the first time with the Jakarta-based Chinese Indonesian Association (INTI), Indonesian Business Association of Shanghai, Indonesian embassy in Beijing, consulate generals in Guangzhou and Hong Kong, tourism industry representatives and national carrier Garuda Indonesia, to organise and participate in various promotional events in China, explained the ministry’s MICE director and China tourism marketing coordinator Nia Niscaya.
“There will be an Indonesia event every month in different Chinese cities,” she said, adding that INTI would lead four of the promotional programmes this year. “We will not target places where Indonesia is already popular, like Beijing and Shanghai, but will start penetrating the northern part of China with promotions like cultural performances and product sales.”
Such joint ventures would facilitate a more frequent and spread out marketing effort in the destination under the ministry’s coordination, Niscaya said.
Meanwhile, the ministry will continue with its B2B and B2C initiatives in China such as participating in leisure travel and MICE marts.
LAS VEGAS SANDS (LVS) said it would love to get its hands on more land in Singapore, its chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson telling reporters this morning that Marina Bay Sands (MBS) was already running out of space.
“Demand for MICE is rapidly bringing us to the point where we may have to ration space or advise users to book six months to a year in advance…not three to six months as is the practice here,” he said.
Adelson said he would take “10 times more land, as much as we can get, whatever amount there is for auction”, even offering the government to reclaim land. “We reclaimed 100 hectares in Macau,” he added.
LVS president and COO, Michael Leven, said he was at the Gardens by the Bay development yesterday and “there was land there for additional hospitality products”, adding “there was a piece of land (across MBS) we’d like to look “.
He said as Singapore continued to increase its number of attractions such as the Gardens, visitor demand was going to be higher than supply. “The entire industry is running over 80 per cent occupancy and there were awful lots of times when it was short of supply,” Leven said.
MBS said more than 11 million people visited the integrated resort (IR) since it opened in April last year. At Marina Bay Sands Hotel, about 75 per cent of guests welcomed in 2010 were foreigners, with top markets being Indonesia, China and Malaysia.
Adelson now expects MBS to recoup its US$6 billion investment in four years, from five years previously.
He said he would like to set up a network of IRs in the region, dismissing pundits’ voice about potential cannibalisation in such a move. “Singapore, for us, has opened up a new market in South-east Asia that most people did not understand existed.
“For the youngest person in this audience, for the rest of his life, there will never be saturation in this part of the world. If you want to reach the limit of demand, just change everybody’s culture. (Reality is), demand for this type of facility that has entertainment, casino, etc, is unending…For the life of me, I can’t see that happening even with the youngest person in this room. And that’s not me.”
The grand opening today also marks the official launch of the world’s first ArtScience Museum, which has lined up impressive opening shows, including Genghis Khan: The Exhibition featuring the largest collection of Genghis Khan artefacts ever assembled.
It was marred however by the death of Michelin-star chef Santi Santamaria last night after an apparent heart attack. The chef was one of seven celebrity chefs who were presented to the international media yesterday as part of the grand opening celebrations.
WATERFRONT operators along Batu Ferringhi in Penang have been given until Saturday to form an association, according to the state government.
The temporary ban on watersports activities following a water scooter accident (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 7) was relaxed last Saturday, allowing beach operators to do business under strict surveillance over a seven-day interim period while they formed an association with proper guidelines and standard operating procedures, reported local newspaper The Star.
The Penang Municipal Council is in the process of finalising guidelines to regulate beach activities, and it is understood that one of the measures will be the creation of a special zone for jet ski operators on Batu Ferringhi.
World Avenues executive director Ally Bhoonee said: “(The association) will give the authorities a point of contact to discuss policies and safety and security issues. It will also educate operators on being more hospitable. Currently, the unlicensed tour operators are operating like thugs.”
Malaysian Association of Hotels Penang Chapter president Marco Giovanni Battistotti was also hopeful of an effective solution.
He said: “Family travel to Ferringhi beach will increase, and travellers who have moved on to other beach destinations will return to Penang.”
AUTHORITIES are being urged to proceed with plans for a third runway at Hong Kong International Airport to safeguard connectivity, with IATA citing “near saturation” of the current runways.
“Hong Kong outperforms its population size on the world stage because of its connectivity. That drives the economy and creates jobs. To protect the airport’s competitiveness, sufficient capacity is needed to support growth,” said Giovanni Bisignani, director general and CEO.
According to IATA, the airport handled 51 million passengers in 2010 and is already operating at about 90 per cent of capacity.
In April, public consultations on the Airport Master Plan 2030 will open with a third runway being considered.
“The phenomenal growth of air transport in Hong Kong has outpaced all projections taken in the early ’90s. If Hong Kong wants to continue to gain the economic benefits of a growing aviation industry, a third runway will be needed,” said Bisignani.
Earlier this week, IATA announced its traffic growth forecast for 2010 to 2014. It expects the Hong Kong market to grow by 6.7 per cent annually from 45 million international passengers in 2009 to 62.2 million in 2014, becoming the 10th largest market for international travel.
– See Tourism Data
GEORGE TANASIJEVICH, Las Vegas Sands (LVS) managing director of global development, is in the running to replace Tom Arasi, who has quit as president and CEO of Marina Bay Sands (MBS) Singapore and is leaving on February 18.
LVS president and COO, Michael Leven, told TTG Asia e-Daily on the sidelines of MBS’ grand opening media conference this morning that Tanasijevich was a candidate – and an ideal one at that – but that the corporation owed it to itself and investors to “just look and see if there’s someone out there”.
The search firm it hired would give a report this Friday, and Leven said he hoped to make a decision in the next 30 to 60 days.
“I’ve had a long conversation with George. He wants to be a candidate but he’s had a very good job with us as global development managing director, so I don’t want to lose that function. But we have to do what’s best for the company and what’s best for George.
“The other candidates have to be better than George if he’s not going to get the job,” Leven said.
Asked to respond to industry criticisms that MBS could not keep its CEO – Arasi lasted only 18 months, while Nigel Roberts before him just six months (TTG Asia e-Daily, August 13, 2009) – Leven said: “Tom’s been here 18 months, through the hottest part of the project. It is typical in our business where people don’t stay much longer after opening.
“This is why it is good to have someone like George, who is committed, who has been in Singapore for 10 years, who loves the country and knows the government – those are the advantages and it will be difficult to find a more qualified person than George to do it.”
When said this sounded he was already set on Tanasijevich, Leven said: “I like George. He is a loyal, intelligent executive with very good judgement. Frankly, there are things about George that Mr (Sheldon) Adelson and I are comfortable with. Still, we owe it to our investors to just look and see if there’s someone out there.”
Tanasijevich is interim CEO of MBS. An earlier statement said he was instrumental in helping LVS win the bid to build MBS.
INTERCONTINENTAL Hotels Group (IHG) has reported a 22 per cent spike in operating profit and a global RevPAR growth of 6.2 per cent based on preliminary results for 2010, with Asia-Pacific’s RevPAR jump being the largest of all regions at 12.4 per cent.
Within Asia-Pacific, Greater China was the group’s strongest market with RevPAR up 25.8 per cent for the year, boosted by the World Expo held in Shanghai.
Said chief executive Andrew Cosslett: “2010 was an excellent year for IHG. After a slow start to the year, the industry staged the sharpest recovery in its history, exceeding all expectations.
“We signed more rooms into our pipeline than in 2009, and despite the planned exceptional number of removals to drive up quality, we grew the number of rooms in our system, led by a 12 per cent increase in China.”
Some 24 properties were opened across 17 Chinese cities in 2010, while new hotels sprung up in key locations such as India, Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore.
IHG also signed 319 deals in 2010 – one for every working day – and now claims to have the world’s largest development pipeline with an 18 per cent share of all new hotels.
WITH new routes and fresh capacity, Bangkok Airways is anticipating a 27 per cent increase in business this year, with a revenue of 10.5 billion baht (US$340 million) from handling 3.1 million passengers.
CEO, Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth, said the airline recorded around seven to eight billion baht in revenue last year, having handled 2.6 million passengers.
“After a few turbulent years, business has returned to growth last year and is expected to continue to grow further this year,” he said.
Flight capacity is slated to grow by 20 per cent in 2011, aided by the carrier’s six-weekly Bangkok-Mumbai service starting on March 2 (TTG Asia e-Daily, January 28) and a daily Bangkok-Dhaka flight from March 27.
It is also expected to take delivery of a new Airbus A319 or A320 at year-end, joining its fleet of 17 aircraft.
By Sirima Eamtako
IN order to avoid confusion among consumers and the trade, RajaMICE.com has decided to postpone its Indonesia Travel and Holiday Fair (ITHF) by two weeks to April 14 to 17, giving up its originally planned dates to newcomer ASTINDO International Travel Fair (AITF) (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 17).
RajaMICE CEO, Panca Sarungu, said: “(The new date) is also a better timing for customers to decide on buying a holiday package (as it is closer to the school holidays) compared to the beginning of the month.”
He added that ITHF had partnered Indonesian bank giant BCA, specially created a day for trade visitors and was holding the event at Central Park Mall in West Jakarta, where the majority of Chinese travellers reside.
On the other hand, AITF organising committee chairman Elly Hutabarat said having its fair earlier would give travellers more departure dates to choose from.
She said: “Twelve world airlines are participating at our show; some will have booths and others will throw special promo fares to agents. The major travel agents are also participating. Besides, location plays an important role, and the Jakarta Convention Center is best.”
Panorama Tours president director Royanto Handaya said: “Each show seems to have its own advantages so the best for us is to participate in both.”
HILTON Worldwide has signed management agreements with Thailand-based TCC Land Group for two properties in Bangkok’s Sukhumvit area: a new-build Hilton Hotels & Resorts hotel and a conversion project to be rebranded as a DoubleTree by Hilton, both to be completed in 2012.
This will mark the chain’s introduction of the DoubleTree by Hilton brand in Thailand and its second Hilton Hotels & Resorts property in Bangkok. Hilton Sukhumvit Bangkok will offer 287 rooms including 35 suites while the DoubleTree by Hilton, Sukhumvit Bangkok will feature 182 rooms, complete with 12 suites.
