Langham Hospitality Group (LHG) welcomes Lawrence Ng as its new senior vice president – sales & marketing.
Stationed at the company’s corporate headquarters in Hong Kong, Ng will spearhead and orchestrate all sales and marketing endeavours globally while also serving on LHG’s executive committee.
As the former vice president of sales & marketing, Greater China at Marriott International, he brings a wealth of knowledge and insights to the intricacies of market dynamics and consumer preferences.
Daniella Foster has been appointed as vice chair of the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance (SHA).
The executive board member and global senior vice president of public affairs, market access and sustainability for Bayer’s Consumer Health Division joined the board as a trustee in May last year, and will now work alongside Wolfgang Neumann as vice chair, supporting SHA as it works towards implementing its new five-year strategy.
She has a background working across private and public sectors, from Hilton and Mars to the White House in the US, as well as experience in embedding sustainability into business models across the private and public sectors.
A popular Sri Lankan literary festival held within the confines of a Portuguese-built fort in 1588 last week drew nearly 100 local and foreign writers and artists along with over 5,000 literary enthusiasts.
Regarded as one of the biggest literary festivals in this region, the 11th edition of Galle Literary Festival, held in partnership with the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau from January 25 to 28 in the southern beachside city of Galle, attracted a notable increase in the number of international attendees compared to previous years, organisers said.
Returning after a five-year hiatus owing to the pandemic and economic crisis, the festival’s line-up in 2024 reflected a renewed commitment to diversity and inclusion. The star-studded speaker list featured 25 local authors – including Booker Prize winner, Shehan Karunatilaka – as well as a dozen diaspora writers. Among the 27 international participants were several South Asian novelists. The 99-strong cast also comprised nine chefs and 24 moderators, the festival organisers said in a media statement.
There were more than 180 events including talks and panel discussions on topics as varied as the Sri Lankan literary landscape, the female body in the arts, global history on land and water, and how to engage the next generation with the natural world.
A total of 5,392 tickets were issued in 2024, with almost half of all scheduled events sold out. There was widespread coverage of the festival across social media and the international press, while the festival’s digital promotional strategy achieved an online reach in excess of two million people.
Reflecting on this success, Giselle Harding, festival director, said: “We are absolutely thrilled with the attendance and reception for this year’s festival. We firmly believe in the power of the Galle Literary Festival to cement Galle and Sri Lanka as a hub for creative travellers and literary enthusiasts, as well as to inspire and stimulate the growth of a reading culture in Sri Lanka.”
Organisers will soon confirm dates for the 2025 edition.
Sri Lanka is actively promoting events like this festival.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) recently joined forces with Trip.com Group to host the livestream Super World Tour BOSS LIVE under the Thailand – A Must for Chinese campaign at Rosewood Bangkok Hotel on January 31, which saw an achievement of over 100 million baht (US$2.79 million) in a day.
This livestream announced Thailand travel deals – airline discounts, accommodation promotions, or travel packages – aiming at shaping Thailand into a leading destination, presenting majestic islands, cultures, and delectable eats.
It was run by Trip.com Group’s vice president Sun Tianxu, who considered the platform an effective marketing tool for Chinese tourists. The group views Thailand as a major destination with Bangkok being South-east Asia’s most popular destination for Chinese tourists in 2023. Phuket and Chiang Mai also secured ranks among the top 10 with bookings increased by 174 per cent in the same year (compared to those of the previous year). These three cities are expected to be key destinations throughout 2024.
The next livestream session will be held in Phuket on February 28.
Srettha Thavisin, Thailand’s prime minister, stated that the earlier agreement between both countries will help promote tourism, investment, trade, and strengthen relationships.
Sudawan Wangsuphakijkosol, minister of tourism and sports, added that Thailand is primed to promote activities throughout the country to exchange Thai and Chinese cultures, in the hopes of attracting huge Chinese and international tourist traffic to Thailand. Some examples include the Chinese New Year festivities this month, and the World Water Festival in April.
TAT had also signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) on Cooperation in Tourism with eight leading partners in China while also collaborating with China’s airlines to improve air connectivity between both countries.
For this year’s Chinese New Year holidays (February 10 to 12), more residents in Singapore are taking advantage of the long weekend and heading overseas.
Two major travel agencies in the country have noticed a surge in outbound bookings over the festive period, with China emerging as a top destination of choice.
“We’ve observed a substantial 20 per cent increase in outbound demand compared to the previous year,” said Diana Tan, head of HR & public relations, CTC Travel. Apart from China, other preferred destinations include South Korea, Japan and Taiwan, she added.
Jeremiah Wong, senior marketing communications manager, Chan Brothers Travel, noted a spike in bookings to China over coming holidays, following the introduction of the 30-day visa-free entry for Singapore passport-holders. Demand was also fuelled by the agency’s new tours to China which feature premium accommodation and thematic experiences.
The company has about 1,500 customers booked to travel over Chinese New Year. There are still last minute bookings coming in, and it expects demand to exceed last year’s by 40 per cent.
Short cruises of two to four nights around the region also contributed to bookings during the Chinese New Year period, a trend observed by both agencies.
“There is a noticeable trend among travellers who are opting for short getaways such as regional cruises to Malaysia and Thailand, allowing them to simply pack and sail away. These travellers aim to capitalise on the public holidays and long weekend, maximising their time off without needing to use additional annual leave,” Wong explained.
People are also venturing farther for “diverse experiences”, with CTC Travel’s Tan highlighting Egypt and Morocco as favourites among younger travellers.
Australia and Bhutan programmes are performing well for Chan Brothers Travel, with the former attracting families with young children and the latter appealing to those “seeking distinctive and exotic travel experiences”.
Commenting on Bhutan’s potential, Wong said: “We have resumed chartered flight tours since 2022 after border reopening and positive word-of-mouth has favourably impacted overall Bhutan bookings including for the Chinese New Year period this year.”
Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) will commence thrice-weekly non-stop services between Zurich and Seoul from May 7 this year.
The Zurich-Seoul service will operate every Tuesday, Friday and Sunday, while the Seoul-Zurich route will fly every Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
The airline will offer four cabins including First Class and Premium Economy Class and provide passengers from South Korea with more choices when travelling to Europe.
Amadeus has acquired Vision-Box, a leading provider of biometric solutions for airports, airlines, and border control customers.
The acquisition of Vision-Box will bring new capabilities around biometrics hardware and software, adding border control solutions to the Amadeus portfolio. Through this combined offering with Vision-Box, Amadeus will now be able to deliver a full end-to-end seamless passenger experience from booking to arrival at the airport, through border control and boarding.
This acquisition will contribute to Amadeus’ ambition to connect the travel industry through a seamless ecosystem approach. With this in mind, this deal will deliver outstanding biometrics interoperability between airports, airlines and border control authorities. Additionally, it will complement and improve Amadeus’ existing airline and airport value proposition, which focuses on providing a frictionless experience for all passengers, optimising operations, and driving effective disruption management.
Vision-Box is partially owned by Keensight Capital, a private equity fund dedicated to pan-European Growth Buyout investments. Amadeus will be fully acquiring privately-owned Vision-Box for an agreed price of approximately €320 million (US$344.1 million). As part of this acquisition, approximately 470 Vision-Box employees will transfer to Amadeus. The deal is subject to customary regulatory approvals and is expected to close in 1H2024.
Decius Valmorbida, president, travel, Amadeus, commented: “Biometrics is a strategic and fast-growing industry, and Vision-Box’s capabilities will allow us to accelerate our growth in this area. With a portfolio which is deeply complementary to our existing offering for both airports and airlines, our combined best-in-class solutions will now deliver a seamless passenger journey from booking to boarding. This acceleration of our ecosystem approach will bring immediate and tangible benefits to our customers and travellers: it’s how travel works better.”
“Together, we can deliver the next big step in the travel experience – to unite all separate players and systems in a single, digitally-integrated, and orchestrated ecosystem. This compelling value proposition will drive user experience, on-time-performance, infrastructure usage, and other key indicators to new levels of efficiency,” added Miguel Leitmann, founder & CEO of Vision-Box.
South Korean hospitality technology start-up ONDA has formed two strategic partnerships with Josun Hotels and Resorts (Josun) as well as Dunqian International (Dunqian).
The former will see ONDA providing its booking management solutions to Josun, while the latter will help to boost tourism in Taiwan.
ONDA will support Josun in the development of the Central Reservation System (CRS) and Booking Engine, providing the South Korean hotel company with tailored operational solutions to automate and streamline reservation management. This system is set to be sequentially adopted across the hotel chain in the latter half of this year.
By leveraging ONDA’s CRS, Josun will be able to oversee room inventory, rates, and membership data in a unified system. ONDA will integrate with Josun’s existing operational ecosystem to streamline the processing for hoteliers and empower booking management through data-driven decisions.
In addition, ONDA will provide its Booking Engine solution to Josun, allowing guests to check real-time room availability and rates, and apply various membership benefits directly from the hotel’s website.
Hyun-seok Oh, CEO of ONDA, said: “We will put all our efforts into developing the best booking management solution that aligns with the esteemed standards of Josun Hotels & Resorts.”
Meanwhile, ONDA has also teamed up with Taiwanese hotel group Dunqian to promote tourism in Taiwan – the smart hotel group has nine brands and 53 hotels, totalling over 4,000 rooms.
According to the agreement, ONDA will distribute Dunqian Group’s hotels through various online sales channels in South Korea, which will give South Korean tourists access to convenient hospitality experiences at competitive prices, thereby stimulating increased tourism demand for Taiwan.
Wu Bing-ting, CEO of Dunqian International, commented: “Our vision revolves around providing a sustainable and innovative hospitality experience. We are excited to provide (South) Korean tourists with memorable experiences in Taiwan.”
Travel and tourism business across the Asia-Pacific region is improving following the pandemic disruption, with the region recording 497.5 million international arrivals in 2023 – 73 per cent of 2019’s performance, shares Noor Ahmad Hamid, CEO at PATA, who anticipates an even higher number once all NTO data is published.
However, the pace of recovery differs across the diverse Asia-Pacific region, with growth rates varying across countries and even cities within the same country.
While it is normal for destinations to record different levels of traveller interest and footfalls, Noor said the uneven pace of recovery for the region leads to overcrowding in popular locations as well as challenges in attaining sustainable growth, human resource distribution, and maintenance of service standards.
Noor discusses these issues, solutions deployed so far to better manage tourist flows, and more in the first episode of TTG Conversations: Five Questions for 2024.
Trip.com Group has revealed significant growth in international and inbound travel this Lunar New Year, with international travel increased by 10 times, fuelled by more relaxed visa policies, particularly to Asian destinations.
Inbound travel to China, which is experiencing one of its busiest travel seasons of the year, has also increased tenfold compared to the previous year, with a growing number of global tourists joining in the celebrations across China. The festive month there is set to witness a record nine billion inter-regional movements, with February 8 – the eve of Reunion Day – the busiest travel day of the season.
More families travelling to Asia in international travel spike
International travel rose by more than 10 times compared to the same period last year, accompanied by an increase in expenditure, particularly on flights. Travellers are favouring shorthaul routes, with South-east Asia, Japan, and South Korea emerging as their preferred choices. On the whole, popular destinations include Thailand, Japan, Malaysia, Australia, Singapore, South Korea, New Zealand, and Vietnam.
The international travel trend is gaining momentum, fuelled by increasingly relaxed visa requirements, especially in the Asia-Pacific region. Since July last year, China has announced visa-free arrangements for more than 10 countries. Countries like Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore have seen a spike in search volume following the announcement of mutual visa exemptions.
Amid the global travel surge, travel to the Middle East is also on the rise, with the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) emerging as focal points due to favourable visa policies and convenient arrival procedures. Dubai and Qatar are among popular destinations, with the UAE recording one of the highest volumes of guided tours.
Furthermore, family-centric travel has taken centre stage during the Spring Festival, constituting 47% of all travellers this year – a 5% increase from the previous year. This shift underscores the growing significance of family-focused journeys during the holiday season. Families are also embracing various travel preferences by renting cars for flexibility, opting for customised tours to cater to their unique needs, and hiring local guides to curate personalised and memorable experiences.
Varying attractions in Asia and Europe
The top Spring Festival attractions differ between Asia and Europe, with theme parks taking the spotlight in Asia. Meanwhile, Europe beckons travellers with its rich cultural heritage and history, predominantly showcasing museums, historical landmarks, and city sites. For tourists exploring Asia, iconic names like Universal Studios Singapore, Warner Bros Studio Tour Tokyo – The Making of Harry Potter, Tokyo DisneySea, and South Korea’s Everland are the star attractions, are particularly popular among tourists from Malaysia, Thailand, China, South Korea, and Japan. In contrast, European destinations favoured by Asian tourists are museums and enchanting cityscapes, where landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum, Palace of Versailles, and Musee d’Orsay are preferred.
Cruise tourism too, emerged as a major draw during the Spring Festival, with sold-out schedules for cruise ships sailing from Shanghai, and strong demand in Hong Kong and Singapore. The Italian cruise ship Costa Serena and RWS’ Genting Dream, which depart from Hong Kong and Singapore respectively, are nearly at full capacity with limited availability remaining. Moreover, this year, the average window for bookings are 35 days earlier than in 2019, indicating a substantial increase in early cruise reservations and growing demand.
Massive influx of global travellers in China
The Spring Festival continues to attract an increasing number of travellers to China, with inbound travel bookings surging more than 10 times. Visitors come mainly from Japan, the US, South Korea, Malaysia, Australia, the UK, Canada, Vietnam, Germany, and Thailand, reflecting a growing international interest in celebrating the Lunar New Year there.
Travellers are showing an increased preference for staying at four-star hotels compared to the previous year, whereas demand for five-star accommodations has remained similar to last year. They are also extending their stay in China, with an average duration of just over two days during this year’s Spring Festival, compared to under two days in the previous year. The booking window for travel to China has expanded significantly, from six days in 2023 to 39 days in 2024, possibly indicating an increased awareness of travel opportunities.
Record travel season in China driven by road trip trend
There will be approximately nine billion inter-regional movements in China, setting a new historical record and nearly tripling the numbers from the 2019 season. Travellers are embarking on journeys that span the spectrum of snowy northern regions to relaxing southern hot springs, leading to a seven-times increase in domestic travel bookings.
This regional travel experience, which has evolved into a trend dubbed the “North-South Exchange”, continues to attract travellers seeking unique and immersive journeys.
Furthermore, there is a growing trend of embarking on road trips for such journeys, up by approximately 60 per cent compared to the same period last year. This trend is not limited to just bookings; car rental periods have also extended, with orders for five- to eight-day rentals increasing by more than 20%, and three- to five-day rental orders increasing by 10% in the same period.
Anticipating strong growth in experience-based tourism, various destinations such as Hangzhou and Kunming are offering half-priced or free admission to scenic spots. A plethora of activities such as ice skating, skiing, hot springs, culinary experiences, lantern exhibitions, temple fairs, and cultural events have been organised to attract tourists.
