Gordon Aeria has been appointed general manager of Kata Rocks.
The Singaporean boasts over 30 years of diverse international hotelier experience and 15 years of general manager experience in seven different countries across Asia-Pacific.
He has held roles in Accor, Shangri-La Hotels, Dusit Thani as well as many independent hotels.
China’s Fosun Tourism Group has acquired the Thomas Cook brand name, along with subsidiary hotel chains Casa Cook and Cook’s Club, for £11 million (US$14.3 million), according to a Reuters report.
Under the agreement, the assets include the trademarks, domain names, software applications, social media accounts and licenses of the British travel firm and related hotel brands, the report quoted Fosun as saying. The Chinese firm has no plans to buy overseas assets or businesses related to Thomas Cook for now, it added.
“The acquisition of the Thomas Cook brand will enable the group to expand its tourism business building on the extensive brand awareness of Thomas Cook and the robust growth momentum of Chinese outbound tourism,” the report quoted Fosun Tourism’s chairman Qian Jiannong as saying.
This latest development comes in the wake of Fosun’s earlier failed rescue deal to save Thomas Cook from collapse, forcing the travel group to file for liquidation in September. Its collapse triggered the largest ever peacetime repatriation in UK to bring home 150,000 holidaymakers stranded abroad.
Fosun Tourism, which was Thomas Cook’s largest shareholder, played a key role in a proposed £900 million bailout in August. The Chinese conglomerate had offered to pitch in £450 million in return for a majority stake in the firm’s tour operator business and 25 per cent of its airline.
But the deal fell through when Thomas Cook failed to secure further funds from other lenders.
B2B accommodation provider WebBeds has launched the WebBeds Destination Index (WBDI), a tool that tracks hotel booking trends weekly to provide an overview of the market and offer basis for future projections.
The launch of the WBDI, said WebBeds, is a show of solidarity for Hong Kong’s struggling travel and hospitality industry, coming at a critical time when travel and accommodation providers need reliable data to work with.
WebBeds’ CCO Sun Kok Sheng said: “This insightful and intuitive new tool will allow the city’s hoteliers and tourism operators to cut through the confusion and gain a clear picture of the situation.”
WBDI delivers this by measuring a wide range of key performance indicators, including the number of bookings, total transaction value, room nights, and average daily rate; and benchmarking them against a 52-week average. It divides Hong Kong into four distinct areas – Kowloon, Hong Kong Island, Lantau Island and Others – and categorises hotels by their star rating, so each hotel can understand exactly how their sector is faring.
Through aggregating these data, WBDI creates an overall Market Index that will benefit the entire travel trade. WebBeds’ in-house data and analytics team have also crafted a series of future projections based on these trends and curated various strategies for execution.
After Hong Kong, the WBDI will be rolled out progressively across selected destinations in Asia-Pacific.
WebBeds’ CEO Daryl Lee commented: “We have been in conversation with a lot of our hotel partners in different parts of the world and will be launching WBDI across Asia in coming months. The gist is to give them better insights into what’s out there, who’s looking at their destination, their location and their hotel. Moreover, the index offers great access to broad data and analytics on what’s working and what’s not.”
Looking ahead, WebBeds is expected to play a more active role in destination marketing, according to Lee. Already, the B2B accommodation supplier has worked with Tourism Switzerland to stage roadshows in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia to drive summer traffic, as well as sealing an MoU with Sichuan Tourism Investment JinJiang Hotel (STIJH) and partnering with Macau Government Tourism Office to attract arrivals from Indonesia.
Lee added: “In fact, a lot of NTOs do B2C marketing, but the activation is incomplete unless every single player like agents and airlines (also come into) the landscape… We have a couple more projects in the pipeline, so watch this space.”
– Additional reporting from Prudence Lui
Airbnb has released its proposed regulatory principles for short-term accommodation in Thailand, which the home-sharing giant says would support the Thai government’s goal of driving tourist growth in the country and diversifying Thai tourism.
These principles would support local priorities and reflect Thailand’s unique needs, and are consistent with best practices for regulating short-term accommodation regionally and globally, the company said in a statement.
The regulatory principles also reflect latest research conducted by Expedition Strategies in late 2018, which found that 88 per cent of Thai people would support residents in their neighbourhoods sharing their homes, 89 per cent would consider using short-term accommodation in the future and 84 per cent believe short-term accommodation is good for communities because it will bring tourists to more areas where they will spend money.
Airbnb’s proposed regulatory principles, which was developed following meetings with multiple government departments and industry stakeholders, include:
A simple online registration system for short-term accommodation to ensure compliance and promote high safety standards.
A differentiated approach to regulation which distinguishes between the various types of short-term accommodation activity. For example, regulations should differentiate between someone sharing a room in their home, their own home occasionally or someone with a vacation rental for full commercial purpose.
There should be an industry-wide approach to regulation and close cooperation between all industry participants and regulators in implementing regulations.
As well, tough but fair penalties for bad behaviour should be imposed, said the travel giant.
“Airbnb wants to be a good and responsible partner to the government and do what we can to help Thailand achieve its tourism objectives. Already, our local community is helping to grow and diversify the Thai tourism industry and spread the benefits of tourism to local communities across the country, particularly those in emerging destinations like Buriram,” Airbnb’s head of public policy for South-east Asia, Mich Goh, said.
“For some time, we have listened to local authorities and sought to better understand their priorities. We appreciate the balanced and forward-looking approach the Thai government has considered to take in developing a modern regulatory framework for short-term accommodation.”
Bangkok-based DMC Go Vacation has announced its expansion into Cambodia, with full-scale inbound tour services for travellers launched since November 1.
Experienced tour operating veteran Bampenh Ho has been appointed as the country manager for Go Vacation’s new Cambodia operations.
Go Vacation Cambodia comprises two new offices – a head office in Phnom Penh and a branch office in Siem Reap – to offer a comprehensive range of services covering the whole country.
Go Vacation now runs 20 offices across six countries, namely Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Sri Lanka and India.
Hong Kong-based Ovolo Group has added Indonesia to its growing portfolio, after purchasing and bringing Citadines Kuta Beach into its fold with effect from November 1.
The Bali acquisition marks the group’s first property outside of Hong Kong and Australia, as it eyes global expansion with a particular focus on South-east Asia, Australia, New Zealand, the US and the UK.
The 194-room property consists of 182 studio rooms, nine one-bedroom suites and three two-bedroom suites, an all-day dining restaurant, rooftop pool & bar, gym and conferencing facilities.
Ovolo said in a statement that it will announce its future plans for the property in early 2020.
India-based LCC IndiGo has joined global airline body IATA as a member, as the airline plans for global expansion, according to a report by The Economic Times.
The carrier’s move follows its recent entry into Vietnam, Myanmar, China and Saudi Arabia, as well as its largest-ever order for 300 Airbus aircraft.
“This membership will help IndiGo align to global practices developed by IATA and will further strengthen the airline’s partnership portfolio,” the report quoted a media statement as saying.
“IndiGo is our fourth member from India—a market with huge potential and many challenges. We look forward to working with the IndiGo team to help shape industry standards, best practices and policies that ensure the safe, efficient and sustainable growth of aviation, in India and globally,” Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s director general & CEO, said in a statement.
Norwegian Cruise Line has unveiled details on Norwegian Spirit’s upcoming renovation, which is billed as the “most extensive bow-to-stern renovation in the company’s history”.
Norwegian Spirit will enter dry dock in Marseille, France on January 2, 2020 for an over US$100 million revitalisation. As part of the nearly 40-day renovation, the ship will emerge featuring 14 new venues, additional staterooms and an expanded Mandara Spa.
New complimentary dining venues will include a main dining room, Taste; a 24-hour eatery The Local Bar and Grill; an all-day dining outlet, Garden Café; the Great Outdoors Bar; and Waves Pool Bar. Making their debut are Bliss Ultra Lounge and Spinnaker Lounge, the latter of which will feature the Humidor Cigar Lounge. Additionally, Italian speciality restaurant Onda by Scarpetta will also be part of Norwegian Spirit‘s new F&B offerings.
Other facilities include an expanded Pulse Fitness Center, and an adults-only daytime lounge Spice H2O featuring two hot tubs and a dedicated bar, which will transform into an after-hours entertainment venue.
Additionally, Mandara Spa will double in size to nearly 650m² and include a relaxation area with heated loungers, a new Jacuzzi room, a sauna, steam room and water therapy experience.
Bookings are now open for Parkroyal Collection Marina Bay, which will be rebranded from the current Marina Mandarin and managed by Pan Pacific Hotels Group (PPHG) from January 1, 2020.
As its celebratory launch promotion, the hotel is offering guests 10 per cent off prevailing room rates and two benefits of their choice, including a curated selection of complimentary daily buffet for two, cocktails at the hotel bar or lounge, as well as special amenities like wine and chocolate.
Members of PPHG’s guest loyalty programme, Pan Pacific Discovery, enjoy an additional 10 per cent on the promotional room rate, plus a guaranteed room upgrade.
This opening offer is valid for bookings from November 1, 2019 to January 31, 2020 for stays from January 1 to March 31, 2020.
