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Asia/Singapore Monday, 22nd December 2025
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Biggest-ever global marketing push launched for Famous Original New York City

By TTG Asia
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The Famous Original New York City campaign will also hit Singapore shores

NYC & Company has kicked off “its most expansive global tourism marketing campaign to date”, as New York City looks to welcome a record 13.9 million international visitors in 2019.

The refreshed Famous Original New York City campaign, valued at approximately US$20 million, will be unveiled across 22 countries including first-time markets Singapore and Ireland.

The Famous Original New York City campaign will also hit Singapore shores for the first time

This promotional effort, with a “Welcomes You. Always.” tagline, presents travel partners with several colourful iterations from which to choose, with further design executions featuring other uniquely-NYC imagery still expected to come.

New to this year’s refreshed Famous Original New York City initiative is a toolkit, which include five-borough imagery, video and other creative assets, that will be given to all partners to promote New York City.

The My Famous Original New York City personalisation hub will help users gather inspiration, plan their visit and navigate the destination, by offering ‘favouriting’ tools and providing information (including in-language content in French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish) in response to their behaviour and feedback while using the website. The hub will also offer visitors the option to book New York City restaurants, hotels and attractions directly on the website.

NYC & Company’s city-to-city tourism partnerships are being leveraged to support this global tourism marketing effort, spotlighting New York City via in-kind media in Buenos Aires, Argentina; Cape Town, South Africa; and Toronto, Canada. Starting this autumn, NYC & Company will also collaborate with global corporate partner MasterCard on out-of-home advertisements promoting New York City in key Latin American markets Chile, Colombia and Mexico.

NYC & Company has partnered with tour operators and airlines to offer packages and flight-only deals driving visitation in 1Q2020. In addition to out-of-home media through an ongoing in-kind partnership with media provider JC Decaux, digital, partner-owned, and paid promotion contribute to an approximate campaign value of US$20 million to date.

This week in the UK, the city’s leading source of international visitation, digital out-of-home advertisements were rolled out in collaboration with British Airways. Additional partners include Aeromexico (Mexico), Asiana Airlines (South Korea), CVC (Brazil), El Corte Inglés (Spain), FTI (Germany), HIS (Japan) and SAS – Scandinavian Airlines (Denmark, Norway and Sweden), with more to be announced.

Next month, new digital promotion will appear across Facebook, Instagram and YouTube platforms in Brazil, India, Mexico and the UK. In conjunction, visitors will soon discover a new personalised experience on NYCGO.com, the official guide for everything to see and do across the five boroughs.

New hotels: Karma Sitabani, Le Méridien Khao Lak Resort & Spa, and more

By TTG Asia
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Karma Sitabani, India
Karma Group has opened Karma Sitabani in the Jim Corbett National Park, part of the Corbett Tiger Reserve in Uttarakhand. Spread over 1.4ha at the foothills of the Himalayas, the resort boasts a total of 42 suites in various configurations, and amenities such as spa, pool, restaurant, kid’s area, cinema, games area and gym. Safari trips to view tigers and other wildlife such as monkeys, foxes and deer in the park are also offered. Guests can fly to Delhi and drive for six hours to get to Karma Sitabani, or fly to Patnagar and then drive for about 2.5 hours. The nearest village is Ramnagar, 45 minutes from the resort.

Le Méridien Khao Lak Resort & Spa, Thailand
Situated in Phang Nga Province, this recently-opened hotel features 10 types of guestrooms, suites and villa with balconies across its 269 keys. Facilities on-site include seven bars and restaurants, spa, three lagoon pools, fitness centre and a kids’ club. Guests will also be able to book trips such as the Local Life Experience, Thai Cooking Class, Khao Sok Safari and Sea Cave Canoeing at Phang Nga Bay with the Tour Desk. Event planners may avail several indoor and outdoor spaces, ranging from the 540m² Grand Ballroom to The Beach Lawn.

Park Inn by Radisson North EDSA, Philippines
Park Inn by Radisson North EDSA has opened in Quezon City, the brand’s first in Metro Manila and the fourth in the Philippines. The hotel offers 238 rooms, including 16 suites also feature separate living areas. Guests can refuel at three F&B outlets: Casa, the all-day dining restaurant; Terraza on 7, which serves poolside drinks and light snacks; and the social Lobby Bar. Aside from the fitness centre, other facilities include the Makiling Grand Ballroom, Banahaw Meeting Rooms and a pre-function area that accommodates up to 640 delegates.

Rosewood Guangzhou, China
The 251-key Rosewood Guangzhou has launched in Guangzhou’s Tianhe District within the top 39 floors of the 108-storey CTF Finance Centre – the seventh tallest building in the world.

The luxury hotel has seven F&B venues, while recreational options include the two-level Sense, A Rosewood Spa with three spa treatment suites, a health club complete with yoga studio and fitness centre, and a 25m-long indoor pool. Function spaces on-site include The Pavilion, a residential-style function space that can accommodate up to 420; a 958m² Grand Ballroom; three function rooms; two VIP rooms; and a Sky Mansion on the 108th floor featuring a show kitchen terrace.

The property is also home to Rosewood Residences Guangzhou, which features 355 serviced apartments spanning from studios (76), one- and two-bedroom apartments (160 and 96, respectively) to luxurious duplexes (23). Designed with long-term stays in mind, each Residence includes amenities such as in-room washing machines, as well as a full kitchen with an oven and dishwasher.

Yello Hotel Harmoni, Indonesia
A refresh of this midscale hotel in the Indonesian capital brings the addition of suites, making it the first Yello property to offer suites. Out of the 350 rooms, 14 have been transformed into suites, each furnished with a king-sized bed, sofa, desk with wireless charging, Wi-Fi, and a separate bathroom. Other new features include daily buffet lunch and dinner at the on-site restaurant, as well as eight new mural spots by local artists to make the hotel more Instagrammable.

Four Points by Sheraton Kuala Lumpur, Chinatown hires new GM

By TTG Asia
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Abhimanyu Singh has been appointed general manager of the soon-to-open 318-room Four Points by Sheraton Kuala Lumpur, Chinatown in Malaysia.

Having gained substantial experience in a career span of 15 years, Abhimanyu brings with him a wealth of knowledge in hotel management, administration, and operations.

His career with Marriott International began in 2004 with JW Marriott Mumbai, Juhu and in a short span of time became the hotel’s front desk manager. Over the years, Abhimanyu has also worked with various brands within Marriott International and has played a role in the opening of hotels such as JW Mumbai Sahar, JW Marriott Macau and JW Marriott Pune.

Prior to his move to Malaysia, Abhimanyu was most recently resident manager at JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay in Vietnam.

Singapore’s Katrina Group unveils new co-living brand as part of hospitality expansion drive

By TTG Asia
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Front seating area

ST Hospitality Group, the hospitality arm of Katrina Group, has launched the first property in Singapore’s Chinatown, the first of a new line of affordable co-living hotels across Asia-Pacific.

ST Signature Chinatown incorporates a blend of custom-built technology such as the smart Chat-In technology, a self check-in solution which uses a virtual host to enable guests to check in and out of the hotel more efficiently.

ST Signature Chinatown
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Front seating area
Outdoor lounging area
Patio
Room 314
Staircase

The 40-key co-living hotel in Chinatown also incorporates an intelligent design that circumvents a traditional room layout, allowing the rooms to be spacious enough to be comfortable and compact enough to reduce their carbon footprint.

ST Signature Chinatown, which marks Katrina Group’s first major expansion after the acquisition of Straits Organization, will soon be followed by the group’s flagship property opening later this month in Tanjong Pagar, before a wider roll-out in the Asia-Pacific region.

Straits Organization currently has a portfolio of over 600 serviced apartment units in Singapore and Hong Kong, and four additional co-living hotels in the pipeline for Singapore.

New Nerf attraction hits Singapore, with more to come in global pipeline

By Rachel AJ Lee
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Singapore-based design and production group Kingsmen Creatives has partnered global play and entertainment company Hasbro to open the world’s first NAX (Nerf Action Xperience) arena in the Marina Square shopping mall in Singapore.

At the unveiling of the new attraction last Friday, Kingsmen Creatives’ group CEO Andrew Cheng said: “(The) NAX arena is a first-of-its-kind branded attraction centre in the world. It unlocks a whole new way for fans to experience the renowned Nerf brand. The NAX arena is not just a fun venue; it is also a highly interactive arena that encourages learning, teambuilding and family or community bonding through active play.”

Nerf Action Xperience
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Spanning more than 1,600m², the attraction houses four activity zones – Compete, Conquer, Challenge, and Create – which are themed after extreme natural environments to challenge players, and targeted at both the young – aged three to 16 – and young at heart.

“The NAX arena is unique and will enrich Singapore’s family-friendly offerings. Singapore Tourism Board (STB) will continue to support industry partners with good ideas to make Singapore even more interesting and fun for visitors and locals,” said STB’s chief executive Keith Tan, who was in attendance at the opening.

When asked how much of the revenue generated by the attraction he thinks will come from tourists, Cheng said: “Attractions’ revenue in Singapore is generally 80 per cent from the domestic market, with 20 per cent from tourists. Being in a prime location, we hope to grow revenue from tourists to 30 or 40 per cent.”

“That is why we’re promoting NAX regionally, and not (just) in Singapore. We will be attending regional roadshows with STB, and conducting promotions on websites, through influencers, as well as to travel agents,” he elaborated.

The NAX arena is the first of multiple Family Entertainment Centre concepts that Kingsmen plans to roll out globally within the next few years.

Earlier in July, Kingsmen signed a partnership with Vision High to bring NAX to the China market. The first NAX in China is currently being constructed in a mall in Chongqing.

Kingsmen Exhibits’ group managing director Anthony Chong added: “All of our NAX centres will be located in malls. At the moment, we’re also looking at South Korea and Japan, as there’s lots of interest from those markets.”

The Singapore NAX arena is open to single players and groups, with four rooms available for event bookings. It will retail exclusive made-for-Singapore NERF blasters and merchandise. The NAX arena is open daily from 10.00 to 22.00, with last entry at 19.30.

Thousands of jobs saved as Hays Travel snaps up Thomas Cook UK stores

By TTG Asia
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The sale of 555 Thomas Cook UK shops to Hays Travel is a potential game-changer that could save up to 2,500 jobs.

All the Thomas Cook stores will be rebranded as Hays Travel following the acquisition for an “undisclosed sum”, according to a BBC report.

Hays Travel acquires 555 Thomas Cook UK shops in a move that could save up to 2,500 jobs

Thomas Cook’s collapse last month put 22,000 jobs worldwide at risk, including 9,000 in the UK. It also sparked the biggest ever peacetime repatriation by the CAA to bring more than 150,000 holidaymakers back to the UK.

John Hays, who owns and founded the Sunderland-based travel firm, said it is difficult to give guarantees about every Thomas Cook shop as it is subject to discussions with individual landlords, but the company plans to offer reemployment to all former Thomas Cook staff.

Hays, which runs 190 shops and has 1,900 staff, reported sales of £379 million (US$463 million) and profits of £10 million last year.

The acquisition will see Hays trebling their number of shops and doubling their workforce, said the BBC report. More than 100 new jobs will be based at Hays Travel’s Sunderland headquarters, with the rest in shops across the UK.

The takeover deal was struck with the travel industry regulator, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), after several days of negotiations, it added, further quoting a CCA spokesperson as saying that he expected many of the shops to reopen on Thursday.

Following the news of the takeover, GlobalData said in a statement that Hays Travel’s acquisition of Thomas Cook stores is a “gamble that could pay off”.

Nick Wyatt, head of R&A, travel & tourism at GlobalData, said: “Not many of us saw this deal coming but it is welcomed news for the high street. It is a bold move on Hays’ part, but Thomas Cook is a cherished brand with an established customer base and if Hays has negotiated well, the move may just pay off.

“Much will depend on the terms of the deal. As this is breaking news, we don’t yet know the cost of the deal, what terms can be agreed with landlords for example, but this was most certainly a buyer’s market situation so Hays should have been able to negotiate favourable terms.

He added that there is still demand for Thomas Cook’s services as the company raked in £9.6 billion in revenue for the financial year of 2018.

“Hays should be able to operate without the millstone of debt round its neck and the publicity around the Thomas Cook collapse may even spur people to seek out Atol protected package holidays for peace of mind, which will play into Hays’ hands.

“The deal is not, however, without peril. It will have to conduct a review of store locations and operations and there may be a need for a rationalisation at some point, particularly in areas in which Hays already has a strong presence. Hays will also need to make sure it invests in digital trends as competitive online threats to a large store network are legion.”

Wildfires shut down Kawah Putih, a growing attraction in Bandung

By Kurniawan Ulung
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Travel trade players are anxious that the closure of the Kawah Putih, a crater lake in Bandung, West Java, due to forest fires would affect footfall to the increasingly popular tourist attraction.

The area’s management had closed off the popular attraction atop Bandung’s Mount Patuha since Tuesday due to forest fires. There were no casualties from the fire which broke out on Monday afternoon, according to the West Java Police, who is still investigating the cause of the fire.

Industry players fear closure of the Kawah Putih (above) due to forest fires would affect inbound tourism

Budijanto Ardijansyah, president director of My Duta Tour and chairman of the Association of Indonesian Tours and Travel Agencies (ASITA) West Java chapter, was dismayed to learn that the fire had destroyed new stairs built to create easier access to the crater for visitors.

Kawah Putih’s closure comes at a time when the spot is emerging as an attractive alternative to Tangkuban Parahu, a hitherto popular destination that has seen a decline in visitor numbers since the government’s implementation of a price hike.

“Kawah Putih is growing as a major tourist destination (in West Java). Many foreign tourists visit this site,” he said, adding that most of My Duta Tour’s foreign visitors to Kawah Putih came from Malaysia and Singapore.

Budijanto said he did not receive any reports of cancellations from ASITA members, as tour operations could still run normally by replacing the Kawah Putih attraction with other nearby destinations, such as Situ Patenggang Lake.

Bandung-based Exotic Java Trails Tours and Travel’s director Daniel Nugraha said that he was also shattered by the news report as Kawah Putih is currently more attractive to foreigners than Tangkuban Parahu.

“Kawah Putih received more inbound tourists than Tangkuban Parahu. They prefer to visit Kawah Putih because the ticket to enter Tangkuban Parahu is too expensive (for them). We also met with difficulties while selling tour packages to Tangkuban Parahu for the same reason,” he said.

This fire, he added, made him more stressful than the eruption of Mount Tangkuban Parahu months ago. His concern was that without proper and clear information, travellers would presume that the entire Mount Patuha was closed off and that might lead to cancellations.

“The fire rages forests surrounding the crater only. Nearby tourist destinations, such as Rengganis Crater, which is behind Kawah Putih, remain open,” Nugraha said, adding that he had replaced Kawah Putih with Rengganis Crater in his company’s tour itinerary due to the fire.

Daniel said that leisure travellers made up the bulk of visitors to Kawah Putih. However, next week, he would be hosting corporate groups from Malaysia and Singapore planning to visit Kawah Putih during their business trips in Bandung.

“What we can do today is to take a wait-and-see approach as to whether it (Kawah Putih) will remain closed next week,” he said.

Halal-friendly OTA rolls out DIY Umrah packages to Saudi Arabia

By TTG Asia
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Saudi Arabia’s historic move to offer e-visas to citizens of 49 countries globally has prompted Rihaala.com, an OTA offering halal-friendly travel content, to launch DIY Umrah packages.

Muslims from the seven Asian countries eligible for the tourist e-visas – namely, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Japan, South Korea, Kazakhstan and China, including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan – as well as Rihaala’s trade partners in the region, can now log onto Rihaala.com to arrange and book their personalised Umrah travel plans.

Halal-friendly OTA Rihaala.com has launched DIY Umrah packages to Saudi Arabia

They can hand-pick every aspect of the spiritual journey, including flights and hotels to transfers and post-Umrah travel and excursions, from a curated selection of halal-friendly amenities and services by the Rihaala team.

A dedicated Rihaala Agent Hub was also recently launched, enabling travel agents to package Umrah travel itineraries for their clients and earn commission on their bookings.

“Saudi Arabia’s introduction of tourist e-visas is a huge game-changer for Muslims around the world who are no longer required to use an agent to arrange their visa when travelling to the kingdom to perform Umrah,” said Rihaala founder Nabeel Shariff.

“Rihaala.com is the only dynamic platform with halal-friendly content to give pilgrims, as well as travel industry partners, the freedom to create and book their Umrah itinerary using one convenient online portal that offers transparency of choice and pricing.”

Messe Berlin Singapore to launch Travel Tech Asia next year

By TTG Asia
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Messe Berlin (Singapore) will launch the inaugural Travel Tech Asia 2020 in response to growing demand for travel technology in the Asian travel market.

The three-day conference, which will take place from October 21 to 23, 2020 at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre at Marina Bay Sands, will be co-located with ITB Asia 2020 and MICE Show Asia 2020 under ITB Asia’s umbrella of events.

The inaugural Travel Tech Asia will take place next year at the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore

“In recent years, we have seen a remarkable development in travel technology and the integral role it is playing for the travel industry. Travel Tech Asia 2020 aims to provide the community with a platform for in-depth discussions on how technology can disrupt and transform the travel landscape,” said Katrina Leung, managing director of Messe Berlin (Singapore).

Travel Tech Asia is expected to bring together a fresh set of tech buyers – comprising heads of distribution, sales and marketing, e-commerce and IT from hotels, travel agencies, airlines, tours and activities – who are the key decision-makers in evaluating and selecting the travel tech in the market that best fit the industry needs.

Conference speakers will share emerging technologies, trends, ideas and applicable case studies that will set the stage for new possibilities in travel. Innovations surrounding e-commerce, internet of things in hospitality, transportation, AI, VR and AR, big data and cloud, payment solutions and revenue management and optimisation, will also be featured at the show to showcase the possibilities in travel tech and how it is set to revolutionise the industry.

Exhibitors at the show will include industries such as AI, booking, reservations and metasearch, hotel tech, virtual reality and augmented reality, voice and biometrics, data, personalisation and mobile marketing, revenue management and optimisation, and more. Travel Tech Asia 2020 will see new exhibitors specifically catered for the travel tech industry, as technologies continue to fuel record growth in the travel industry.

Super Early Bird rates for exhibiting at Travel Tech Asia 2020 will run from now till October 31, 2019. More information on Travel Tech Asia 2020 can be found here.

Carnival breaks ground on new cruise terminal in Japan

By TTG Asia
0

Carnival Corporation has officially began construction of the industry’s first cruise terminal in Japan, located at the port of Sasebo, which will support the country’s growing demand for cruise vacations and popularity as a destination.

The groundbreaking ceremony was attended by government, business and community representatives, including Carnival Corporation’s senior vice president port operations and development Remco Buis, and vice president of business development for Carnival Asia, Paul Chong; as well as representatives from the Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), and the city of Sasebo.

Carnival Corporation has broke ground on the construction of the first cruise terminal in Japan

As part of a strategic partnership agreement signed in March 2018 with the city of Sasebo and MLIT Japan, Carnival Corporation will construct and operate the new terminal, expected to open in summer 2020.

The partners in the Sasebo development project are working together on an efficient, contemporary design for the terminal to accommodate the corporation’s existing and newest ships, said the company in a statement.

Under the 20-year agreement, Carnival Corporation and its cruise line brands will be granted berthing preference, enabling them to provide guests with optimised cruise itineraries when visiting the port.

Michael Thamm, group CEO, Costa Group and Carnival Asia, said that the new terminal “will complement (Carnival Corporation’s) strong presence in the Asia-Pacific region and furthers our commitment to help facilitate the rising demand for cruise vacations in the region”.

The company said it will continue to work with Japan’s government and MLIT to identify potential additional port development opportunities and future investments in the country.

Japan is a popular destination for seven of Carnival Corporation’s cruise line brands, including AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, P&O Cruises (UK), Princess Cruises and Seabourn. Overall, Carnival Corporation is expecting to accommodate an estimated 2 million passenger movements in the market in 2019, with nearly 800 calls from 15 ships from the company’s cruise line brands to over 50 ports in Japan.

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Sister Publications
TTG Asia TTGmice TTG India TTGssociations TTG Asia Luxury
TTG Asia | Cross Hotels to develop Bali Uluwatu Resort
TTG Asia | Hilton teams up with Explora Journeys to expand loyalty programme to luxury ocean voyages
TTG Asia | Diamond Princess begins Singapore homeporting season