Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi, Maldives The 122 all-villa resort spans three interconnected islands, a 30-minute yacht ride away from Malé International Airport. Each beach, reef or overwater villa opens onto either a white sand beach or an expansive deck, and features a private infinity pool with uninterrupted views of the Indian Ocean. There are also two Stella Maris Ocean Villas, accessible only by boat, as well as the 32,000m2 Ithaafushi Private Island. The private island features a four-bedroom residence, three-bedroom beach villa and a two-bedroom overwater villa, and its own amenities such as an overwater spa and gym, five swimming pools, and an entertainment centre.
Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi also boasts 11 dining venues, ranging from The Ledge barbecue restaurant overseen by Michelin-starred chef Dave Pynt, to Middle Eastern restaurant Yasmeen. Other amenities include the Waldorf Astoria Spa, a 40m-long pool, fitness centre, watersports and dive centre, as well as a kids’ club.
Hyatt Place Tokyo Bay, Japan The first Hyatt Place hotel to open in Japan is located in Urayasu City in Chiba Prefecture, offering 363 rooms and suites, some of which overlook Tokyo Bay. Other facilities within the 10-storey Hyatt Place Tokyo Bay include an all-day dining facility, a 24-hour gym, and two function rooms. Dining venues include the 24/7 Gallery Kitchen (which also has two private rooms that can accommodate 14 to 60 people); Gallery Market with take-out options, while watering holes include the 9 Dot Bar and Rooftop Bar.
Kafnu Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Hospitality company, Next Story Group, has opened its fifth Kafnu-branded property in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City. Spanning 2,440m2, the eight-storey Kafnu Ho Chi Minh City has eight ensuite hotel rooms and offers members round the clock access to a range of work spaces including hot desks and private offices, high-speed Internet, a soundproof phone booth, and five meeting rooms with video conferencing capabilities. In addition, there’s the Virtual Fitness Studio which offers over 1,500 classes, Habitat Cocktail Bar, and Soy Restaurant featuring modern Asian cuisine.
Novotel Chiang Mai Nimman Journeyhub, Thailand Novotel has made its debut in Chiang Mai’s Nimman area with 202 rooms and suites, some of which feature private balconies and garden access. Guests will have access to a fitness centre, rooftop swimming pool, as well as three F&B options including the all-day dining restaurant Food Exchange. For corporate events, the hotel also has four meeting rooms and a pillarless ballroom that overlooks the garden atrium and can accommodate up to 240 guests.
The 229-key St Regis Bangkok has launched a new wellness programme incorporating Thai boxing (Muay Thai) with the addition of a boxing ring to its list of recreational amenities.
Guests will be under the watchful eye of Thai boxing instructor, Boonsanong Borchae, better known as Coach Jack, who brings more than 15 years of Thai boxing expertise and holds a degree in sport science.
During customised training sessions tailored for beginners through skilled practitioners, Coach Jack will guide participants on the traditions, rituals and customs of the sport. The training focuses on precision and safety, while ensuring full enjoyment of their Thai boxing immersion. Complimentary equipment is provided (fitted gloves and knee pads) along with water and fresh towels.
Thai boxing training sessions are US$44 per hour plus taxes for St Regis Bangkok’s in-house guests, or US$63 per hour plus taxes for non-guests.
The ring is located within the 15th floor Wellness Center, which features an array of TechnoGym ellipticals, treadmills and stationary bikes; free weights; TRX suspension trainers; exercise mats and foam rollers.
To complement the new Thai Boxing sessions, the hotel offers several additional options that can enhance a guest’s overall wellness experience, such as a Total Wellness Dining Program; and a toning package at the spa.
Guests may opt for a nutritional consultation with executive chef Chris to create a customised meal programme to follow during their stay. They may choose from three categories: Muscle Builder (focusing on foods that help muscle building), Refuel (healthy breakfast, lunch and dinner choices that replenish the body), or Calorie Watch (for those looking to limit high-calorie indulgences). Pricing is dependent upon the number of meals chosen.
As an added fitness option, F-EMS training at the ELEMIS Spa provides a full-body workout to tone and shape the body. F-EMS training works 350 muscles simultaneously to burn more than 1,000 calories in 25 minutes with the guidance of a Body Contouring Specialist. The package includes a 30-minute F-EMS session and is offered for US$78 plus taxes.
Crowding a regular phenomena at the Ruins of St Paul’s
Macau is showing early signs of capacity strains after recent accessibility enhancements in the Pearl River Delta like the high-speed rail connection and the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge.
Crowding a regular phenomena at the Ruins of St Paul’s
During the recent May 1 Labour Day Holiday, visitor arrivals surged 37 per cent to 636,644, almost equivalent to the city’s total population (667,400).
With visitors concentrated in some key attractions, industry players say more can be done to disperse traffic. Based on findings from several visitor profile studies conducted by the Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) in the past five years, the top three attractions for the visitors are the Ruins of St Paul’s, Senado Square and Cotai Strip. Taipa and Coloane Village have also experienced visitor surges during peak periods.
China Travel Service (Macao), travel department sales and marketing manager, Pun Cheng-man, said: “We feel the (effects of) overtourism especially during weekends and public holidays. Cotai and Taipa are key sightseeing points, and both are always packed with tourists.”
Pun said the uneven distribution of tourists has caused “nuisances to neighbourhood and local residents”.
Charles Huang, COO of Macau Hotel Sun Sun, located within Inner Harbour, opined: “Overtourism is a result of government’s focus on promoting traditional attractions only.”
Huang suggested that unused piers in Inner Harbour can be transformed into tourist-friendly F&B zones. He also hopes for Inner Harbour to be added as a stop for eventgoers during festivals such as Chinese New Year.
Visitor traffic can also be managed by holding tourist activities outside of peak periods. “For instance, the annual Macao International Fireworks Display Contest takes place on busy weekends. Why not do it Friday? This can also entice visitors to stay one more night. It’d better if the event can be held in first half of the year,” Huang proposed.
In Taipa Village, some tourism players don’t believe crowding is a problem yet. Taipa Village Destination, head of marketing Pamela Chan, said: “Since there is a growing number of attractions in Macau, visitors are being distributed to different areas.”
She added that Taipa Village can afford to continue welcoming more visitors. “I can see the footfall traffic diversification all around Macau, between Cotai, Taipa and the Macau Peninsula.”
A restaurateur who sees tourist business peak in the month of May, too said that visitor traffic is adequately spread out between his Taipa and Macau Peninsula outlets.
“We did see a slight bump in visitors as compared to last year. However, traffic was divided in both areas. Cotai caters to more upmarket tourists and Macau has more options for budget hotels.”
Similar to Chan, he feels he is ready to welcome even more business.
Still, the strong growth in arrivals is already prompting the MGTO and relevant bodies to implement measures to alleviate crowds. For instance, a new app was launched in March 2019 to help residents and visitors better monitor traffic to avoid crowds. The application predicts visitor density at tourist attractions within four hours, 24 hours and seven days, and classifies the forecast at various levels from “comfortable” to “heavily congested”.
The MGTO spokesman said: “Another focus has been on attracting visitors to different parts of the city, during different times of the year, with projects like the Step Out, Experience Macao’s Communities walking tours, along with events like the Art Macao (which inaugurated on June 6), as well as new attractions such as Anim’Arte Nam Van and the Grand Prix Museum.”
Meanwhile, there are pipeline projects for urban planning in and around the Ruins of St Paul’s and Barra. The Transport Bureau has also continually improved traffic control measures, and the Light Rail Transit (Taipa Line) System is expected to be operational in 2019.
Moreover, MGTO hopes to complete feasibility studies within this year, before submitting its findings to the government for further analysis and consideration.
Visitor numbers to Mount Cook National Park have exceeded one million for the first time this year
Sustainability is becoming a bigger priority in New Zealand’s tourism sector, with both the public and private sectors eager to uphold indigenous cultural values and preserve the destination for generations to come.
Visitor numbers to Mount Cook National Park have exceeded one million for the first time this year
While tourism has brought tangible economic benefits to the country in recent years, industry stakeholders are now making a concerted effort to incorporate visitor, environmental and community goals in its strategy.
The added weight on sustainable goals is evident in the Tourism Industry Aotearoa’s (TIA) – Aotearoa is the Maori name for New Zealand – Tourism 2025 & Beyond report as well as the New Zealand-Aotearoa Government Tourism Strategy, which was recently unveiled at Trenz 2019.
Chris Roberts, chief executive of TIA, said: “By any measure, New Zealand’s tourism industry has experienced a remarkable period of growth. Visitors and the businesses that service them are making a crucial contribution to the economic and social well-being of cities, towns and regions across (the country).”
Indeed, tourism has been breathing new life into the country’s small towns, with Roberts citing the example of small-town patrol stations and restaurants having managed to survive due to business from tourists.
“A local builder born and bred in Taumarunui reckons he has never seen the town so vibrant. And what does he put that down to? Tourism,” he shared.
Yet, there is another side to this rapid growth. The surge in visitor traffic has introduced strains on both infrastructure as well as labour in some regions.
To safeguard New Zealand’s future, TIA has revised its former Tourism 2025 Growth Framework launched in 2014.
Kelvin Davis, New Zealand tourism minister, said: “We want tourism to improve New Zealanders’ social, cultural, environmental as well as economic well-being. We want tourism growth to be productive, sustainable and inclusive.”
Social, cultural, environmental and economic goals are “not to be traded off against one another”, he asserted. “A well-functioning tourism will see these all working together.”
This will mean building partnerships with the Maori society across all outcomes of the strategy, as well as building a low-emission and climate-resilient economy to support the transition to a ‘clean, green and carbon-neutral’ New Zealand-Aotearoa, Davis elaborated.
“Importantly, (the new tourism strategy) recognises the environment – our cultural capital – as the economic foundation of New Zealand-Aotearoa and growth will need to be created within ecological limits,” the tourism minister declared.
Reflecting the country’s commitment to environmental goals, the tourism strategy was launched together with the Ministry of Conservation for the first time.
Eugenie Sage, minister of conservation, said: “The Department of Conservation (DOC) contributes to the strategy because it’s acknowledging that our natural and cultural heritage is at the heart of our success as a country and society.
“It is our responsibility to help ensure that we have a sustainable visitor industry that protects and cherishes natural and cultural heritage for its own sake and for the present and future generations.”
She shared that the new tourism strategy would enable the government to adopt a more active and coordinated approach to make sustainability a core value in tourism and mitigate the industry’s impacts.
The DOC also sees its role as going beyond providing the infrastructure for recreation in nature or preserving and protecting the natural environment. Sage shared that the department is also working in partnership with the Maori community and businesses to understand and encompass their cultural values.
For example, at Mount Cook, where annual visitor numbers recently reached one million, “the DOC has worked to ensure that facilities are adequate and visitors have access to a safe, high-quality experience, while at the same time the outstanding natural and cultural values of the national park are protected”, according to Sage.
Since 2010, the DOC has invested NZ$16.5 million (US$10.9 million) in facilities including a new visitor centre, road improvements, tracks and additional toilets. Some NZ$122,000 was also spent on repairing the Hooker Valley Track following severe weather damage last March.
To fund the projects, the government has introduced an International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy as of July 1, which requires international visitors staying in the country for less than 12 months to pay a NZ$35 levy. The government expects to generate NZ$350 million in revenue from the new levy over the next five years.
Meanwhile, the industry has increasingly recognised and adopted Maori values of guardianship, hospitality and togetherness.
In November 2018, TIA and six other New Zealand organisations also launched Tiaki, Care for New Zealand, an initiative which encourages international and domestic travellers to act as guardians of New Zealand by following a set of guidelines outlining the ways visitors can preserve and protect the land.
Tourism-related businesses in the country have also been active participants in their efforts to live up to the Tiaki promise.
For example, Malcolm Johns, chief executive of Christchurch Airport, said: “In the past four years we have been investing in activities to decarbonise our business. The priority is on direct emissions for now, (but we plan to) deal with indirect business (in future).
“Since we started, we have removed 90 per cent of our direct emissions and by October this year we would be within touching distance from being (free of) direct emissions in our business.”
However, in the project’s final stages, Johns acknowledged that the airport is faced with the touch challenge of dealing with fuels that fire power engines and emergency back-up generators.
Meanwhile, Air New Zealand is putting its focus on “reductions and innovation – minimising emissions by using fuel more efficiently, and exploring new commercial solutions and technology to stabilise our carbon emissions by 2020”, said chief revenue officer, Cam Wallace.
“One of the most significant ways to reduce emissions is by operating a modern and efficient fleet. We (started operating) 787-9 Dreamliner in 2014 and retired our last Boeing 767 aircraft from our fleet in March 2017.
“We’ve recently introduced three A320neos and six A321neos. New-generation engines, fuel-efficient Sharklet wingtip devices and approximately 25 per cent more seats mean the neos are expected to help deliver fuel savings and efficiencies of at least 15 per cent compared with the aircraft they’re replacing,” he revealed.
Despite the progress made in cutting emissions, Air New Zealand is still some way off from being entirely emissions free, admitted Wallace.
“The reality is that there will be a limit to the efficiencies we can make, and despite an extensive global search, aviation biofuel supply at the scale we need for our operations is still a way off,” he said.
“This makes carbon offsetting hugely important to balance some of the impact of air travel. We offer our retail and larger corporate customers the option to offset carbon emissions associated with their flights through our FlyNeutral programme.”
A woman posing for the perfect Instagram shot at Lempuyang Temple
As Instagram creates a wave of social media-fuelled tourism among millennials worldwide, travel sellers and operators are not only building a presence on the popular photo-sharing platform itself, but also creating photo-driven tours and itineraries in order to appeal to the new generation of holidaymakers.
Speaking at the recent Arival Bangkok conference, Abhinav Kumar, regional manager – South-east Asia, GetYourGuide, shared that the online tours and activities marketplace’s Bali Instagram Tour: The Most Scenic Spots was co-created with a tour operator, following observations that many people, especially female solo travellers, were booking tours to Lempuyang Temple on the eastern-most part of the island.
A woman posing for the perfect Instagram shot at Lempuyang Temple in Bali
Recognising further upselling opportunities from this “bestselling tour”, Kumar said GetYourGuide started offering add-on options of premium car transfers, Polaroid cameras and drone videos to entice the Insta-set keen to take a photo between the iconic temple gates at this bucket-list attraction, also known as the ‘Gates of Heaven’.
What “started as a basic tour turned into an offer with many add-on options”, enabling GetYourGuide to boost its booking and revenue share through “product segmentation”, he shared.
Nicola Scaramuzzino, Thailand country manager at Panorama Destination, also revealed that the DMC is keen to sell Instagram tours on online platforms, as the company seeks to “customise different products for the digital generation”. “There are different types of travellers, we need to cater to them,” he said.
It’s unsurprising too that hotels also want a slice of the Instagram effect, which has been looked upon as an effective marketing tool especially with the huge rise of influencer marketing.
The Sukhothai Hotel Bangkok’s director of sales & marketing Santichai Boonrasri sees a “powerful medium” in social media, which drives a significant portion of bookings for the property.
The influencer marketing strategy, according to Santichai, is especially apparent for South Korea, a travel market very much driven by influencers who post photos of the Thai urban resort on Instagram, which in turn spur further bookings from this market.
However, Insta-tourism has its challenges too, as Scaramuzzino observes a generation more keen on “discovering photogenic spots than the history of a destination”. Some attractions, such as Padar on Komodo Island, are oftentimes reduced to being photo points for the Instagram addicts, as some travellers go to lengths and even dangerous positions to capture the perfect photo at such spectacular spots.
But Air Tours’ social media specialist Dawid Razny does not think that photo-driven social media apps like Instagram has reached a saturation point among today’s travellers. The Instagram trend is still “not that obvious or full blown” for travellers in their 30s and 40s, who make up the main clientele for the Polish tour operator.
“I expect in a couple of years photos will truly become a driving force for a younger generation of travellers,” he remarked, speaking to TTG Asia at Thailand Travel Mart last month.
China's Ctrip teams up with 10 ride-hailers worldwide; a man hailing for a ride
Ctrip announced last week that it now has 10 ride-hailing services from around the globe integrated into its own app, offering mobility services in 785 cities.
Among them are Lyft and Grab, the leading South-east Asian ride-hailing player that recently invested in ride-hailing aggregator Splyt.
China’s Ctrip teams up with 10 ride-hailers worldwide; a man hailing for a ride
Others are Cabify in South American; Careem, which operates in West Asia and North Africa; Gett, which covers Great Britain, Russia and Israel; Liftago, which covers Czech and Slovakia; Germany’s Taxi Deutschland and Bolt; Belgium’s Taxis Verts; and the Netherland’s TCA.
Ctrip’s app also provides online translation to help its users communicate with local drivers and enables payment in RMB.
Last year, Ctrip had also teamed up with ride-hailing aggregator Splyt, which works with all 10 platforms, to offer pick-up and drop-off services on the OTA’s Asia-Pacific brand, Trip.com.
Ctrip’s integration of overseas ride-hailing capabilities pits it against the country’s ride-hailing leader Didi, and other startups that also target Chinese outbound tourists such as Guide.
The Innov8 Golf Course Road co-working space in Gurgaon
After hotels and homes, Indian hotel startup Oyo is now venturing into the commercial real estate business with the acquisition of Indian co-working venture Innov8 in a US$30 million, all-stock deal, Reuters reported.
With the acquisition of Innov8, Oyo is expected to take on fellow SoftBank-backed shared office space manager WeWork, which is now gearing up for an IPO, the report added.
The Innov8 Golf Course Road co-working space in Gurgaon
Having brought Innov8 under its fold, Oyo revealed that it would incorporate a multi-brand approach with two other co-working brands, Powerstation and Workflo, to introduce Oyo Workspaces.
Led by Rohit Kapoor, CEO, New Real Estate Businesses, Oyo Workspaces will offer co-working real estate in the upper-mid scale, mid scale and economy categories.
Oyo is expected to open over 21 of its shared work spaces in more than 10 cities across the country. There are plans to expand Oyo Workspace to over 50 centres by the end of 2019.
New Delhi-based Innov8 offers upmarket shared workspaces, where a private office costs as high as Rp64,999 (US$947) a month, while a desk is sold for Rp9,999 per month.
Garuda Indonesia's London service has been modified to add a Medan stop
Garuda Indonesia yesterday began thrice-weekly-services between Medan and London, an extension of its existing Denpasar-London service.
The Denpasar-Medan-London route will utilise an Airbus A330-200, with a capacity of 222 passengers in two classes.
Garuda Indonesia’s London service has been modified to add a Medan stop
The London-bound service GA086 leaves Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport at 08.10 and lands at Kualanamu International Airport in Medan at 11.10. The flight then departs Medan at 12.40 and arrives in London at 20.00.
For the return leg, GA087 will take off from London Heathrow at 21.45 to arrive in Medan at 16.25. It leaves Medan at 17.55 and arrives in Denpasar at 22.20.
Pikri Ilham Kurniansyah, executive vice president commercial of Garuda Indonesia, said the service provides direct connectivity between two major air hubs in Indonesia with London Heathrow, while supporting the government’s tourism programmes at the same time.
“The connectivity between Medan and London is expected to increase the awareness (of international travellers) of Medan and its surrounding areas including Lake Toba,” he elaborated.
Pakistan has lifted all airspace restrictions on civilian flights, reopening a key transit air corridor over its territory almost five months after closing it due to aerial attacks with India that brought the two countries to the brink of war, BBC reported.
The closure forced international flights to be rerouted around Pakistan, reportedly costing airlines tens of millions of dollars.
Pakistan reopens airspace after months of closure
Pakistan shut its airspace in February after India carried out an air strike against what it said was a terrorist training camp in Pakistani territory, in retaliation to a suicide bombing in Kashmir claimed by a Pakistan-based militant group.
In response, Pakistan launched an attack on an Indian fighter jet.
Pakistan partially opened its airspace in March, but not for flights into and out of India.
India’s aviation ministry said there were no further restrictions on airspace in either country.
Leading up to the decision to reopen the air space, United Airlines had announced it was extending the suspension of its flights from the US to Delhi and Mumbai in India until October because of the continued airspace restrictions.
Moxy Hotels has signed a new hotel in Perth, marking the brand’s second signing in Australia this year following the earlier announcement of Moxy Melbourne South Yarra.
The A$35 million (US$24.5 million) property, set to begin construction in October this year, will be located at 195 Hay Street, within walking distance of bars and restaurants in the city’s CBD and near attractions like the WACA Ground, Swan River and Heirisson Island.
An artist’s impression of the upcoming Moxy Hotel
When complete, Moxy Perth will feature 150 rooms alongside facilities such as a fitness centre, a communal space, the Moxy Bar which doubles as the hotel’s check-in where guests receive a complimentary cocktail upon arrival; as well as a 24/7 self-service grab-and-go concept with items such as cereals and noodles. Plug in points and free Wi-Fi will also be available throughout the hotel.
Moxy Perth will take Marriott International’s presence in Perth to beyond 1,200 hotel rooms, adding to the hospitality giant’s growing portfolio of select service brands options in the Western Australia capital, according to Paul Foskey, chief of development Asia-Pacific Marriott International.
The “playful, experiential” brand now has 44 hotels around the globe, with another 100 in the pipeline. Three Moxys are currently open in Asia-Pacific, including Tokyo, Osaka and Bandung.
