The Indonesian parliament’s plans to pass a draft revision to the country’s criminal code (RKUHP) has prompted an outcry from both activists and the public who claim that the proposed bill threatens democracy and violates the rights of the country’s religions and sexual minorities.
Some of the controversial proposed laws in the RKUHP include the criminalisation of acts like cohabitation, insulting the president, spreading fake news, engaging in premarital sex and adultery.
Bali Hotels Association urges all parties involved in tourism to stay calm amid outcry over Indonesia’s draft criminal code (Pictured: Tanah Lot temple in Bali)
In response to the widely-critical media coverage related to the possible changes to the RKUHP, including an updated travel advice from Australia warning its citizens of the revised code and the harsh penalties, the Bali Hotels Association (BHA) has released a statement containing three points:
The recommendation of the full regulations, including what has been commonly referred to as the “Adultery Act”, has not yet been formally issued and cannot be enforced.
The Indonesian government and the parliament have agreed to indefinitely postpone the passing of the bill with those new regulations.
The Bali government office encourages all parties involved in tourism (i.e. persons visiting or planning to visit, as well as industry stakeholders) to stay calm and continue their activities (or planned activities) as usual.
BHA also said that it is monitoring the issue and will update its members and partners if there is any further information in regards to this matter.
Taiwan is hankering after a bigger chunk of the South-east Asian pie, aided by its New Southbound Policy launched in 2017, and the recent mutual extension of visa-exemption agreements with 18 countries.
Subsequently, the share of these 18 markets, which previously stood at 16.7 per cent, grew to 21.2 per cent in 2017 and 23.4 per cent in 2018.
Taiwan wants to attract more South-east Asian tourists (Pictured: Jade mountain, Yushan National Park in Taiwan)
Trust Lin, director for New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, India and the Middle East for the Taiwan Tourism Bureau (TTB), said that a key factor for the increase in visitors from the region was the extended length of visa-free stay, which proved a great incentive for last-minute travel decisions.
“Based on my experience, the length of visa-free stays and ease of obtaining visas really influence the desire to travel to a destination. For 1H2019, arrivals from these 18 markets went up by 4.9 per cent to nearly 1.3 million visitors,” he said, speaking to TTG Asia at the recent PATA Travel Mart in Nur-sultan, Kazakhstan.
Out of the total number of visitors to Taiwan in 1H2019, the majority came from New Zealand (+26 per cent) and Australia (16 per cent), thanks to Air New Zealand’s resumption of a five-times-weekly service – up from three – between Taipei and Auckland.
Lin predicts this upward trajectory will prevail until year-end, owing to favourable factors like the operation of more charter flights from Russia and Scoot starting a daily flight on the Kaohsiung-Singapore route since June 2019. “I reckon South-east Asian traffic will take up a quarter of total visitors arrival this year,” he said.
When asked if Taiwan has benefitted from the diversion of tourists from protest-hit Hong Kong, Lin remarked: “Yes and no, because we work closely with Cathay Pacific Airways to fly Indians via Hong Kong, given only twice-weekly connections from New Delhi by China Airlines. With Hong Kong now in trouble, Cathay’s plan to cut its winter service may affect us.”
Amid greater competition from market rivals like Japan, TTB is sparing no expense in its pursuit of repeat visitors from South-east Asia, said Lin, with a campaign strategy placing greater emphasis on Taiwan’s immersive fun and authentic culinary experiences.
“To tap more new and repeat travellers, 2020 will be designated the year of mountain tours in our first-ever effort to promote mountain trips. Taiwan has 268 mountains above 900m, which is a strong asset for us. Looking ahead, we have set a slew of themes to draw return visitors, for example, bicycle tours for 2021 and railway tours for 2022,” he added.
Furthermore, TTB’s marketing budget has been given a double-digit boost since September 1, 2019, shared Lin. Plus, the bureau recently rolled out a charter flight incentive programme, offering subsidies of US$3,000 for Hong Kong/Macau and US$8,000 for South-east Asia (except the Philippines) and Russia.
Cross Hotels and Resorts has expanded its presence in Vietnam with the signing of a hotel management agreement for the X2 Vibe Halong Bay, in collaboration with Halong Bay Hotel Joint Stock Company, a subsidiary of Vietnamtourism – Hanoi JSC.
Set to open in late 2023, the 470-key, 39-storey property will be located in the heart of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Halong Bay, less than 60km from Van Don International Airport and a few hours from Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi.
X2 Vibe Halong Bay is slated to open in late 2023
Catering to both leisure and MICE travellers, the hotel will house facilities like an outdoor swimming pool, meeting and function rooms, an all-day dining restaurant and a fully-equipped gym.
X2 Vibe Halong Bay will be Cross Hotels & Resorts’ fourth property in Vietnam, following the debut of X2 Vibe Viet Tri Hotel last August, and the signing of the luxury X2 Hoi An Resort & Residence (open 2020) and Away Hoi An (open 2021).
Cross Hotels and Resorts currently operates 24 hotels across three distinct brands in Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Asian Trails has appointed Filippo Sala as the company’s Indochina manager for the Latin and Italian markets.
From his base in the DMC’s Vietnam head office in Ho Chi Minh City, Sala is expected to be the driving force and main contact for all Spanish, Portuguese and Italian-speaking customers for Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.
Born and raised in Rome, Sala is no stranger to Asia and the travel industry; since 2007, he has gained a wealth of experience and knowledge throughout South-east Asia, with professional stints in Malaysia and Thailand during his travel career. Prior to moving to Asia, Sala has through various appointments chalked up experienced in Italy’s hospitality and aviation industry.
Sala can be reached via filippo.sala@asiantrails.com.vn
Myanmar Tourism Marketing (MTM) and the Myanmar Tourism Federation (MTF) have signed an MoU with Myanmar model-actor Paing Takhon to collaborate on a number of market development initiatives to encourage more Thai tourists to Myanmar.
Paing Takhon was also appointed by MTM in a year-long role as Myanmar’s tourism ambassador to promote the country among the youth population in Thailand.
MTM has appointed Paing Takhon (above) as Myanmar’s tourism ambassador
Thailand is the second largest tourist market source for Myanmar, after China. There are about 25 daily direct flights between Thailand (Bangkok and Chiang Mai) and Myanmar (Yangon, Mandalay and Naypyitaw) which opens many opportunities to further boost tourist arrivals from Thailand and beyond.
Targeting the regional markets, MTF will continue to promote Myanmar’s core destinations as well as new destinations through roadshows, trade shows and media fam trips for journalists.
Tourism businesses in South-east Asia are operating as usual with no cancellations or tour itinerary changes, as the prevailing haze enveloped populated cities in Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore and caused air quality to drop to hazardous levels.
The haze was due to ash and smoke bellowing from more than 5,000 hot spots in Indonesia, caused by the illegal burning to clear land for palm oil and paper plantations in Indonesia.
Agents indicate tourists are unfazed and still willing to travel to haze-hit countries like Singapore and Malaysia; hazy conditions in Singapore pictured
Mohd Akil Yusof, managing director of Kuala Lumpur-based Triways Travel Network, shared: “Forward bookings are looking good. We don’t have any cancellations and tours are running as normal. We encourage guests to wear face masks when they are outdoors and to stay indoors as much as possible.
“Our guides also give guests the option of walking around and looking at the sights up-close and taking photographs or sitting in an air-conditioned bus.”
Oscar Choo, director of operations, CPH Travel Agencies, in Kuching, Sarawak, shared: “Bookings are coming in as normal despite the haze. We had four bus loads of cruise tourists visiting the Semenggoh Nature Reserve (last week) and no one cancelled because of the haze. We provide guests with face masks and advise them to stay hydrated.”
Sabah-based Myne Travel’s senior manager, RoseMawaty Adil Embun, said that the area had been receiving daily rain in the afternoons in recent days. “We offer face masks to guests going for outdoor tours but many do not take them as the haze is not that bad.”
Malaysia’s tourism, arts and culture deputy minister Muhammad Bakhtiar Wan Chik was reported by the Malay Mail to have said that the haze had not affected the number of tourist arrivals to the country.
Meanwhile, the Singapore Grand Prix 2019 continued to take place over the past weekend, despite coinciding with the city’s worst air quality in three years.
Inbound tourists appeared to be largely undeterred by the hazy conditions. Xperience Singapore’s director Jane Goh shared that she was still bringing groups in for the Grand Prix weekend and has a line-up of incentive groups coming in this week.
Clients from the longhaul markets appear unfazed by the haze and “usually wouldn’t wear masks” while venturing about town, Goh observed.
Likewise, it’s also business as usual for food tour company Wok ’n’ Stroll. Its founder & CEO, Karni Tomer, said: “(The air quality is) terrible, but I haven’t heard any complaints from my clients. Four years ago, when the PSI hit 250, I still had clients – I simply brought masks and explained the situation (to them).”
Tourists are still coming to Singapore and heading out to eat even in these hazy conditions, Tomer added.
Big Almaty Lake in Tien Shan Mountains in Almaty, Kazakhstan, pictured
To cater to an increasingly discerning clientele, travel buyers are showing a greater appetite for novel and exotic destinations still untouched by mass tourism – and Central Asia appears to tick all the right boxes.
The region is dubbed the “last tourism frontier” by Air Astana’s CEO Peter Foster, sentiments that are also borne out by buyers at this year’s PATA Travel Mart (PTM) in Nur-sultan, Kazakhstan, which marks the first time a PATA event is held in Central Asia.
Buyers at the recent PATA Mart 2019 revealed that this year’s destination piques their interest; Big Almaty Lake in Tien Shan Mountains, Kazakhstan, pictured
Several buyers new to PTM said they were drawn to the mart this year because the host destination, Kazakhstan, is a fascinating and largely-unheard of country to them. This is also in line with PATA’s aim to promote emerging and less popular destinations for tourism.
Miroslav Konarik, sales manager for Czech Republic-based Periscope Skandinávie, which specialises in outbound travel for clients based in Scandinavia, Scotland and Iceland, told TTG Asia: “This is my first time in Kazakhstan, and is also my first time at PTM. I joined because the destination is interesting, and I’m excited to find out what the country has to show.”
Aside from “being on the lookout for new destinations”, Konarik is also interested to develop products to less-travelled destinations in the region such as Georgia and Armenia, adding that they are more “interesting than Thailand”.
Similarly, Madalina Nan, manager of outgoing department at Romania-based Atlantic Tours, indicated she would like to see more of Central Asia.
“This is unlike any traditional countries we cover, and not many people know about it,” she opined.
Meanwhile, Brazil-based Venturas’ relationship manager, Leonardo Monteiro, revealed: “Apart from Kazakhstan, I’m also interested in surrounding countries like Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkmenistan, which are all new to me. Also, the region is affordable. My company offers adventure activities like trekking, and cultural experiences, so I’m on the lookout for ground handlers and DMCs.”
Maria Ignatova, general manager of Bulgaria-based Opma Tpaben, hopes to seek out new contacts and network with local sellers at the mart, as her “clients are interested in Kazakhstan as a destination”.
Asian buyers are registering interest in Central Asia too. Paul Yeh, president of Shih Chun Travel Service in Taiwan, believes that Central Area will be a new destination that sophisticated Taiwanese travellers would be interested in.
“I’m hungry for new ideas to sell to high-end Taiwanese travellers, who are already very well-travelled,” he shared.
Instead of selling Kazakhstan as a potential mono destination, Yeh intends to add Kazakhstan to an existing India itinerary, as the country is “easier to visit after India”, rather than flying through Beijing.
Likewise, Fei Xin, deputy general manager outbound of Suzhou China International Travel Service, wants to explore possibilities in bringing high-end Chinese groups to Central Asia.
Xin noted: “The (Chinese) government is pushing the Belt and Road Initiative, but the general public is not familiar with countries along the route, along with its visa requirements, modes of transport, history and culture. Hence, we hope to establish a network that can benefit our business.”
Airbnb announces intention to become a publicly-traded company
Vacation rental giant Airbnb has announced plans to list its shares on the stock market in 2020.
In a short statement posted on its website, the company did not give any details on how it plans to list its shares, but Reuters believes that it is widely expected to take a direct-listing route. A direct listing to go public is a process in which no new shares are created and helps companies save millions of dollars in underwriting fees.
Airbnb announces intention to become a publicly-traded company
According to Reuters, Airbnb has not given any details on whether it was profitable in 2Q2019 but has previously said that its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation were positive for 2017 and 2018.
On September 18, Airbnb released a statement stating that in 2Q2019, the company achieved more than US$1 billion in revenue, and is the second quarter in its history in which the revenue exceeded US$1 billion.
Since its founding in 2008, Airbnb has evolved from a home-sharing site into a full-service travel company. This year in June, the company added Airbnb Adventures, a new collection of multi-day experiences for small groups hosted by local experts, to its platform.
The Hong Kong protests have taken a toll on the tourism industry as a whole, with no light at the end of the tunnel yet; protests at the airport earlier in August
Ovolo Group’s founder & CEO, Girish Jhunjhnuwala, has called on the Hong Kong government to bail out the local hospitality industry, in light of the current economic downturn in the region.
Widespread anti-government strikes in Hong Kong have hit the country’s retail, aviation and financial sectors hard, with the tourism industry bearing the brunt of the city’s protest movement.
The protests in Hong Kong have taken a toll on the tourism industry as a whole, with no light at the end of the tunnel yet; protesters occupying the airport earlier in August
In light of the current situation in Hong Kong, Jhunjhnuwala issued a statement, urging the Hong Kong government to “lend a helping hand” to struggling local businesses during these trying times.
“It’s devastating to see the effect that the recent situation in our city has had on local businesses, particularly those of us in the hospitality industry. As reported by the South China Morning Post, tourist arrivals year-on-year have fallen by five per cent in July and an alarming 40 per cent in August – the largest decline since the SARS outbreak in 2003. Group arrivals from the mainland have also dropped by 90 per cent in the first 10 days of September.
“When our businesses weather tough times, those whom are hit the hardest are not the top-level executives but our team members – the employees working at the forefront of our organisations. It’s those members of society, that unfortunately, are the ones who are now facing reduced hours, reduced wages or in some cases, even redundancies.
“With this in mind, it is imperative the Hong Kong government and Hong Kong Monetary Authority both step in to lend a helping hand to local businesses who are struggling during these times – not only to ensure we reduce negative economic impact and avoid loss of wages or jobs, but to ultimately protect Hong Kong’s status as a thriving tourism hub for years to come.”
New Zealand's All Blacks and South African Springboks in action at the ongoing Rugby World Cup. Photo credit: Rugby World Cup Japan 2019
Advanced flight bookings to Japan suggest rugby fans from the UK, New Zealand and Ireland will be on the ground in force to support their teams during this year’s Rugby World Cup, according to research by Travelport.
With three teams from the UK – England, Scotland and Wales – taking part in the Rugby World Cup, it’s no surprise to see the surge in flight bookings to Japan during the tournament coming from the nation, said the travel technology company in a statement.
New Zealand’s All Blacks and South African Springboks in action at the ongoing Rugby World Cup. Photo credit: Rugby World Cup Japan 2019
With New Zealand looking to add a third win to their back-to-back victories in 2015 and 2011 respectively, the All Blacks will see good support from the stands with the number of tourists heading to Japan up 70 per cent year-on-year, it added.
Not only does the average traveller booking 134 days in advance, the study also revealed that New Zealand fans were “the most forward-thinking travel planners, keen to secure their ticket early”.
As part of its study, Travelport analysed booking data from all global distribution systems to Japan, as of September 12, 2019, arriving from September 18, 2019 to November 4, 2019. The company then ran comparable data for the same period last year to identify trends.
