ATM2018 takes place at the Dubai World Trade Centre this April
Reed Travel Exhibitions, organiser of the annual Arabian Travel Market (ATM) showcase in Dubai, has announced the launch of Arabian Travel Week – an umbrella brand comprising four co-located shows, including two that are debuting in the emirate this year.
Taking place at the Dubai World Trade Centre from April 27 to May 1, the Arabian Travel Week will include two first-time events – Connect Middle East, India and Africa 2019, a route development forum, and the consumer-led ATM Holiday Shopper.These will join Reed’s existing ATM and ILTM Arabia.
The Connect route development forum and a B2C sales event head to Dubai for the first time; Dubai World Trade Centre pictured
On April 30 and May 1, Connect Middle East, India and Africa will bring together airports, airlines and aviation suppliers in a format that offers one-to-one pre-arranged meetings, industry seminars, as well opportunities to mingle with existing clients and engage with new ones.
ATM Holiday Shopper, a one-day event happening on April 27, will see 30 travel and hospitality exhibitors offering discounted products to consumers.
At this year’s ATM, an annual event for the Middle East inbound and outbound travel industry, over 2,800 products and destinations from around the world will be showcased to over 28,000 buyers and travel trade visitors. The 2019 show will spotlight technology and innovation, integrating the theme across all show verticals, planned activities and seminars.
In its third edition, the International Luxury Travel Market Arabia (ILTM) will return on the first two days of ATM.
Other highlights taking place over the course of Arabian Travel Week include the UNWTO Ministers Summit which will be held on April 28 on the Global Stage; the Hotel Industry Summit; The Global Halal Tourism Summit and a dedicated Saudi Arabia Tourism Session.
Oakwood has partnered Amadeus’ TravelClick in a revamp of its reservations platform that allows consumers to make immediate online bookings.
“Our customers have asked for more streamlined solutions with fewer points of contact, real-time booking, and more transparency in pricing. Our new global reservation system will achieve those goals by providing a single, integrated system for pricing and inventory globally,” said Chris Ahearn, Oakwood’s CEO, in a statement.
Oakwood Premier OUE Singapore – One-Bedroom Apartment
The partnership enables more seamless integration with mainstream travel and online booking platforms, as well as travel management platforms. According to Ahearn, the long-term deal with TravelClick represents “an important next step” in the serviced residences company’s technology initiative.
TravelClick’s proprietary iHotelier Booking Engine 4.0 provides a centralised e-commerce platform that enables Oakwood to guide guests through the booking process with interactive message displays, and targeted merchandising and add-on services.
In addition, TravelClick’s mobile-friendly experience will integrate into Oakwood’s recently-launched mobile app.
Hilton has moved its Asia-Pacific headquarters to Centennial Tower, adjacent to Millenia Walk and in the same integrated development as Hilton’s Conrad Centennial Singapore in the city’s CBD.
The new, custom-built office space spans three floors, and boasts a new façade, ocean views, spacious communal areas and meeting facilities with up-to-date technology.
Social space at the new HQ
From the new headquarters, Hilton manages its five subregions of Asia-Pacific, from India to Japan, China and Australasia. Centennial Tower is also home to the company’s South-east Asia office.
Alan Watts, president, Asia Pacific, Hilton, said the move creates a more “inspirational and inclusive environment” for team members.
The relocation comes amid a period of rapid growth for the company, which celebrates its 100th anniversary in May 2019.
Having doubled its footprint in Asia-Pacific in recent years, Hilton now has more than 750 hotels open and under development in the region, and for the first time will open more than 100 hotels a year in 2019.
Avani+ Samui, Thailand
This seaside resort on Koh Samui’s south-east shore by Taling Ngam Bay has opened, offering guests a choice of 25 guestrooms, 27 private pool villas, or six beachfront pool villas. Recreational facilities include the AvaniSpa, and swimming pool, while activities include island hopping, snorkelling, hiking to waterfalls, beach yoga, stand-up paddle-boarding, and mountain biking. There are also three F&B venues on-site.
Wyndham Grand Yangon, Myanmar
Rising on the shores of Kandawgyi Lake, this 20-storey, 291-key hotel forms part of the Kantharyar Centre, a new mixed-use project. Facilities include two restaurants, two bars, a fitness centre, spa, and an outdoor pool which offers views of the Kandawgyi Lake. For corporate guests and event planners, the hotel provides a 500-pax Grand Ballroom with a huge LED screen, five meeting rooms with a pre-function space for cocktail receptions, as well as an outdoor garden. The hotel also offers a shuttle service downtown, to landmarks such as Sule Pagoda and Bogyoke Market.
Iraph Sui, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Miyako Okinawa, Japan
Iraph Sui has opened on Irabu Island, Okinawa, becoming the third hotel in Japan to join Marriott’s Luxury Collection. The seafront property offers 58 rooms ranging from 46m2 to 120m2, with several suites also featuring private swimming pools. Aside from international restaurant Tin’In, the property also has a spa and infinity pool. Guests can also arrange for excursions to nearby beaches or go scuba diving in the Okinawan Ocean.
Canopy by Hilton Chengdu City Centre, China
Hilton has introduced the Canopy by Hilton-brand to Asia-Pacific with a launch in Chengdu. Located next to Tianfu Square, the property offers 150 Just-Right rooms ranging from 50m2 to 100m2. Guests will be able to avail facilities such as the 24-hour fitness centre on the 32nd floor, two F&B options, and the all-day Canopy Lounge. The new property also boasts a Transfer Lounge, said to be the first-of-its-kind in China, where guests with early arrivals or late departures can use facilities including luggage lockers, a private changing cabin and showers. There are also complimentary bikes for hire.
Holiday Inn Express Singapore Serangoon
The latest opening by InterContinental Hotels Group offers 119 guestrooms in the vicinity of the Little India district. Amenities include a 24-hour gym, restaurant, meeting room, self-service business centre, Internet stations and a laundry room. Hotel guests will also enjoy a free buffet breakfast, as well as free Wi-Fi throughout the property.
After nine years at Destination Asia that involved opening the Singapore office in 2010 and then Malaysia in 2011, Bob Guy has decided to fully step down at the company to enjoy retirement.
It was announced last year that he was concluding his role as managing director of Destination Asia in Malaysia and in Singapore. The latest announcement marks his full departure from the company’s Asian inbound, DMC, meeting and events and cruise business segments.
Guy speaking at a cruise event in 2016
At Destination Asia Malaysia, Guy is succeeded by Sadie Yeoh, general manager, who has led a team in the office since 2011. Yeoh will drive forward new initiatives to further develop the key sectors. She oversees all business activity from the four operational offices located across Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Langkawi and Kota Kinabalu).
Guy has had a 50-year career in the travel industry, with roles in the US, the Fiji Islands, Australia and numerous Asian countries including Singapore, where he was been based for nearly 40 years. His DMC experience began in Fiji in 1973.
New traffic acquisition solution added to Triptease's suite of direct booking solution for hotels
Direct booking proponent Triptease has undergone a major rebrand to reflect its evolution “from an on-site conversion solution to full-funnel direct booking channel”, as the London-based company introduces a new guest intelligence platform that aims to give hotels more control over bookings.
Triptease’s new Guest Intelligence Platform identifies a hotel’s most valuable guests then works across the entire customer journey – from acquisition to conversion – to ensure they book directly at the hotel.
New traffic acquisition solution added to Triptease’s suite of direct booking solution for hotels
The latest traffic acquisition solution – launched in beta in October 2018 – now joins parity management, price comparison, tailored messaging and live chat on the Triptease Platform. The solution is driven by a Guest Value Index that applies onsite intelligence to offsite acquisition.
Triptease said its joined-up solution is already paying dividends for hotels, with the average cost of sale for a booking acquired through the acquisition platform under eight per cent, less than half the cost of the average OTA commission of 15 to 20 per cent. In addition, the platform aims to deliver over 10 per cent of hotel website revenue at under 10 per cent cost of sale.
Visually, the rebrand includes a pared-back colour scheme of black and white with accents of copper and violet for data visualisation and emphasis. Triptease’s coaching expertise has also been brought to the fore with a page dedicated to their Direct Booking Coaching programme, while its blog has been transformed into a content hub providing access to webinars, subscription series, videos and reports.
Founder and chief tease Charlie Osmond said in a statement: “With this rebrand, we’ve pulled back to our foundations and simplified our message to reflect our new product offering: a straightforward approach that joins together acquisition and conversion.”
Joibus is bringing Asian FIT harder to reach parts of Europe such as Strasbourg in France (pictured)
Amid the growing FIT wave in the travel industry, Miki Travel (Hong Kong), a DMC specialising in Europe, last week launched its new Seat-In-Coach (SIC) tours to help meet the increasing Asian demand for greater flexibility and “off-the-beaten-path” destinations.
Unlike package tours currently on the market, Joibus offers minimum purchasing sector of one-day, an average of three departures per week, and guaranteed departure regardless of the group size – allowing FITs to more easily incorporate the tours into their itinerary.
Joibus routes include harder to reach parts of Europe such as Strasbourg in France (pictured)
Each sector is a one-day tour comprising coach transportation, hotel accommodation, and entrance ticket to attractions. Prices range from €98 (US$113) to €128 per person, and are commissionable for travel agents.
The hop-on, hop-off concept is not new. Olivier Moeschler, Miki’s CEO – Asia division, stressed that what further sets Joibus apart is access to “hard-to-reach” locations. Joibus connects classic European cities, such as Paris and Madrid, to areas considered to be off-the-beaten-path for Asian travellers, including Strasbourg in France and Carmona in Spain.
“There are many options on the market. But the majority are (either) inflexible, requiring (customers to commit to seven to 10 days) or flexible but only visiting the main cities. For example, GoEUgo is probably the most flexible hop-on, hop-off option in Asia. But (to stay) competitive, they go from one big European city to another, and do not include sightseeing.”
While sticking to the main cities is most viable in the short term, Moescheler said that it pays to take the path less trodden to stay ahead of the curve.
“It’s more difficult to get volume when offering (lesser-known destinations). Plus, as SIC departures are guaranteed – they will run (even if there’s just one person on board), it’s much more difficult for us to turn a profit. There is definitely a risk selling (such a product) in Asia,” he admitted.
But given the direction that Asian travel preferences are going, he agreed that short-term risks are worth taking to gain an early mover advantage.
“Interestingly, South Korea is the topmost market for European rail passes, above even the US. The number of FITs travelling from South Korea to Europe is huge (and growing),” he shared.
“When introducing Joibus to the different markets, we got more traction from (agency) customers who service large numbers of FIT like those in South Korea. There was also good response in markets like Taiwan where travellers are looking for places that are difficult to reach.”
Miki is selling Joibus in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia. Currently, travel agencies such as HanaTour and Tourtips in South Korea, and Lion Travel in Taiwan are already on board as partners and official sales agent of Joibus.
Joibus covers 22 tour sectors in 13 countries, namely Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain and Switzerland. New sectors in Germany, Norway, South France and the UK are being added for travel in the summer season from April to October 2019. Within five years, Miki aims to have Joibus in the whole of Europe, with daily tour departures.
Joibus routes running this January
Moeschler, who was with Kuoni before it was broken up and acquired, joined the DMC two years ago “with the mandate to transform Miki Asia”. On top of developing new products such as Joibus, he has also undertaken to grow the core business by expanding into new Asian markets and adding new destinations, as well as to implement a digital strategy.
Other recent developments in line with this three-pronged approach include the addition of Balkan destinations to Miki’s portfolio through a partnership with Intours DMC, an Adriatic region expert based in Croatia and Slovenia.
As part of a digital strategy, the DMC this month partnered Tour Manage to release a mobile support app for tour leaders, replacing the traditional telephone hotlines. This follows the roll-out of an online bookings system that allows its representatives in Asia to deal directly with hotel suppliers in Europe.
The iconic Raffles Hotel Singapore has been confirmed for a mid-2019 reopening, and will boast refreshed interiors, layout and concierge service, revealed general manager Christian Westbeld.
Most prominently, the hotel will eliminate its front desk and check-in services from the lobby. Instead, guests will be served by dedicated butlers, who will provide services from in-suite check-in to running errands for guests.
The refurbished Long Bar
This new concept will “revolutionise” the butler and concierge service in hospitality by providing guests “more focused, individualised and direct service”, explained Westbeld.
The hotel will have a team of 25 butlers fluent in a diverse range of languages such as English, Mandarin, Korean and Russian.
Room count will also be raised by 10 per cent from 103 to 115. Renders of the suites showed brighter colours and a more spacious and refined design, with some elements of new technology. For example, guests will have the option of operating the lights with manual switches or an iPad.
Westbeld also confirmed that accompanying these enhancements is a rise in the hotel’s room rates by some 25 to 30 per cent. Bookings are open and the hotel has already secured event reservations for August.
The hotel will also feature 10 dining establishments spread throughout the property, with overhauls done to the original restaurants such as Tiffin Room and Long Bar. The shopping arcade will also be “better integrated” into the hotel and feature 40 retail tenants, said Westbeld.
Long Bar will introduce an “elevated” and “health-conscious” recipe for the Singapore Sling, he shared, and the team hopes to craft another original beverage on the same level as the Singapore Sling.
Sri Lankan tourism authorities are likely to bring back an incentive scheme that supports foreign travel companies that bring in a minimum of 250 visitors.
According to marketing director of Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau (SLTPB), Madubhani Perera, any foreign operator bringing a minimum of 250 visitors will be entitled to US$10 per guest, plus more for guests over the 250-threshold.
High-producing foreign agents will receiving matching funds for advertising
The foreign agent will make their own US$10 per guest contribution, and the joint amount will go towards advertising support for the agent.
The scheme was in effect years ago until it was ceased in 2011. It is now in the process of being restored at the request of the Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Travel Agents (SLAITO), subject to approval by the Cabinet.
Mahen Kariyawasam, managing director, Andrews Travels and former president of SLAITO, said that strict criteria will be followed to ensure that the money from the joint incentive scheme is properly utilised.
“In the earlier scheme we had some issues but now we will have a committee that would go through all proposals to ensure a transparent and accountable process,” he said.
Once the scheme is approved, applications from foreign agents who brought in at least 250 guests in 2018 will be entertained.
Meanwhile the much-awaited US$16.6 million, three-year destination marketing promotion campaign has been further delayed and likely to take off only in May (launching at the Arabian Travel Mart). It was due to have been launched at the ITB in March.
The delay is due to tenders, approvals and other paper work which got caught up in the 52-day political crisis in October-November 2018.
While Sri Lanka recently gained endorsement from Lonely Planet, managing director of Aitken Spence Travels – Nalin Jayasundera, pointed out the destination is not reaping the full benefits of such international recognition.
Should there be further delays in the global campaign, he said the destination needs some kind of tactical marketing in at least the top 10 markets until the campaign takes off. “These latest endorsements (could be better taken advantage of) if the tourism authorities work together with the industry on an urgent basis to carry out joint marketing campaigns,” he asserted.
The legal wrangling between AirAsia and Malaysia Airports continues, with AirAsia throwing the latest blow when it served a notice on Malaysia Airports (Sepang) (MASSB), claiming almost RM480 million (US$117 million) for supposed losses incurred from operating at klia2.
MASSB’s parent company Malaysia Airports Holdings (MAHB) recently sued the LCC over unpaid passenger service charges. Malaysia Airports was claiming RM9.4 million from AirAsia and RM26.71 million from its longhaul affiliate, AirAsia X.
Numerous AirAsia Airbus 320-200s parked at their gates at KLIA2
AirAsia then begrudgingly scrapped the “klia2 fee” – an extra charge it passed on to consumers when MAHB levied new fees for operating from the new terminal – after aviation authorities said the fee would become illegal with the introduction of a new regulation.
AirAsia is now listing losses totalling nearly RM479.8 million, saying the bulk of which coming from loss of customers in the last four years owing to disruptions and poor condition of the terminal.
In the notice to commence mediation served on MASSB, AirAsia and its sister airline AirAsia X claimed that MASSB had provided a “poor level of service” at the terminal, resulting in losses and damage to the two carriers.
These include cancellations and loss of revenue from multiple runway closures, apron defects, damage to two aircraft due to malfunctions in MASSB’s infrastructure and sensors, a fuel line rupture at klia2 Pier P, Internet outages and loss of customers.
While stressing that they refrained from filing a counterclaim in court in favour of more amicable resolution, AirAsia and AirAsia X said they “reserve the rights to exhaust all avenues to recover the losses incurred, including the option to seek redress in the courts of law”.
The two are jointly seeking mediation in accordance with Section 74 of the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom), which requires the dispute to first be resolved in good faith through mediation. Under the Act, if mediation fails, Mavcom will arbitrate the dispute.
