The travel trade is eager awaiting details on Malaysia’s Sales and Services Tax (SST) rate, which is set to be reintroduced on September 1 after the bill is passed in the current parliament session.
Malaysian finance minister Lim Guan Eng had announced that the provision of services has been set at six per cent, while the sales of goods will incur a 10 per cent tax.
Tourism stakeholders voice various concerns as Malaysia plans to reintroduce sales and services tax; Kuala Lumpur skyline pictured
These are the same rates imposed under the old SST structure before it was replaced by the Goods and Services Tax (GST) on April 1, 2015.
While Malaysian consumers are currently enjoying the tax holiday after the GST has been reduced to zero since June 1 this year, travel industry leaders are waiting and seeing how the new tax laws will affect the sector.
When contacted, Malaysian Association of Hotel Owners executive director Shaharuddin Saaid said the association is currently waiting for official communication from the government on the SST implementation.
He said: ”We don’t know the mechanism yet, but we hope it won’t be like the old GST system where we have to pay tax of six per cent on the service charge of 10 per cent as that is not fair for hotels.”
Nigel Wong, director of Urban Rhythms Tour Adventures and Travel, said he hopes the SST will not be extended to include services covered in tours and travels, as it had not in the past.
“We hope it remains status quo as far as the travel industry is concerned,” Wong said.
Ally Bhoonee, executive director of World Avenues, shared: “We have to wait for more information from the government on the SST mechanism. At this point, we don’t know how it will affect contract rates with hotels – will the hotels maintain nett rates or revise their rates?”
Elevating the ease of travel planning in Myanmar and improving customer experience was Flymya founder Than Tun Win’s main goal when he launched the company in 2016.
“There was a lack of good comprehensive domestic flight booking websites and travel portals for independent travel agents to upload their packages,” the entrepreneur said. “We wanted to provide a seamless all-in-one portal.”
Than Tun Win launched Flyma to improve the travel booking experience in Myanmar
Since launching, Flymya has worked with more than 300 travel partners, airlines and bus operators, and grown from a team of 12 to more than 100, providing 24/7 support. It has also developed an online event booking and ticketing section, and boasts the largest selection of flights, buses, hotels and tour packages in Myanmar.
The company has quickly expanded its reach in Myanmar and beyond. In early 2017, Flymya snapped up London-based startup Switch.cm, which builds reservations platforms for the hotel and airline industries.
Than Tun Win said: “Hotels in Myanmar and South-east Asia are mainly using extranet and Excel sheets for hotel bookings. We see a lot of potential in providing an easy-to-use property management software and channel manager to help small hotels aross South-east Asia digitalise.”
In December 2017, Flymya expanded its presence further when it bought out smaller rival Go-myanmar.com. Go-Myanmar.com’s popularity online – attracting 3,000 to 4,000 daily visitors, predominantly from Europe and America – combined with Flymya’s regional reputation as a local leader have strengthened its position and put the company ahead of the game globally, said Than Tun Win.
Flymya’s plans don’t stop there. The second half of 2018 will see the company shift its focus outwards, with sights set on regional expansion starting with Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam.
Than Tun Win said: “Flymya believes in helping small tour operators and hotels by giving them better access to platforms and technology, while promoting grassroots entrepreneurship.”
Following the launch of its first outpost in Singapore’s Chinatown, homegrown capsule hotel brand Cube has opened its second property in the city, this time in the Kampong Glam heritage district.
Cube Boutique Capsule Hotel at Kampong Glam offers 56 beds – a mix of singles and queens – in configurations of private group rooms and dormitories nestled within three conserved shophouses.
Cube hotel’s queen bed
By bringing a luxury feel to the low-cost backpacker dormitory, Sonia Anya Tay, COO and co-founder of Cube, hopes that the concept will attract fun-seeking and tech-savvy travellers, families and special interest groups.
Furthermore, CEO and co-founder Benedict Choa told TTG Asia that Cube aims to “raise the profile of Kampong Glam as an events street”, as the hotel promotes the character and attractions of the vibrant cultural district it sits in.
Cube’s founders Sonia Anya Tay and Benedict Choa
For example, daily breakfast at its in-house café features one dish supplied from a neighbouring F&B establishment – usually a local halal dish such as nasi lemak or mee goreng – and room configurations are named after Kampong Glam’s surrounding streets.
Each capsule moderates its own temperature and air-flow; is solidly insulated to reduce ambient noise; and is equipped with a universal electrical outlet, safe, vanity area, bedside light, garment space and a digital locker drawer.
Guests are provided with a dental kit, slippers and one towel upon check-in – which are exchangeable daily – and a washing machine with complimentary detergent, as well as work desks, are provided for guests’ use.
Cube’s founders also plan to open another capsule hotel in Chinatown with a family concept by this year-end, and the company also has overseas projects in the pipeline.
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has signed a management agreement with Pearl Grand Tower Hotel to bring the InterContinental brand back to the Sri Lankan capital.
Slated to open in 2019, InterContinental Colombo will feature 307 rooms including 47 suites across 42 stories. All rooms and suites will be equipped with top-class modern amenities, and most will have uninterrupted views of the Indian Ocean.
InterContinental brand returns to Colombo city (pictured)
Located along Galle Road in Colombo 3 district, the upcoming property will house 1,115m2 of meeting and banqueting facilities, with the largest room able to accommodate 400 guests. Other facilities include a business centre, gym, outdoor pool, spa, and six dining options.
Sudeep Jain, IHG’s vice president, development, South-west Asia, commented: “This move is in line with our strategy to grow IHG’s footprint across South-west Asia, and expand the presence of the InterContinental brand in key cities and resort destinations in the region.”
SIA makes frequency and aircraft changes to US and Japan flights
Singapore Airlines (SIA) will launch non-stop flights between Singapore and Los Angeles using the new Airbus A350-900ULR aircraft in November.
Flight SQ38 from Singapore to Los Angeles will commence on November 2. The route will initially be served thrice a week, departing Singapore on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.
Daily operations will commence from November 9 after an additional A350-900ULR aircraft enters service. From December 7, a further three services per week will be added as SQ36, increasing total non-stop flights between Singapore and Los Angeles to 10 times per week.
The A350-900ULR will be configured in a two-class layout, with 67 Business Class seats and 94 Premium Economy Class seats.
With the introduction of non-stop services between Singapore and Los Angeles, SIA’s existing service to Los Angeles via Seoul will cease after November 30. The Singapore-Seoul frequency will be maintained at four flights per day with the introduction of a new Singapore-Seoul return flight from December 1, operating as flight SQ612.
SIA will also increase frequency on the existing Singapore-San Francisco route with three more weekly flights, with effect from November 28. The new services will operate as SQ34, departing every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday to San Francisco to complement the existing daily SQ32 non-stop services.
Additionally, SIA will add a fourth daily service to Tokyo’s Haneda Airport from December 28 this year.
The additional Boeing 777-300ER flight to Haneda Airport will increase SIA’s daily services to the Japanese capital, including two daily flights to Narita Airport, to six per day, up from the current five.
SQ630 will depart Singapore at 17.25 and arrive at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport at 01.00. The new SQ639 return flight will depart Haneda at 02.30 and arrive in Singapore at 09.15.
SIA will also operate the Airbus A380 to Osaka daily from October 28, 2018 to March 30, 2019. SQ618 will depart Singapore at 01.30 and arrive in Osaka at 08.45. The return flight SQ619 will depart Osaka at 11.00 and arrive in Singapore at 17.10.
SIA currently operates two daily services on the Singapore-Osaka route, both of which are currently operated by the Boeing 787-10 aircraft.
Vietjet opens new Vietnam connection to Japan
Vietjet has added a second route to Osaka, this time from Ho Chi Minh City.
The Ho Chi Minh City-Osaka route will commence operations on a daily basis from December 14. With an average flight time of five hours per leg, the flight will depart Ho Chi Minh City at 01.40 and arrive at Osaka at 08.30. The return leg will depart at 09.20 and land in Ho Chi Minh City at 13.30.
Meanwhile, the Hanoi to Osaka route, which was announced last month, will fly on a daily basis from November 8 with an average flight time of four hours. The flight will depart Hanoi at 01.40 and arrive at Osaka at 07.50. The return leg will depart at 09.20 and arrive at Hanoi at 13.05.
Cathay Pacific and Brussels Airlines partner up
Cathay Pacific has launched a new codeshare agreement with Brussels Airlines, which will see the Hong Kong carrier place its CX code on selected services operated by Belgium’s national carrier between Brussels and seven destinations across Europe: Berlin (Berlin-Tegel), Hamburg, Lyon (Lyon-Saint Exupery), Marseilles, Toulouse, Oslo and Prague.
Cathay Pacific customers travelling on Brussels Airlines codeshare flights will be able to check through their baggage to their final destination, in addition to earning Asia Miles on their trip.
Tickets to and from these destinations must be booked in conjunction with Cathay Pacific services between Hong Kong and Brussels. Tickets for the codeshare sectors are now available for flights departing from July 26.
Qantas and Air New Zealand announce codeshare deal
Air New Zealand and Qantas have entered into a codeshare agreement. Qantas will add its code on up to 30 routes on Air New Zealand’s domestic network, and Air New Zealand intends to add its code on up to 85 routes on Qantas’ domestic network.
Eligible customers will have access to a combined total of 36 domestic lounges on both sides of the Tasman when flying on routes covered by the codeshare agreement.
The codeshare and customer offering will exclude Trans-Tasman flights. Qantas will continue to codeshare on all connecting Jetstar New Zealand services.
Tickets for the codeshare services will be available by the end of July, for travel from October 28.
Hilton Hotels & Resorts now boasts more than 100 properties in Asia-Pacific with two latest openings in China last month.
Opened on the same day, Hilton Hangzhou Xiaoshan and Hilton Xiamen became Hilton’s 100th and 101st property in Asia-Pacific, marking a significant milestone for Hilton in the Greater China region, its largest market in Asia-Pacific.
Rendering of Hilton Hangzhou Xiaoshan’s exterior
As of 1Q2018, Hilton’s owned and operated properties in Asia-Pacific saw strong year-on- year RevPAR growth of +11.3 per cent, with the highest growth rate of +15.2 per cent in Greater China.
Hilton now operates over 220 properties across 21 countries and territories in Asia-Pacific, and with more than 440 hotels in the pipeline. Manila and Taipei will soon be added into its destination portfolio in late 2018 and 2019 respectively.
Holland America Line’s 1,916-guest Westerdam will begin sailing to the Far East from September 2018 through April 2019.
There will be 10 different itineraries ranging from 10 to 31 days, visiting countries such as China, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
Westerdam
Westerdam will kick off the season with a 14-day North Pacific Crossing from Vancouver to Yokohama (Tokyo), before beginning its series of voyages across the Far East.
The 16-day Far East Discovery cruise between Singapore and Hong Kong calls at Sanya, China; four ports in Vietnam, including an overnight stay in Halong Bay; Sihanoukville, Cambodia; Ko Samui and an overnight at Laem Chabang (Bangkok), Thailand. A 13-day Far East Discovery option eliminates Nha Trang in Vietnam and Sanya, while a 15-day Far East Discovery eliminates the overnight stay in Halong Bay, Vietnam.
The shortest itinerary of the season, 10-day East Asia roundtrip Hong Kong cruise, departs December 10 and explores Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines.
The first cruise of 2019 will be a 15-day Thailand & Vietnam itinerary sailing round-trip from Singapore. Guests will experience four calls in Vietnam, including an overnight in Danang (Hue), and an overnight at Laem Chabang (Bangkok) plus calls at Ko Samui and Sihanoukville.
Westerdam’s 14- or 15-day Taiwan & Japan cruise between Hong Kong and Shanghai features an overnight at Hong Kong or Shanghai, depending on embarkation port, and visits the Philippines, Taiwan, Japan and South Korea.
There are also 14-day itineraries available.
Cruising round-trip from Shanghai, the China, South Korea & Japan cruise features two ports in each country, including overnight calls in Shanghai, Tianjin (Beijing) and Incheon (Seoul). The China Explorer from Hong Kong to Yokohama includes two ports in Japan and three ports in China, with overnights at Shanghai and Tianjin (Beijing).
Meanwhile, Westerdam’s Japan Explorer is a round-trip Yokohama (Tokyo) journey with five ports in Japan, including an overnight at Kobe (Osaka); two calls in Taiwan; and a visit to Jeju (Cheju), South Korea.
The final cruise of the season is a Japan and Russia itinerary roundtrip from Yokohama visiting eight ports in Japan and a northerly exploration to Vladivostok. The season concludes with a 15-day spring North Pacific Crossing between Yokohama (Tokyo) and Vancouver, encompassing ports in Japan and Alaska.
Back-to-back cruises can also be booked together to form a longer Collectors’ Voyage that provides a more in-depth exploration of the Asia region. Combining up to two itineraries, the Asia Collectors’ Voyages range from 23 to 31 days.
There is also the Grand Asia Voyage, an 82-day circumnavigation of the Pacific. Departing September 30, 2018, this voyage circumnavigates the Pacific Ocean round-trip from Los Angeles and calls at 33 ports, with six overnight visits.
The 2018 Grand Asia & Pacific Voyage explores Alaska, Russia, Japan, China, Vietnam, Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia, Australia, several South Pacific islands and Hawaii. Guests interested in expanding their cruise to explore more of the West Coast also have the choice of 89- and 87-day itineraries departing from Seattle, and Vancouver.
For travellers who prefer a shorter vacation, the 2018 Grand Asia & Pacific Voyage features 12 separate segments.
Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel has rolled out the Iconic Singapore Getaway deal following a recent redesign of its Premier Deluxe Rooms.
Aerial view of Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza
Priced at S$999 nett (US$735), the Iconic Singapore Getaway package includes three nights in a Premier Deluxe Room; a bottle of wine upon arrival; a full buffet breakfast for two at Marriott Cafe; a buffet dinner for two at Marriott Cafe; and complimentary Internet access.
Eatigo is poised for further growth after a fresh serving of capital from TripAdvisor
It now seats well over two million diners a month, stands out in the crowded online dining reservations space in Asia as a yield management platform for restaurants rather than just another marketing channel, and feels it is only scratching the tip of its full potential – reasons that give TripAdvisor a bigger appetite for Eatigo.
TripAdvisor, the largest investor in Eatigo, has given a second round of funding to the startup. Eatigo was founded five years ago with a Series A investment by an unnamed big Thai media company. TripAdvisor entered in October 2016 in Eatigo’s Series B, bringing the total raise (Series A & B) to US$15.5 million. Speculation is it added just under US$10 million to bring the total investment to US$25 million to-date.
Eatigo has a bigger bite now after a fresh serving of capital from TripAdvisor
Bertrand Jelensperger, TripAdvisor Restaurants’ senior vice president, said: “Our continued investment in this company is a sign we are pleased with the progress that Eatigo is making as a business.”
That progress included Eatigo’s expansion last year into Hong Kong, the Philippines, Malaysia and India (through the acquisition of Ressy), from operating only in Singapore, where the company was incorporated, and Thailand, its operational headquarters. The four new markets represent over 50 per cent of Eatigo’s revenue and reservations, according to Eatigo’s co-founder and CEO, Michael Cluzel.
Eatigo is hungry to expand further in South-east Asia and the wider Asian region, extend its product offering, and is doing a full rebuild of all its platforms to offer “much better speed/loading times, search functionality, fully scalable and modular built that will allow us to add countries and services seamlessly for our smoothest user experience ever”, said Cluzel.
He won’t say which new markets Eatigo would go into. It aims to grow organically but is also open to “seize consolidation opportunities as and when they present themselves”.
When asked the number of seats a month it aimed to produce with further expansion, from the two million a month Eatigo was said to be doing currently, Cluzel said: “We can’t speculate on forward-booking numbers but historically, we have been doing three to four times (more) year-on-year every year since inception.”
While Singapore has Chope, Hong Kong OpenRice and China Dianping – household names in the respective local markets – Eatigo differs from those in that it offers time-based discounts of up to 50 per cent with no coupons required. Dining at an off-peak hour such as 21.30 may yield a 50 per cent off, compared with 30 per cent when dining at 18.00. A diner picks a restaurant, chooses the date, number of people, time and the discount offered by the merchant, and receives confirmation via sms and email.
Cluzel believes its model is what makes Eatigo competitive in the Asian marketplace and that the company is “still very much at the beginning of our journey, considering how inefficient merchants still are on capacity utilisation”.
Said Cluzel: “Hotels generally understand and appreciate our business model and have the highest satisfaction with the results. Eatigo is designed to help successful, popular merchants monetise their existing popularity in the most efficient way; we are not a marketing platform to help struggling merchants.
“Eatigo is a yield management platform, not a marketing platform. Yielding has been around since the 1970s, pioneered by American Airlines, and its sustainability has been amply demonstrated across industries such as airlines, hotels and car rentals.”
With Eatigo’s expansion, and TripAdvisor’s continued investment, chances of restaurateurs getting incremental business from travellers, aside from the bulk of locals, are also greater, players interviewed said. Travellers using TripAdvisor Restaurants or TheFork (which TripAdvisor acquired in 2014) could take advantage of the off-peak discounts in advance of their trips to the countries that Eatigo operates in. Indeed, Cluzel said Eatigo is seeing the percentage of cross-country bookings growing strongly, especially from markets like Hong Kong and Singapore into other markets.
“With TripAdvisor’s continued backing, this could mean more visibility on the international booking platform,” said Byron Chong, general manager of Orchard Hotel Singapore whose Orchard Cafe buffet is one of the most-reserved on the Eatigo platform. “Restaurant owners and diners will stand to benefit, especially since diners are increasingly turning to online channels to make bookings.”
Hotels and restaurant operators contacted in Singapore, one of Eatigo’s best markets, attest that Eatigo indeed delivers the numbers and has great potential, although it needs to raise more awareness and find ways to be more relevant to higher-end restaurants.
One Farrer Hotel & Spa’s F&B director, Dennis Ng, said the buffet at its Escape restaurant had seen more than 7,000 covers from Eatigo since the first half of the year.
“Eatigo is the only platform thus far that allows the merchant to have full control over the (time) slots and discounts given. It is particularly useful not only to fill the venue but at what time to fill it up,” said Ng.
It also enables restaurants to yield depending on what it wants to achieve, said Ng. Using a favourite Thai saying “same-same but different”, he said 50 per cent off and One-For-One may be the same but they are two discounts serving different purposes, the latter typically meant to encourage another a diner bring another diner, while the former might be trying to make the best of a perishable table.
Screenshots of the eatigo app
Currently, however, Eatigo is commonly viewed as more suited for quick service and casual concepts than higher-end restaurants.
“I think some of our casual concepts can benefit off this but once you move up the price point then it becomes less attractive, because of branding perceptions and the discounting required,” said Loh Lik Peng, director of Unlisted Collection comprising hotels and restaurants in Singapore, Shanghai and London.
Echoed Shin Hui Tan, executive director of Park Hotel Group, which also operates free-standing restaurants: “We’re selective about restaurants that go on its platform depending on their positioning and strategy. So far, we’ve seen potential in the platform but I think awareness needs to be higher. They need to acquire and grow their user base for them to be more effective as a channel for off-peak dining.”
The il Lido Group of Restaurants reflects same thinking, using Eatigo only for its more casual concept, Sons.
Said Alicia Woon, the group’s assistant sales and marketing manager: “Eatigo does work well in terms of promotion mechanics, and the staggered discounts according to the time do push traffic at lull periods. However, brandwise, it would be best if Eatigo improves its public and industry perception. Perhaps they can achieve this by having higher-tiered F&B establishments in the list of offerings.
“Also, currently we are not sure if the customers that come through Eatigo are loyal to the restaurant, or to the discount. Would also be good to know the percentage of repeat reservations. We could also benefit from an understanding of the best-performing restaurants in terms of average discount, incremental revenue and total covers, and what they are offering so that we can also tweak our strategy better. For example, currently at Sons, our average discount is 44.8 per cent – how do we place in terms of other restaurants on Eatigo?”
Eatigo may already be looking into some of these points, with Cluzel saying the company “will be adding product offerings outside our current scope of time-based discounted reservations”. He declined to reveal more, saying the new offerings “will expand our ‘dine out and save’ positioning”.
One Farrer’s Ng said he was seeing some effort on Eatigo to improve its business strategy.
“Recently, they are shifting towards a pre-paid model, an overseas trend which has yet to reach Singapore. Merchants have to come up with good deals to bait consumers to pre-pay. The positive aspect is it reduces no-shows,” he said.
He also sees Eatigo focusing a little more on B2B than just B2C, for example offering to do marketing and advertising for restaurants.
The luxury market in the Maldives is at risk of being over-saturated, with hoteliers urging greater differentiation among resorts to better compete against competitors.
“The problem with luxury – not only in the Maldives – is that the difference between resorts is just the name on the door,” Sonu Shivdasani, founder and CEO of Soneva, asserted in a recent interview with TTG Asia.
A bird’s-eye view of a resort in the Maldives
Shivdasani said many hoteliers who have built high-end resorts are suffering from their inability to differentiate against one other, apart from the one-island-one-resort concept which is “old news”.
“They are just paying bank loans, (tax) and the island lease rentals. They are not getting a return,” remarked Shivdasani, who launched his first resort, Soneva Fushi, in the Maldives in 1995.
“A lot of these luxury hotels are opening and are surprised that they are not getting the premium rates they had originally projected – because there is no real differentiation,” he added.
Confident he can create a new differentiator to stand apart from the competition, Shivdasani shared that a Soneva property with a concept that does not yet exist in the Maldives is in the works, slated for opening in 2020.
Other hoteliers such as Andrew Ashmore, chief commercial officer at Coco Collection Hotels & Resorts, agree. He said luxury hotels have expanded far too quickly, resulting in the same look and feel, while the “soul of the true Maldives has effectively or will be gone”.
Referring to the return on investment, Ashmore said that while normally the “payback” is around 10 years, it’s now doubling to 20 or even 25 years.
Industry officials said that in the next few months there will be a total of 20 new, top-end resorts. “Most of these have the same type of water villas and restaurants with everything imported,” Ashmore added.
But Suresh Dissanayake, assistant vice president – sales and marketing at Heritance Aarah and Adaaran resorts, remarks that the oversupply situation is a temporary problem and will be sorted out once the airport increases its capacity.
“There is excess supply due to limited influx. And the limited influx is (due to) the limited capacity at the airport. Once the new runway is open and the number of arrivals increase with more flights at the renovated airport, that will take care of increasing room stock,” he said.
