Travel industry marketing company helmed by Cauchi (pictured) now representing Tour East in North America
Shortly after beefing up its sales infrastructure in Europe, Tour East is now growing its representation in North America.
Travel industry marketing company helmed by Cauchi (pictured) now representing Tour East in North America
The DMC, which operates in 14 Asia-Pacific countries, has appointed New York-based Delivering America, helmed by managing director Joe Cauchi, as its representative office on the continent, building on its longstanding MICE-dedicated presence in Minnesota.
Chris Bailey, senior vice president of Tour East, said: “Increasing air connections and related capacity from several major cities throughout North America makes travel to the Asia-Pacific region so convenient. When you combine this with the wide ranging and extremely affordable experiential-based travel opportunities this region offers, visitors can only grow.”
Travellers flying from Changi Airport, as well as airlines operating there, may have to pay higher fees and charges from next year.
This increase will go towards the construction of the airport’s Terminal 5 (T5), which is scheduled for completion in 2030, reported The Sunday Times. A spokesperson for the transport ministry said: “We have not ruled out implementing a passenger fee.”
Travellers may have to pay fees to help fund Changi’s upcoming T5
Passengers flying from Changi Airport currently pay a fee of S$34 (US$25.20), comprising components such as security tax, while transiting passengers pay S$6. The last increase was made in April 2013 from S$28.
T5 is expected to handle up to 70 million passengers annually and double the size of Changi Airport to more than 2,000 ha.
The upcoming terminal is part of the Changi East development project, the total cost of which – including major infrastructure and ground works – is expected to run into tens of billions of Singapore dollars.
The spokesperson clarified that the government will bear “a large proportion” of total costs for the Changi East project.
Prime minister Lee Hsien Loong announced earlier this month that taxes will be increased as government spending on investments and social services grows.
Muslim tourists sightseeing in Shibuya's Hachiko Square
Japan is set to welcome over one million Muslim visitors in 2018, according to the inaugural Mastercard-CrescentRating Japan Muslim Travel Index (JMTI) 2017.
The research revealed Muslim arrivals to Japan increased from around 150,000 in 2004 to 700,000 in 2016. It is projected to surpass one million by 2018 and reach 1.4 million by 2020. Sixty per cent of the Muslim visitor arrivals currently are from South-east Asia, with Indonesia representing 27 per cent of the arrivals.
Muslim tourists sightseeing in Shibuya’s Hachiko Square
The study placed Tokyo at the top as the Japanese city most equipped to receive Muslim travellers, followed by Osaka and Hokkaido in third place.
To derive this ranking, forty-seven destinations in Japan were scored based on access, communications, environment and services.
Earlier this year, Japan moved up two places to take sixth spot for non-OIC (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation) destinations in the annual Mastercard-CrescentRating Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI) 2017.
JMTI was launched at Halal Expo Japan by Fazal Bahardeen, CEO of CrescentRating & HalalTrip, and Halal Media Japan.
The event also saw the first set of 20 Japanese restaurants being awarded “Crescent Rating”, which is based on the level of Muslim-friendly services each establishment offers.
China Eastern Airlines and BlueFocus IFEC have jointly conducted a simulation for what they call the world’s first “Air to Home” inflight shopping service, which allows passengers to make inflight purchases on their mobile devices and have them delivered to the recipient’s doorstep.
The new service will also enable passengers to use and earn China Eastern loyalty points in their inflight transactions, and all products will be delivered free to passengers’ home.
Cheung speaking at the simulation
China Eastern selected more than 30 products – including skincare brands Whoo and Wet’n’Wild as well as designer brand De Yeen jewels – for the “Air To Home” simulation, based on the big data analysis of the purchasing preference of over 10 million passengers.
Kyle Cheung, deputy director of Transformation Office of China Eastern Airlines, said: “The traditional inflight retail (experience) is (driven) by airlines; passengers buy what airlines supply. However, the new inflight e-commerce retail is (driven) by passengers; airlines supply what passengers want; and the passengers decide to whether to shop online or offline and where to deliver.”
Pointing out that China’s inflight Internet “is obviously behind the US and other western developed countries”, the partners stated China Eastern’s intentions to give the service a new focus – in this case leveraging it to offer Internet-based retail experiences. Differentiated services, the partners say, “may (become) one of the key points of airlines’ layout”.
BlueFocus IFEC added in a statement that passenger’s consumption patterns have been migrating to online, driven by the prevalence of mobile use. It hence sees new technology as essential to creating a new inflight shopping experience, as well as product selection, purchasing, sales and logistics.
The opportunities, it states, are tremendous, as the number of China’s civil aviation passenger is expected to reach 670 million in 2017. Considered alongside the rapid development of China’s inflight Internet and the relaxation of in-flight Wi-Fi services policy, BlueFocus IFEC foresees that a new hundred-billion-yuan era of inflight consumption is imminent.
Founded in 2015, BlueFocus IFEC have independently developed the IFEC operating platform BAO and marketing platform BAM for airlines. It has launched various inflight Internet marketing strategies with several airlines.
Combining Angkor Wat (pictured) and Bagan in the same itinerary
An application to run flights lining world heritage sites in Myanmar and Cambodia has been lodged as part of a bid to boost tourism.
Myanmar National Airlines has applied for a licence as part of a cross-country drive to twin World Heritage sites Bagan and Angkor Wat. The move comes after an MoU between the two countries was signed last month and a “two countries, one destination” campaign was launched.
Combining Angkor Wat (pictured) and Bagan in the same itinerary
Bertie Lawson, managing director of Sampan Travel in Myanmar, said the connection would offer travellers “greater freedom and flexibility”. However, he pointed out that an increasing number of young travellers are entering Myanmar via land, while senior travellers to the country tend to plan a single destination holiday.
EXO Cambodia product manager Coralie Romano said culture and heritage tours bring “high-value” tourists, making the move attractive.
However, should the campaign bring the expected tourist boom, Lawson says it needs to be sensitively managed. Angkor Wat is expected to welcome 3.5 million visitors this year and Bagan 350,000.
Said Lawson: “Perhaps the most special thing about Bagan is how one can still explore it and get the sense of being alone amongst the temples. If this quality is threatened by the new flight, we will have to think carefully about how we can help our guests experience such a sense, either in Bagan or other destinations in Myanmar.”
Malaysia's second minister of finance Johari Abdul Ghani (left) with MAS' Izham Ismail
Malaysia Airlines (MAS) last week took delivery of its first A350-900, a member of the Airbus A350 XWB family of wide-body aircraft, intended to replace the airline’s Airbus A380-800 starting January 15, 2018.
The aircraft is said to be more fuel efficient compared with the A380 and offers a 25 per cent reduction in fuel burn and emissions, as well as lower maintenance costs.
Malaysia’s second minister of finance Johari Abdul Ghani (left) with MAS’ Izham Ismail
The Edge Markets quoted MAS group CEO, Izham Ismail, as having said: “With its technological advancements, the A350 XWB will help boost our competitiveness on our longhaul flights, and underlines our commitment to operate a young and modern fleet.”
The aircraft is the first of its kind in Asia to feature a First Class cabin, with four seats in First Class, 35 seats in Business Class and 247 seats in Economy class. It will also have inflight Wi-Fi and ambient LED lighting designed to reduce jetlag.
Syed Razif Al-Yahya, group managing director of Sutra Group of Companies, believes the new aircraft will help MAS to stay competitive and reduce their operating costs on this route.
He added: “In terms of passenger numbers, the A380 aircraft it replaces could carry more – up to 486 passengers. In terms of how it will affect passenger demand, however, he opined that the difference will be insignificant.
MAS will receive five more A350-900s in stages by 2Q2018.
Hello Kitty has been appointed Special Ambassador of the International Year of UNWTO’s Sustainable Tourism Development 2017 (IY2017), promoting the year’s campaign of “Travel. Enjoy. Respect”.
“Travelling opens our minds and our hearts, and lets us see how we are equal,” the popular Sanrio character said in a campaign video.
The Sanrio icon spreading word on sustainable tourism in a campaign video
Hello Kitty will be supporting UNWTO with its advocacy efforts in communicating the messages of IY2017 “to the broadest extent possible”, as well as highlighting the role of tourism in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with a global audience, according to a UNWTO statement.
The video, already shown at the Nartia airport, will also be published on the IY2017 website and social media channels.
Srettha to discuss value of large-scale developments
The Thailand Tourism Forum (TTF) will return for its seventh annual edition on January 22, 2018 with the theme of Megacity Bangkok – A Tourism and Hotel Futurescape.
The forum will gather approximately 650 hotel industry professionals at the InterContinental Hotel Bangkok to discuss the mega-projects that are reshaping the Thai capital.
Among the speakers at the one-day event is Srettha Thavisin, president of Thai hotel and real estate developer, Sansiri. With Sansiri having recently entered the hospitality space in partnership with Standard Hotels to create the upstart hotel brand, Monocle, Thavisin will discuss how large-cale projects contribute to better tourism experiences.
The opening address will be made by Bill Barnett, TTF’s event co-organiser and managing director of C9 Hotelworks.
“Thailand’s tourism industry continues to ride the crest of a wave, with record-breaking numbers of global visitors clamouring to experience the country’s many attractions,” Barnett said. “As the country’s capital and major international gateway, Bangkok is fast becoming one of the world’s great mega-cities.
Srettha to discuss value of large-scale developments
“To sustain such numbers however, Bangkok needs large-scale redevelopment. Massive infrastructure projects are pushing into more districts and creating new tourism hotspots such as the Chao Praya River area. At TTF 2018, we will learn first-hand about the ambitious plans for Bangkok’s emerging cityscape and examine their impact on the tourism and hospitality sectors,” Barnett added.
Thailand’s tourism industry is on track for yet another record-breaking year. According to data from the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), the Kingdom welcomed 17.3 million international visitors in 1H2017, generating 876 billion baht (US$25 billion). Tourism revenues are expected to reach an all-time high of 1.81 trillion baht (US$50 billion) for the full year.
According to STR, approximately 100 new hotels are currently in the country’s pipeline, potentially adding 21,600 new rooms to the national inventory – many of which will be in Bangkok. But challenges remain – Thailand’s transport infrastructure struggles to cope with the tourism influx and hotel ADR remains under pressure.
TTF 2018 will hence steer discussions to address the opportunities and threats that are arising out of multi-billion-baht developments reshaping the cityscape – including transport links, mega-malls, attractions, hotels and residential projects.
In addition to Sansiri’s Srettha, speakers and panellists at TTF 2018 include Dillip Rajakarier, CEO of Minor Hotel Group; Nikhom Jensiriratanakorn, director of Horwath HTL; Thomas Schmelter, IHG’s director of operations for Thailand & Indochina; KC Moy, executive vice president of Capella Hotel Group; Mike Batchelor, JLL’s managing director, investment sales for Asia; Jesper Palmqvist, STR’s area director for Asia Pacific; Caroline Cheah, general manager of the Shangri-La Hotel, Bangkok; and more.
Shanghai Disneyland will be welcoming its seventh themed land, the Disney Toy Story Land, come summer 2018.
This will be the first time Shanghai Disneyland will be expanded since its opening last year, and the new zone will feature three new rides, a character greeting area, merchandise shop, and cafe.
A rendering of Toy Story Land
Based on the Disney·Pixar motion picture series, the concept of the new Toy Story land in Shanghai is centred around giving guests a sense of being shrunk down to the size of toys in the backyard of Andy.
One new attraction is Slinky Dog Spin, where guests take a seat inside Slinky Dog’s springy spirals and race around a wavy roundabout. On Rex’s Racer, guests will be invited to climb into RC Racer with help from Triceratops friend Trixie for a thrill ride on a U-shaped track.
Lastly, Woody’s Round-Up ride conjures a narrative of Sheriff Woody rounding up a herd of ponies, each one pulling a cart. Guests can climb aboard the carts as the ponies swing their carts to and fro in time to the music.
Next to Woody’s Round-Up is the character meet-and-greet area, named Old West, a town made up of a hitching post and façades for various enterprises, such as the sheriff’s office, the saloon and the bank.
Shanghai Disney Resort has the only Toy Story-themed hotel in the world, while Shanghai Disneyland is home to the Buzz Lightyear Planet Rescue attraction – which the resort stated it has been a guest favourite – that features the most advanced Buzz Lightyear targeting system at any Disney park in the world.
The expansion, Shanghai Disney Resort says, is a sign of the early success of the resort, and demonstrates the confidence the joint venture shareholders have in the growing consumer demand for themed entertainment in China.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong Disneyland recently announced it will be ceasing its nightly fireworks display from January 2 next year as it carries out a HK$10.9 billion (US$1.4 billion) expansion project, with no indication if the signature show will resume after the multi-year park upgrade.
Booking.com will dedicate €4 million (US$4.75 million) to tourism start-ups and changemakers through the Booking Booster Programme introduced this year, as well as two new initiatives.
Through the Booking Booster Programme, a three-week accelerator in Amsterdam for social enterprise scale-ups in sustainable tourism,the company will award €2 million in grants to sustainability tourism players, including organisations and individuals.
Booking.com continues support for startups and changemakers in sustainable tourism
In addition, it will add Booster Labs, a series of short, regionally-focused weekend programmes that are slated to run globally throughout 2018, dedicated to giving early-stage startups in sustainable tourism the insights, tools and skills they need to grow and increase their impact.
The second new initiative is the Booking Cares Fund, a separate €2 million grant programme to champion individual non-profit changemakers in sustainable tourism and support their search for new and unexpected solutions to strengthen local communities, preserve and promote culture, protect natural resources, and spread tourism activities more evenly.
Booking Booster, the new Booster Labs and the Booking Cares Fund sit alongside Booking.com‘s internal volunteer programme, Booking Cares, where employees have long partnered with local organisations on projects that help improve destinations worldwide.
