De Marchis: moving from two trading platforms to one
UK-based JacTravel, a B2B accommodation wholesaler, is rolling out a new FIT booking platform using in-memory computing software.
JacTravel said this would greatly reduce search response times, while allowing the company to increase search capacity in a structured and “forecastable” manner.
De Marchis: moving from two trading platforms to one
The project, a “significant” investment, has been led by JacTravel CTO, Peter Clements, and industry veteran, Francesco De Marchis, and has seen the company acquire and bring in-house source code as well as recruiting a specialist and dedicated team of developers, testers and business analysts, said a statement.
Francesco said: “Our aims with this project were to move from two trading platforms to one, single search and book environment, providing our partners with a seamless integration whilst operating a business as normal approach. The philosophy was to retain all the best elements of our existing platforms whilst improving performance and creating a scalable structure to facilitate our growth ambitions over the coming years.”
Clements added: “Our clients will be able to enjoy sub-second responses and the ability to take more product from us and our supply partners will naturally see the benefits from increased distribution levels and enhanced search to book conversion levels.”
The company is currently piloting the new software with a number of clients with a view to fully roll-out at the beginning of 2018.
Volcano sites identified within Tawau Hills Park (pictured)
The Malaysian Tourism and Culture Ministry (Sabah), along with Universiti Malaysia Sabah, is exploring the possibility of introducing volcano tourism in Tawau, which shares a border with north Kalimantan and is the third largest town in Sabah after Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan.
According to a recent report in The Star, two volcanic spots had been identified at the Tawau Hills Park, beneath turquoise waters of the park’s white sulphurous springs and at an ancient crater at Mount Lucia.
Volcano sites within Tawau Hills Park (pictured) identified as having tourism potential
Both spots are a few hours’ walk from Bombalai volcano, close to the border of Kalimantan. According to the Volcano Discovery website, this is the only volcano considered still possibly active in Malaysia, although its last eruption was thousands of years ago.
Malaysian Association of Tour & Travel Agents president, KL Tan, said: “Tawau, being the only volcanic area in Malaysia, makes it a unique tourism product.”
Moreover, he said Tawau is also the entry point for divers to Sipadan and Mabul islands, and will serve as a complementary product to diving in Sabah.
“What makes volcano tourism a niche market is the experience and interpretation of the volcanic characteristics and heritage. The market for volcano tourism ranges from recreational tourists to adventure tourists. These tourists are usually looking for something new and unique while combining their interest in other recreational pursuits such as sightseeing, hiking or mountaineering,” he surmised.
(From left) United's Patrick Quayle, Laurence Chin and Marcel Fuchs
Amid launching direct connections between Singapore and the US – with its latest being the only direct route to Los Angeles – United Airlines has set its eyes on a growing millennial travel market between the two destinations.
Speaking to TTG Asia in an interview, United’s vice president, Atlantic & Pacific sales, Marcel Fuchs, said: “The Singapore ambassador in US informed us that there has been 10 per cent more demand for travel from US to Singapore, and interestingly, lots of millennials are travelling between US and Singapore. We hope to drive this trend further.”
(From left) United’s Patrick Quayle, Laurence Chin and Marcel Fuchs
With this focus in mind, United has added three management positions in Singapore. It is also increasing trade outreach, said Laurence Chin, its country manager Singapore, although he did not detail how, besides sharing the airline’s longterm plans, including investments in its services at Los Angeles International Airport where it most recently did a US$570 million revamp of its ticketing lobby, service reception, baggage carousel and lounge.
The airline has also upgraded its mobile app. Fuchs shared that the app, whose features include automated check-in, flight status and in-flight entertainment displays – will soon enable United passengers to make changes to their flight itineraries as well as scan and store their visas.
The airline is also adding Polaris lounges throughout all hubs in the US, London, Hong Kong and Tokyo.
Patrick Quayle, its vice president, international network, added that the airline’s latest Los Angeles route opens up access to emerging regions Austin, Dallas and Houston in Texas.
In response to LCC entering the longhaul playing field, Quayle remarked that United remains competitive with its direct trans-Pacific route, but is keeping an eye on potential competition in the future.
Seoul Tourism Organization has launched a new limited edition Discover Seoul Pass with Pyeongchang card which grants foreign travellers travel benefits in both Seoul and Gangwon province where Pyeongchang is located.
The usual Discover Seoul Pass version offers free access to 21 tourist attractions and merchant discounts only in the South Korean capital city.
Attractions include Daegwallyeong Sheep Ranch
Perks in Gangwon province include five per cent discount on ski classes for kids at Alpensia Resort, 4,000 won off (US$3.60)South admission fees to Alive Heart Gangwondo Sokcho, 1,000 won and 500 won off adult and children entrance tickets respectively for Daegwallyeong Sheep Ranch, among many others.
Commenting on the new product, Seoul Tourism Organization, Tourism and MICE Division, executive director, Joon Lee, said: “The pass promotes both cities and gives tourists a reason to visit Seoul while they are here to catch the 2018 Olympics.”
Available in 24-hour and 48-hour options, the limited edition card retails for 36,000 won and 49,500 won respectively. These prices come with a 10 per cent discount that is valid until March 31, 2018.
The passes are sold online and travellers can pick them up at Incheon Airport or designated stores in the city.
Lee added that the Discover Seoul Pass will be enhanced with even more perks after the 2018 Olympics, with plans to throw in additional discounts on top of what partner merchants already offer during Seoul’s key shopping festivals, such as the Seoul Summer Sale.
Genting Cruise Lines is pioneering cruise journeys to a private island in the south of Myanmar in partnership with local resort operator, Tint Tint Myanmar Group.
The SuperStar Libra made its inaugural arrival at Mac Leod Island on November 3 as part of its latest four-night roundtrip cruise itineraries, which also stop at Kuala Lumpur, Phuket, and Penang.
Joining hands to promote cruise tourism to private Myanmar island: (from left) Star Cruises’ Ang Moo Lim, Genting Hong Kong’s Raymond Lim, Tint Tint Myanmar Group’s Tint Tint Lwin, Myanmar Ministry of Hotels and Tourism’s Myint Htwe
The Genting Hong Kong subsidiary said this would be the first time an international cruise enterprise is partnering a Myanmar company in cruise port development, which it expects will open new opportunities for the domestic and regional cruise tourism market.
“Private Islands are a key feature for many cruise lines in the Caribbean and, as a pioneer of the Asian cruise industry, we are excited to be partnering with Tint Tint Myanmar Group to help create the infrastructure on MacLeod Island to become a key private paradise for Genting Cruise Lines’ guests and to start Myanmar on its journey to become a worldwide cruise destination,” said Kent Zhu, president of Genting Cruise Lines.
As part of the collaboration, the Yangon-headquartered Tint Tint Myanmar Group will also leverage its expertise to provide entertainment and experiential shore excursion options for visiting guests.
Genting Cruise Lines has also announced itineraries for Star Cruises and Dream Cruises that include the opportunity to cruise to to MacLeod Island.
Fight for automy in Catalonia has had an impact on tourism
International air reservations for Catalonia fell 22 per cent from the beginning of October up to October 25, benchmarked against the equivalent dates last year, according to ForwardKeys.
Olivier Jager, CEO, ForwardKeys said: “Domestic political unrest almost always deters visitors and that is what we are seeing now. This will also have a knock-on to other parts of Spain because many visitors arriving in Catalonia will travel around the country.
Fight for automy in Catalonia has had an impact on tourism
“If the political crisis worsens, I fear we will see a further decline in bookings. This trend will be of great concern because travel & tourism represents such a large proportion of the Spanish economy, over 14 per cent of GDP.”
ForwardKeys analyses 17 million flight booking transactions a day to forecast future travel patterns.
To commemorate its 20th anniversary, Qatar Airways is offering two Business Class tickets for the price of one, and three Economy Class tickets for the price of two, from November 1 to 10.
The promotion is valid for all Qatar Airways’ flights to all 150 destinations in its network spanning six continents, including the new ones added in 2017. Flights for destinations to be added next year are currently not available for booking, thus not included in this promotion.
Two for the price of one fares for a limited time
The offer applies for travel in the period of November 1, 2017-October 31, 2018.
Additionally, Qatar Airways is also offering 20 Privilege Club members Gold membership and discounts of up to 50 per cent on redemption tickets to select destinations.
All that glitters is gold. This sculpture, an emblem of the complex, beckons guests to visit
Aside from the challenge of filling 1,700 new rooms in a soft market, AccorHotels’ new ‘lifestyle hotelplex’, Seoul Dragon City, is a test of whether four Accor brands of different price points can co-exist without any downsides in one complex.
The brands are Grand Mercure (202 rooms), Novotel Suites (286 rooms), Novotel (621 rooms) and ibis Styles (591 rooms).
Interviewed about this in Seoul on Wednesday, Accor’s chairman and CEO Sebastien Bazin told TTG Asia that Seoul Dragon City is a “bigger, stronger” push by the chain in co-locating brands under one roof.
“Novotel and Ibis have shared a common lobby space, same back of the house – there’s a lot of efficiency which the clients won’t notice,” said Bazin. “Why should we limit this to only two brands when three or four will bring us even greater economies of scale?”
All that glitters is gold. This sculpture, an emblem of the complex, beckons guests to visit
On the question if a Grand Mercure client would take kindly to sharing space with an ibis guest, Bazin said: “If we have clients who don’t accept differences in means, social status, colour of the skin, religion, culture, they shouldn’t be staying with us. They should accept these differences. The more they cross, the better their experiences will be. It is totally part of my strategy to mix them, as well as with the locals, as much as I can (in areas such as F&B and entertainment).”
Bazin said hotels had been “too draconian” in their thinking that a restaurant in Novotel should only be for Novotel guests, or a bar in ibis should only be for Ibis guests.
“It’s totally wrong to me. When you go to a restaurant in any place, you do not know who the person having dinner next to you is. He could be a student, an investment banker, a government official, a CEO. Why do we accept that elsewhere and not in hotel restaurants? This is precisely why we built the Sky Kingdom,” he said.
Sky Kingdom, suspended on the top between ibis Styles and Grand Mercure buildings, comprises four full floors of entertainment. Highlights include the King’s Vacation, a lounge bar that reinterprets the royal European vacation, with a range of cuisines and beverages on offer; an indoor swimming pool, Skywalk; and a performance stage.
Another is the Sky Beach, a private beach club with music and international cuisine with a setting reminiscent of the legendary beach clubs of Greece or Las Vegas.
The only downside to the hotelplex that Bazin could think of, was the possible price comparison.
“People have to understand why they pay US$20 more to be in the same facility,” he said. “Other than that, the design is superb, the location is great and, don’t be afraid of the size, 1,700 rooms. Hotels in Las Vegas have 6,000 rooms.”
Patrick Basset, Accor’s COO Upper South-east and North-east Asia, added that Seoul Dragon City was a mixed-use development with multiple market segments including MICE, long- and short-stay service apartments, and is designed to be a new destination in its own right.
A site inspection led by cluster general manager of Seoul Dragon City, Jerome Stubert, shows a jaw-dropping ultra-modern complex with each hotel easily the next-gen product of its brand.
MICE facilities are equally contemporary in design and have “the highest technology possible”, said Basset. There are two grand ballrooms of 1,200m2 each, 17 meeting rooms, and 11 restaurants and bars.
The developer, KOSDAQ-listed Seobu T&D Corporation, is said to have spent some US$400 million on the construction, which represents its foray into hotel investment, said a source.
Accor started its partnership with the Ambassador Hotel Group 30 years ago managing the latter’s hotels. Since 2005, the joint venture, Accor Ambassador Korea, has been managing other people’s assets.
Seoul Dragon City takes its name from the Yongsan (Dragon Mountain) District where it is located. This is in the centre of Seoul close to major business districts such as Yeouido and Gangnam, and commercial districts including Itaewon and Myeongdong, said Accor. The complex is adjacent to malls and shopping centres, movie theatres, tourist attractions and embassies, it added.
The hotelplex is 57km from Incheon International Airport and 22km from Gimpo International Airport.
Two of Indonesia’s major travel agency associations have launched online platforms, as the industry pushes forward in its integration with the digital economy.
Both the Association of the Indonesian Tours and Travel Agencies (ASITA) and the Association of Air Ticketing Companies (ASTINDO) emphasised the importance of being present in the online space in order to compete with OTAs, which they said have been “eating up” offline business.
Indonesian stakeholders are pushing for greater digital integration to streamline the tourism industry
“Together with Alexia, a local IT company who has experience in airline business, ASTINDO created a B2B2C platform to help the brick-and-mortar, middle and small scale travel companies to get back and stay in business,” said Sjachrul Firdaus, ASTINDO’s national board executive director.
The Astindohub platform is white-labelled, which means agents may use their own brands while being fully supported by Astindohub.
“There will be no Astindohub label on the agent’s websites,” explained Sjachrul.
The Astindohub online system accommodates GDSs and allows every association member to present products even if they are not an IATA, an appointed agent, or have owned a tour product.
Meanwhile, ASITA launched the B2B AsitaGo website on July 2017 to help members in 34 provinces across Indonesia transition to digital with an affordable investment.
“We as online intermediaries establish partnership between agents and airlines or hotels,” said Prastyo Hendarso, general manager of AsitaGo.
Prastyo explained that AsitaGo is a marketplace where travel agents meet with airlines and hotel operators to negotiate prices and rooms or seat allotments.
To enter the system and use the engine, agents need only to select the chapter they belong to, and log in with their access code.
Meanwhile, Astindohub activity comrpises four layers. The first is of the IATA wholesale agent (the “organiser”); airlines and hotels; API (Application Programme Interface) owners; and airline appointed agents. Each is required to pay the 20 million rupiah (US$1,538) rupiah joining fee.
The second layer is the reseller, be it an IATA agent and or agents that have been appointed to some airlines. The joining fee is 10 million rupiah. The third is the sub-agent that only owns a legal entity to open a travel agent, and the fourth is the individual agent who does not own anything but is willing to be in the business.
“The wholesaler will look for its reseller down-liners to sell their products. The reseller will look for its sub agent to sell the products and so on,” Sjachrul said.
Both Astindohub and AsitaGO charge 2,500 rupiah per domestic transaction and 5,000 per international transaction.
Dyah Permatasari of Jendela Tours and Travel, an organiser at Astindohub, said that the system has benefited her business in various ways.
“The system has sped up every transaction, cut the cost in human resources, and broadened the business in terms of range,” she said, expressing optimism that there will be a 20 to 30 per cent increase in sales in the year to come.
“We are still in the process of ensuring the system works perfectly. Now, we are in the second phase with seven organisers doing the pilot project. We will accomplish the second phase by December of this year, and target to complete the third phase by mid of 2018,” explained Sjachrul.
He shared that that the association is targeting to have at least 50 per cent of the over 700 ASTINDO members join Astindohub.
The obstacles, Sjachrul said, come from traditional travel agents who are resisting the shift to digital. “We are working very hard to change their mind set,” added Sjachrul.
Chinese online travel giant Ctrip has acquired Trip.com, a Silicon Valley-based travel planning and recommendation startup, which will allow Skyscanner to leverage Trip.com capabilities to launch in-trip content.
According to an announcement on the Trip.com website, the acquisition means “on a daily basis, we’ll be working with Skyscanner, Europe’s largest flight metasearch and part of the Ctrip Group as well, to bring some of what you’ve known and loved about us to their… app and audience”.
Skyscanner users would be able to see points of interest along with travel ideas
Skyscanner’s chief technology officer Bryan Dove commented: “Our aim has always been to make travel search as simple as possible, providing travellers everything they need in one single place.”
“Adding Trip.com’s content to Skyscanner’s offering represents the next step towards that goal. Trip.com is inherently social and mobile, and we’re hugely excited to learn from, and work alongside, their team.”
Trip.com’s team of 30 will continue to operate from their current office locations, alongside co-founders Travis Katz and Ori Zaltzman.
Founded in 2010 as Gogobot, the company has since raised US$39 million dollars in total funding from investors including Expedia, Battery Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, Google Chairman Eric Schmidt’s Innovation Endeavors, TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington, MySpace founder Chris DeWolfe, Square CEO Keith Rabois and angel investor Oren Zeev.
