Monique Arnoux is now CEO of Bangkok-based Destination Asia, replacing James Reed, who has been promoted to executive chairman.
Arnoux was global sales and marketing director of Hotelbeds’ Group destination management division based in Bangkok. Before her 10-year tenure holding various regional positions at the group, Arnoux was director / head of FIT at Pacific World based in Hong Kong. Prior to that, she was head of hotels and strategic development with Hutchinson – Priceline.
Reed (left) with Arnoux
Reed was one of the founders of Destination Asia back in 1996 and was instrumental in expanding the group’s footprint from just two countries and 18 staff in 1996, to its current 11-country pan-Asia network with over 600 staff and 29 operating offices.
Last year, DNATA acquired a stake of Destination Asia.
Visitors holding valid residence permits or visas from the mentioned countries may apply
Effective September 27, Qatar will make Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) available to visitors that hold valid residence permits or visas from the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Schengen countries, or the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Eligible visitors can obtain an ETA by completing an online application at www.qatarvisaservice.com four to 90 days prior to travel, requiring them to provide proof of accommodation (e.g. hotel booking), details of return (or onward) travel, a copy of their passport with a minimum validity of six months, and a copy of their residence permit or visa to the aforementioned countries.
Visitors holding valid residence permits or visas from the mentioned countries may apply
The ETA is for a single trip and is valid for 30 days, renewable for a further 30 days on the same website. Applicants are charged a US$14 service fee regardless of whether they are successful.
Brigadier Mohammed Al Ateeq, director general of the department of passport and expatriates affairs at Qatar’s Ministry of Interior (MoI), commented: “We are continuously reviewing Qatar’s visa policies and seek to update them in line with Qatar’s economic and social aspirations. Visitors who are not eligible for an ETA are also welcome to apply for a regular tourist visa through the same e-visa platform.”
This development comes as part of a series of measures that Qatar has taken to facilitate visitor access to the country, including a relaxation of visa requirements for nationals of 80 countries.
The ETA was announced during UNWTO’s General Assembly, taking place in Chengdu, China. Hassan Al Ibrahim, chief tourism development officer at QTA, remarked: “This is testament to Qatar’s commitment to openness, and championing the right to tourism for all people, in line with the UNWTO’s Global Code of Ethics for Tourism.”
He added that visa facilitation is a critical component of the national tourism sector strategy, which QTA has recently reviewed in partnership with stakeholders from the public and private sectors.
Khin: caravan tours that run from India via Myanmar and Thailand to Singapore being developed
To raise its own visitor numbers, Myanmar is working with operators and organisations in neighbouring countries on improving cross-border tourism in the region.
One of its efforts is the development of caravan tours that run from India via Myanmar and Thailand to Singapore, revealed Khin San Aye, executive committee member of the Union of Myanmar Travel Association.
Khin: caravan tours that run from India via Myanmar and Thailand to Singapore being developed
The association hopes to promote through these tours “community-based tourism”, or travel and overnight stays at local villages near major attractions such as Bagan and Mandalay, said Khin.
The caravan tours will be organised by an Australian company based in India and developed with the Travel Agents Association of India. The parties are “still negotiating”.
The government is throwing strong support behind this initiative by improving access to villages, stepping up destination marketing, and increasing dialogue between inbound companies.
The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism has also been organising study trips to other countries such as Japan that are established in this area.
Mandarin Oriental Qianmen, Beijing is located within a hutong quarter currently undergoing preservation and regeneration works
Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group will manage a luxury hotel in Beijing located in a traditional hutong quarter close to Tiananmen Square.
The hotel, Mandarin Oriental Qianmen, Beijing, is being developed by Beijing Tianjie Group Company and is expected to open in 2018.
Mandarin Oriental Qianmen, Beijing
The traditional Qianmen East Hutong Quarter is currently undergoing preservation and regeneration. Hutongs date back to the 13th century and comprise courtyard houses connected by narrow lanes and alleyways.
Guests can expect to stay in landscaped courtyard suites and experience the traditional Beijing way of life within the labyrinth of alleys and lanes.
Facilities within the hotel will include multipurpose function rooms, indoor swimming pool, fitness centre and spa. For F&B options, there will be an all-day dining concept with a roof terrace, a Chinese restaurant, a lobby lounge, a traditional tea lounge and a Mandarin cake shop.
Broken or ineffective mobile websites
It’s a well-known fact that consumers have little patience with poor mobile websites; this is even more critical for Millennial travellers who grew up with technology and believe that “it should just work”. Beyond that, there is the additional need to ensure that your product provides a good user experience (UX) as it will drastically improve your conversions and ROI.
Studies show that 57 per cent of users won’t recommend a business with a poorly designed mobile site and, because Millennials are heavily influenced by peer recommendations, a poor mobile site (or app) can have a significant negative impact on your bookings and revenue.
Yup, you heard that right: if your mobile website isn’t making it easy and painless for potential guests to search for rooms, compare options and book, it is VERY likely that you’re not only missing out on valuable bookings but also giving them to your competition!
Inconsistencies of user experience across all channels
Ready for another buzzword? Today’s consumers are looking for an omni-channel experience, which, in layman’s terms, means that users want the same brand experience, regardless of the channel through which they engage with your brand.
As a matter of fact, 83 per cent of mobile users say that a seamless experience across all devices is very important. So, in addition to having a mobile website that works well, it is also important that your guests’ mobile experience is consistent across all channels.
You obviously cannot have complete control over your hotel’s branding and the mobile user experience of the indirect channels (i.e. OTAs) but on your own channels, it is integral that you maintain consistent brand presentation and pricing. Whether they book through your desktop website, mobile website, mobile app, email, call or text, your customers should be receiving the same recognition and service at every touchpoint.
Inability to view video via mobile
Did you know that 48 per cent of Millennials view video solely on their mobile device? No wonder they are always staring at their mobile devices!
So it stands to reason that if your mobile site doesn’t have the bandwidth or capability to showcase the videos that you have on your desktop website, almost 50 per cent of your potential guests (i.e. Millennials) will never see your video content. Because we know that video is a highly effective marketing medium for travel companies (45 per cent of leisure travellers booked instantly after watching a video of the travel activity… 72 per cent of business travellers and 74 per cent of affluent travellers booked upon watching a video), this mobile mistake could cost your hotel a lot of revenue.
There you have it: three big problems that will push Millennials into the arms (or to the mobile website) of the competition!
Hong Kong not as attractive to Indian toursts now with PAR
Hong Kong’s online pre-arrival registration (PAR) requirement for Indian nationals, in place since January, has triggered a 20 per cent drop in Indian inbound to 207,133 in 1H2017.
And with Macau a popular twin destination in Indian travellers’ itinerary, the entertainment city has also seen fewer Indian footfalls – down 12.9 per cent to 91,090 in 1H2017.
Hong Kong not as attractive to Indian tourists now with PAR
Ronald Wu, director of sales and marketing at Hong Kong’s Grayline Tours, said the impact on Macau was lighter compared with Hong Kong because Indian nationals transiting at Hong Kong International Airport to Macau did not need PAR, as long as they show their Macau ferry tickets at the immigration counters.
For Chennai-based ttworld-tours.com’s CEO, Tamilselvam T, trouble brought on by the new visa system was the high number of application rejections.
“(Tendency of rejection is higher for travellers) from North India. It’s typical for clients to pay for their tour only to have their PAR application rejected later. We agents have to refund their money, which means the extra administration burden.”
Travel Agents Association of Jharkhand president Sanjiv Poddar, said: “One immediate impact I’ve observed is that Indian business event groups have chosen to skip Hong Kong (in order to avoid PAR application) and only hold their meetings in Macau.”
Indian leisure groups, however, are skipping Hong Kong and Macau entirely and spending their vacation elsewhere in the region. Poddar expects Indian travel to fall by 20 per cent to Hong Kong and Macau. “(PAR) is also giving additional work to our staff as they have to fill out online application forms for our clients,” he lamented.
He hopes the Hong Kong government can relax the rules at least for family groups, such that a single approval is only needed rather than the existing requirement for individuals.
CITS (Macao) international department manager, Cooper Zhang, has also reported dismal Indian performance.
He told TTG Asia: “Leisure market is the worst hit. For the upcoming Devali, bookings don’t look promising and we are estimating a 30 to 40 per cent drop in business.”
Oriental Travels India’s director Mukesh Goel is, however, unaffected, saying that Macau’s many new integrated resorts and their varied recreational attractions are strong enough magnets to keep Indian travellers coming despite the PAR requirement.
“What we are seeing though is clients cutting down time in Hong Kong to stay on longer in Macau,” he remarked.
Stores, distribution to travel agents to be shifted to Expedia's Global Partner Solutions
Expedia has become the preferred hotel provider for Thomas Cook’s city and domestic holiday business.
As part of the new partnership, Thomas Cook’s primary websites, contact centres, stores and distribution to affiliated travel agents will eventually be powered by an Expedia booking platform.
Stores, distribution to travel agents to be powered by Expedia’s Global Partner Solutions
The deal enables Thomas Cook to focus on its own brand and selected partner hotels in sun and beach holidays, while Expedia gets to enhance its position in Europe.
Peter Fankhauser, CEO, Thomas Cook, said the combination of Expedia’s portfolio of hotels and best-in-class online technology will transform Thomas Cook’s city breaks and hotel-only offer for customers. It will also allow Thomas Cook to further simplify systems and processes, “freeing us up to focus on holidays to our own brand and selected partner hotels where we know we can really make a difference to customers,” he said.
Fankhauser also hinted that this “marks the first step in a long-term and mutually beneficial relationship with Expedia”.
Aman Bhutani, president, Brand Expedia Group, said: “We’ve always had profound respect for the Thomas Cook brand and we believe that our coming together will enhance our abilities to help more people to get out and see the world, while enhancing each of our competitive positions in the European market.
Singapore GP and Singapore Tourism Board (STB) have announced that the FIA Formula 1 World Championship will be hosted in Singapore for four more years from 2018 to 2021.
This announcement comes off the back of a year-to-date 19 per cent increase in ticket sales, with the weekend sales yet to be included.
2016’s edition of the Singapore Grand Prix. Courtesy: www.singaporegp.sg
In its first decade, the race has yielded significant economic benefits, attracting over 450,000 international visitors to Singapore and about S$1.4 billion (US$1.04 billion) in tourism receipts
Minister for trade and industry (Industry), S Iswaran, said: “The F1 Singapore Grand Prix has generated significant benefits for our economy as well as the FORMULA 1 franchise. With its global viewership and media coverage, the race has reinforced Singapore’s image as a vibrant and innovative city to a wide international audience. It has also created good opportunities for Singaporeans and the local business community.”
With more than 90 per cent of the race organisation sub-contracted annually to Singapore-based companies, the race also contributes to the local economy, over and above the tourism outcomes.
Lionel Yeo, STB’s chief executive, said: “The race in Singapore has provided an excellent platform for businesses to test bed new lifestyle initiatives and products. This has not only created an exciting atmosphere during the race season, but also injected creative concepts and experiences that continue to attract tourists to Singapore all year round.”
No more school trips to orphanages for World Challenge
A crusade to end orphanage tourism has found a surprise ally in World Challenge, probably the world’s largest student voluntourism company based in Australia.
World Challenge has for decades been linking high school students to do volunteer work in orphanages in countries such as Cambodia, Vietnam and Madagascar. According to an ABC report, the company has partnerships with 300 Australian schools and sent 150 children to orphanages last year.
No more school trips to orphanages for World Challenge
Its newest partnership, however, is a much different kind. Last week, it announced it was joining hands with advocacy group ReThink Orphanages Network to make a stand to stop orphanage tourism around the world.
“We have committed to withdraw from all residential care homes by the end of September 2017,” World Challenge said in a statement.
Motivating the decision is its belief that “regular, short-term visitors” could “reignite and exacerbate damaging feelings of abandonment” in orphans.
Moreover, it recognises that far-reaching problems are being perpetuated by demand in the orphanage tourism industry. “Regrettably institutions are often driven by well-meaning but uninformed support of foreign donors and orphanage voluntourism. At best institutions can become reliant on financial aid, at worst they drive child trafficking. By ceasing to visit orphanages, we are opting to end our contribution to this cycle of demand,” the statement read.
Intrepid Travel, which is part of the ReThink Orphanages committee, has also been speaking out against the issue.
Earlier this month, reports surfaced of an Australian crack down on schools and universities that send their students to volunteer in overseas orphanages. In July, abc reported that West Australian Liberal senator Linda Reynolds was campaigning to criminalise those facilitating trips to overseas orphanages that profit from the children housed there.
These recent developments mark a big step forward in an ongoing crusade against orphanage tourism. Advocacy group Childsafe has for several years been raising awareness on the unintended consequences of tourist visits to orphanages, notably through its Children are not Tourist Attractions campaign. In 2014, the Responsible Travel umbrella body for ethical-minded tour operators and hoteliers ceased its orphanage volunteering trips.
European travellers are the main driving force behind Indian inbound growth, with room bookings from Europe surging 109 per cent year-on-year, according to latest data from Tourico Holidays, part of Hotelbeds Group.
Also showing strong growth are Asia-Pacific (+53 per cent) and North America (+32 per cent).
Among the source markets showing the largest booking influxes are China (+115 per cent), the UAE (+113 per cent), Canada (+105 per cent), the UK (+57 per cent) and the US (+20 per cent).
“India is currently experiencing a boom in travel demand – and with a diversity of source markets increasing their bookings,” said Madhuri Khanna, regional director of product development in South-east Asia for Tourico Holidays.
Bullish that India’s popularity will continue to grow, he said: “A relaxed e-visa regime and an emphasis on bolstering tourism has India primed to become a major global destination in the years to come.”
Tourico’s outbound business also saw significant growth at 28 per cent year-on-year, led by Indian bookings for Asia-Pacific, which increased 58 per cent. A surge in demand was seen for China (+127 per cent), Malaysia (+101 per cent), Thailand (27 per cent), and Australia (+24 per cent).
Meanwhile, hotel bookings from India to Europe increased by 20 per cent, led by Turkey (+90 per cent), Spain (+33 per cent) and the UK (+28 per cent). Hotel bookings to North America increased by 10 per cent.
“Encouraged by India’s leading GDP global growth rate, a growing middle class, and a millennial age block that is increasingly enjoying more disposable income, the country is rapidly becoming an outbound travel force,” said Khanna.
