Perak’s key executives have finally confirmed that the Movie Animation Park Studios (MAPS) theme park is in its final stages of completion and will open in June 2017, a development that is met with anticipation from industry members as the new attraction is expected to be a key driver of visitation.

Featuring over 40 rides and shows within six themed zones, MAPS was initially slated for a 1H2016 opening but it was then postponed to 2017.

The repeated delays in MAPS’ opening has affected the Visit Perak Year 2017 campaign as the state government has been promoting the new theme park to international markets since 2016, Perak state executive counsellor for tourism, arts, culture, communications and multimedia, Nolee Ashilin Mohammed Radzi, said.

“It will have an impact on arrivals from Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand, especially the family travel segment,” she stated.

And despite the competition the new theme park will bring to the incumbents, Calvin Ho, senior general manager, Sunway Theme Parks, does not think that MAPS would cannibalise business at The Lost World of Tambun, a mere 20-minute drive away.

He explained: “With the opening of MAPS, Perak will have more tourism offerings and more marketing dollars to spend on marketing the destination. MAPS, with its international brands like DreamWorks, will be able to reach out to international markets.”

Ganneesh Ramaa, general manager at Luxury Tours Malaysia, agreed: “Both theme parks have different selling propositions. The opening of MAPS will allow us to create itineraries combining both parks, which would appeal to Asian markets. (Travellers might even) extend their stay in Perak from a day trip to an overnight stay.”

Travelport has become the first GDS to be granted both Aggregator Level One certification and IT Provider Level Two status for IATA’s New Distribution Capability (NDC) programme.

With this, Travelport has the option to distribute IATA NDC offers for fares and prices on behalf of the airlines electing to use IATA’s industry standards.

Travelport’s ability to fully integrate with the NDC application programme interface will enable airlines using NDC-XML messaging to distribute and deliver their fares and products.

Travel agencies and TMCs will enjoy enhanced travel content and greater access to ancillary offers via Travelport’s Travel Commerce Platform. For the first time, Travelport-connected agents will be able to make ancillary sales post the original flight booking and through their preferred agency workflows.

“We know the industry needs to transform the way flights are sold and IATA’s NDC is an important part of this,” commented Ian Heywood, Travelport’s global head of product and marketing, air commerce.

Besides driving its own merchandising innovation, Travelport is an active participant in IATA’s NDC planning and has been a member of various working groups and steering and committees focused on NDC development.

PATA has teamed up with travel trade engagement specialist Equator Learning to launch an initiative that allows members to create online learning modules for agents.

Through the Asia & Pacific Experts online tool, PATA members can create 30-minute learning modules that provide agents with information about a destination for more effective selling.

“Travel agents are becoming increasingly time poor and picking up unqualified knowledge. This can damage a destination and its reputation,” said Chris May, managing director – Equator Learning.

The platform also provides an avenue to promote and link to the organisation’s website.

An annual fee secures agents a module in their chosen language(s). They can then switch between different members modules and qualify towards Asia Pacific Expert status.

Dusit Thani yesterday signed an agreement with the Crown Property Bureau to continue leasing the land on which Dusit Thani Bangkok sits – plus an additional plot of almost 3.8ha – at the intersection of Silom Road and Rama 4.

With the lease extended by 30 years (with the right to extend for another 30 years), Dusit Thani intends to reinforce the standing of its Bangkok flagship and build a mixed-use real development with its partner Central Pattana.

The new development – with an estimated project value of 36.7 billion baht (US$1.1 billion) – is expected to feature a hotel, residences, retail areas and office spaces and a large green space.

Suphajee Suthumpun, group CEO, Dusit Thani, commented: “It will be a new icon of Bangkok’s new era the same way the iconic Dusit Thani Bangkok made history 47 years ago.”

A citizenM hotel will open in Kuala Lumpur in the second quarter of next year, a South-east Asian breakthrough for the brand’s expansion in Asia through its partnership with Hong Kong-based Artyzen Hospitality Group.

The 198-key property is located in the city’s fashionable hub, Bukit Bintang, and will showcase to the region the hallmarks of a brand that made the industry sit up when it debuted a decade ago.

Brainchild of founder Rattan Chadha, these hallmarks feature the living room lobby concept with ultra-modern designer furniture, contemporary art collections, innovative technology that allows guests to customise their room experience including lighting, temperature and movies on TV, and the 24/7 canteenM offering quality local food.

Above all, the brand was one of, if not, the first to understand the ethos of a new generation of travellers – the mobile citizens (both in physical mobility and technology where it got its name from) – and ushered in a whole new style of ‘affordable luxury’.

The Kuala Lumpur hotel is owned by Cornerstone Partners Group, which picked citizenM to leverage “the expertise of a global, trend-setting hospitality company, combined with strong local market knowledge”, said Mizi Rahim, director of Pinnacle Supreme, the subsidiary of Cornerstone that signed the management contract with Artyzen.

It will be the third citizenM to open in Asia. The first, Taipei Northgate, another management contract, will open in Q2 this year, followed by citizenM Shanghai Hongqiao in 2Q2018, which is owned by Shun Tak Holdings, Artyzen’s parent company.

Till now, citizenM owns and operates all its hotels in Europe and North America and has been growing roughly one hotel a year in the past 10 years. It operates three hotels in its home base, the Netherlands (two in Amsterdam and one in Rotterdam), three in London, one in Glasgow, two in Paris and one in New York.

But it is rapidly expanding now, with Asia and North America as prime target regions. A second hotel is being built in New York, scheduled for opening early next year, while a hotel each in Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco and Boston have been confirmed, said Robin Chadha, the founder’s son who is chief marketing officer of the company.

In Europe, two other hotels been confirmed in Paris – one in the city centre and the other in Gare de Lyon – and the company is starting to look into other markets such as Switzerland and Italy, he said.

In Asia, Artyzen seeks to grow its South-east Asia presence in gateway cities such as Singapore, Jakarta, Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City, said Artyzen’s president, Robbert van der Maas.

Management contracts seems the preferred model in Asia, Chadha said. “Having management contracts of course brings different complexities than if you were the owner of the hotel yourself, but it’s a fantastic way to expand quickly,” said Chadha, when asked if the company was leaning more towards management in the future. He added citizenM would invest or co-invest in hotels if the right opportunity comes along.

“We’re lucky to have Artyzen as partner as they have experienced people here and know the local landscape. They manage the full business here in Asia while we support them in sharing our concepts. We’re based in Europe and have predominantly European people working for us who might relate to the North American culture but not to the Asian sensitivities, so it’s better to have a local partner on the ground who understands the culture, the red tape and other business ways of doing things. Plus, every market in Asia is different,” said Chadha.

When asked if there’s a need to orientate the brand to Asian needs, he said: “There will be some changes, but ever so slightly, for example, F&B or giving amenities such as slippers/bathrobe. There were talks of changing the room design but we said no.

“So unless it’s a cultural no-no, we’re sticking to our guns because we’re bringing something new to the market.”