Vietjet cabin crew last Thursday put up an impromptu flash mob dance at Singapore Changi Airport to mark the launch of the airline’s inaugural flight from Hanoi to Singapore. The daily Hanoi flight is Vietjet’s second route connecting Vietnam and Singapore after Ho Chi Minh City. The airline is also planning to connect Singapore with Dalat and Danang in the near future.
From March 25, 2018, Emirates will provide an all-A380 service from Melbourne when it upgrades its third daily flight from the Australian city to Dubai from a Boeing 777-300ER, right as Qantas replaces the Melbourne-Dubai-London with the Melbourne-Perth-London route on March 24, 2018.
Emirates’ move will add 945 seats per week on flights EK408 and EK409, representing a 10 per cent increase in capacity, which is expected to support more business and leisure travel between Dubai and Melbourne.
The Emirates A380 offers 489 seats in a three-class cabin configuration with 14 private suites in first class, 76 flat-bed seats in business class and 399 spacious seats in economy.
Meanwhile, Qantas customers in Melbourne will have the option to fly to Dubai with partner Emirates on Qantas code.
By swapping its daily A380 Melbourne-Dubai-London service for a daily 787-9 on the Melbourne-Perth-London (Heathrow) service, Qantas customers travelling to London from Melbourne will reduce their total travel time by more than an hour compared with existing A380 services.
Qantas is expecting a surge in stopovers and tourism for Western Australia while making Victoria the hub for its first four Dreamliner. The carrier’s first two 787s will be dedicated to the Melbourne-Los Angeles route from December 2017, and the third and fourth to the Melbourne-Perth-London service from March 2018.
According to Qantas, the A380 that currently operates the Melbourne-London route will be redeployed to meet periods of high demand from Melbourne and Sydney to destinations in Asia, such as Singapore and Hong Kong.
Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce said there had been global interest in the Perth-London flights since they were announced in December 2016.
Tauzia Hotel Management last week opened POP! Hotel Banjarmasin, in the capital of South Kalimantan, marking the brand’s first property on the Indonesian island.
Banjamin Castel, director of operations at POP! Hotels, believes that Banjarmasin, with its unique proposition from competitors, offers an “interesting” market for the budget hotel brand.
(From left) POP! Hotels’ Reza Fordaus and Benjamin Castel; Tiga Putra Rukun Makmur’s William Ardianto; andv Yello & POP Hotels’ Narantara Sitepu
Investment of the 120-key hotel is US$350,000 per room, excluding land, and return on investment is expected within five to seven years.
Narantara Sitepu, brand manager Yello & POP! Hotels of TAUZIA Hotel Management, said: “Smart travellers, the target market of POP! Hotels, are dynamic, young travellers who know what they want and smart in managing their budget.”
As such, the Pitstop lobby, with its blend of a café lounge and convenient store open round the clock, is conceived not just for hotel guests only but also as an interactive social hub for young business professionals and millennials.
William Ardianto, director of owning company Tiga Putra Rukun Makmur, said: “(A 24-hour café) concept like Pitstop is new to Banjarmasin. To attract travellers and the locals, we will introduce local cuisines, such as soto banjar and traditional cakes at the outlet.”
POP! Hotel Banjarmasin is the brand’s 21st property in Indonesia and 17 more properties are expected to open until 2022.
Garuda Indonesia has yesterday moved its international operations to Terminal 3 of Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
The departure of Kuala Lumpur-bound flight GA820 and the arrival of GA823 from Singapore marked the start of Garuda’s operations from the new terminal.
Terminal 3 of Jakarta Soekarno-Hatta International Airport; photo credit: Indonesia’s Ministry of Tourism
The Indonesian national carrier has moved its domestic operations to Terminal 3 in August 2016, becoming the first airline to operate from Terminal 3. Other Skyteam alliance members will follow after Lebaran, which falls in June this year.
Pahala Mansury, president and CEO of Garuda, said: “Garuda is optimistic that Terminal 3 International will not only be a move to improve infrastructure and transportation service with global competitive advantage but also a milestone for the development of tourism (in Indonesia).”
Garuda will in stages operate 26 check-in counters and increase its executive lounge capacity to 350 seats for business class and 56 seats for first class passengers, which is twice the current capacity at Terminal 2.
The airline will operate 36 self check-in outlets and 10 boarding gates by July.
In the last decade ASEAN has come a long way in its aviation development but AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes wants to see more done to grow the industry further.
“ASEAN has made huge improvements but it still (has) a long way to go to become truly open like Europe,” said Fernandes, urging further liberalisation of the region’s aviation sector during the recent WTTC Global Summit in Bangkok.
Fernandes and WTTC’s Scowsill speaking with media
“What we need to look at is common ownership… Joint ventures are less efficient than full ownership, unlike Ryanair and easyJet in Europe,” he elaborated.
A common visa for the region is still clearly lacking too, especially since ASEAN as a single travel destination product is already available, Fernandes pointed out.
What’s also needed is better planning and development of airport infrastructure in the region, urged Fernandes. “China is probably the only one in Asia ahead of the curve in terms of airports… Everyone builds terminals but forgets that aircraft need to land; (sometimes) there is only one runway.”
But the airline chief is “very optimistic” of ASEAN’s aviation sector, citing Thailand’s rapid passenger traffic growth as an example, as the country is now adding Utapao to Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang airports as the third international gateway.
Furthermore, he also counts Vietnam as one of the key markets in South-east Asia to look to. AirAsia is gearing up to enter the country with its recent announcement to start a joint venture with local partners. “You can’t be in ASEAN without being in Vietnam,” he commented.
As well, Fernandes sees potential to bring longhaul visitors into ASEAN with its intention to open more longhaul destinations from Europe and North America after AirAsia X’s Honolulu service begins next year.
“I wonder why we’re not flying Dubai-Bangkok, Tassaporn (CEO of Thai AirAsia)! We need to give flydubai a run for its money,” quipped Fernandes, during a shared session on the summit sidelines with Gary Chapman, president of group services & dnata at Emirates.
TTG Asia will be taking a break on Monday, May 1, as it is Labour Day in Singapore. News will resume on Tuesday, May 2.
Hilton Jiuzhaigou Resort
The 426-key hotel in Sichuan’s Jiuzhaigou features rooms of at least 46m2 in size and 10 villas between 320 and 460m2. All rooms have 49-inch TVs and high-speed Internet while executive rooms also come with private balcony and lounge access. Recreational facilities include a spa, 24-hour fitness centre and kid’s club. The hotel’s 1,522m2 of meeting and event space is spread across seven function rooms, a foyer and a pillar-less Grand Ballroom for up to 1,300 people. F&B options are Open, an all-day dining restaurant; Simmer for Sichuan hot pot; Xang Xung for Tibetan specialties such as barbequed yak meat; and Jiu lobby lounge.
Hakone Kowakien Ten-yu
Fujita Kanko has opened an onsen resort in Japan’s Hakone, a hot spring destination near Mount Fuji. All 150 Japanese-style rooms have private open-air hot spring baths overlooking the scenery. Most rooms have beds, and can accommodate additional guests with futons. Resort facilities include a spa, a restaurant and bar/lounge and two hot spring facilities, one of which has an open-air infinity-style bath. Set in the Hakone Kowakien complex, guests have access to more dining and leisure facilities, including Soba Kihinkan, a Japanese soba noodle restaurant, an amusement park and botanical garden.
Somerset Jeju Shinhwa World
Ascott’s first property on Jeju Island is a 344-unit serviced residence that is part of the Shinhwa World integrated resort. Each unit has a kitchen, separate living and dining areas, a balcony, wine chiller, washing machine, dishwasher and a centralised home automation system. Amenities offered include a clubhouse, fully-equipped gymnasium and sauna, international restaurant, children’s playroom and outdoor play area for kids. The integrated resort also features a theme park, water park, gaming facilities, retail outlets, MICE spaces and a K-Pop entertainment town.
Best Western The Lagoon Hotel
Overlooking Indonesia’s Bay of Manado and Manado Tua island 45 minutes from the Sam Ratulangi International Airport, the mid-scale hotel provides 187 rooms, all equipped with complimentary Wi-Fi, flat-screen TVs with cable channels, mini-bars and other amenities. It also features local and international cuisine from a restaurant, a spa, fitness centre, an outdoor swimming pool and conference and banqueting space including a large ballroom.
Asia DMC has set up representation in the UK, headed by Gary Toshak as director of sales and marketing UK, to offer its post-rebrand programme of personalised luxury itineraries into South-east Asia.
Toshak
Toshak has over 12 years of experience in developing bespoke, high-end tour itineraries throughout Asia, specialising in China and South-east Asia. While with former companies China Links and Discover China, he led expeditions to remote areas in the region.
“Classic touring in Asia has traditionally been very successfully sold in the UK in clear and ordered components. While we will still offer traditional touring modules, we will introduce a dynamic, personalised range of content featured in the DMC’s 2017 Spirit of Travel collection for UK tour operators that will offer a ‘Rolls Royce’ approach to South-east Asia travel,” Toshak said.
Toshak is seen as an important addition as the company “seeks differentiation in a sophisticated travel market”, according to group managing director Linh Le, who was appointed after the new Asia DMC identity got off the ground last year.
An enhanced codeshare with subsidiary THAI Smile has expanded Thai Airways International’s network to Siem Reap, Kota Kinabalu and Chittagong as well as increased the frequency on some existing codeshare routes.
Introduced in March were Bangkok-Siem Reap flights (TG2588/2589 and TG2590/2591 roundtrip) operated 14 times a week; seven-times weekly Bangkok-Kota Kinabalu flights (TG2421/2422 roundtrip); and four-time weekly Bangkok-Chittagong flights (TG2355/2356).
Come October, a route to Luang Prabang will be added at a four-times weekly frequency (TG2576/2577).
The existing Bangkok-Phnom Penh codeshare service (TG2582/2583 roundtrip) has been increased from 14 to 18 flights per week. In addition, effective May 5, there will be 10 weekly flights to Penang instead of the existing seven.< br/>< br/> All routes will be operated with the Airbus A320-200 aircraft.
On the heels of Best Western signing a hotel in the vicinity of Bangkok’s Chatuchak Market, Dusit International has announced it will operate the first hotel in the heart of the attraction.
Rendering of Mixt Chatuchak
The hotel will form part of Dhanasansombut Development’s new mixed-use development, Mixt Chatuchak, and comprise approximately 250 rooms.
Apart from its location in the market – said to be visited by six out of every 10 tourists in Bangkok – the hotel is also a short walk from the MRT (Mo Chit Station) and BTS (Chatuchak Station) rail systems.
Bang Sue Grand Station, which will replace the Bangkok Railway Station at Hua Lamphong as the terminus for all long-distance rail services from Bangkok, is also currently under construction next to JJ Market and is scheduled to open in 2019.
Suphajee Suthumpun, group CEO of Dusit International, added: “With several exciting developments set to open near the market within the next few years, the area will only become even more appealing, and our new hotel will be (well) positioned to meet the needs of the young, sophisticated travellers who visit the area seeking a distinctive localised experience.”
