Travel operators in Thailand are positive that the visa fee waiver being implemented by the government will be a boon for arrivals, but is unlikely to make up for the loss in Chinese visitors due to the cracking down of zero-dollar tours.

It became a hot button topic yesterday when Thai authorities waived the 1,000 baht (US$28) visa application fee and decreased visa-on-arrival charges from 2,000 baht to 1,000 baht, applicable to travellers from 19 select nations between December and February 2017.

The 19 countries are Andorra, Bulgaria, Bhutan, China, Cyprus, Ethiopia, India, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Maldives, Malta, Mauritius, Romania, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Ukraine and Uzbekistan.

Hopes are for the measure to boost arrivals by 350,000 and increase tourist spending by 28 billion baht, on top of existing projections for the period.

Suparerk Soorangura, managing director of NS Travel & Tours believes that while the waiver of visa fees is a common good, the short three-month period in which it is being offered isn’t enough to compensate for the plunge in visitors from China.

“I think that the measure should last for at least a year and will work for shorthaul markets. What the government should be doing is add conveniences such as e-visa facilities, doing away with immigration cards and speeding up the visa-on-arrival process,” he added.

CCT Group president Vichit Prakobkoson concurs, sharing that while the initiative will attract more visitors, it was not the right solution to counter the sharp decline in number of Chinese tourists.

“The measure should have been introduced when the country was facing a crisis such as a natural disaster or political turmoil,” he said.

He added that there are better ways to jolt the market, such as implementing a new promotional campaign, rather than to lose income from visa applications.

Even as the stable growth of Asia-Pacific airlines over the past few years is expected to continue into 2017, uncertainties arising from macroeconomic forces, fluctuating crude oil prices and the strengthening US currency, among other things, are expected to keep predictions muted.

The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) director general Andrew Herdman said that even though global passenger traffic maintained its more than 27 per cent growth this year, it is extraordinary, given the fragility of the global economy.

In fact, the low interest rate is a “warning signal” of a weak economic outlook, with international trade no longer outpacing GDP growth for the first time in 15 years, Herdman pointed out.

Still, low crude oil prices are keeping travel very affordable today, he added, with Asia-Pacific airlines accounting for 32 per cent of global passenger traffic in 2015.

But “how far those oil prices will stay at those levels we don’t know”, said Endau Analytics founder Shukor Yusuf, saying that it’s hard to make a projection for 2017 as things can change very quickly given current geopolitics.

While Cebu Pacific president and CEO Lance Gokongwei is bullish about the industry going into 2017 as the LCC is enjoying strong domestic and international demand, Malaysia Airlines CEO Peter Bellew foresees a shakeup and consolidation among LCCs “when fuel price inevitably goes back up”.

Bellew pointed out that there are too many LCCs and that they don’t have critical mass, which is fine for the next few years, but could be unsustainable afterwards due to excessive cost.

Uncertainty also arises from the continuing strength of the greenback. In the Philippines, for instance, the peso is edging near 50 pesos against the dollar, the lowest in eight years.

Thai Airways president Charamporn Jotikasthira highlights another pain point – that of limited infrastructure to cope with rising passenger demand even as visa-free facilities boost traffic.

When Thailand adopted the visa-on-arrival scheme for Chinese travellers, arrivals spiked, but immigration facilities and carousel baggage systems couldn’t cope with the increase.

“For a good 15 years we have experienced double-digit growth of passengers but infrastructure is not keeping up,” said Martin Eran-Tasker, technical director at AAPA.

This is changing, however, as he observes more airlines and airports investing into the latest technologies to make things more efficient and drive costs down.

Herdman concludes that the Asia-Pacific market will continue to lead future growth in air travel, with the region representing 40 per cent of future aircraft orders and associated infrastructure requirements.

The challenge for Asia-Pacific airlines is the ability to effectively capture that growth.

Hot on the heels of the announcement of its new Iron Man Experience zone earlier this month, Hong Kong Disneyland has now also unveiled further developments with a proposed US$1.4 billion expansion plan.

Some of the attractions to be expected include Frozen and Marvel themed zones, a transformed castle and central area to showcase new daytime and nighttime performances, and a stage show in Adventureland themed after Disney’s new movie Moana.

A statement from Walt Disney Parks and Resorts expects the project to take place from 2018 to 2023. Funding is also still subject to approval through cash equity injections from Hong Kong Disneyland’s shareholders.

“This proposed expansion brings the best of The Walt Disney Company to this wonderful tourist destination, giving guests an experience only Disney can deliver and infusing some of Disney’s most beloved characters and stories into this unique destination,” said Bob Chapek, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.

Construction on Celebrity Cruises’ next generation of ships have begun, as the line revealed the names for the first two vessels in the class will be Celebrity Edge and Celebrity Beyond.

The first piece of steel for Edge was cut at the STX France shipyard, with the ship expected for delivery in autumn 2018.

Celebrity Beyond is scheduled for launch in spring 2020.

The third and fourth ships in the Edge class will then be delivered in autumn 2021 and autumn 2022.

Read the full story here.

Beijing-based tour operator Bespoke Travel Company is set to enter the Japanese market, its first outside China, with a presence in Tokyo and Kyoto come spring 2017, according to its founder and CEO Sarah Keenlyside.

Bespoke, which produces private city experiences for contemporary travellers, had in 2015 identified New York and Tokyo as potential destinations for expansion.

“It is competitive, but Japan is a promising market with Tokyo hosting the 2020 Olympic Games and because of demand from our travel agent partners and customers from Europe and the US,” said Keenlyside.

On where else the company is looking to expand to, she said Chengdu is likely as it is growing in popularity and connectivity has improved there.

Within China, Bespoke currently has a presence in Xi’an and Shanghai besides its Beijing headquarters, which first began operations in 2009.

DidaTravel CEO Rikin Wu

Singapore-based accommodations wholesaler FIT Ruums, launched earlier this month by Australia’s Webjet, has formed a strategic partnership with Shenzhen-based DidaTravel Technology.

The partnership entails cross content sharing of at least 13,000 properties, two-way distribution, and collaboration in other areas such as market intelligence, business development and advancement of new technology.

According to a joint statement, FIT Ruums will focus on Asia in terms of content sourcing and distribution while DidaTravel will do the same in China. The two companies will then buy and sell each other’s content.

“FIT Ruums has an ambitious regional expansion strategy that will see us move into multiple Asian markets and become a one-stop-shop for the region’s travel trade,” said Daryl Lee, director of WebBeds FZ, a division of Webjet.

“To achieve this, it is vital for us to have a strong partner in Mainland China, and we are delighted to be working with DidaTravel Technology – the country’s largest B2B travel content aggregator and distributor.”

DidaTravel, first established in 2012, became the first hotel aggregator to go public in China in 2015. Its B2B distribution platform serves thousands of OTAs, airlines, tour operators, travel agencies and TMCs throughout China.

“Our focus is on enhancing the technological capabilities of our travel partners,” said Rikin Wu, CEO of DidaTravel. “By partnering with FIT Ruums we will be able to expand our network reach beyond China and accelerate our business growth. We are confident we can continue to double our sales revenue in 2017.”

FIT Ruums has also revealed future plans to act as a marketing representative for NTOs that are interested in attracting more Asian business, particularly from China, but currently lack the resources to do so.

Hong Kong’s Ngong Ping 360 (NP360) cable car attraction will be suspending services from January to June 2017 in order to undergo a rope replacement project, raising concern among agents about the attractiveness of Lantau island as a destination.

During the upgrading period, the Ngong Ping Rescue Trail will also be be closed, but the Ngong Ping Village will remain open.

According to NP360 managing director Stella Kwan, a reduction of approximately 500,000 guests is expected during this period as both its Chinese New Year and Easter Holiday peak seasons are affected.

NP360 stated that disruption caused to its business partners will be mitigated with adjustments where possible to minimise impact.

But Gray Line Tours managing director Michael Wu believes business will be severely affected nonetheless. “The suspension may affect the whole Lantau tourism scene as the cable car was the key pulling factor. I forsee about a 30 per cent drop in visitors overall for Lantau, especially for the FIT market,” he said.

Tourbillon Travel, which specialises in the Indonesian market, expects business from the South-east Asian nation to Lantau to drop drastically as well.

“Indonesians visit Lantau because of the cable car so they may not consider to tour the island if it’s out of service. Given their Muslim background, the Po Lin Monastery hardly appeals to them,” said the agency’s managing director Tony Lam.

But NP360’s Kwan is banking on tours to Ngong Ping Village. She said: “To incentivise agents, we will roll out land and sea guided tours for FITs. Three to four departures are tentatively scheduled per day at a promotional price of HK$150 (US$19.30) per person.

“Moreover, we will provide scheduled complimentary round-trip shuttle services for pre-booked tour groups visiting Ngong Ping Village. During the period, guests will also be able to purchase our bus tour package from the Tung Chung Cable Car Terminal or take other modes of transport.”

Even as the stable growth of Asia-Pacific airlines over the past few years is expected to continue into 2017, uncertainties arising from macroeconomic forces, fluctuating crude oil prices and the strengthening US currency, among other things, are expected to keep predictions muted.

The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) director general Andrew Herdman said that even though global passenger traffic maintained its more than 27 per cent growth this year, it is extraordinary, given the fragility of the global economy.

In fact, the low interest rate is a “warning signal” of a weak economic outlook, with international trade no longer outpacing GDP growth for the first time in 15 years, Herdman pointed out.

Still, low crude oil prices are keeping travel very affordable today, he added, with Asia-Pacific airlines accounting for 32 per cent of global passenger traffic in 2015.

But “how far those oil prices will stay at those levels we don’t know”, said Endau Analytics founder Shukor Yusuf, saying that it’s hard to make a projection for 2017 as things can change very quickly given current geopolitics.

While Cebu Pacific president and CEO Lance Gokongwei is bullish about the industry going into 2017 as the LCC is enjoying strong domestic and international demand, Malaysia Airlines CEO Peter Bellew foresees a shakeup and consolidation among LCCs “when fuel price inevitably goes back up”.

Bellew pointed out that there are too many LCCs and that they don’t have critical mass, which is fine for the next few years, but could be unsustainable afterwards due to excessive cost.

Uncertainty also arises from the continuing strength of the greenback. In the Philippines, for instance, the peso is edging near 50 pesos against the dollar, the lowest in eight years.

Thai Airways president Charamporn Jotikasthira highlights another pain point – that of limited infrastructure to cope with rising passenger demand even as visa-free facilities boost traffic.

When Thailand adopted the visa-on-arrival scheme for Chinese travellers, arrivals spiked, but immigration facilities and carousel baggage systems couldn’t cope with the increase.

“For a good 15 years we have experienced double-digit growth of passengers but infrastructure is not keeping up,” said Martin Eran-Tasker, technical director at AAPA.

This is changing, however, as he observes more airlines and airports investing into the latest technologies to make things more efficient and drive costs down.

Herdman concludes that the Asia-Pacific market will continue to lead future growth in air travel, with the region representing 40 per cent of future aircraft orders and associated infrastructure requirements.

The challenge for Asia-Pacific airlines is the ability to effectively capture that growth.

Singapore Airlines (SIA) is reducing its Jakarta service by five-weekly with effect from December 1.

The national carrier had been conducting 63 flights per week to and from Jakarta since July 2013, but is reducing its frequency due to maintenance works at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, according to the Indonesian civil aviation authorities.

The five-weekly flights being cut between Singapore and Jakarta are SQ962 and SQ963 operating on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

SIA stated they will progressively contact customers with bookings on affected flights to accommodate them on other flights.

(From left) DNES deputy CEO Nguyen Tran, ADB MBI head Dominic Mellor, and MTCO executive director Jens Thraenhart

The newly-launched Mekong Initiative for Startup Tourism (MIST) will hold its first reverse hackathon and tourism startup competition in Danang early next year.

The contest invites local startups in Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar to develop solutions for identified market opportunities and rewards winners by matching them with suitable investors.

Organised by the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) and the Mekong Business Initiative (MBI), MIST first works with local tourism players to identify industry challenges and bottlenecks and solicits global solutions from experienced innovators.

It then facilitates exchanges between global providers and budding local entrepreneurs and structures competitions among startup teams.

The winning teams will attend a bootcamp and Demo Day at the 2017 Mekong Tourism Forum in Luang Prabang, while the best Vietnamese startups will also be invited to a Demo Day at the APEC Investment Summit in November 2017 in Danang.

“Innovation and technologies are transforming the world’s tourism sector, but the Mekong region has lagged behind. We are eager to see the region’s startups innovate and create new avenues for tourism growth,” said Dominic Mellor, head of MBI at the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

Added Jens Thraenhart, executive director of MTCO: “The Greater Mekong Subregion is a magnet for tourism, but accelerating tourist volumes have also brought challenges to drive inclusive growth. The region will need to develop and innovate if it is to sustain today’s growth over the long term.”

MIST is co-organised by the Da Nang Business Incubator (DNES) in Vietnam.