Airline passengers are most likely to fork out extra money on cabin class upgrades, food and beverage, preferred seating and extra legroom, according to a recent study conducted by Sabre.

Respondents indicated that the above ancillary items are equally important with each one receiving 11 per cent of the total votes. This is followed by inflight Wi-Fi and extra checked baggage accounting for nine per cent of surveyed travellers each.

The popularity of each ancillary varied between travellers from each region, with North Americans and Europeans choosing preferred seating and extra legroom; Latin Americans opting for onboard Wi-Fi; and Asia-Pacific travellers selecting extra checked luggage.

For travellers from Africa and the Middle East, food and beverage and fast track security respectively topped their pick.

“It’s clear that while there are regional differences in ancillary preferences, 80 per cent of all travellers spend on air extras, representing a significant revenue opportunity for airlines,” said Dino Gelmetti, vice president EMEA, airline solutions at Sabre.

“Airlines know what their travellers want based on the data they have of past purchases. Yet so much of this data remains unused today. However, by leveraging the latest technology, airlines can unlock this data and show they know their travellers by offering the right products at the right time and tailoring a personalised experience that will improve customer loyalty and generate much needed revenue.”

By region, African travellers spent most on ancillaries (US$95) followed by those from the Asia-Pacific (US$63), while North Americans spent the least (US$44). The average spending on ancillaries worldwide amounted to US$62.

Respondents further revealed that they will be comfortable with spending up to US$99 on average to improve their flight experience.

Petra Hedorfer

The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) will increase its marketing activities in four South-east Asian markets next year, namely Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

Spearheading the efforts is a marketing office to be set up in Singapore to look after the aforementioned markets and to carry out promotional activities aimed at the travel trade, consumers and media.

GNTB’s international market relations manager for Asia/Australia, Till Weigl, said the decision to set up an office was made after a market research carried out in 2015 revealed that these markets showed the most potential for growth in the region.

Said CEO of GNTB Petra Hedorfer: “In 2015, about two million trips to Europe were made from these four important high-growth markets, nearly 300,000 of these were to Germany.

“By 2030, the volume of overnight stays from these four markets, which we haven’t had a presence so far, could more than double to grow from 1.4 million to 3.3 million.”

According to Till Weigl, marketing strategies to grow the South-east Asian markets will include a GNTB-led B2B roadshow with German suppliers next year to update outbound agents there selling Germany.

The focus will be on product information and to provide ideas on how to sell Germany beyond the main gateway cities with the intention of increasing average length of stay and average spend.

A social media campaign for these markets will also be introduced to generate consumer interest.

Harris Hotel & Conventions Denpasar – Bali

Corporate hotel solutions provider HRS is bringing online Tauzia Hotel Management’s entire portfolio, making the Indonesian hotel group’s entire inventory available on HRS’ booking platform and its partner GDS, TMC and online booking distribution channels.

Tauzia, an independent hotel company, currently has a portfolio of 45 properties across Indonesia with 60 more in the pipeline.

Its collection of brands include heritage hotel label Préférence; mid-scale family and business chain Harris; an affordable offering named Yello catered to millennials; and Pop! – a network of budget, ecofriendly hotels.

“Working with Tauzia Hotel Management is a strategic move for both parties to create a win-win situation. The extensive portfolio all across Indonesia will be able to provide good options for our corporate clients when they visit the country for their business trips,” said Alex Tan, director of hotel solutions at HRS.

Korean Air will be flying direct from Incheon International Airport to New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi Airport beginning December 1.

The service departs from Incheon International Airport at 12.45 and lands in Delhi at 16.20. The return flight departs Delhi at 19.40 and arrives at Incheon at 05.50 the following day. The service will operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

The route will be serviced by an Airbus A330-200 capable of seating 218 passengers. The airplane will also be outfitted with Korean Air’s newest seats in both the First and Prestige Class.

Delhi is Korean Air’s second destination in India after Mumbai.

Tourists at Kinabalu National Park

The Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) inbound vice president, Tan Kok Liang, has welcomed the government’s allocation of RM400 million (US$96.1 million) for clean air and ecotourism initiatives.

In tabling Budget 2017, Malaysian prime minister Mohammad Najib Abdul Razak acknowledged that the tourism sector has contributed significantly to the country’s economy. The government is now targeting 32 million visitors for next year, which is expected to generate RM120 billion (US$28.84 billion) in tourism receipts.

Tan said: “Capitalising on our clean air and promoting activities like walking or trekking tours will attract tourists from countries with high pollution index, such as China and India. These two Asian giants are also the biggest contributors of visitor arrivals to Malaysia, excluding our ASEAN neighbours.

“We should repackage and rebrand our tours so that tourists can enjoy our clean air when engaging in outdoor activities. Jungle and mountain resorts such as Taman Negara and Kinabalu National Park, together with many of our clean cities and towns throughout the country, will benefit from these initiatives and ought to be heavily promoted.”

He added that travellers from Europe also visit Malaysia mainly for ecotourism and that investing in this sector would ensure sustained interest from the longhaul source market.

Molo Church, or Church of St Anne Parish, is a Spanish colonial church and heritage site in Iloilo, Philippines

Chinese arrivals into the Philippines is set to rekindle following the thawing of political tensions between the South-east Asian nation and China, prompting the latter to lift a longstanding travel advisory against its neighbour.

Tourism secretary Wanda Teo, part of a delegation that accompanied Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte on a state visit to China earlier this month, said she is looking to double arrivals from China to one million this year and to two million thereafter.

Teo is preparing for the bonanza by coordinating with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Bureau of Immigration to simplify visa application procedures for Chinese tourists, including visa on-arrival, e-visa facilities and launching Mandarin language training programmes for tour guides.

She expects big tour groups from China over the next two months as cancelled chartered flights resume, and as more flights connecting the two destinations, including the twice-weekly China Eastern Airlines chartered services from Guangzhou to Laoag, Ilocos Norte takes off on November 1.

Teo also met with Chinese businesses who are willing to invest in Philippine tourism infrastructure including in areas like Iloilo, Subic and other tourism zones offering incentives such as tax relief.

Rajah Travel Corp president Aileen Clemente said two million yearly arrivals from China is feasible “if the visa facilitation, infrastructure and permits are in place”.

Clemente, who also helms ASEANTA, added: “It is an opportune time to improve the relationship with China, especially since the tension (arising from) the territorial dispute and with ASEAN cooperating with China”.

Hannah Paula Yulo, director of sales & marketing at Paradise Garden Resort Hotel & Convention Center in Boracay, said that while it’s doable to double the arrivals from China this year, the country needs to increase its capacity.

Boracay is the prime destination for Chinese travellers but Yulo pointed out that the existing hotels on the island resort already can’t cope with demand.

Tobira Onsen Myojinkan

Operators of hot spring hotels in Japan have welcomed news that 102 million yen (US$981,000) is to be invested in promoting their establishments to tourists.

The Environment Ministry, working with local governments and communities that have hot springs, is to draw up a selection of travel plans that highlight some of the nation’s best onsens. The project is scheduled to begin in April 2017.

“We are located in a very rural area and relatively few foreign visitors – even those visiting the prefecture – know about us,” said Emi Ikeda, spokesperson for Tobira Onsen Myojinkan, located in Nagano prefecture.

“Around eight per cent of our visitors are from overseas, the majority of them from Europe because we are a member of the Relais & Chateaux organisation.”

Without the affiliation, Ikeda admitted that it would be hard to attract as many Europeans.

Yoshihiro Ueta, president of the Hotel Oya Onsen in Tokushima Prefecture, southern Japan, faces a similar challenge. “Onsens are a key part of Japanese culture and something that all foreign visitors want to try when they come here, but it is often difficult for hotels like ours to promote ourselves to a foreign market,” he said.

“The Hiltons and Prince hotels of this world have a global presence and the power to tell travellers from around the world about their properties, but we don’t,” he added. “This sort of assistance could make a huge difference for us, as well as introducing a relatively unknown part of Japan to foreigners.”

Chie Ariyoshi, assistant manager of the Overseas Division of the Kyushu Tourism Promotion Organisation, also welcomed the national government’s initiative, saying it will help give the entire region greater visibility.

Kyushu is home to one-third of all onsens in Japan, she pointed out, but it can be difficult for foreign visitors to get the full picture and know what each establishment is best known for.

Kimpton Glover Park Hotel, Washington

The InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) is bringing two of its boutique brands outside the US with Even heading to Australia and New Zealand and with Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants properties expanding into Asia in the next two years.

With Even, IHG provides a wellness-centric brand offering from city locations rather than resorts.

IHG intends to plant 10-12 new Even properties, each with 150-200 rooms, in major cities in Australia and New Zealand, revealed IHG’s AMEA COO Alan Watts.

He said: “Even is the first wellness-focused brand with an accessible price. The concept includes facilities like a fitness zone and yoga mat for each room, a studio for sports classes and group runs along with the hotel general manager. That’s why we seek staff who are active in the gym (so they) can give advice to our guests.”

Meanwhile, Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, acquired by IHG in 2015, is a boutique brand positioned as slightly more upscale than the group’s Hotel Indigo offering.

CEO Mike Defrino said: “The boutique hotel concept is not only growing in Europe and the US but also in China and the rest of Asia.

“For China, primary markets will be Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing… The Chinese market is beginning to embrace the next level of lodging, not (simply) luxury but a more approachable form of luxury.”

According to Defrino, the ADR of Kimpton-branded hotels in the US is US$240, 10 per cent (US$20) lower than the typical luxury threshold.

Hotel Indigo is also expanding in Asia. IHG now has 11 Hotel Indigo properties in the pipeline for the AMEA region, having opened Hotel Indigo Bangkok Wireless Road last year and Hotel Indigo Singapore Katong this year.

These will be followed by the soon-to-open Hotel Indigo Bali Seminyak, the first Hotel Indigo property to open in a resort location.