THE success of a test charter flight which allowed pet dogs to travel with their owners in the cabin of an All Nippon Airways (ANA) aircraft has convinced the airline to consider introducing regular pet-friendly services.
ANA arranged the special charter flight from Tokyo’s Narita Airport to Kushiro, in Hokkaido, back in May, at the behest of customers.
The basic package for the flight and a two-night stay in Hokkaido costed Y220,000 (US$2,190) for two adults and a dog. ANA confirmed that tickets sold out in two days. In total, 87 passengers and 44 dogs went on the trip.
“It was very popular from the outset and all the feedback we have had from passengers was very positive,” Maho Ito, a spokeswoman for the airline, told TTG Asia e-Daily.
“We decided to organise the trip because of the number of requests we have received for something like this.”
For the duration of the flight, the dogs were kept in cages that were fastened to window seats, while a vet was also on board.
ANA has not been able to confirm any other airline offering such a service.
“The department that organised the flight is considering trying something similar again, although we have no concrete plans to do so at the moment,” said Ito.
She added that international flights might also be under consideration.
THE Malaysian Inbound Tourism Association (MITA) and Association of the Indonesia Tours & Travel Agencies (ASITA) West Nusa Tenggara signed a MoU last week to promote tourism between the two countries.
Both associations are eyeing the lucrative Chinese outbound market and there are plans to develop destination packages for groups, combining Malaysia and Indonesia.
MITA president, Uzaidi Udanis, said: “We hope one day that these packages will be as popular as the three-country package combining Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand.”
There are also plans to launch internship programmes for tourism students from both countries as well as an initiative to develop films showcasing tourism attractions in Malaysia and Indonesia targeted at overseas markets.
Awan Aswinabawa, chairman of A&T Holidays based in Lombok, said his company saw a 200 per cent increment from Malaysian corporates to Lombok in the first half of 2016 compared with the corresponding period in 2015.
This was largely due to improvements in air connectivity and promotions, he said. The destination was also popular with families looking for a beach holiday or for soft adventure.
(From left) Min Kyung Eun, managing director of K2 Group; Min Cho Heung, chairman of K2 Group; Kang Juhong, deputy chief of mission, minister & consul general, Embassy of the Republic of Korea; Lee Jeong Chan, chairman, Nambu Newspaper; Allen Law, CEO of Park Hotel Group; Mohd Rafin, chief corporate officer of Park Hotel Group
PARK Hotel Group will mark its entry into South Korea with the debut of Park Hotel Yeongdeungpo in Seoul next year.
At a press conference last Friday, the group signed a hotel management contract with developers K2 Group to manage the property. The investment from K2 is said to be about US$36 million and marks the credit card authorisation company’s first hotel project.
(From left) Min Kyung Eun, managing director of K2 Group; Min Cho Heung, chairman of K2 Group; Kang Juhong, deputy chief of mission, minister & consul general, Embassy of the Republic of Korea; Lee Jeong Chan, chairman, Nambu Newspaper; Allen Law, CEO of Park Hotel Group; Mohd Rafin, chief corporate officer of Park Hotel Group
Scheduled to open in early 2017, the new-build will feature 150 rooms and suites, an all-day dining option, gourmet coffee deli, a gym, and a rooftop restaurant and bar. There will also be function rooms, which Mohd Rafin, Park Hotel Group’s chief corporate officer, said would be able to cater to pax of between 30 to 50.
The property is located just outside the Seonyudo subway station, and is 10 minutes away from the Yeouido financial hub, and 45 minutes away from Incheon International Airport.
Rafin added that the target market for the property will be “focused on business travellers, but the leisure market is also very strong”.
On why the group chose South Korea, Allen Law, Park Hotel Group’s CEO, said: “In 1H2016, South Korea recorded about 8 million foreign visitors, which translated to over 20 per cent increase year-on-year. That is a tremendous growth record. It is a fast-growing market, and we want to be there early enough.”
When asked about Park Hotel Group’s expansion plans, Law said that the group’s immediate focus for expansion will be within the Asia-Pacific region.
He elaborated: “Hong Kong is one area that I’m looking at. For the last 10 years, I’ve been trying to grow the Hong Kong portfolio and it has been unsuccessful. But now is the right time to grow due to favourable market conditions.
“In Australia we’ve just signed Adelaide and we’re looking to grow our Australian hotels in key cities like Sydney and Melbourne. The other country (we’re looking to grow in) is Japan. It is one of the top-performing hotels for the past two years and in the next three years it’ll continue to grow in double digits.”
With this signing, Park Hotel Group now owns and manages 14 properties in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, China, South Korea, Japan and Australia.
Other properties in the pipeline include their fifth Singapore hotel, Park Hotel Farrer Park, to open in 1Q2017, followed by its first hotel in Australasia, Park Hotel Adelaide, in 2018, and Malaysia Park Hotel Melaka, in 2019.
Areepong Bhoocha-oom, chairman of the board of directors of THAI welcoming the carrier’s first Airbus A350 along with Charamporn Jotikasthira, president, THAI; Jean Francois Laval, executive vice president, sales, Southeast Asia, Airbus; Robert Lamoureux, senior vice president and head of marketing, Asia Pacific, CIT Group; and Ewen McDonald, senior vice president, Asia Pacific, Rolls-Royce.
THAI welcomed its first of 12 Airbus A350 XWB aircraft deliveries, with four on firm orders and eight as leases. THAI will operate them on intercontinental flights, with the initial service to ply the Bangkok-Melbourne route in September.
Starting early next year, Sabre will begin upgrading the distribution platforms of their travel agency partners to its new Sabre Red Workspace solution.
A suite of new and enhanced features distinguishes the platform, including a customisable user interface, data and intelligence services for fare trend and range, simplified comparison shopping via an interactive map, sales and commissions opportunity alerts, integrated revenue maximisation tools, and more.
According to Roshan Mendis, senior vice president for Sabre Travel Network Asia Pacific, the new platform essentially provides a “consumer-grade user interface” within the agency booking desktop that seeks to benefit both agents and suppliers.
“A really important update is the (user experience) design. The platform will feature a configurable workflow, including an extensive add-on app environment designed to make the whole platform more intuitive and travel consulting easier,” Mendis told TTG Asia e-Daily.
“This focus on user experience is intended to reduce agent training time, including on-boarding new hires who may not be familiar with the traditional classical screen desktop (which will still be available).”
The upgrade features were implemented in consultation with partner agents and suppliers, and according to a statement by Sabre, has resulted in a GDS that benefits both sides.
Emphasising on the importance of rich content offerings and ancillary product sales, Mendis said: “A major differentiating feature of Sabre Red Workspace is the ability for suppliers to push enhanced personalisation and merchandising, integrating richer product information, including airline branded fares and ancillaries, into the agent’s workflow.
Besides the desktop advancements, improvements on other operating systems and devices will also be released to maintain a consistent user experience, with Sabre Red Mobile being released for mobile platforms while Sabre Web Services is being offered for OTAs.
Sabre will begin upgrading travel agency customers to the Sabre Red Workspace solution in early 2017, after a pilot run taking place later this year.
Additional reporting from Dannon Har, S Puvaneswary and Paige Lee Pei Qi
IN celebration of the 762nd birth anniversary of famed explorer Marco Polo, the eponymous Hong Kong-based hotel chain is offering hefty discounted rates on rooms and F&B offerings.
In the month of September, Marco Polo Hotels is offering a 30 per cent discount off all its hotels’ suites and Continental Club Floor rooms as well as an additional 30 per cent off its hotel-operated restaurants.
All Continental Club Lounge guests enjoy complimentary daily breakfast, afternoon tea and evening cocktails with hors d’oeuvres. In addition, Continental Club Floor guests can use a personalised check-in and check-out process.
The first 762 guests who book directly from the company’s website will stand a chance to win a complimentary two-night suite stay at any Marco Polo hotel.
The latest hotel openings and announcements made this week
Wyndham Grand Phuket Kalim Bay
Wyndham Hotel Group is bringing the Wyndham Grand brand to South-east Asia with the opening of the 214-key Wyndham Grand Phuket Kalim Bay in November. The mixed-use luxury development is located just north of Patong Beach nestled on the edge of a cliff boasting views of the Andaman Sea. Rooms range from 48m2 suites to expansive villas featuring outdoor sundecks and infinity pools. Other facilities include two F&B venues, a spa, gym, kids club and a grand ballroom suitable for gala dinners and casual business meetings.
Mercure Shanghai Hongqiao Airport
AccorHotels has renovated the former site of Junrui Hotel Shanghai into the 224-room Mercure Shanghai Hongqiao Airport, located opposite Hongqiao International Airport Terminal 1. The midscale hotel, opened on August 28, features design elements with a mix of local and French themes. Amenities include a restaurant and bar offering Chinese and International cuisine, as well as a gym, kids club and self-service business centre.
Banyan Tree Residences Brisbane
The Banyan Tree Group has began construction of its first residence project in Brisbane. The 76-unit, A$150 million (US$113 million) development is located at Kangaroo Point on a 2,200m2 plot of land. Units comprise four penthouses (250-631m2), three with rooftop infinity pool and private garden terrace, 27 three-bedroom apartments (170-244m2), and 45 two-bedroom apartments (109-172m2). Facilities include 24-hour concierge service, a Banyan Tree spa, various F&B venues, rooftop garden, infinity pool, gym and private function spaces.
THE Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) is tackling the shortage of frontliners in the tourism industry by introducing an 18-month training programme known as the National Dual Training System.
The course combines classroom learning with practical training and is endorsed by the government’s skills development department.
Hamzah Rahmat, president of MATTA, explained: “Apprentices spend only 20 to 30 per cent of their time in a training centre. For the rest of the programme, they are attached to a travel or tour company for work-based learning under the supervision of specially trained coaches, who are members of MATTA.
“Upon completion of the programme, successful apprentices will be certified competent in inbound and outbound tour operations, reservations and ticket handling, tour transportation handling, sales and marketing as well as tour leading.”
Recruitment begins today, September 2, at MATTA Fair Kuala Lumpur and the first intake of 20 will begin the programme in January. The number of intakes will depend on demand for the programme.
Those who complete the programme can further upgrade their qualification by taking courses that lead to a Malaysian Skills Diploma.
THE Japanese government will be dramatically reducing landing fees for domestic flights serving some of the nation’s more remote airports in order to encourage foreign tourists to explore more of the country.
Landing fees for domestic flights into Japan’s more far-flung destinations will be reduced by a minimum of 10 per cent while some airports will have their fees slashed by as much as 50 per cent.
The initiative has been welcomed by travel companies with operations outside the primary destinations of Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka.
“Anything that the authorities can do to reduce the costs associated with getting to Japan would be extremely helpful to us and the rest of the tourism industry,” said Paul Christie, CEO of specialist hiking company Walk Japan.
“A lot of the airports that they have built up and down the country are not being used to anywhere near their full capacity and I hope this would encourage more low-cost carriers to expand their operations within Japan,” he said. “For us, an initiative like his cannot come soon enough.”
The transport ministry is also looking into reducing landing fees for international flights into some regional airports.
Landing fees are calculated according to aircraft weight and noise levels, with a Boeing 767, for example, carrying 175 passengers charged around 200,000 yen (US$1,936) to land at an airport operated by the national government.
The ministry expects airlines to pass on the reduced fees to passengers in the form of lower ticket prices.
Details of the proposal are to be discussed before the end of the year and the new tariffs could be introduced for the start of Japan’s new fiscal year on April 1.
ISRAEL’s ministry of tourism has stepped up marketing efforts in India with a focus on digital and television campaigns that kick-started in August.
The NTO also organised its maiden roadshow in India covering Mumbai, New Delhi, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Chennai last month with plans to introduce an online training programme for travel agents in the next few months.
“It is our first major advertisement campaign in India that we have designed to cater to high-end and experienced travellers. We are investing around 7 million shekels (US$1.8 million) on the campaign,” said Hassan Madah, director, Israel Ministry of Tourism, India.
The tourism board had engaged with Indian travel agents before. Now, the NTO hopes promote different segments.
“We are looking to highlight our offerings for segments like adventure, incentive, spa and wellness. Also, many new hotels are coming up in Israel. So we are planning to introduce a new training programme for Indian travel agents that will include all this information,” said Madah.
The NTO is also in talks with Air India to begin direct flights to Tel Aviv. Israel’s second largest carrier Arkia has shown interest to operate flights to India as well, and at present is awaiting delivery of three Dreamliners before beginning operations.
“Connectivity is a major challenge for the growth of tourist arrivals from India. We believe that once new sectors open up for direct connection between the two countries, there will be a healthy increase in tourist arrivals from India,” added Madah.
At present, El Al Israel Airlines is the only one operating direct flights between Mumbai and Tel Aviv.
Israel recorded about 40,000 Indian tourist arrivals last year. It is expecting a 10 per cent increase in foreign arrivals from the market this year.
Lombok
Tel Aviv, Israel
