Rotorua, New Zealand

TOURISM New Zealand (TNZ) is launching new destination itineraries and a guide to finding halal food in the country as part of a marketing offensive aimed at South-east Asian travellers.

The national tourism promotion agency is teaming up with Air New Zealand to offer two new itineraries, targeting the more matured market of Singapore, whose travellers are increasingly showing a preference for lesser-known destinations, according to Steven Dixon, regional manager, South and South East Asia at TNZ.

“Our research shows that over half of Singapore travellers (58.4 per cent) choose to travel off the beaten track to places like Tauranga, Napier and Nelson where they can enjoy a diverse range of experiences and local culture with fewer crowds,” he said.

“These two new itineraries capture the country’s hidden gems and highlights how everything in New Zealand is close by. For example, the new nine-day Discover Central New Zealand itinerary provides travellers the opportunity to explore Napier, Wellington, Blenheim and Nelson.”

The other new itinerary is the eight-day Northern Bay of New Zealand + Hobbiton package which showcases Tauranga, Taupo, Rotorua and Hamilton.

Air New Zealand flies daily direct from Singapore to Auckland and also provides more than 20 domestic connections in New Zealand.

Meanwhile, TNZ has partnered with the Kiwi Muslim Directory and Federation of the Islamic Associations of New Zealand to produce a culinary guide for Muslim tourists.

It provides general tourism information, together with a list of restaurants and cafes, from halal-certified through to those which offer vegetarian dishes or vegan cuisine.

Commented Dixon: “New Zealand food goes way beyond fish and chips and barbeques – our chefs have developed a distinct Pacific Rim cuisine.

“We acknowledge how important access to information about suitable dining options is to the overall experience of our Muslim visitors and this guide demonstrates our commitment to further enhancing New Zealand’s position as a visitor destination among this audience.”

The Halal Food Guide is available for download on the Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia editions of Tourism New Zealand’s website.

LCC Vietjet has signed an interline agreement with Germany’s Hahn Air, a Dusseldorf-based airline and GDS carrying more than 300 air, rail and shuttle suppliers and over 95,000 travel agency partners.

In addition to the interline booking partnership, which enhances connectivity between Vietnam and Germany, Hahn Air will also distribute Vietjet tickets via its GDS available in 190 markets worldwide.

The Vietnamese budget carrier first partnered with Hahn Air in 2014 for distribution, and is expanding the deal with this recent signing made earlier this week.

Through this enhanced agreement, Vietjet gains access to a suite of services including scheduling, fare filing, messaging, inventory management, reservations, settlements, money repatriation and ticketing.

Vietjet added in a press statement that they will continue to expand interline cooperation with other airlines in the world.

“It will be fundamental for the airline to work on interline cooperation with other airlines in the region and worldwide,” it stated.

GREATER international attention has fallen upon Xi’an, the capital of Shaanxi province, since the Xi’an Silk Road International Tourism Expo (XSRITE) – taking place from August 26-28 this year – was launched in 2014.

This year some 38 countries and 150 international exhibitors are participating in XSRITE with 600 local and international co-exhibitors, up from last year’s figure of 300-plus.

Sri Lanka, which crosses the Silk Road, is this year’s partner country, while Indonesia, whose sea lanes were part of the maritime route, is the event’s gold sponsor.

Edward Liu, group managing director of Conference & Exhibition Management Services (CEMS), a co-organiser of XSRITE, said a high-level pre-event reception will be held and Sri Lanka’s Minister of Tourism and other regional tourism dignitaries will be attending.

New destinations will be showcased there and the China National Tourism Administration is supporting the event by inviting between 60 and 80 international buyers.

“Another 300 local buyers, 200 from Shaanxi and the others from elsewhere in China are expected to attend,” said Liu.

“XSRITE will take up two halls and 25,000m² of space this year with some 20,000 products on sale. It will also include the new co-located 5,000m² Spa Week event, being organised by the Shaanxi Province Spa Tourism Association, which was set up last year.

“Xi’an has witnessed a lot of international tourism growth and one major development is the launch of direct flights on United Airlines from San Francisco,” he added.

Launched in May, the thrice-weekly flight is the first nonstop trans-Pacific service for Xi’an. The flight is also expected to boost trade and collaboration opportunities between China and the US.

Phnom Penh

CAMBODIAN tourism officials have pledged to better cater to Japanese tourists in hopes to lure more arrivals from its growing source market.

At the Tourism Destination Japan seminar held yesterday, Cambodia’s minister of tourism Thong Khon said change is essential if the country is to hit its target of 300,000 Japanese visitors by 2020.

“To achieve this vision, we need to develop our tourism services, offer quality human resources and have more Japanese-speaking guides,” he said.

More four- and five-star hotels offering high market-driven standards are also necessary, added Lor Thoura, Ministry of Tourism director. “We must develop our products and standards. We need more public toilets, better infrastructure and tourism information centres,” he said.

With Japan currently Cambodia’s seventh largest market, – more than 90,000 Japanese visited Cambodia between January and June – the government has already set in motion a series of steps to boost figures.

A scheme offering Japanese travellers one-, two- and three-year, multiple entry visas was launched earlier this year, and high hopes are pinned on All Nippon Airways’ (ANA) direct flight between Tokyo and Phnom Penh from September 1.

A direct flight with Yangon in Myanmar in 2012 saw figures soar from 47,000 to 83,000 in two years.

However, Japanese ambassador Kumamaru Yuji said: “The launch of a direct flight in itself does not automatically increase the number of tourists dramatically. It is necessary for Cambodian people in the tourism industry to better understand the needs of Japanese tourists, and to cater to them.”

Fluent Japanese speaker Sambo Nov, executive assistant manager at Sun and Moon Urban Hotel in Phnom Penh, said the hotel has seen a rise in the number of Japanese business travellers – an area she predicts will increase, especially in the capital, as investment from the country continues to flood in.

Osamu Tokairin, MD, Travelport Japan

TRAVELPORT has hired travel industry veteran Osamu Tokairin to head the company’s Japanese operations.

As managing director, he will lead the expansion of Travelport’s presence in Japan, taking into account as well the recent acquisition of the GDS’s third party distributor in April, Galileo Japan.

Tokairin has over 25 years of experience working for both regional and global travel companies. Prior to joining Travelport, he has held various senior level management positions such as CEO of Kuoni Japan, managing director for Gulliver’s Travel Agency Japan and general manager of Toptour Corporation’s office in Los Angeles.

He takes over leadership of Travelport Japan from director and general manager Yoshinobu Aoyama, who will be retiring later this month.

“Japan is a highly strategic country for Travelport as we continue to invest in the region. We are delighted that Tokairin has joined us to lead the team to grow Travelport Japan’s presence,” said Mark Meehan, Travelport’s managing director, Asia-Pacific.

“In the meantime, I would like to thank Aoyama for his remarkable leadership of Galileo Japan over the past 30 years, and wish him all the best for his retirement. He will be missed by all of us here at Travelport.”

Ovation of the Seas

THREE of Royal Caribbean’s largest cruise ships, the Ovation of the Seas, Mariner of the Seasand Voyager of the Seas, will be homeporting from Singapore starting October.

This marks the cruise operator’s longest homeport season from the city-state yet, which will run for eight months totalling 55 cruises and is expected to bring an estimated 200,000 guests to ports in South-east Asia.

The deployment of these three ships will increase Royal Caribbean’s South-east Asia capacity by 30 per cent in 2017 over 2016.

Initiating the season is Mariner of the Seas starting October till March next year with 39 sailings that range from three- to seven-night itineraries to destinations like Penang, Langkawi, Port Klang, Phuket, Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City.

This Mariner of the Seas season sees the introduction of a three-night Penang Weekend Cruise and a four-night Phuket Cruise. Other highlights include festive Christmas and New Year cruises and themed cruises featuring salsa and cosplay themes.

Royal Caribbean’s newest and largest ship, Ovation of the Seas, will then homeport from Singapore in the months of March and April 2017, as announced earlier.

It will make 10 sailings comprising three- to five-night itineraries to Penang, Phuket and Bangkok as well as a 12-night one-way cruise to Tianjin with port calls at Ho Chi Minh City, Danang, Hong Kong and Seoul.

Following this will be Voyager of the Seas making six sailings of between three to five nights from May 2017.

Itineraries include calls at Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Phuket, plus one eight-night one-way cruise to Hong Kong with stopovers at Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City and Nha Trang.