SHANGRI-LA Hotels and Resorts has launched a new loyalty programme for event organisers that allows them to earn and redeem points when holding events at all Shangri-La, Kerry and Hotel Jen properties worldwide.

The initiative, titled Shangri-La Events Collection, gives planners of MICE activities a range of new benefits, such as instantly redeemable three per cent event spend, while enhancing and integrating its existing Golden Circle membership programme.

When asked how this is different from its past MICE initiatives, Sarah Chen, vice president, sales and marketing, Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, said: “The difference is consistency across all Shangri-La hotels. It is no longer just ad hoc or at the hotel’s discretion. It now becomes a brand promise as it is launched throughout the group.

“It is the very first events and meetings planner programme that we have. We had some promotional offers and tactical targeting of event planners in the past, but this time we took a holistic approach.”

Chen added that the time is also ripe for the launch as Shangri-La approaches its 100th property milestone and as the group celebrates the fifth anniversary of its Golden Circle membership scheme.

“The Golden Circle programme launched five years ago is really targetting the individual frequent traveller whereas this one is mostly targetting event organisers, whether from corporations or from agencies,” she added.

According to Shangri-La, meetings and events account for over a quarter of their business, and the new loyalty scheme is aimed at better rewarding and retaining clients.

Commenting on the increasingly budget-tight MICE market however, Chen said: “Event planners are price-conscious but they also want their events to be perfectly delivered. Ultimately, budget is just one part of the equation.

“With this programme, we want to deliver value and quality instead of competing on price.”

A US$1.1 billion Warner Bros theme park has been slated for opening on Abu Dhabi’s Yas Island in 2018, expected to grow the island’s annual visitor tally from 25 million in 2015 to 30 million in 2018.

Developed by Miral under licence from Warner Bros Consumer Products, Warner Bros World Abu Dhabi will be part of a project that includes the world’s first Warner Bros-branded hotel.

Rides and attractions at the park will be inspired by the film studio’s productions and their characters, such as those from the DC Comics Superheroes universe and the Looney Tunes series. Highlights include being able to enter a man-made Gotham City and Metropolis.

The new park will be located beside the Ferrari World Abu Dhabi and Yas Waterworld attractions.

Kumamoto Castle remains closed after suffering damage from the quakes

DOZENS of foreign travellers have been safely evacuated from parts of southern Japan after two major earthquakes and hundreds of aftershocks struck the area.

An initial magnitude 6.2 tremor first hit last Thursday evening and just over 24 hours later, a magnitude 7.3 quake caused further destruction, bringing down homes and infrastructure that had already been weakened.

At present, authorities have confirmed 44 deaths with seven others missing, while more than 1,100 are being treated for injuries.

Foreign visitors, however, appear to have either escaped unscathed or continued on their trips unperturbed.

A group of 39 Taiwanese students and holidaymakers have been evacuated, while another group comprising 127 Thais have also been rescued from Kumamoto and Oita prefectures, some of whom went via Fukuoka Airport.

Meanwhile, many Chinese travel agencies have suspended their programmes to Kyushu for at least one month. The Hong Kong government has also issued a travel warning for the hardest-hit region.

Image from the Japan Meteorological Agency showing the epicentre of the quakes

“We are continually monitoring safety, but at the moment this does not appear to be an issue for our operations,” said Paul Christie, CEO of Kyushu-based Walk Japan.

The company, which specialises in hiking tours to some of Japan’s least-visited regions, has had no cancellations since the quakes first struck, according to Christie, who was preparing to start a hike with a group of 12 foreign visitors on Tuesday.

“We had to change the accommodation where we usually stay in the town of Yufuin because it has sustained some minor damage – tiles off the roof, broken crockery, that sort of thing – but we’re finding that it’s not enough to put people off,” he added.

Kumamoto Airport, which closed after the quakes struck, has reopened for commercial flights yesterday.

OUTBOUND travel in Singapore grew 6.7 per cent in the first quarter of this year compared with the same period in 2015, according to GfK’s Travelscan data.

China and Thailand has remained as the top two destinations for Singapore travellers while Hong Kong has replaced Indonesia in third position this year.

Within the developed markets, Japan recorded the highest arrival growth due to currency exchange effects against the Singapore dollar, making the country more attractive in terms of spending power for Singapore travellers. Aggressive marketing activities from travel agencies also contributed to Japan’s tourism appeal.

Still, “South-east Asia remains the most travelled region as Singapore travellers still prefer to travel more often on shorter trips that requires less and shorter planning time”, said Anthony Tan, APAC lead for travel and hospitality, GfK.

Looking forward, outbound bookings for the next six months of 2016 has grown 13 per cent compared to the same period last year with second quarter bookings at 14.2 per cent higher over 2015 numbers.

For forward bookings, Japan is leading in terms of growth with a 68 per cent increase in travellers from Singapore while China remains the top destination with a 7 per cent increase.

Jakarta however, is seeing a 9 per cent dip in Singapore arrivals probably due to the recent terror attacks.

While overall numbers look positive, Tan cautions against headwinds from the recent financial turmoil and rising global oil prices adding pressure on aviation companies, thereby rising travel costs and slowing growth traction further into 2016.

Kyle Davis, managing director, Egencia Asia-Pacific

EXPEDIA Group’s corporate travel subsidiary Egencia has opened an office in Singapore to support its expansion into the Asia-Pacific.

“Our offering supports a number of clients building their footprint within the APAC region and Asian businesses looking to expand internationally, so it’s only natural that we expand as they do,” said Kyle Davis, managing director, Egencia Asia-Pacific.

“We aim to provide the Asia-Pacific business traveller a similar experience across all devices, platforms and geographies, improving business traveller productivity and corporate cost-saving initiatives in the process.”

According to a press statement, Egencia Singapore debuts with over 30 corporate clients, including Takeda, a Japanese pharmaceutical company.

The Singapore outpost is Egencia’s fourth full-service point-of-sale office in the Asia-Pacific.

THE ringgit’s continually shifting exchange rate has made it difficult for Malaysian tour operators to put a fixed price on their packages.

The ringgit had earlier strengthened against the US dollar on April 14, but then took a dip as brent crude prices plunged after major oil producers failed to come up with an agreement in Doha to freeze output and address a supply glut.

Explaining the problem agencies are facing, Ally Bhoonee, executive director of World Avenues, said: “If we put a bigger buffer, we safeguard ourselves but we take a big risk of losing the customer to the competition, which includes OTAs. If we keep the margins very thin, we then take a big risk if the ringgit depreciates.

“Some of our partners overseas understand when we tell them that the price quoted may change due to currency fluctuations in Malaysia but some argue that this is not the situation in other countries such as Singapore where the dollar is more stable.”

Concurring, Arokia Das, senior manager at Luxury Tours Malaysia, said: “If we mark up too much, we lose out. If it is too little, we lose profit on exchange. On top of this, there are agents who are undercutting for business as they need to survive. They don’t mind making nett to nett or making a slight loss as they are drowning.”

But the operators interviewed are not too worried and are instead countering the unpredictability of the ringgit with different strategies.

“I find the best way to compete in today’s market is by providing personalised services for high yield tourists and to go for smaller volumes,” advised Bhoonee.

As for Luxury Tours Malaysia, Das said: “We remain confident for this year because we have confirmed business from a reasonable number of wholesalers in India who have guaranteed us good volumes.”