EMIRATES will be screening the entire Star Wars movie series on their in-flight entertainment system in January.

Star Wars: A New Hope (1977); Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back (1980); Star Wars: Return of the Jedi (1983); Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999); Star Wars: Attack of the Clones (2002); as well as Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith (2005) will be available in a dedicated Star Wars section onboard.

The seventh movie, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, slated to debut in cinemas worldwide tomorrow, will be available on Emirates in early 2016.

THE Singapore Tourism Board (STB) has appointed advertising firm TBWASingapore as its global agency partner for two years with effect from April 1, 2016. Included in the agreement is an option to extend the contract annually for a maximum of three years.

Out of a total of nine proposal submissions, STB said it chose TBWASingapore “for their deep understanding of the tourism business, clear thinking, innovative and impactful ideas, and proposed action plans that were well integrated across different channels and platforms.”

STB’s incumbent agencies are JWT and Mirum.

The Chiang Mai International Exhibition and Convention Centre

AFTER 14 consecutive sessions held in Bangkok, the annual Thailand Travel Mart Plus (TTM+) will be relocated to Chiang Mai next year.

It will be held between June 8 to 10, 2016, at the Chiang Mai International Exhibition and Convention Centre (CMECC), bearing the theme Smile with Us.

Yuthasak Supasorn, governor, Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), said: “The time is right for TTM+ to be moved to another location. Chiang Mai is perfectly suited because it is the closest Thai city to our neighbours in the greater mekong subregion (GMS) with a new convention centre and superb hotel facilities to accommodate all the guests.”

“The emergence of Myanmar as a major tourism destination, plus the improving transportation connectivity in the GMS will further enhance the appeal of the entire area, giving buyers and media a chance to explore the many emerging new products and services.”

Registration for buyers and exhibitors is open from now till March 15, 2016. The fee for hosted buyers is US$300, for foreign non-hosted buyers $200 and local non-hosted delegates $100. On-site registration costs $150.

Registration fee for exhibitors costs 30,000 baht (US$834) for early bird participants who sign up before February 15, 2016. After which, rates will rise to 35,000 baht.

THE realisation that AccorHotels will be managing Raffles Hotels & Resorts, one of the most iconic luxury brands, is starting to hit home, and while the mid and upscale chain has pledged to uphold the jewel, industry members interviewed are not convinced.

The founding chairman of Raffles Hotels & Resorts, Richard Helfer, who was also instrumental in acquiring the Swissotel brand, said: “I have seen this child now change hands four times since we were there.

“Though a good quantity of the original DNA is still there, much of course has changed, still we helmed her longer than anyone else and when she was in the formative years. So we are hopeful that this will work out well for her.

“Let’s see how this change of parents works out.”

Asked for his views if Accor’s acquisition of FRHI made sense, Bill Heinecke, CEO, Minor Hotels International, said: “Overall I don’t feel that Swissotel or Fairmont add any real value beyond size to Accor and these brands will certainly create more competition for existing Accor owners. Raffles is a nice upmarket brand, however it has suffered from lack of growth over the last number of years.”

Michael Issenberg, COO of AccorHotels Asia-Pacific, however, reiterated that the deal “would enable us to achieve our new ambitions in the luxury and upscale sector and will provide fantastic opportunities for both guests and owners moving forward.”

“We are very excited to acquire the FRHI portfolio of hotels and to add such iconic brands to the AccorHotels network,” said Issenberg.

“We are humbled to be entrusted with the legendary Raffles brand, which has been the benchmark for luxury hospitality since 1887 and to add the Fairmont and Swissôtel brands to our luxury and upscale portfolio.”

Robert Hecker, director at Horwath Asia-Pacific, believed the Accor-FRHI deal was a good one for Accor. “It really helps them in the top end and in North America,” he said.

On further consolidation, his bet was it “may be done for awhile” as the two main ones talked about had been sealed.

“I don’t think it puts added heat or incentive for other consolidations, but that’s different from an acquisition simply to get into the global hotel space,” said Hecker.

FIRST one out at Starwood Hotels & Resorts is its CEO Adam Aron, with new CEO of the combined Marriott/Starwood merger Arne Sorenson hinting more cuts will happen at Starwood corporate post-merger.

Aron, who was understood to be looking for a new job after Marriott scooped up its rival, is joining AMC Entertainment Holdings on January 4 and is expected to give up his seat on the Starwood board.

Sorenson, when asked about cost savings post-merger in an interview with Fox Business News on Sunday, said: “When you get to hotels there won’t be significant job impact, maybe zero job impact.

“The closer you get to the executive suite in their headquarters the more you see an overlap. I think we’ll find the biggest cost savings disproportionately at the higher end of the overhead structure.”

He is looking at cost-savings of US$200 million. As for which of the 30 brands would survive, Marriott’s Bvlgari and Ritz-Carlton, and Starwood’s St Regis, Luxury Collection and W Hotels were mentioned.

Meanwhile, Bill Heinecke, CEO of Minor International, which operates its own hotel brands but also owns The St Regis Bangkok, JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa and Marriott Pattaya Resort & Spa, has hit out at hotel chain consolidation when asked for his views about it.

Asked what his concerns were for the industry and consumers, Heinecke said: “I have a number of concerns, firstly what’s in this for the customer? I have read a lot about the recent acquisitions and there are many references to scale, cost-savings, competitiveness etc., but what about the customer? What’s in it for the patron?

“I can imagine that the loyalty programme offering will be more all-encompassing, but will the actual experience in each and every property across the globe be enhanced because of these titans coming together? I truly doubt it.”

He continues: “What one gains in scale one loses in agility and the ability to take care of the most important element of the business – the guest.

“Secondly, I believe that such incredible scale ultimately leads to a more formulaic and rigid experience. With so many brands and so many hotels it is virtually impossible to be truly focused on creating a personalised experience. This is something that is valued by guests and I believe that mega brands will struggle to really have their finger on the pulse of the guest experience. In addition to this, guests often prefer to be part of a smaller curated brand rather than a huge global machine,” added Heinecke.

“Thirdly, I’m not convinced that mega brands are in the interest of owners. There is certainly an argument for economies of scale, but owners will become very small fish in a very big pond. In addition, they will compete with hotels/brands within the company. I really can’t see how an owner’s interests will be best met with such a scenario. Nobody wants their business to be just another cog in the wheel.”

Asked how mega brands would affect smaller brands such as his Anantara, Heinecke said: “Actually I think it offers a certain opportunity to small and medium sized operators who still have the ability to react quickly; who are not weighed down with layers of bureaucracy and rigid guidelines… in addition, smaller operators are more in-tune with guest, staff and owner/investor requirements and can react to their ever evolving needs. This should most certainly not be underestimated.”

Ryokan Kurashiki.

SMALL inns and hotels across Japan have welcomed a government initiative to provide subsidies for facility upgrades aimed at catering to the soaring number of tourists.

Announced in early December, the government hopes to lure visitors off the beaten path and encourage them to stay at traditional Japanese inns through this project.

At present, many local inns, or ryokans, have not been able to afford to install wireless internet access, for example, while some lack Western-style toilets or information in English.

“We are constantly required to renovate our premises and improve our facilities, so this will be a big help to independent ryokan operators like us,” said Takashi Hasegawa, owner of Yagyu-No-Sho inn in Shizuoka prefecture.

Ritsuko Nakamura, proprietor of the Ryokan Kurashiki in Okayama prefecture, concurs.

“It would be especially useful for small inns like mine,” she said, adding that it would be particularly helpful if the financial aid is extended to support promotional visits overseas in order to raise the profile of her ryokan.

The government has not specified the amount to be injected into the scheme, but details are expected before the end of the fiscal year in end-March.

A STUDY commissioned by online review and booking site TripAdvisor has revealed several key preferences of Asia’s travellers in 2016.

One of the topline findings show that value is of utmost importance with one in four Asian travellers having chosen a destination due to cheap flights.

Meanwhile, 67 per cent will not consider a hotel that does not have air-conditioning, making it the number one deal-breaker for booking decisions. Lack of in-room Wi-Fi comes second with 46 per cent of travellers saying they will look elsewhere.

For Asians, a destination’s culture is the most popular reason cited when considering where to take a trip, with 42 per cent responding so, while globally, more than one in two travellers cite special offers as the key decision driver.

“Value is key for global travellers in 2016, as they look to get the most out of their trips. While a third plan to increase their travel budgets for next year, the majority of global travellers expect essential amenities to be included in the price of their hotel and more than half say special offers can play a big part in their choice of destination,” said Helena Egan, director, global industry relations at TripAdvisor.

According to the study, Australians are set to spend the most globally in 2016 with an average travel budget of US$10,900, followed by the Swiss ($10,100) and the Americans ($8,400).

Asian travellers will have more modest budgets, with Japan ranking the highest at $5,600 on average, followed by China ($3,600), India ($3,100), Thailand ($2,200), Malaysia ($2,100) and Indonesia ($1,400).