Credit: 123rf

ONLINE travel booking and expense management company Serko has released a new Online Booking Tool (OBT) designed to tackle the issue of hotel leakage by using integrated content feeds from Expedia, Wotif and Booking.com.

As much as 50 per cent of hotel bookings “leak” (i.e. users book their flight but not a hotel) at the time of booking, causing a problem for corporations who have to deal with unmanaged travel and duty of care compliance issues.

Research from Expedia has shown that 37 per cent of travellers leave an OBT because they think they can procure cheaper accommodation rates from other sites, while 45 per cent of travellers have accommodation preferences that are not available through the GDS’ inventory.

“Our solution is to bring the content that users are booking elsewhere into the OBT so it can be searched and booked through the managed channel, which is a win for the user, corporation and the travel management companies,” said Darrin Grafton, CEO of Serko.

The new OBT prompts users that require a hotel to provide a detailed reason if they do not book one. It also invites users trying to complete a booking without a hotel to return to the workflow and search the inventory provided by the feeds from the three online travel booking sites.

Grafton added: “With that strategy we believe we can significantly reduce hotel leakage. This will help to reduce compliance burden for corporates, improve travel policy compliance and ultimately drive further savings through their managed travel programme.”

Credit: The Nai Harn

SEASONED hotelier Frank Grassmann has been appointed general manager of The Nai Harn, formerly the Royal Phuket Yacht Club, which is set to open its doors to guests on January 16, 2016 after an extensive 18-month makeover.

Previously, Grassmann was the general manager of Soneva Kiri, a resort on the island of Koh Kood. Prior to that, he was the general manager of Evason Phuket and Bon Island, part of the Six Senses Resorts & Spas.

The German national has also completed stints at Dusit Thani Bangkok, Riyadh InterContinental Hotel, The Savoy, Sheraton Maria Isabel Hotel & Towers, and Steigenberger Frankfurter Hof.

As part of the relaunch, the revamped 130-key Nai Harn will be offering a promotional rate starting at 8,000 baht (US$222) per night from opening until October 31, 2016.

Kansai International Airport. Credit: 123rf

JAPAN’s Justice Ministry is looking into equipping immigration officers with a “biocart” that will enable them to process visitors waiting in line to present their passports.

The mobile terminal seeks to help airport authorities shorten processing times by taking facial photographs and fingerprints of those waiting in line, then transmitting the data to the officer at the counter so that it is immediately available to them.

Currently, passengers get identified by immigration officers only when they reach the counter.

According to Kenji Tamai from the FIT sales section of JTB Global Marketing & Travel, the requirement to provide fingerprints was introduced by the Japanese government after the 9-11 attacks in the US.

“Lots of our customers have complained in the past that it has taken them one or even two hours to complete immigration procedures, so we feel this is a very good initiative,” he said.

According to the Justice Ministry, the mobile terminals will be provided at all airports that operate international flights. Funding for the initiative will be requested at Japan’s fiscal 2016 budget.

On average, the longest waiting time for immigration procedures was 36 minutes at Kansai International Airport. At Tokyo’s Haneda International Airport, the maximum wait stands at 24 minutes, while Narita International Airport keeps waiting times at 20 minutes, according to the Justice Ministry.

Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Credit: 123rf

CHINESE group tours and chartered flights are making a comeback to the Philippines after China ‘quietly lifted’ the travel advisory against the South-east Asian nation in May.

TTG Asia e-Daily learned that while China made no official announcement, it finally allowed the Philippine embassy to issue group visas to Chinese travellers eight months after it had issued the travel advisory in September 2014 over safety concerns.

Ramon De Veyra Jr, officer in charge, North Asia division, International Promotions Department of the Tourism Promotions Board (TPB), noted that from five chartered flights from China in April, there are now 20 chartered flights in operation and the number is still increasing.

From various points in China, these charters bring group tours to destinations including Kalibo, Legazpi City in Bicol and Laoag in Ilocos Norte.

De Veyra said that the TPB now hosts two to three fam trips monthly for the Chinese media and travel trade. TPB also plans to tap the luxury market, with consumer outreach plans already in the works.

With the travel advisory lifted, Cesar Cruz, president, Philippine Tour Operators Association, said that the Philippines “can now market and promote openly” in China.

He commented: “Chinese tourists can really compensate for the decreasing arrivals from certain countries including Russia and South Korea, the country’s biggest source markets, which for the first time posted decreases last year.

“They are a boost to Boracay, their main destination, and Cebu and hopefully, Manila,” he said, adding that the return of the Chinese tourists is likely to be felt more during the high season between December and February.