Restructuring of Air France to take off despite violent protests

October 6, 2015

Credit: Air France

AIR France-KLM’s board of directors today confirmed it is going ahead with its long-discussed restructuring plans for Air France, amid dissident responses from its flight crew unions and a violent strike which resulted in seven injured on Monday.

Despite discussions in gridlock between Air France and union representatives, the airline will be implementing reforms in line with its Perform 2020 restructuring goals, which should see longhaul capacity drop by approximately 10 per cent, with overall passengers dipping by around two per cent, contrary to previous estimates of three per cent growth by 2017.

This will result in the closure of five routes and the cancellation of 35 weekly frequencies by 2017, with flights plying the Asia and Middle East routes affected most. According to a statement from Air France-KLM, those routes have incurred the greatest losses for Air France.

Air France’s longhaul fleet will also be scaled back by 14 aircraft to a total of 93 by 2017, with deliveries of new Boeing 787s made in 2011 now cancelled.

“This reduction in activity will result in estimated overstaffing of 2,900 people, comprising approximately 300 pilots, 900 cabin crew and 1,700 ground staff,” Air France-KLM said in a statement.

Air France, with a current staff of 52,000, is not ruling out compulsory redundancies and are welcoming voluntary resignations at the moment.

During the unveiling of the restructuring plans on Monday, Xavier Broseta, Air France-KLM’s human resources manager was almost lynched by striking workers, according to a report by AFP. His shirt was also ripped off as security guards assisted him over a fence to safety.

Another security guard was knocked unconscious by protesters and is being treated at a hospital.

In the statement released in reaction to the violence, Alexandre de Juniac, chairman and CEO of Air France-KLM, said: “We regret that no agreement has been reached with the Air France flight crew unions. The turnaround of the company can only be fulfilled with the mobilisation of all its employees.

“The Air France management remains available to reopen negotiations with its unions at any point. We reaffirm our determination to implement the adaptation measures vital to ensuring the long-term future of Air France and allow it to finance its growth.”

Media to speak up on media-handling

By TTG Asia

October 6, 2015

WITH the next headline-grabbing disaster just around the corner, can you handle the media and the buyers?

As the industry gets hit by one crisis after another, TTG Asia Media’s workshop at ITB Asia in Singapore on October 21 will field top journalists and media practitioners giving their views on how to engage the media constructively and creatively, and how crisis management must progress beyond the SOP like media fam trips and using social media.

CEOs from recent disaster-hit destinations will also give a reliable account of recovery progress to-date and share their thoughts on the media/buyers’ role in rebuilding.

Data-crunchers will pinpoint the common patterns or trends that stand out again and again when a crisis hits – how traffic redirects itself, the role data and intelligence play in crisis management and how affected destinations can adjust their sales and marketing efforts.

The two-hour not-for-profit workshop will be held on October 21, 11.00-13.00 at Marina Bay Sands, Sands Convention Centre, Basement 2 Hall D-F. This is within ITB Asia travel mart. It is free for all ITB Asia delegates while arrangements have also been made for a visitor pass at discounted rates.

Seats are on a first-come-first-served basis as the room could accommodate only 150 pax. To-date, more than half of the seats have been taken up.

Journalists and media practitioners who will speak at the workshop include Kannan Chandran, founder and publisher, E-Quill News Media and Six-Six News; Imtiaz Muqbil, executive editor of Travel Impact Newswire; and Ken Scott, former journalist and now PR practitioner of Scott Asia Communications.

Listen also to the real experiences and recovery updates from direct sources including Marcus Cotton, managing director of Tiger Mountain Nepal, and Jamili Nais, director, Sabah Parks, who was personally involved in the search, rescue and now rebuilding of Kota Kinabalu mountain trails.

Data-driven analysts include Stewart Hunter, director Asia-Pacific of Sojern, and Todd Arthur, managing director Asia-Pacific of HRS.

The workshop will benefit the media, PR practitioner, seller, buyer, NTO marketer – practically anyone who wishes to learn how to engage the media better. Register now at the following website or contact Stephanie Toh at (65) 6395 7531 or stephanie.toh@ttgasia.com.

Stronger joint marketing push for Greater Mekong Subregion

By TTG Asia

October 6, 2015

A NEW marketing strategy has been introduced by the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) – which includes Cambodia, Laos, China, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam – at the 20th GMS Ministerial Conference held in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar.

Named Experience Mekong Tourism Marketing Strategy and Action Plan 2015-2020, the initiative focuses on joint tourism marketing by GMS countries and aims to bolster cooperation through the development of thematic multi-cultural tour programmes and the promotion of multi-country itineraries.

The objectives of the new strategy include an emphasis on secondary destinations and multi-country itineraries, especially community and river-based tourism, as well as local cuisine and cultural appreciation.

“We encourage tourists to spread their spending beyond established locations such as Angkor Wat, the Grand Palace in Bangkok and Yangon in Myanmar,” said Jens Thraenhart, executive director of the Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office.

Thraenhart is optimistic that the marketing plans will further raise the profile of the GMS as a world-class destination with quality tourism services and convenient visa policies.

A freely accessible GMS tourism e-library will also be made available on the MekongTourism.org digital platform.

Preparation of the plan was led by the GMS Tourism Working Group, with support from the Asian Development Bank and the MTCO.

Soneva invites travel consultants to live like a millionaire in new competition

By TTG Asia

October 6, 2015

Credit: Soneva Resorts and Residences

LUXURY resort operator Soneva Resorts and Residences has launched its first Live like a Millionaire competition with a prize offering worth US$250,000 for the global travel industry.

The competition invites travel consultants worldwide to compete for confirmed bookings for villas three rooms and larger at the Soneva Fushi or Soneva Kiri – located in the Maldives and Thailand’s Koh Kood respectively – for stays between October 1, 2015 and March 31, 2016.

The individual who generates the highest value of bookings between October 1 and December 31, 2015 will win a seven-night stay in a luxurious villa for eight people with full board, plus business class flights and resort transfers.

Winners will be announced in March 2016. For more information, head to Soneva’s website or email sales@soneva.com.

Indonesia’s Toraja wakes up from hibernation

By Mimi Hudoyo

October 6, 2015

Peace has descended and Toraja is luring tourists back with agro-tourism and cultural experiences.

Toraja in South Sulawesi is striving to put itself back on the international tourist map after lying dormant for some 15 years.

Death is celebrated with much excitement and festivities for the Torajans, who practise elaborate funeral rites and carve burial sites into rocky cliffs. This unique culture and tradition had been a major draw for Western tourists who dominated arrivals to Indonesia in the 1990s.

However, following the race riots in Indonesia and the Poso riots in Central Sulawesi in the late 1990s and early 2000s, the European market dipped and Toraja was scrapped off from tour operators’ itineraries, wiping the destination off the tourism map.

Toraja also subsequently failed to attract the rising domestic and regional markets, partly because of the sensitivity of some markets towards death-related attractions.

In 2012, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy established the Toraja DMO, a destination revitalisation programme, with the assistance of Swisscontact. Toraja DMO is now leading the developments taking place in Tana Toraja Regency, the southern part of Toraja.

Tri Laksono Juliharto, project officer for destination development at Swisscontact, said: “Currently, only 30 per cent of tourist attractions in Toraja is in Tana Toraja, while the rest are in North Toraja. This gives a chance for Tana Toraja to develop nature-based tourism products. While culture is its major attraction, our survey showed that nature is also a strong attraction of the destination.”

Luther Barrung, chairman of Toraja DMO, said: “The southern part of Toraja, which has large plateaus surrounded by mountains, has great potential to develop agro-tourism.

“Pango-Pango, for example, is developed for agro-tourism around tamarillos, passion fruits and vegetables while Sarambu Assing is known for its waterfalls and coffee plantations. Toraja arabica coffee is internationally known and we want to develop an attraction around there,” he added.

In the North Toraja Regency, where most attractions are located, upgrading of the infrastructure and facilities such as food and drink stalls, and public toilets will be rolled out over the next five years.

Juliharto said Swisscontact was assisting the destination in creating a campaign that will change its image, highlighting not only “the other side of Toraja” like Tongkonan – a Torajan traditional house – but also the philosophy behind it.

“Today, there needs to be more interaction between travellers and the local people. (By) experiencing their daily lives, (visitors can better) understand the culture,” Juliharto said.

Barrung agreed: “We are developing homestays, so that travellers can stay and experience the local culture and way of life, while the local people will benefit directly.

“Torajans produce palm wine called ballo. The Ministry of Tourism has started providing technical assistance for the locals to produce ballo in a more hygienic way. Visitors will be able to visit the plantation, learn about the winemaking process and enjoy the drink,” he added.

Meanwhile, Yohan Tangke Salu, chairman of Indonesia Hotel and Restaurant Association North Toraja Chapter, is encouraging hotels to relaunch in Toraja.

“A lot of people have left tourism business since the industry declined…With the entry of fibre optic to Toraja, we are training hoteliers about Internet usage and channeling them to OTAs. We have started to see some results,” he said.

A new airport with a 2.4km runway is being built in Buntu Kunyi. Slated to open in 2017, the airport will help to improve accessibility to Toraja, as the nearest airport in Makassar is an eight-hour drive away.

Tourism stakeholders are also talking to Garuda Indonesia and Citilink to launch services from Makassar to Lagaligo Airport in Bua, Palopo, which is about a two-hour drive away to Toraja.

This article was first published in TTG Asia, September 18, 2015 issue, on page 27. To read more, please view our digital edition or click here to subscribe.

Glitz, glitter and family fun in Macau

By Prudence Lui

October 6, 2015

The city wants to shed its gaming skin and position itself more as a leisure destination for families

Macau is currently undergoing a rejuvenation drive, with a spate of new hotels and integrated resorts coming online within these few years.

Following the lavish opening of the Galaxy Phase 2 development and Broadway Macau in May, upcoming debuts this year include Studio City, St. Regis Macao and Crowne Plaza Macau. The list would extend beyond 2016/17 as Lisboa Palace, Palazzo Versace Macau, The Parisian Macao, the Karl Lagerfeld hotel, Wynn Palace and MGM Cotai are currently under construction.

Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO), director, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, said: “The MGTO, along with the city tourism stakeholders, have been working to diversify both the tourism products and source markets to the city so that visitors from around the world have more reasons to come and stay longer.

“Our strategy all along has been to leverage the city’s well-known leisure and entertainment industry to develop related areas, such as reinforcing our calendar of events and festivals, organising MICE events and world-class shows, while enhancing elements such as shopping and dining.”

Galaxy Macau’s Phase 2 has seen the addition of more non-gaming elements. For instance, the expanded Grand Resort Deck features the Skytop Aquatic Adventure River Ride with the world’s longest skytop aquatic adventure river ride at 575m. Also, young ones can be kept entertained at the world’s largest JW Kids Club at JW Marriott Macau with its abundance of interactive activities.

When Studio City opens in 3Q2015, the US$3.2 billion destination will boast attractions such as the Golden Reel, Asia’s highest Ferris wheel; a Warner Bros-themed family entertainment centre; the Batman Dark Flight themed ride; a 5,000-seat multipurpose live performance arena; a live magic venue; as well as 1,600 hotel rooms, a vast array of F&B outlets and 32,500m2 of retail space.

MGM Cotai, set for a 2016 opening, will feature a convertible theatre capable of accommodating a variety of shows, and restaurants with American and Peruvian-Japanese cuisines.

Macau’s diversification drive has so far found favour with travel operators, many of whom are now keen to bait more families from the region with the city’s new offerings.

EGL Tours (Macau), general manager, Sabina Long, noting that Galaxy Macau’s pool has drawn many South-east Asian families this summer, said: “If Macau wants to vie for more traffic, it needs newer elements like playgrounds, theme parks, circus and magic shows to appeal to kids.”

The family market is an important and key differentiator for Sheraton Macao, which has been offering family packages and DreamWorks-themed family suites since its launch in 2012.

Said the hotel’s general manager of sales & marketing, Daniella Tonetto: “For Macau to grow as a family destination, more non-gaming offerings are needed to entertain the entire family. The good news is that Macau is moving in that direction, and we will soon see new properties offering much more activities for children and the young at heart.”

To woo more family visitors, Grand Lapa Macau and Grand Coloane Resort have rolled out value-added, family-oriented packages via third-party distribution channels such as OTAs and wholesalers, said regional director of sales for Hong Kong and new markets development, Antony Box.

He said: “We retain our usual mix of guests from key outbound destinations, primarily Hong Kong and southern China. Staycations are fast becoming popular among families wishing to avoid expensive airfares, in favour of more affordable options to escape and unwind.

“If Macau wants to drive this segment, it needs to provide (attractions) other than gambling. The challenge is to establish what that (attraction) is, especially in relation to the (mainland Chinese) market.”

This article was first published in TTG Asia, September 18, 2015 issue, on page 24. To read more, please view our digital edition or click here to subscribe.

China’s largest hotel group formed with Jin Jiang-Plateno merger

By TTG Asia

October 5, 2015

PLATENO Group and Jin Jiang International have officially merged to become China’s largest hotel group.

The partnership was made official following a signing ceremony in Shanghai on September 18, 2015 with Jin Jiang acquiring a 81 per cent stake in Plateno. Together, the group boasts a combined portfolio of over 6,000 hotels with more than 640,000 guest rooms in 55 countries across all regions.

Over the past two years, Plateno had acquired 17 brands with over 400 mid and upscale hotels either in operation or under construction. Its diverse portfolio includes Lavande, H12, Portofino, 7 Days Inn and Xana Hotello, among others.

Jin Jiang’s established brands include J.Hotel, Rock Garden (Yan Hua Yuan) and Jin Jiang Inn. Earlier this year, the company also acquired France’s Louvre Hotels Group (LHG) from Starwood Holdings, incorporating the Golden Tulip, Premiere Classe and Campanile brands.

A join statement says this cooperation “will help facilitate integration of the three group’s (Plateno, Jin Jiang and LHG) back-end systems, improve their operational efficiency, share information of domestic and foreign suppliers, and effectively utilise the supply chain resources at home and abroad so that an industry platform with much better efficiency can be built”.

The ultimate goal of the strategic cooperation is “to create a leading and competitive international group with global brand influence in the world”, the statement added.

Plateno and Jin Jiang will continue to operate independently with plans to develop a central booking and CRM system to optimise channel and revenue management.

Record number of Singaporeans heading to New Zealand

By TTG Asia

October 5, 2015

Hobbiton movie set in Matamata, New Zealand. Credit: 123rf

FIGURES released by Tourism New Zealand (TNZ) have revealed that over 47,500 Singaporean travellers visited New Zealand over the past year from August 2015, making the country’s highest-ever number of Singaporean visitors over a 12-month period.

These figures were released ahead of Kiwi Link South-east Asia 2015 – an annual trade event which sees 40 New Zealand tourism companies travel to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia from October 2 to 12, 2015. The event will take place in Singapore on October 5 and 6, 2015.

Steven Dixon, TNZ’s regional manager for South and South-east Asia, said the increase in Singaporean visitors to New Zealand highlights the country’s growing appeal as a travel destination. He added that around half of the travellers over the past 12 months were repeat visitors.

“Kiwi Link brings together Singaporean tourism product managers and planners with New Zealand tourism operators, allowing us to raise awareness of New Zealand’s many offerings as a travel destination,” Dixon explained.

Dorothy Cheong, a product manager from Dynasty Travel International who will be attending the event, said: “Kiwi Link allows us to engage with New Zealand travel operators to understand more about what the country has to offer.”

Novotel Manila Araneta Centre rises as Quezon City’s largest hotel

By TTG Asia

October 5, 2015

Credit: AccorHotels

ACCORHOTELS will roll out its latest property, the Novotel Manila Araneta Centre, in Quezon City later this month.

The 24-storey hotel is located 15km away from Ninoy Aquino International Airport and is sited within the Araneta Centre lifestyle complex. It also features 401 rooms and suites, the largest number in a single property in Quezon City.

Amenities include the In Balance Wellness Centre, which houses a gym, spa and swimming pool; the Gymboree Kids Area, which caters to young guests; and the executive sky-lounge, which offers a 360-degree view of the city.

For dining options, there is the Food Exchange Manila, a 208-seat restaurant serving an array of international cuisine at live cooking stations, and the Gourmet Bar, which serves signature drinks and freshly-brewed coffee, with a focus on using organic produce grown and harvested from a farm in San Mateo, Rizal.

The hotel boasts six meeting rooms, a boardroom and a state-of-the-art pillarless grand ballroom, which can accommodate up to 1,200 guests. A 2,500m2 landscaped outdoor garden area is also available for cocktail events, soirees, fashion shows and weddings.

To celebrate its launch, the hotel is offering an introductory package starting from US$108, which includes a one-night stay in a superior room with breakfast for two at Food Exchange. The offer is valid from now until December 2015.

Hong Kong levies airport construction fee on departing passengers

By Prudence Lui

October 5, 2015

Hong Kong International Airport. Credit: 123rf

PASSENGERS departing from Hong Kong International Airport will have to pay an added airport construction fee based on travelling distance and ticket class from mid-2016.

The original proposal of a fixed HK$180 (US$23) fee to fund the development of a third runway had caused controversy, galvanising Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) to come up with an alternative scheme last week.

For shorthaul passengers departing in economy class, the fee will be HK$90, while shorthaul first/business class passengers and longhaul economy class passengers will have to fork out HK$160. The levy for longhaul first/business class passengers is HK$180. Meanwhile, the fee for shorthaul transit passengers in economy class will be set at HK$70.

This arrangement is scheduled to be implemented from the 2H2016 till 2031. AAHK estimates about 70 per cent of departing passengers will pay a fee of HK$90 or below.

Lester Hui, assistant general manager at Kwan Kin Travel Services, played down the impact on outbound travel: “Hong Kongers won’t fly less because this is a normal charge. However, we agencies have been collecting fees for airports without charging any commission and this is not fair.

“Moreover, there is also a risk for wholesale ticketing agents to bear the fee if retail agencies suddenly close down. It will be ideal if we are offered a service fee, around five to seven per cent of the cost, which is similar to airline commissions.”

Sandy Chan, general manager at Vacation Asia Hong Kong, reckons the government should foot the bill rather than shift the burden to visitors. “The airport makes money and this charge not only dampens the city’s image but also provides another excuse for visitors to reject Hong Kong as a destination,” she said.

“Business has been tough and the new charge would further increase staff workload because agencies would collect the fee for airports and our staff need to explain the charges to clients.”