THE weakening rupiah has put a damper on Indonesian consumers’ travel desires, causing outbound tour operators in the country to report a 20 to 25 per cent dip in travel bookings so far this year.

Rudiana, WITA Tour’s director of sales and marketing, told TTG Asia e-Daily that recent travel offers by airlines and tourism boards had failed to elicit much interest from customers.

“Singapore Airlines and Garuda Indonesia will hold their travel fairs this month and they are the industry benchmark, so results from these shows will paint (for) us a clearer picture of how Indonesia’s outbound leisure market will perform for the rest of the year and during 2016’s low season,” commented Rudiana.

However, with the rupiah now valued at 14,000 to US$1, the lowest ever since 1998, Rudiana is bracing for poor outbound business, especially as consumers wait for the currency depreciation to stabilise.

Exacerbating the cautious buying sentiments among Indonesians is the new government regulation for all transactions and prices to be in rupiah.

“Travellers who are used to buying their trips in US dollars are taken aback by the number of digits represented in rupiah. It affects them psychologically,” he said.

Anthony Akili, president and CEO of Smailing , also observed a change in travelling patterns. “(The poor economic situation today) isn’t stopping travel altogether, as Indonesians regard travel as a need. There is however, a shift in travel patterns. Those who have budgeted for their trips will still travel, but they are choosing either to shorten the vacation or head to a destination closer to home,” Akili explained.

As such, Akili expects domestic and regional travel to do well while longhaul demand will languish.

But Rama Tirtawisata, group managing director of Panorama Leisure Group, has found a silver lining in the cloud.

Tirtawisata said: “The strengthening of the US dollar has affected many countries, and data from Bank Indonesia shows that there are many currencies that have dipped deeper than the rupiah.”

Bank Indonesia’s 52-week data compilation on currency performance since June 30, 2014 reflected a 49 per cent decline in the Russian rouble against the greenback, a 27 per cent dip in the Turkish lira, and a 22 per cent fall in the Australian dollar. Some European currencies like the Swedish krona and the Danish krone were down between 19 and 22 per cent.

“The rupiah was down 14 per cent so it is stronger (than these currencies), which makes travelling to these countries cheaper,” said an optimistic Tirtawisata, who revealed that Panorama Tours Indonesia will focus on promoting these destinations with special packages soon.

“We will also allocate more budget for promotions and educate the market which is currently in shock,” he added.

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MALAYSIA Airlines’ decision to halve frequencies of air services between Kuala Lumpur and Delhi from September 1 has travel consultants in Malaysia and India fretting over the possible loss of business.

The beleaguered flag carrier, which had on August 28 undergone a rebranding and is being restructured into a new company, now flies daily on this route, down from twice-daily services previously.

Nanda Kumar, managing director of Hidden Asia Travel & Tours Malaysia, said this would slow down corporate incentive and group travel segments because clients would not be able to get seats for the entire group.

“Clients can still travel to Malaysia on premium airlines, via Singapore and Bangkok, but they may cut short their time in Malaysia. For instance, they may choose to stay two to three nights, instead of four,” he said.

Ganneesh Ramaa, manager at Luxury Tours Malaysia, is bracing for a drop of at least 10 per cent in Indian arrivals from Delhi this coming travel season, which runs from mid-September to year-end.

He said: “If clients cannot get seats on Malaysia Airlines, they will simply go elsewhere. Singapore and Thailand will benefit.”

With capacity down, Rajesh Sethi, managing director of Carnation Holidays in Delhi, warned of likely fare hikes by Malaysia Airlines for this route.

There is, however, a spark of optimism in this situation, arising from Malindo Air’s plans to launch twice-weekly flights between Malaysia’s Penang and India’s Tiruchirapalli come September 26. As the only service that connects Penang with an Indian city, it is expected to boost Indian interest in Malaysia’s northern region and mitigate a major loss of Indian traffic to Malaysia.

Travel consultants from both countries told TTG Asia e-Daily that they are eager to create new itineraries that leverage the new airline.

Kumar said: “We will combine Penang with Bukit Merah Laketown Resort in Perak, and Penang with Langkawi.”

Arokia Das, senior manager at Luxury Tours Malaysia, said: “There are now options to do tours in the north or to sell Penang as a mono destination as it offers many attractions in the city, on the hills and along the beach that appeal to Indians.”

Meanwhile, Chennai-based Holiday 18 Leisure Services’ director & CEO, K Gia, is looking for Malaysian partners from Penang to work with him to build new programmes, as “suppliers from Kuala Lumpur charge more”.

Read more in TTG-PATA Travel Mart 2015 Show Daily.

IMPROVEMENTS in air connectivity and ease of entry for Chinese tourists heading to Guam are supporting the destination’s desire to capture more arrivals from its core markets, in conjunction with the Visit Guam 2016 campaign.

T’Way Air, a LCC based in Seoul, South Korea, will commence new daily services between Incheon and Guam from September 24, and from Daegu to Guam via Osaka from October 1.

From October 25, China Airlines will add two extra flights a week between Taipei and Guam, resulting in four weekly services. These new air links will join Air Busan’s four-times weekly Busan-Guam flights, launched on July 23.

Japan, South Korea and Taiwan are among the top five source markets for Guam, and the nation’s tourism authorities are targeting 801,000, 400,000 and 49,000 footfalls from these markets respectively for next year.

Guam has also identified China as an important market because of its significant growth potential and the approval of a 10-year visa extension in November 2014 which has made it easier for Chinese travellers to come on shore. Guam has set a target of 30,000 Chinese visitors in 2016.

Jon Nathan Denight, general manager at Guam Visitors Bureau, told TTG Asia e-Daily that working with its airline partner, United Airlines, had resulted in direct flights to Guam from Shanghai.

Through Visit Guam 2016 and an ongoing local campaign, Only on Guam, which complements all the events built around the global promotion blitz, Guam Visitors Bureau aims to tell the world that Guam offers more than just marine activities and shopping.

Key events next year include the PATA Annual Summit 2016, held for the first time there from May 18-21, and the 12th Festival of the Pacific Arts from May 22 to June 4. The latter is a travelling festival that occurs every four years in the Pacific.

Denight remarked: “As the chairman of the 12th Festival of Pacific Arts, together with my co-chair First Lady Christine Calvo, it is an honor that Guam was selected to host this prestigious cultural event in 2016.

“In addition to the 27 island nations coming to Guam, we have also invited Taiwan as a guest country. We are looking forward to (holding) the biggest cultural event in our island’s history.”

Meanwhile, Denight pointed out that Guam has many new tourism products to offer. They include the Dusit Thani Guam Resort, a five-star property on Tumon Bay; TaoTao Tasi Beach Dinner Show at Gun Beach Tumon, which features an all-star cast of performers and an all-you-can-eat Chamorro food and BBQ buffet; curated food tours by Guam Food Tours; and Ride the Ducks Guam, an amphibious ride which starts and ends in Tumon.

History buffs can also look forward to the Guam Museum, scheduled to open in 2016 in the heart of Hagatña, which retells the storied history of the destination.

Read more in TTG-PATA Travel Mart 2015 Show Daily

THE PATA Human Capital Development Committee is on the hunt for fresh new members who are actively in touch with the industry to allow for more productive outcomes.

According to Chris Bottrill, committee chairman, a call for membership nominations was made this week, and up to eight new members will be accepted.

Speaking to TTG Asia e-Daily at the sidelines of the Human Capital Development Committee meeting during PATA Travel Mart, Bottrill who is also dean of the faculty of global and community studies at Capilano University in Canada, said: “Ideally, we are targeting more industry members who have a strong (industry) knowledge and network to make initiatives and investments in tourism.

“We are changing from being just an education committee to a human capital development committee with a specific purpose of understanding what the human resource trends are, and combining it with the expertise of the government,” he added.

With about two-thirds of the current team of 12 from the education industry, Bottrill said: “We have excellent education partners, so now we are looking to build and broaden our scope in the committee, and involve industry and governance partners as well as NGOs that can simply make our outcomes more productive.”

Bottrill explained that the purpose of this committee is to provide guidance to PATA on human capital development strategy so as to enhance quality and performance of tourism-related human resources in Asia-Pacific.

The call for nominations will remain open until the end of this month, and the term of appointment for a committee member is two years.

Read more in TTG-PATA Travel Mart 2015 Show Daily