SOUTH-EAST Asia’s travel appetite is only getting bigger as its economies boom, and the UK is trailing behind other European destinations in chasing this market, said Kuoni Group.

In a statement released last week, Kuoni said the company met with prime minister David Cameron to discuss the importance of inbound tourism and regional development.

The UK currently falls behind France, Italy, Switzerland and Germany when it comes to popular European destinations for group travellers from South-east Asia.

The UK has only a five per cent share of group travel from the region, as compared with France’s 22 per cent.

Group travel is a popular travel option in Asia as it removes the hassle and obstacles of overcoming language barriers, planning itineraries, and booking transport and accommodation.

Some 600 million people live in South-east Asia, with a combined GDP of US$2.1 trillion, reported HSBC. With the upcoming ASEAN Economic Community taking root end-2015, regional trade is expected to soar.

Kuoni’s vice president of inbound UK, Rob Andrew, said in the release: “Upgraded infrastructure coupled with political and legislative commitment will help drive trade links, both within the ASEAN region but also with the rest of the world in coming years. This will in turn drive the growth of potentially millions of middle-class consumers with a greater desire and ability to travel.

“VisitBritain’s GREAT campaign has been and remains a success story that it should rightly be proud of. Unfortunately, at present, the agency can only afford to focus its efforts on Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore as ‘nurture’ markets and showcases its destinations in none of the other seven (ASEAN) countries.”

VIETNAM Helicopter Corporation has launched chopper tours in Danang, and the service is expected to reach full swing in March.

Targeting both the domestic and international markets, the company has bought a US$3 million luxury EC130 T2 Airbus helicopter from France.

“We are now looking at a marketing programme to be launched after Lunar New Year,” commerce manager Tran Dinh Nam told TTG Asia e-Daily last week. “This is our first project for Vietnam, and we are preparing to follow up in other tourist areas such as Halong Bay and Phu Quoc.”

Several packages have been rolled out and scheduled tours include a 15-minute flight over the city, and a 25-minute flight around Son Tra Peninsula and the spectacular Hai Van Pass.

Seating six passengers, the helicopter is also available for private charter.

“I believe this new service will be great for high-end tourism and perhaps MICE delegates,” commented Events Travel Asia Bangkok’s group managing director, Max Jantasuwan.

“Danang is becoming one of the top popular destinations for both our European and Asia-Pacific clients. We are planning a high-end programme into Danang in September and will definitely look into this service for our clients.”

“Helicopter flights are a good selling point for the high-end FIT market, especially for side trips to tourist attractions such as island resorts,” said general manager Allan Chew of Poloair Holidays Shanghai. “However, the travel trade needs to be made aware of the product and the services/packages offered.”

By Louis Allen.

ISRAEL is courting Chinese visitors more aggressively this year and stands to benefit from Hainan Airlines’ thrice-weekly Beijing-Tel Aviv connection starting in September.

Amir Halevi, director general, Israel Ministry of Tourism, said: “We have been traditionally investing in North American and European markets. Emerging markets like China are also a focus for us now.

“We opened a office in Beijing around two years back and now, with Hainan Airlines planning to operate flights to Tel Aviv, we expect significant growth from the Chinese market.”

Israel has set a lofty 100,000 arrivals target over the next two years, compared to the 35,000 Chinese tourists it received in 2014. Leisure and MICE segments are key areas of focus.

To increase Chinese arrivals, the ministry has recommended that Chinese tourists are granted visas on arrival (VoA). “In the past we started VoA for Russia, which helped us to grow tourist arrivals from that market. So, we have proposed the government to extend this facility to emerging markets like China and India,” said Halevi.

Online marketing, tradeshow participation, organising seminars and fam trips also form part of Israel’s efforts in China.

“We are also looking to increase our marketing budget for the Chinese market, which at present is about US$600,000 and we expect it to grow to US$2-3 million in three to four years,” said Oren Drori, deputy director general and head of marketing administration, Israel Ministry of Tourism.

“Chinese tourists are mainly from the business segment, though there are some leisure tourists who visit places like the Dead Sea and Jerusalem. We are seeing an increase in demand from Chinese incentive groups as well,” said Ronit Ezra, incoming sales manager, Mamilla Hotel Jerusalem.

NATIONAL flag carrier Korean Air is getting serious about its Chinese ambitions with four new services to begin in 1H2015.

On March 30, it will launch a five-times weekly service from Incheon to Hefei, the capital of Anhui province. Flights depart Incheon at 08.30 and arrive in Hefei at 10.10, with return flights leaving at 11.10 to touch down at 14.40.

Also out of Incheon, Korean Air will introduce thrice-weekly flights to Nanning beginning May 11. Flights depart Incheon at 18.55 and arrive at 22.50.

The new service connecting popular Jeju Island and Guiyang also begin on May 11. Flights will run three times a week, taking off from Jeju at 21.55 to touch down in Guiyang at 00.45 the next day.

On June 22, Korean Air is scheduled to start Daegu-Shenyang flights. Running three times a week, Shenyang-bound flights leave at 10.00 to touch down at 11.10.

Boeing 737-800 aircraft will be deployed on the routes to Hefei, Nanning and Shenyang.

AS PART of its goal of achieving 200 hotels in Asia-Pacific by 2020, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group Asia-Pacific is looking at opportunities in Indonesia beyond its joint venture with Panorama Group.

Thorsten Kirschke, president, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group Asia-Pacific, said Carlson Rezidor has strengthened and redeployed a fully dedicated development department to pursue growth.

Kirschke said: “The joint venture with Panorama Group is the backbone of our activities in Indonesia… but we see a multitude of avenues to pursue our growth target both within Carlson Panorama Hospitality (CPH) and complementing that with direct market penetration with our own brands.”

“There is increased interest in our new brand, Radisson Red, that we have just launched, as well as Radisson Blu,” he said. At this point, Kirschke is looking at three to four Radisson Blu hotels and four to five Radisson Red properties in Indonesia.

CPH was formed two years ago with a target of running 20 hotels within five to seven years under the Radisson and Park Inn by Radisson brands. It currently has four ongoing projects, three of which are expected to start operation by end-2015 in Bali, Batam and Lampung.

Budi Tirtawisata, group CEO of Panorama Group, said CPH is in the process of taking over the management and/or ownership of properties in Indonesia, having been approached with offers. “We will probably need to renovate or upgrade the properties to meet the brand standard, but this will be faster and more economical than building from scratch.”

IN ANOTHER instance of the private sector achieving what ASEAN itself has failed to do, AirAsia Group has introduced a new regional travel pass that will pave the way for more intra-regional travel.

AirAsia launched the AirAsia Asean Pass and AirAsia Asean Pass+ in Bangkok yesterday, the idea for which was first mooted in November last year.

Both passes work on the same credit system and enable pass holders to enjoy fixed-rate flights to more than 148 destinations in all 10 ASEAN countries on AirAsia’s network.

Flights shorter than two hours will cost travellers one credit; all else will be priced at three credits per flight. While no processing fees apply for flight redemptions, passengers are still subject to the relevant airport taxes and fees.

The AirAsia Asean Pass, which is priced at S$209 (US$154), comes with 10 credits and the AirAsia Asean Pass+, retailing for S$369, comes with 20. Both are valid for one year.

Flights can be redeemed on AirAsia’s various regional airlines – AirAsia Malaysia, Thai AirAsia, AirAsia Indonesia and Philippines AirAsia – to destinations only in South-east Asia.

The passes are now on sale at AirAsia’s website.

Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia Group, said: “As a truly ASEAN airline, we are extremely proud to introduce the AirAsia ASEAN pass, which is a product specifically designed to further liberalise and encourage travel among the ASEAN community. The pass allows us to bridge communities and attract more foreign tourists to the region – it’s the perfect instrument to promote ASEAN integration.”

With the year-end implementation date of the ASEAN Economic Community approaching, there has been little progress in achieving the longstanding wishes of the travel community including a “true” Open Skies system, and a single visa for travel within the entire bloc.