JW MARRIOTT Hotels & Resorts yesterday unveiled the 170-room JW Marriott Dongdaemun Square Seoul in South Korea.

The new hotel marks the second JW Marriott property in Seoul and the first hotel in the city to receive LEED Gold certification.

Featuring a stylish urban facade and elegant interiors, the property is the first international luxury business hotel in the heart of Seoul’s fashion district and adjacent to the train station and key tourist attractions.

F&B offerings include BLT Steak, an internationally renowned New York steakhouse; Tavolo 24, a casual all-day dining restaurant featuring live cooking stations; The Lounge, which specialises in artisan chocolates, martinis and afternoon tea; Seoul Baking Company, which serves fresh cakes and pastries from its open kitchen; and the roof-top Griffin Bar overlooking the East Gate.

Other facilities include 972m² of meeting space and a grand ballroom for up to 750 guests.

GLOBAL hotels recorded consistently higher average daily rates for leisure stays ahead of 2012 for every month last year, according to The Pegasus View for Q42013 released by Pegasus Solutions.

The report reveals that 2013 ended on a positive note, with volumes and rates up in both the corporate and leisure channels globally.

Leisure bookings began 4Q2013 with -0.8 per cent, but rose 1.9 per cent and 4.3 per cent in November and December respectively due to holiday demand.

Solid vacation demand helped hoteliers increase rates throughout the year, which in Q4 rose ahead of 2012 by 2.6 per cent, 3.3 per cent and 4.8 per cent in October, November and December respectively.

Year-on-year corporate bookings paused in November but returned with a 7.4 per cent jump in December. Growth with steadily improved rates was driven by increases in both transient and group business, including meetings.

Corporate booking rates stayed slightly ahead of 2012 in Q4, recording 2.7 per cent in October and 1.7 per cent both in November and December.

Pegasus Solutions CEO, David Millili, said the consistent growth means hotels are “watching and responding appropriately to growing demand”.

“We now see that device penetration for smartphones and tablets is being bolstered by higher consumer comfort levels with booking via mobile. That translates to real revenue opportunity for hotels with reliable mobile sites and technology in place,” he added.

VISITBRITAIN has facilitated the signing of memorandums of understanding (MoUs) between leading travel associations of the UK and India, a move the NTO expects will significantly bolster Indian arrivals.

The MoUs were signed last week at SATTE 2014 by The European Tour Operators Association with Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) and Travel Agents Federation of India, and between Outbound Tour Operators Association of India and UKinbound.

“Working with the travel trade is key to our strategy as 80 per cent of the visits from India to the UK are booked through the travel trade. We expect to create a more positive business environment and drive more inbound to the country through this initiative,” said Sandie Dawe, chief executive of VisitBritain.

“We will be able to now work through the leading trade associations on effective communication about the visa process and product offerings. At present the Indian market to the UK is London centric. About 68 per cent of Indian visitors are coming to just London and we want to convey the message that there is more to the UK than just London,” she added.

“The signings of MoUs will boost tourism ties between the two countries as all these associations have a strong member base,” said Iqbal Mulla, President, TAAI.

India is the UK’s 15^th largest source market, with over 300,000 arrivals in 2013 or a nine per cent increase. VisitBritain expects to surpass its aim of 425,000 Indian arrivals by 2016.

INDIA is now offering Maldivian nationals free 90-day visas for medical tourism in a reversal of last year’s tightening of visa regulations for this segment.

Medical visa holders will no longer be required to report to the Foreign Regional Registration Office for visas with under 180 days’ validity.

Parvez Dewan, secretary at the Ministry of Tourism said: “It is a major visa liberalisation measure for Maldivian nationals. Only two other countries, Nepal and Bhutan, are provided free visas.

“We expect the move will benefit south Indian cities like Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Trivandrum the most, because of the robust medical facilities available there and because the region is known for Ayurveda (wellness treatments).”

Relations between the two countries soured after the Maldives prematurely terminated the contract with India’s GMR Group for the management of Ibrahim Nasir International Airport.

India retaliated by tightening visa restrictions on the Maldives’ medical tourists (TTG Asia e-Daily, January 9, 2013).

Mohamed Nasser, Maldivian ambassador to India, remarked: “There are more than 20,000 Maldivians living in south India. Even last year, though we had visa issues, it didn’t deter Maldivians from travelling to India. However, with the help of this new visa regime, the number of Maldivians arriving in India will certainly increae as most of the Maldivians travelling to India are medical tourists.”

India registered 40,000 Maldivian arrivals in 2013.

DRUKAIR – Royal Bhutan Airlines is set to launch the only direct flights between Paro and Mumbai on May 1.

The twice-weekly service will run on Thursdays and Sundays, offering 16 business class and 102 economy class seats.

Damcho Rinzin, international trvel, trade & PR officer of the Tourism Council of Bhutan (TCB), expects the number of Indian and expat travellers to Bhutan to soar as a result of being able to transit at Mumbai for a direct flight.

Mitesh Dani, managing director of Mumbai-based Parul Tours & Travels, said: “Bhutan is perceived as a high-end luxury destination and connectivity was an issue. Many clients preferred to charter aircraft. Now with a direct flight from Mumbai, Bhutan will be the flavour for travellers in the next holiday season. We expect increased bookings from now on as luxury hotel rooms are limited in Bhutan.”