HIGH-END travel trade event Luxperience is dotting the run-up to its annual tradeshow with a number of pop-up experiences around the world.

Under Luxperience’s 2014 Global Pop-Up Programme, a selection of 20 suppliers will be taken directly to key markets around the world to interact and establish business relationships with 50 high-end and corporate travel buyers.

The first Luxperience Pop-Up will splash down in New York at Pranna on Madison Avenue on February 26, 18.00. Suppliers will be able to showcase their products during an informal cocktail event.

Three more Pop-Ups are scheduled to take place this year:
–       London, March 3 at Beaufort House Chelsea, from 16.00
–       Beijing, March 20 at the Waldorf Hotel, from 18.00
–       Sao Paolo, May 5 at Tivoli Sao Paulo – Mofarrej, from 18.00

MUMBAI’S Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport last week launched its new international terminal, boosting capacity by close to one-third.

Spread over 439,203m², the new terminal brings the airport’s handling capacity to 40 million from the previous 32 million.

The four-storey glass structure, whose design was inspired by a dancing peacock and the lotus flower, has 208 check-in counters, a day hotel and a transit hotel, an advanced baggage system and a dedicated six-lane elevated expressway.

It also boasts the country’s largest multi-level parking area and cable-stayed glass wall.

Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh, who inaugurated the facility, said: “We plan to develop 50 more airports across the country in Tier Two and Three cities. The last 10 years have seen outstanding development of civil aviation infrastructure in the country.”

Veneeta Rawat, director of Amazing Vacations Mumbai, said: “The enhanced capacity of the new Terminal 2 was long overdue as the space (crunch) at one of India’s busiest airports was inhibitive. Mumbai is a major gateway to India and we can expect international carriers to increase flights to the city soon. Demand continues to outstrip supply.”

However, Bloomberg noted that the airport continued to face challenges. The airport must overcome the slums that occupy one-sixth of its land in order to expand its runways, while its interesecting runway and single taxiway means that the facility will find it hard to handle more flights even when the airport’s third and final phase of development wraps up in 2020.

GENTING Group is teaming up with US horse racing associations to break into Miami’s tourism industry as it looks to build a gaming resort.

The company has signed an agreement with Gulfstream Park Racing Association, the Florida Horsemen’s Benevolent & Protective Association and the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association.

In a filing to the Malaysian stock exchange, the Group said: “As part of its overall business strategy and the Group’s expansion plans in the US, Genting continually evaluates opportunities to expand in the leisure, hospitality and entertainment sector.

“The partnership is the initial step towards enabling the Group to create a leisure and entertainment resort, which includes a gaming facility with 2,000 slot machines in Miami, Florida, US.”

Genting and partners have agreed that the Asian gaming group will take a 47.1 per cent stake in the new development, according to Reuters.

Genting last year completed the purchase for a piece of the glitzy Las Vegas Strip with intentions to establish Resorts World Las Vegas on the 35-hectare property (TTG Asia e-Daily, March 5, 2014).

THE India International and Travel & Tourism Exhibition (IITT) will kick off next week in Mumbai, drawing a host of buyers and sellers from across the globe over three days.

Organised by Asian Business Exhibition & Conferences in collaboration with ITE Group, IITT will run from January 16 to 18 at the MMRDA Exhibition Center in the Bandra Kurla Complex.

The exhibition will occupy 10,000m^2, and feature sellers including NTOs, state tourism boards, travel consultants, tour operators, car rental companies, convention centres, cruise liners, golf courses, resorts and hotels, among others. Meanwhile, fully hosted domestic and international buyers, as well as corporates will be in attendance.

Besides the exhibition, IITT will also feature a two-day conference to provide attendees with the opportunity to address key industry issues, expert perspectives and highlight the challenges of the tourism industry.

Other highlights include partner events, MITT & EMITT; pre-fixed appointments; a cultural stage; workshop area; and VIP lounge.

Turkey is the partner country for IITT.

HOSPITALITY company Laugfs Leisure opens the first four-star Anantaya resort on the western coastal town of Chilaw next month, offering rare room views of both the sea and the lagoon.

Laugfs Holdings (parent company of Laugfs Leisure) chairman, WKH Wegapitiya, said: “This is what is unique about the place. Nowhere in Sri Lanka are there rooms with such a dual view.”

Anantaya Chilaw lies on a narrow peninsula sandwiched between the Indian Ocean and the Chilaw lagoon, 66km north of the country’s international airport.

Owned by Laugfs Leisure, the 88-room resort is the first of three properties to be rolled out.

Anantaya Waskaduwa in the south will come with 250 rooms and private villas that can be purchased, and targets MICE travellers with an international convention centre and exhibition hall, the first in the area.

Another one on the east coast of Passekuda is currently under construction and would be ready by mid-2015. Anantaya Passekudah will come with 110 rooms and 20 private villas.

LAST-MINUTE hotel booking app HotelQuickly rolls into the Philippines today, offering hotel booking opportunities for three metropolitan areas of the Philippines.

Users can now make spontaneous bookings for hotels in the three largest cities in the Philippines – Manila, Cebu and Davao – with more destinations to be added soon, according to a HotelQuickly press release.

Tomas Laboutka, co-founder and CEO of HotelQuickly, said: “Following a market survey we decided to extend our geographical footprint, and certainly we hope to contribute a little bit to the recovery of the tourism industry in the Philippines.”

HotelQuickly claims to have more competitive rates than OTAs and guarantees to refund the user twice the difference should a hotel be found cheaper on other channels.

INDIAN travellers who arrive in Malaysia from a third country are now offered visa on arrival (VoA) at all major ports of entry, in conjunction with Visit Malaysia Year 2014.

Effective since January 1, Indian travellers who have valid visas from the countries they last departed and confirmed return flight tickets to India will be allowed to purchase visas for US$100 or RM330 per traveller per entry.

Manoharan Periasamy, director of Tourism Malaysia Mumbai, noted that ease of visa acquisition is a main factor in choice of holiday destinations.
“Malaysia has always been a popular destination among Indians and with the reintroduction of VoA, we hope to see more and more Indians considering Malaysia even as a short-break destination for long weekends and last-minute travel plans.”

Malaysia scrapped VoAs for Indian nationals in 2010 when a large number of visitors with VoAs directly from India went missing after arriving in the country.

Sandhya Kartha, director of Redchilli Holidays Mumbai, said: “With the current political unrest in Thailand, the rising demand for Singapore and the Malaysian VoA being introduced, it is certain that tourists will gleefully choose Malaysia as a destination to bundle together with Singapore…bundling Phuket with Penang and Langkawi is (also) a possibility.”