THE Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company will open a hotel in the former Chinese capital of Nanjing in 1Q2015 through an agreement with Nanjing New Universe Real Estate Development.

The Ritz-Carlton Nanjing will be located in the heart of designated central business district Xiejiekou, 30 minutes from the airport.

Featuring 297 rooms and 32 suites, the property will offer four restaurants and bars including a Chinese restaurant serving Nanjing cuisine, a luxury Spa by Espa, fitness centre and an indoor pool.

Meeting spaces at the hotel encompass a ballroom and seven function rooms.

BACKED by an extra NZ$30 million (US$25 million) annually over the next four years, Tourism New Zealand (TNZ) is stepping up its game in Asia, with a new interest in high net worth individuals and the MICE market.

Speaking to TTG Asia e-Daily, Tourism New Zealand chief executive, Kevin Bowler, said the NTO is not cutting back on its leisure programme, but “branching out” from it, which will be supported by additional hires across the region.

“We have a very good high-end product with our luxury lodges, and increasingly very good activity providers offering everything from helicopter fishing and skiing to picnics on top of mountains,” he pointed out.

Conventions and incentives will be targeted by an expanded business events team that has grown from two to 14 people over the last few months (TTG Asia e-Daily, October 2, 2013).

Besides opening an office in Indonesia last month (TTG Asia e-Daily, October 30, 2013), TNZ has this year increased its investment in India, China and Japan. The latter, for example, has become a “70+ market”, said Bowler, with mostly senior travellers visiting New Zealand. The goal is thus to re-establish a foothold among youths by drawing attention to the destination’s “fun activities instead of just scenery”.

Film tourism also continues to be important for New Zealand, which will soon launch a PR campaign around the second Hobbit movie, premiering in December.

While TNZ is supporting more direct-to-consumer initiatives, Bowler said that travel agencies still play a vital role as New Zealand is “a touring, not flop and drop” destination.

The NTO is undertaking its first mega fam for the South and South-east Asian market next March, bringing 50 travel agencies to New Zealand, and has relaunched its online training programme earlier this year, which features new interactive modules (TTG Asia e-Daily, March 6, 2013) .

As the fastest-growing region for New Zealand, Asia contributed around 21 per cent of overall arrivals in 2012, up from 17.6 per cent in 2011. The UK, which used to be the second largest market after Australia, has been overtaken by China.

When asked how the country intended to compete with other countries that were also gunning for more Asian footfalls, Bowler said: “We attract a pretty small number of visitors, so we offer something different. Being less discovered is an advantage.”

ASIA is set to welcome another new budget carrier by end-2013 when Taiwan-based China Airlines launches its low-cost subsidiary.

Speaking to TTG Asia e-Daily on the sidelines of the AAPA 57^th Assembly of Presidents in Hong Kong, CAL chairman, Sun Huang-Hsiang, said: “We are coming up with an LCC which will be launched soon, very likely by the end of this year. The mode of the company has not been totally decided, but we are definitely setting up a subsidiary.

“We will look at launching routes in both North-east and South-east Asia that are within four to five hours’ range,” he added, but declined to reveal further details of the new airline.

The Taiwanese carrier’s budget offshoot will benefit from the scrapping of a floor price on airfares – a move widely seen as conducive to the development of LCCs in China – and the development of a budget terminal in Beijing, as recently announced by the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

Similarly, the opening of cross-straits flights has spurred CAL’s development. Said Sun: “Direct service (to China) started from 2009 and we have grown quite rapidly. We are now flying to 28 cities in China, expanding from zero in the period of four years.

“Before the (open skies agreement with Japan), we had only eight cities and about 95 weekly flights to Japan. Now we fly to 12 cities and have 128 flights a week to Japan,” he added.

The airline will introduce more services to South Korea and secondary cities in South-east Asia, having commenced six flights a week to Busan in September and stepped up its frequencies to Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur.

Meanwhile, CAL – Taiwan’s largest carrier by fleet size – will roll out a renewal of its narrow-body fleet starting next year, in addition to an order of 10 Boeing 777s and 14 Airbus A350s, he revealed.

Earlier this month, Shanghai-based Juneyao Airlines said it was also looking to set up an LCC in Guangzhou (TTG Asia e-Daily, November 6, 2013), tentatively named Jiuyuan Airlines, or ‘nine-yuan’ Airlines.

ROSEWOOD Hotels & Resorts has secured its seventh management agreement in Asia for the Rosewood Phnom Penh, scheduled to open in 2015.

The agreement with Cambodia-based property developer Vattanac Properties will see Rosewood Phnom Penh occupy the top 14 floors of Vattanac Capital Tower One, the tallest building in the Cambodian capital.

Situated in the city’s central business district along Preah Monivong Boulevard, the hotel will feature 148 rooms and suites, as well as an additional 27 luxury serviced residences.

Dining options at the hotel include a 120-seat bistro, a 60-seat lobby lounge, two specialty restaurants and a sky bar.

Other facilities such as Rosewood’s signature Sense spa and five treatment rooms, a swimming pool and fitness centre will also be available for guests.

Meeting planners can make use of Rosewood Phnom Penh’s The Pavilion residential-style meeting and function space and multi-purpose meeting rooms.

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts rolled out its new brand identity in September (TTG Asia e-Daily, September 25, 2013) and more recently bagged a management agreement for the Rosewood Bangkok, slated to launch in 2017 (TTG Asia e-Daily, October 16, 2013).

GARUDA Indonesia Holidays (GIH) is shifting towards consumers from its initial wholesaler model, reaching out to travellers in Indonesia and overseas through its new website.

Widjaya Hadinukerto, COO of GIH, said: “GIH was established as a wholesaler of tour products serving all Garuda Indonesia’s destinations, but with technology (like our website), we are trying to reach out (directly) to the customers.”

He said the rise of Indonesia’s middle class is taking place not only in major cities. “The website is a means to reach out to travellers who live in secondary and tertiary destinations. They can enjoy special and last-minute offers through the website,” Widjaya explained.

Asked if GIH’s new online approach would pit it against retail agencies it works with, he said: “The retail prices are higher than wholesale prices.”

He added that travellers usually buy simple products online, such as fly-and-stay or hotel-only products, and would therefore still need to go to travel consultants for a full package.

GIH currently partners 12 major hotel wholesalers for its hotel inventory. It works with BCA bank for payment, but more partnerships with other banks are in progress.

A joint venture company between Garuda Indonesia and Smailing Tours, GIH was set up to sell outbound and domestic travel products wholesale.

CENTARA Hotels & Resorts will assume management of The Blue Marine Resort & Spa Phuket from January 5, 2014 and rebrand it under the Centara brand in the coming year.

Owned by Patong Cliff View, the resort completed renovations in October 2012 and will undergo further refurbishment to match Centara’s four-star Hotels & Resorts core brand.

This second round of renovations is expected to be wrapped up by October 15, 2014, when it will be rebranded Centara Blue Marine Resort & Spa Phuket.

Centara’s ninth Phuket property is situated on the cliff at the northern end of Patong Beach and will offer accommodation in a mix of rooms, suites, as well as one- and two-bedroom villas, each with its own private pool.

Three swimming pools, two kids’ pools, a spa, fitness centre and kids’ club will be available within resort premises. F&B options include Blue Pacific for international fare and Tub-Tim, serving Royal Thai cuisine.

Executive meeting facilities take the form of the Mediterranean Room, which can hold up to 180 guests for cocktails, and the 90-pax Caribbean Ballroom.

THE luxury hotel located within Ngwe Saung Yacht Club and Marina Development will soft open in December, ahead of a full launch slated for 2014.

Part of the US$17 million development commissioned by Myanmar Yachting Federation president, Moe Myint, the hotel is located at Bu Kway Gyi village on Ngwe Saung beach on the country’s west coast.

According to Michael Schaible, general manager of Ngwe Saung Yacht Club, the hotel will soft open later this year while “Ngwe Saung Yacht Club will be a hosting location for the 2013 SEA Games’ sailing and windsurfing events”.

Ngwe Saung Yacht Club and Marina Development includes a yacht club and luxury hotel for 34 bungalows and 100 rooms in total, plus a premium tent area for budget travellers.

The clubhouse will feature an all-day dining restaurant, private dining rooms, indoor and outdoor bars, boardrooms, a spa and fitness centre and the first nightclub in Ngwe Saung.

Thatoe Thuzaraung, managing director of Authentic Myanmar Travel & Tours, added: “The hotel will provide an exciting new accommodation option on the west coast.”

SUPER typhoon Haiyan’s devastation of the Philippines has tugged at the heartstrings of the global tourism industry and prompted an outpouring of support and relief efforts from all corners.

The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has relayed its readiness to support tourism-related recovery programmes to be designed for the affected areas (TTG Asia e-Daily, November 12, 2013), and is calling on the industry to support the Philippines through donating to the relief efforts of UN agencies operating on the ground.

The PATA Foundation has pledged an initial US$10,000 in disaster relief, contacted local and national tourism officials to offer assistance, set up an online appeal to raise funds and briefed the Asian Wall Street Journal on the need to maintain business confidence in the Philippine tourism sector.

The Travel Corporation has committed S$25,000 (US$20,000) worth of aid, while major hotel operator Hyatt Hotels has announced a US$50,000 donation and pledges to match a further US$25,000 in donations.

El Nido Resorts, which operates four resorts in Palawan, the Philippines, is deploying resources to distribute canned food, rice, towels, clothes, water and other relief goods to the residents of the neighbouring municipality of Taytay in Palawan.

Victims displaced by the typhoon can also turn to Singapore-based vacation rental site PandaBed, who is giving out US$5,000 in the form of Relief Credits for bookings of PandaBed properties in the Philippines. Users only need show a scanned copy of the IDs of staying guests to show they were living in the disaster zone, and a short testimonial on how they were affected by the typhoon.

From the aviation industry, Japan Airlines (JAL), United Airlines, AirAsia and Air Astana are a few of the airlines that have come forward to render support.

JAL has donated 10 million yen (US$100,231) and Kazakh airline Air Astana, US$30,000.

Donations from United Airlines employees and customers have topped more than US$850,000, while AirAsia has launched a multi-tiered campaign called To Philippines with Love, which includes the collection of cash donations on flights, in airports, and via the AirAsia Foundation microsite.

JAL and United Airlines are offering passengers bonus mileage in exchange for donations, while AirAsia and JAL are providing free cargo space for relief supplies and free flights for accredited NGOs, aid and humanitarian agencies.

AirAsia is setting aside another 250,000 free seats for Filipinos abroad to return home, available for booking from November 18 to 24. Guests, who must possess valid Filipino ID, pay only for applicable fees.

Meanwhile, Royal Caribbean Cruises, for whom Filipinos are the largest nationality represented across its six cruise lines, has set up a central communications point where Filipino employees can receive assistance in reaching their families. The cruise operator will also match donations from employees and is partnering World Vision to provide broader help.

Those interested in contributing to the recovery of the Philippines may do so through the PATA Foundation (not available to Singapore residents); through Mercy Malaysia; and the Singapore Red Cross Society, among others.

THAI Lion Air today unveiled its pricing and marketing strategy during a media and agent briefing in Bangkok, promising high commission rates for travel consultants.

The new LCC will begin twice-daily flights to Chiang Mai from its Don Mueang base on December 4, and tickets on this segment are now available for sale. The launch dates for services to Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta will be announced once international traffic rights are secured.

In keeping with its positioning to offer “consistently low rates”, Thai Lion Air will not impose any additional fuel surcharge, said Numpon Rungsawang, sales and marketing manager.

Excluding government-imposed charges and airport taxes, one-way fares to Chiang Mai, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta will start from 400 baht (US$12.70), 200 baht and 1,500 baht respectively. The stated prices will hold until March next year, he added.

As Lion Air’s CEO Rusdi Kirana was formerly a travel consultant, Thai Lion Air recognises the importance of travel consultants in keeping with its parent company’s philosophy, said Numpon.

“We will offer the highest commission rates for travel consultants compared with other airlines including LCCs,” said Numpon, who revealed that Thai Lion Air’s fares are distributed via Abacus. “For no-shows, we will return 10 per cent; for cancellations three days before the trip, we will return 50 per cent.”

“For bookings of more than 50 pax, please contact us and we will be able to give special rates,” he shared. For group bookings, travel consultants can call (+66-2) 996-8005 or email groupbooking@lionair.co.th.

Using an “agent top up process”, travel consultants will have to make payments to Thai Lion Air via Thailand’s Kasikorn Bank for the time being following registration on the agent website.

Numpon urged travel consultants to “bear with the inconvenience” and said that more efficient payment methods online will be rolled out in the coming months.

Meanwhile, Thai Lion Air has launched a US$3 million campaign – including print, outdoor, online and TV advertising – using the tagline The Freedom To Fly to drum up consumer awareness in Thailand.