THE Ascott is “on track” to meet its target of 12,000 apartment units in China by 2015, having recently secured contracts to manage three more properties.

The 150-unit Ascott Nanbin Chongqing and the 167-unit Somerset Software Park Xiamen are both due to open in 2015, while the 250-unit Somerset Swan Lake Hefei will welcome guests in 2017.

Kevin Goh, managing director for North Asia, The Ascott, said: “Besides first-tier cities, we are also growing our presence in China’s high-growth cities such as Hefei, Chongqing and Xiamen where strong economic growth and foreign investment have generated a large demand for serviced residences.”

Ascott Nanbin Chongqing is situated on Nanbin Road in the Nan An District, a 15-minute drive from the Yuzhong Central Business District and provides a range of studio to two-bedroom apartments.

Somerset Software Park Xiamen forms part of the Xiamen Software Park, close to Xiamen Airport and Xiamen Exhibition Centre. It features apartments in studio to three-bedroom configurations.

Somerset Swan Lake Hefei is part of the Park Lane Plaza mixed-use development. The property offers easy access to rail stations and the airport and guests can choose from studio to three-bedroom units, and comes with a spa.

All apartments in the properties above come with a fully-equipped kitchen, separate work and sleeping areas and facilities such as a gym, business centre, meeting room, breakfast and residence lounges, swimming pool and children’s play area.

Commented Lee Chee Koon, CEO, The Ascott: “China is our key market and we are growing rapidly through management contracts, investments and strategic alliances. We are on track to achieve our target of 12,000 apartment units in China by 2015.”

This year, the company has entered six cities – Hefei, Nanjing (TTG Asia e-Daily, April 9, 2013) and Wuxi (TTG Asia e-Daily, May 15, 2013) in China, Gurgaon in India (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 27, 2013), and Riyadh (TTG Asia e-Daily, May 21, 2013) and Jeddah (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 4, 2013) in Saudi Arabia.

GUIDES and other workers at Singapore’s attractions will be able to level up their skills, thanks to the first-ever training programme tailored to the industry – Attractions Contextualised Training (ACT).

The Straits Times reported that ACT was jointly rolled out by the Workforce Development Agency (WDA) and the Association of Singapore Attractions (ASA).

According to the local broadsheet, ACT comprises various modules such as diction and story-telling. The first module starts tomorrow and will offer participants guidance on how to deliver animated tours.

Classes cater for up to 15 people and each module consists of full-day sessions, ranging from one to three days in length. Trainings cost between S$200-500 (US$158-394), with up to 90 per cent subsidised by the WDA for Singaporeans and permanent residents.

WDA tourism division director, Janice Foo, was quoted in The Straits Times as saying that ACT was especially urgent for small and medium-sized enterprises with fewer workers who would find it difficult to customise training for staff.

Last month, ASA, WDA and the Singapore Tourism Board announced a separate tripartite initiative for the attractions industry, kicking off with a series of seminars and interactive masterclasses – also aimed at attractions staff – to rejuvenate visitor experiences and sustain industry revenue growth (TTG Asia e-Daily, July 11, 2013).

ANOTHER city in China is on track to implement 72-hour visa waivers for transit passengers, following the launch of such schemes in three other major Chinese destinations.

Last week, an article by Xinhua stated that Kunming was expected to become the fourth city in China to offer international passengers visa-free transits.

The report said Yunnan’s provincial tourism development commission and Yunnan Airport Group, which runs Kunming Changshui International Airport, would apply for permission to waive visa requirements later in the year.

Three cities in China, namely Beijing (TTG Asia e-Daily, December 6, 2012), Shanghai (TTG Asia e-Daily, July 27, 2012) and Guangzhou.

In June, China Daily reported that Chengdu has already secured approval from the State Council to introduce the 72-hour visa waiver for transits, though no date was given for the launch (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 10, 2013).

MALINDO Air will commence daily flights on the Kuala Lumpur-Dhaka route on August 28, marking its first international service.

Malindo Air CEO, Chandran Rama Muthy, said the LCC intends to keep rates within the RM300-500 (US$92-153) bracket for one-way bookings made at least two weeks prior to departure.

Other airlines plying the route include Malaysia Airlines, Biman Bangladesh Airlines, Regent Airways and United Airways.

The lower fares have been a boon for Malaysian travel consultants.

Tina Travel & Agencies managing director, Adam Kamal, said: “We’re now developing packages to Bangladesh using Malindo Air as earlier airfares (on other airlines) were not so attractive for packaging, and return airfares used to average about RM1,400.”

He added that Malindo had an edge over its competitors as it gave each passenger 35kg in baggage allowance, more than what others were offering.

“With Malindo’s competitive rates, we are able to offer packages with rates on a par with other ASEAN destinations such as Bali, Manila and Myanmar. Bangladesh is also a new holiday destination for many Malaysians who are more familiar with India and Sri Lanka. It has many attractions to offer,” commented Kamal.

Similarly, Grandlotus Travel Agencies managing director, K Thangavelu, said: “Due to Malindo Air’s reasonable fares, we will create packages combining Bangladesh with north-east India, and Bangladesh with Nepal. As a mono-destination, Bangladesh may not be that attractive to Malaysians.”

THAI hotel operator ONYX Hospitality Group has signed a new deal for the OZO Penang, which is scheduled to open in 2016.

The select-service hotel, located on the edge of UNESCO World Heritage site in the centre of Georgetown, is the group and brand’s pioneer property in Malaysia.

With 132 guestrooms, OZO Penang also comes with meeting rooms, a grab-and-go food outlet, an all-day eatery and fitness centre.

Though the brand initially launched in 2009, the first OZO property opened doors in Hong Kong in May 2013, with further management agreements signed for projects in Thailand and Sri Lanka.

ONYX Hospitality Group president and CEO, Peter Henley, commented: “Our entry into Malaysia with OZO Penang marks a key step in our development for the OZO brand, and indeed the overall ONYX expansion.

“2015 marks an important year in the ASEAN region, with the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) set to take centrestage through the free flow of business, tourism and investment across AEC borders.

“As a Thai company, we are excited to be launching our first property in Malaysia, our direct neighbour. We acknowledge the importance of expansion within the AEC region and we look forward to developing further ONYX-branded projects in Malaysia in the very near future.”

SHANGRI-LA Hotels and Resorts is in an expansion rage across the globe with a special focus on China, where more than half of its future developments are to be located.

The company’s director of corporate communications, Lori Lincoln, said: “China is a major focus for the group…In addition to being in major cities such as Shanghai and Beijing, where we have multiple properties, we’re expanding to key secondary and up-and-coming cities such as Heifei and Diqing.”

Of Shangri-La’s total business, leisure travel accounted for 30 per cent and is growing, especially from mainland Chinese guests.

“We are seeing more bookings from China for our resorts in the Maldives, Malaysia and Singapore. We have also seen a major increase in holiday stays at our China and overseas hotels from that market, with new destinations such as Huhhot in Inner Mongolia and Guilin becoming very popular,” she said.

Between 2014 to 2017, Shangri-La is set to open a total of 30 properties across Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Europe, over 50 per cent of which will be in mainland China.

The group just added two more properties to its 80-strong China portfolio with the launch of Shangri-La Hotel, Qufu (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 7, 2013) and Shangri-La Hotel, Shenyang (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 26, 2013)  on August 1.

When asked what Shangri-La was doing to drive further bookings, Lori said the group had established a Global Travel Agency Advisory Board consisting of 19 members based around the world to build stronger relationships with luxury travel advisors to better raise the brand profile.

The group was also tailoring promotions to seasonal demand and distributing such offers through all channels, she added.

DETAILS of the Sydney Exhibition Centre @ Glebe Island have come to light, with work on the temporary venue already underway to meet its February 2014 opening.

The centre is intended to house exhibitions in Sydney during the three-year development period of the new International Convention Centre Sydney (ICC Sydney) and ICC Exhibition at Darling Harbour (TTGmice e-Weekly, September 27, 2012).

Sydney Exhibition Centre @ Glebe Island is scheduled for completion in January for readiness testing, ahead of the first show opening in the following month.

Fully air-conditioned and featuring waterfront views and 25,000m² of space, the Sydney Exhibition Centre @ Glebe Island is located on the foreshore near the Anzac Bridge. The venue will be serviced by a regular, scheduled ferry from Darling Harbour as well as shuttle buses from Central Station, providing delegates easy access to Darling Harbour hotels and dining and entertainment options.

BESydney CEO, Lyn Lewis-Smith, said: “BESydney has been working closely with the industry for many months on the new facility’s branding and marketing and we will manage the consumer awareness campaign until the operators, AEG Ogden, take over at the end of 2013.”

AEG Ogden will manage Sydney Exhibition Centre @ Glebe Island.