THE impact on tourism from the creation of a single ASEAN market in 2015 is one of the topics that will be highlighted at the Philippine Tour Operators Association’s (Philtoa) first tourism forum next week.

To be held on September 3, the forum will run in the same week as the yearly Philippine Travel Exchange, Philippine Travel Mart and jobs fair at the SMX Convention Center at the Mall of Asia.

Philtoa president, Cesar Cruz, said the association has decided to highlight the impending creation of the ASEAN Economic Community as implementation is only two years away, yet there is a “very low awareness of it in the Philippines”.

Cruz added that the ASEAN Mutual Recognition Agreement – which calls for the regional mobility of and competency-based education and training for those in the hotel and travel services – would “affect tourism professionals the most”.

One worry was that the free flow of tourism professionals would result in a loss of good talent as they opt to work in other ASEAN countries, he noted.

Philtoa is lobbying for the last week of September to be declared as an annual “tourism week”.

“We need to raise the level of consciousness among Filipinos on the importance of tourism, that it is not just for those who can afford to buy tour packages but that it also benefits the country by creating jobs, economic and development opportunities and that we are also responsible for making the tourism industry sustainable,” said Cruz.

The forum, organised jointly by Philtoa and the Management Association of the Philippines (MAP), will be graced by speakers from ASEAN and the Philippines and is one in a series of forums that MAP will be spearheading regarding ASEAN economic integration.

EAST Asia’s cruise tourism is set to receive a boost with Worldwide Cruise Terminals (WCT) and Taiwan International Ports Corporation (TIPC) having signed a letter of intent earlier this week for wide-ranging cooperation in developing the industry.

Under the agreement, major focus areas of the agreement include encouraging cruise operators to develop itineraries that include Hong Kong and Taiwan, and promoting policies that give impetus to marine passenger transport.

WCT and TIPC will also exchange marine transport information and techniques, undertake joint sales and promotion of the passenger transportation business, and share operational and management experience through an exchange of personnel and visits.

“(The) promotion of cruise destinations is a team game in which nearby ports of call must work closely together to raise service standards and jointly attract more cruise lines to visit,” said Jeff Bent, managing director of WCT.

The port operator runs the newly launched Kai Tak Cruise Terminal in Hong Kong (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 13, 2013), and shareholders include Worldwide Flight Services, Shun Tak Holdings and Royal Caribbean Cruises.

“We are fortunate to have found a partner in TIPC that operates an extensive range of attractive ports of call, enabling cruise lines to create a diverse selection of itineraries,” Bent added.

TIPC was established in 2012 and manages seven international ports in Taiwan.

THE Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office (MTCO) is to launch the consumer-facing Explore Mekong Giveaway programme, and is offering travel and tourism stakeholders a chance to raise their company profiles as sponsors.

The Giveaway project includes a website where travellers can create an online account, play games based on sponsors’ content to accumulate points and redeem points to claim travel prizes. As users return to acquire more points, they become familiar with sponsors’ brands and products.

Some two-thirds of sponsorship opportunities will be allocated to eligible social enterprises picked by MTCO, with four from each member country to be picked for a free sponsorship.

Larger organisations such as airlines, hotel chains and tour operators may participate as one of 12 premium sponsors.

Sponsors stand to benefit from prominent and interactive branding, promotions scheduling, product showcases, a dedicated sponsor profile page and value-added social media advocacy.

Mason Florence, executive director, MTCO, said: “We are very excited by the potential of this project. It ticks all the right boxes: it’s in the spirit of public-private partnership and in line with the MTCO’s objective to promote the Mekong region’s vast array of responsible, sustainable and community-based tourism credentials, and in turn to help spread the benefits of tourism more widely.”

The Explore Mekong Giveaway is the product of collaboration between MTCO – an intergovernmental body uniting the NTOs of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam and China – and Internet start-up FreePlayo.com.

SINGAPORE Airlines’ regional subsidiary, SilkAir, has announced it will commence thrice-weekly direct flights between Singapore and Jogjakarta on November 25.

Subject to regulatory approval, flights to Jogjakarta will depart Singapore Changi Airport at 08.10 and arrive at 09.30. Return flights leave Jogjakarta at 10.15 and touches down in Singapore at 13.30.

The new flights are to be operated with Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft in a two-class configuration comprising business and economy seats.

“Jogjakarta will be the 12^th destination in SilkAir’s Indonesian network. This comes right after our launch to Semarang and Makassar on July 29 and August 1 respectively (TTG Asia e-Daily, May 3, 2013) and reinforces our strong commitment to increase connectivity between Indonesia and Singapore,” said Leslie Thng, chief executive, SilkAir.

A STAND-ALONE meetings and events facility at Parkroyal on Beach Road rolled out its red carpet to guests this week, marking the completion of the S$20 million (US$16 million) project.

Termed ‘The Ballrooms’, the facility is connected to Parkroyal on Beach Road via a skywalk and spread across 576m² for events of up to 860 guests.

David Donald, general manager Parkroyal on Beach Road, said: “This significant investment has been made in order to keep pace with consumer demand for more efficient use of space and the latest technology.

“The Ballrooms adds to Singapore’s proposition of being a MICE hub with exceptional infrastructure and a variety of options for hosting conferences, meetings and events.”

According to Donald, weddings make up 55 per cent of events held at Parkroyal on Beach Road and corporate events, 25 per cent. With this new facility, Donald said the hotel aimed to grow the share of corporate events to at least 35 per cent.

“Demand is coming in very fast with this opening and in particular for weddings – we have 38 lined up for the rest of the year.

“But we are looking to have more high-end corporate meetings as they provide large volumes and are more profitable,” he added.

The new facility offers two pillarless ballrooms with capacities of 540 or 320 guests, divisible into three rooms, and a boardroom for 40 pax. Donald highlighted the additional open courtyard, which is 420m² large, as the facility’s unique selling point.

He said: “We want to show our ability to be different, so such outdoor spaces can be used if meeting planners want to bring their meetings outside for a more suburban setting.”

While the new space is located minutes away from the more renowned Suntec International Convention Centre, Raffles Convention Centre and Marina Bay Sands, Donald considers the venue “ideal for secondary conferences, meetings and events prior and in relation to city-wide conferences and events”.

INDONESIAN flag carrier Garuda Indonesia is increasing capacity on its routes between Singapore and Jakarta by deploying large aircraft to meet strong demand.

In mid-August, Garuda exchanged 162-seater Boeing 737-800 services for 222-seater Airbus A330-200 aircraft on the 12.20 and 20.20 services departing Singapore, increasing capacity on each flight by 37 per cent.

The aircraft was also deployed for the 08.35 and 16.30 flights leaving Jakarta.

Garuda will further adjust capacity for the abovementioned flights on November 6 to meet higher projected demand by replacing the A330-200 with 257-seater A330-300 aircraft.

Another two daily B737-800 flights will be operated with the A330-200s instead.

Garuda will also move its check-in services at Changi Airport Terminal 3 from Row 1 to Row 5 beginning September 25.

EMIRATES will begin direct flights to Taipei’s Taoyuan International Airport on February 10 next year.

The six-time-weekly service will be operated by a Boeing 777-200ER aircraft, with eight seats in First Class, 42 in Business Class and 304 in Economy Class.

Barry Brown, divisional senior vice president commercial operations East, Emirates, said: “Emirates SkyCargo has operated a dedicated freighter service to Taipei since 2003. Given its status as a global trading hub and the demand, it is a natural progression for Emirates to launch passenger services to Taipei.”

“We are confident that this new route will open up new trade opportunities across the Emirates network as well as support business and tourism travel to Taipei.”

The airline launched flights to Tokyo (Haneda) in June this year, and currently already flies to Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.