CHINESE visitors to Phuket reached record levels in 1H2013 when almost half a million mainlanders came to the island, a growing trend that is changing the face of tourism “from west to east”.

One-in-four international arrivals to Thailand’s largest island during the first six months were Chinese, a dynamic which is reshaping the local tourism market, according to C9 Hotelworks’ Phuket Hotel Market Mid-Year Update 2013 report, which will be published tomorrow.

While surging Chinese arrivals were good for business, over-reliance on a single market brought its own risks, said the consultancy’s managing director, Bill Barnett.

“There have been a lot of worries (about the surge in Chinese arrivals) that happens any time you over-leverage one market,” he said. “There are concerns about what happens if China cools, could the drop in business be made up from another market?

“There are also cultural issues. We’ve already seen a cultural backlash against the Russian market in Phuket from locals and we’re starting to see that with the Chinese too. Mono-markets are never good. There has to be more complexity, but the face of tourism is definitely changing from west to east.”

The report, which excludes arrivals from Hong Kong, found that 457,401 Chinese arrived at Phuket International Airport between January to June, up from a mere 37,948 in 2007. This accounted for almost one-fifth of the record 2.3 million Chinese who came to the country from January to June.

Increased air access and the fact that Phuket lies within the crucial six-hour window from China were key drivers of the trend, which saw the northern neighbours account for more than half of all Asian arrivals to the island, said Barnett.

Twenty-two Chinese cities now have direct flights to Phuket, up from seven in 2007. China accounted for 18 per cent of all international scheduled charter flights to Phuket in 1H2013.

TOURISM operators on Koh Samet are digging in for the longhaul after thousands of tonnes of crude oil from a burst pipe yesterday started washing up on the popular island getaway.

“It’s really bad here, the smell is awful,” said Oh, a resort manager speaking on condition of anonymity and whose property is located near to Ao Phrao beach, one of the worst-affected areas.

PTT Global Chemical, the oil firm responsible for the leak, and the government had left the tourism businesses on the island to fall back on their own resources to cope with the situation, she said.

“No one from PTT or the government has come to speak to us. We’ve had to find out what we can from the Internet and it seems likely that oil could keep washing up on the island for another six months to a year. It never takes just a week to clean it up.”

While some people are still arriving on the island, which is a protected area and part of Khao Laem Ya-Koh Samet National Park, properties in the worst-affected areas are having to reschedule or refund bookings. “I don’t think people will come (to the Ao Phrao area) for at least another two to four weeks,” she said.

Virat Chatturaputpitak, vice president of the Association of Thai Travel Agents, was hopeful PTT and the government would finish the clean-up operation within one week.

“There won’t be much impact on inbound tourism as this happened during low season and it’s not a major destination for foreign tourists,” he said. “It will have a big effect on domestic business for a few weeks, especially from Bangkok.”

“The worry is that the oil will spread to Pattaya. I hope it doesn’t but if it does that would be a much bigger problem.”

PTT Global Chemical could not be reached for comment. An official statement from CEO Anon Sirisaengtaksin, released yesterday, said 50,000 litres of crude oil had leaked about 20km south-east of Map Ta Phut seaport in Rayong province in the early hours of Saturday morning.

GLOBAL leisure daily hotel rates have notched record growth this quarter despite a fall in booking growth, while business travel maintained prior levels for both bookings and rates.

According to second quarter data from Pegasus Solutions, leisure booking growth for June fell two per cent year-on-year.

But due to the substantial growth figures registered for April and May, the drop in booking growth for June still translates into a positive number overall for daily hotel rates, which posted 5.1 per cent for June.

“The performance we’re seeing can be attributed to the perfect formula for hotels: lower room supply with increased leisure and business travel demand,” said David Millili, CEO, Pegasus Solutions.

“The second quarter compared against prior year shows that while demand is present, hotels are also present with real distribution strategies.”

Meanwhile, corporate bookings for June were 0.7 per cent higher year-on-year. Rates held firm during the second quarter and June registered a slight drop of 0.7 per cent compared to the same period in 2012.

Looking ahead, Pegasus predicts that rates are likely to rise by over four per cent in July and August, but remain close to last year’s performance in September and October. Booking volume will be at or near prior year levels into early autumn.

Corporate bookings and rates are likely to be maintained but substantial gains over 2012 are unlikely. However, rates may pick up in September and October as the convention season begins.

AIR India has entered travel agency territory in a tie-up with MakeMyTrip, which will see the airline launch holiday packages for sale on its website.

A total of 150 Air India Holidays packages to 73 domestic and two international destinations, bundling three- to five-star hotel stays, will be rolled out for direct consumer purchase in the near future.

Travel consultants can also log into a dedicated area on Air India’s site and sell the airline’s packages at commissionable rates.

Said Rohit Nandan, chairman and managing director, Air India: “Air India Holidays…enables Air India to tap into the fast-growing leisure market, even as we play our role in tourism development as India’s national carrier.”

However, travel consultants TTG Asia e-Daily spoke to were unfazed. PP Khanna, director, Diplomatic Travel Point, said: “An initiative like this by Air India is likely to have an impact on the market only if the airline keeps the holiday packages cost-effective.”

Meanwhile, Sajan K Gupta, managing director, Vayu Seva Tours, commented that Air India’s new venture was likely to have “negligible impact” on outbound and domestic tourism.

“Air India has a 23 per cent market share of ticket sales in the domestic sector and much of it is for domestic business travel. Even if 40 per cent of Air India’s passengers fly for tourism, not all of them are likely to find their hotels, itineraries or destinations of choice being offered,” he explained.

Similarly, Sanjay Maniar, managing director of Travelaid, said: “Air India is trying to build a new vertical in a market that increasingly customises (programmes to meet) holiday needs, preferences and itineraries.

“Flights and room nights will not be a problem, but I doubt if Air India can effectively put together the logistics of transfers, ground transportation, city tours, etc, that would suit the traveller’s budgets and needs. To design and customise a holiday, you have to come to a travel consultant.”

THE newly-rebranded Tigerair is upgrading its destination offerings with a new daily service to Yangon, commencing October 1.

On Mondays and Saturdays, flights depart Singapore at 12.00 to reach at 13.30. Return flights leave Yangon at 14.20 and reach Singapore at 18.45.

On Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays, Yangon-bound services take off at 17.00 and touch down at 18.25. Return flights depart Yangon at 19.05 and arrive in Singapore at 23.35.

Tigerair’s chief commercial officer, Alexander Knigge, said: “Yangon is increasing in popularity as a destination for businessmen from Singapore because of the vast opportunities available today. It is also fast becoming an attractive tourism spot for Singapore residents, drawing a constant stream of visitors to its rich heritage.

“This Singapore-Yangon route will also enable Tigerair to serve both the 50,000-strong (Myanmar) community here, and their family and friends back home who want to stay connected with one another.”

To commemorate the new service, Tigerair is dangling promotional fares for the route starting from S$26 (US$21), excluding tax and fees. Available for sale until August 5, fares are valid for travel between October 1 and November 13.

THE Hertz Corporation has named Discover the World Marketing its general sales agent in the Philippines, where the latter is charged with growing outbound car rentals from the country.

Hertz cited Discover’s “proven track record” in the travel industry as reason for the appointment.

Discover will manage sales and customer support throughout the Philippines and leverage its position in the country to promote Hertz. The company has already established a local reservations office and call centre to service the trade and corporate market.

It will also work closely with Hertz Philippines, which is operated by Hertz licensee Exclusive Cars International, on outbound and inbound opportunities.

Michel Taride, group president, RAC International, Hertz Corporation, said: “We view the Philippines as an important and growing source market for our international car rentals, especially as visitor exports are expected to increase 8.2 per cent from 2012 to 2022, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council.”

Francis E Juico, country director, Discover the World Marketing Philippines, said: “Hertz is the first major car company to appoint an outbound representative in the Philippines. Our country continues to enjoy a vibrant outbound travel market for both leisure and business. We look forward to promoting Hertz to more than 2,000 travel agencies and various corporate clients, and collaborating with Hertz Philippines.”

Hertz is launching a discount for 25 per cent off Hertz Prestige and Adrenaline Collections for customers residing in the Philippines in commemoration of the new partnership. The discount is valid until August 30 for car rentals picked up by December 15.

The promotion code for the discount is (PC) 191096, and must be mentioned at time of reservation.

AIRASIA’S longhaul affiliate, AirAsia X, has added a fifth Australian destination to its flight network with a new Adelaide link.

Beginning October 30, Singapore residents can fly to Adelaide via Kuala Lumpur, through the AirAsia Fly-Thru service.

AirAsia operates 12 daily flights between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, and AirAsia X will initially ply the Kuala Lumpur-Adelaide route four times weekly after its launch, and increase the service to daily for the peak December to February period.

The new route will be operated with a 377-seater Airbus A330-300 aircraft.

Speaking at a special ceremony in Adelaide, AirAsia X CEO, Azran Osman-Rani said: “We are thrilled to announce that AirAsia X is finally jetting into Adelaide, which means now every Adelaidian can fly to South-east Asia and beyond and vice versa.”

“Australia is one of our core markets where AirAsia X will see its wings expand and the Adelaide route has been a priority. Our goal since launching our first Australian service on the Gold Coast in 2007 was to operate in the five major states, and we are proud to have accomplished this within six years,” he added.

To celebrate the launch of the new route, AirAsia X is offering fares from Singapore to Adelaide starting from S$149 (US$117) on economy and from S$489 for premium. Promotional fares are available for booking online until August 4, for the travel period October 30, 2013 to August 5, 2014.