INDIA’S Planning Commission has proposed a host of sweeping changes to the country’s visa regime that will streamline inbound travel, including expanding the scope of the visa-on-arrival programme and reducing the number of visa categories.

These ideas were mooted at a meeting at the Planning Commission’s grounds and attended by officials from the various ministries of home, external affairs, tourism, as well as officials from the intelligence bureaus and prime minister’s office.

The think tank has suggested India offer visa on arrival at four more airports – Goa International Airport, Amritsar’s Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport, Chandigarh Airport and Gaya Airport. The service is currently available at eight international airports including New Delhi, Kochi and Hyderabad.

It also wants the government to increase the number of countries allowed visas on arrival to include the US, UK, Canada, Brazil, Australia, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Germany, France, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Spain, among others, on top of the 11 countries it currently allows.

Planning Commission has also lobbied for a global online visa application system and the reduction of visa categories from 16 to just three: employment, business and visitor.

Montek Singh Ahluwalia, deputy chairman of the Planning Commission, said: “We wanted to develop a world-class visa regime. We will write to the home minister on the outcome of the meeting aimed at liberalising the visa regime.

“The tourism ministry was willing to share its budget with the home ministry so that more officers can be posted on immigration counters to facilitate visas on arrival.”

Gainwell Travel & Leisure’s general manager, Seema Ahmad, noted: “There have been difficulties in obtaining travel visas to India in the past, which could have led to an unusually low rate of inbound tourists. The new revised visa norms should definitely augment inbound arrivals, by about 20 to 25 per cent annually.”

Planning Commission’s proposal has yet to be ratified by the relevant ministries, but is expected to be rushed through in the run-up to the general elections of 2014 and in order to boost India’s dismal current account deficit.

“I believe that extending the visa-on-arrival facility to tourists from the UK, US, France and Germany, which are our traditional source markets and contribute close to 40 per cent of our inbound arrivals, will have a very positive impact in terms of earning more foreign exchange and developing our inbound tourism,” said Peter Kerkar, director, Cox & Kings.

Kerkar added that allowing secondary airports to issue visas on arrival would spare tourists the additional burden of landing in major airports and then travelling to secondary destinations.

“The government has now firmly signalled its intent to move towards a more liberalised visa regime. We are requesting the Home Ministry and other agencies to ensure that the requisite infrastructure, in terms of technology and personnel, is provided, so that this welcome initiative can be in operation at the earliest,” said SM Shervani, president, Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India.

Additional reporting by Rohit Kaul

MALAYSIA Airlines (MAS) subsidiary and commuter airline MASwings’ flight MH3002 yesterday afternoon crashed into a house in Kampung Sin San, Kudat, resulting in two fatalities.

The MASwings Twin Otter had departed from Kota Kinabalu and was slated to arrive in Kudat at 14.45, before leaving for Sandakan at 15.00.

However, local paper New Straits Times reported Malaysia’s deputy defence minister and Kudat member of parliament, Abdul Rahim Bakri, as saying strong winds had hit the area at the time the plane was about to land.

Co-pilot March Joel Bansh died last night from serious injuries, while passenger Tan Ah Cai, 96, was pronounced dead at Kudat Hospital earlier that afternoon, according to the daily.

Said MASwings chairman and MAS CEO, Ahmad Jauhari Yahya, in a press statement: “We deeply regret the incident of Kudat of flight MH3002 on Thursday, October 10, 2013…The investigation will be carried out by the authorities. MAS together with MASwings are fully cooperating and assisting the investigation in every possible way.

“As per aircraft maintenance record, the Twin Otter was fit to fly and was in good condition before the accidents. MAS and MASwings will continue to monitor the situation at the crash site and update on the situation, and will provide information relating to the flight itself and updates on steps being taken.”

A 24-hour call service has been activated and a Go Team has been set up in Kudat to look after the families of passengers and keep them informed.

VIETNAM Airlines recently announced it would boost domestic services during the Vietnamese New Year (Tet) holidays next year to meet increased demand.

Between January 19 and February 16, the carrier is offering a total of 835 flights on its nine busiest routes. This includes a 23 per cent increase in flights on the Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh City-Hanoi route for 385 services in total.

The airline is also raising frequencies on the Danang-Ho Chi Minh City-Danang route by 26 per cent for 218 services, and by eight per cent for seven other routes out of Ho Chi Minh City: to Thanh Hoa, Hai Phong, Vinh, Nha Trang, Phu Quoc, Quy Nhon and Buon Ma Thuot.

Vietnam Airlines will also schedule a number of night flights just before Tet, January 25 to 29, and after, from February 2 to 9.

Tung Dao, director of sales and marketing of Silk Path Hotel in Hanoi, welcomed news of additional flights but said many of the extra passengers would be inbound foreign visitors rather than Vietnamese people. “Tet is not our busiest period of the year. The high season from November to March is when we see the most business, but it is welcome news to hear travel will be made easier during the Tet holiday.

“I expect these extra flights will be accommodating inbound visitors.”

ETIHAD Airways yesterday confirmed that it has purchased an additional 9.9 per cent of shares in Virgin Australia, bringing its total stake to 19.9 per cent.

This is close to double the Middle Eastern carrier’s original stake of 10 per cent and means that Etihad has reached the threshold approved by Australia’s Foreign Investment Review Board in June 2013.

The airline’s purchases put it on a par with Singapore Airlines, which earlier this year also raised its stake in Virgin Australia from 10 to 19.9 per cent (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 21, 2013).

James Hogan, president and CEO of Etihad Airways, said: “(The increase stake in Virgin) reflects our strong support for the business strategy and management team of Virgin Australia and our enduring commitment to the Australian market.

“The (10-year) strategic partnership continues to deliver significant revenue streams and other benefits to each airline…Increasing our equity in Virgin Australia will further enrich the commercial benefits which the partnership delivers for both airlines as well as increasing the benefits to Australian travellers and visitors to Australia.”

ASCOTT will open the first international branded serviced residence in Sri Racha, Chonburi Province next year with the debut of the Citadines Grand Central Sri Racha on Thailand’s eastern seaboard.

The 133-unit property is located close to retail outlets, restaurants, international schools and medical facilities, and is a half-hour drive to Pattaya.

Residents can choose between studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments that come with a fully equipped kitchen, separate work and living areas. The serviced residence also comes with a gym, pool and onsen.

Arthur Gindap, regional general manager for Thailand and Philippines, Ascott, said: “Sri Racha is home to the Laem Chabang port, the fourth busiest container port in South-east Asia. It is situated amid thousands of hectares of industrial estates which house multinational companies involved in automotive, electronics, petrochemical and steel manufacturing such as Fujitsu, Sony, ExxonMobil and Bridgestone.

“As Citadines Grand Central Sri Racha will be the first international branded service residence to open in Sri Racha, Ascott will enjoy first-mover advantage in catering to the strong demand for quality accommodation from expatriates and business travellers working in the region.”

Ascott currently operates nine properties in Bangkok.

BEST Western International has polished up its digital offerings for customers in the Asian and Middle East markets.

The hotel company yesterday rolled out its refreshed website, bestwesternasia.com, now boasting more in-depth knowledge and high-quality imagery.

Furthermore, it has also unveiled a new iPad app for Asia and Middle East hotels offering detailed information about the hotels’ rooms, amenities and facilities. Guests may also make bookings directly via the app, which is free from the iTunes store.

Glenn de Souza, vice president of international operations for Asia and the Middle East, said: “Today’s traveller needs an informative and immersive online experience, and we are delighted to be able to provide this with our excellent new website and iPad app for Asia and the Middle East.”

He added: “We will soon have an Android application too.”

FOSUN International and Kerzner International Holdings have signed an agreement to launch the world’s third Atlantis resort along the Haitang Bay National Coast in Sanya, Hainan.

The 62-hectare resort will feature more than 1,300 guest rooms, dining destinations, bars and lounges, the Aquaventure Waterpark and exotic marine exhibits when completed in 2016.

Atlantis, Sanya Hainan is the first Atlantis resort in China and is expected to generate over 3,500 jobs.

Guo Guangchang, chairman of Fosun, said: “Atlantis resorts have really defined the destinations they are located in – first in the Bahamas, and then on Palm Island, in Dubai.

“Atlantis, Sanya Hainan will reinterpret the myth of Atlantis is a new and modern style, while pioneering previously unseen experiences to redefine holiday experiences in China and beyond.”

PANELLISTS at this year’s Cruise Shipping Asia-Pacific conference debated on what products are needed to meet the tastes of Asian customers, drawing attention to two kinds of passengers.

Ted Blamey, principal of Chart Management Consultants that produced the Asia Cruise Association’s (ACA) white paper on cruising, said: “The cultures and customs in Asia, vacation patterns, tastes and preferences, income levels…all vary significantly between one nation and the other, so it’s a mistake to talk about Asia as one market.”

However, mainstream cruisers of each market exhibit overarching similarities when compared against the Western passenger’s profile.

Blamey explained that Westerners prefer cultural experiences and relaxing in the sun or at bars, with about half of them buying shore excursion tours. They also favour seven- to 14-night open-jaw cruises, and are more likely to travel as a couple or with friends.

On the other hand, Asians hope to see and do as much as possible. A whopping 90 per cent book multiple organised tours, while on board they enjoy shopping and karaoke, keeping out of the sun. They also travel in multi-generational family groups and take short roundtrip cruises instead.

ACA’s white paper found that cruises of two-to-three nights and four-to-six nights accounted for 368 and 261 cruises in the region this year respectively. Collectively, short cruises constituted 77 per cent of all cruises through Asia.

To tap this opportunity, Carnival Australia’s CEO, Ann Sherry, urged cruise liners to offer cheap, short weekend cruises and make money from ancillaries instead.

Christina Siaw, CEO of Singapore Cruise Centre, observed: “Singaporeans and Asians go for all our short cruises. They aren’t buying the itinerary, because they’ve been to Port Klang (Kuala Lumpur), Phuket and Penang dozens of times. They buy the time to bond with their three-tier family. It’s a weekend getaway with the family, there’s something for everyone and it’s an Asian habit.

“For the densely populated capitals such as Bangkok and Singapore, what we need is a product where the ship itself is a destination. Many families tell me: ‘Being on the ship is a lot more fun and less stressful than taking my children to Orchard Road (on the weekend).’”

Likewise, Buhdy Bok, senior vice president Pacific Asia and China, Costa Crociere, said that Costa’s ‘Italy at Sea’ premise was a draw. “The Italian experience is very attractive to Asian guests, and we try to keep that, while also offering items that are important to Asians, such as food.”

However, Michael Goh, senior vice president sales, Star Cruises, could not agree. “I think passengers want everything and our job is to create demand among cruisers. Last week, 60 cyclists brought their bicycles on board with us and sailed to Langkawi to cycle. So we have to create the product (according to guest wishes).”

Brett Jardine, general manager of CLIA Australasia presented the middle ground, saying: “I think the really simple answer is there are two types of passengers: itinerary-focused and ship-focused…As long as the industry can cater to all types of passengers, we’re going to prosper.”

MACAU-based Melco Crown Entertainment yesterday unveiled City of Dreams Manila, the company’s new integrated resort joint venture with Belle Corporation. It also announced an increased stake in the venture slated to open mid-2014.

A namesake of Melco’s flagship integrated resort in Macau, the US$1.3 billion Philippine property will accommodate three luxury hotels, including the 260-room six-star Crown Towers Hotel, as well as three entertainment venues, one of which will be a nightclub with an international operator.

“We have a strong client base from China, Hong Kong and Macau. Our plan is to attract families to Manila,” said Melco’s co-chairman Lawrence Ho, highlighting the resort’s intent to also position itself as a family-themed resort.

“We plan to bring in customers where Macau is the backyard…using private jets and helicopters. We have the biggest direct VIP network in Macau – a segment called Premium Direct – and we have the biggest database (in Macau),” added Ho.

Ho said Melco has also brought in junket operators to look at the project in its early stages.

The Philippine Amusement Gaming Corporation, a state-owned gaming license operator, has allowed Melco Crown Philippines (MCP), operator of the resort, to expand its gaming licence to include more gaming tables, slot machines and electronic table games upon opening, compared to its previous anticipated allotment.

Melco Entertainment will be upping its investment in the project from US$620 million to US$680 million as a result of these new development plans.

The project is a rebranding of Belle Corp’s own integrated resort project, Belle Grande Manila Bay, which was in search of funding (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 16,2011).