ASIANA Airlines’ CEO has apologised for the crash-landing of the carrier’s San Francisco-bound flight, which cost two passengers their lives and injured more.

In a media statement released yesterday, the airline’s top executive, Young-Doo Yoon, said: “We at Asiana Airlines would like (to) express our utmost sympathy and regret for the distress experienced by the passengers of flight OZ214 and their families as a result of this accident.”

“We apologise most deeply.”

The airline said it would continue to cooperate fully with both US and South Korean governmental institutions in the investigation into the crash, and has established an emergency response centre at its headquarters to do so.

It has also dispatched a special flight carrying Asiana staff members from Seoul to San Francisco to assist those affected by the incident.

Asiana Airlines’ OZ214, ferrying 291 passengers and 16 cabin crew, departed Incheon International Airport and met with distress upon its landing at San Francisco International Airport’s runway 28.

BANGLADESH has begun offering visas on arrival (VoA) for business travellers with immediate effect, opening the door to more foreign investment.

The new facility is available to citizens of the US, Canada, Australia, Russia, China, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, Bahrain and the European Union countries.

Valid for 30 days and free of charge, the VoA is issued at all international airports and land border posts. However, travellers may be required to show a letter of invitation from their business partners or inviting organisations, a return flight ticket, and must be able to show they are carrying at least US$500.

VoAs for transits will also be offered for US$20 at the country’s airports for a maximum transit period of 72 hours.

Mozzamat Nazmanara Khanum, deputer secretary, Bangladesh’s Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, said: “VoAs will facilitate a larger number of arrivals to Bangladesh and business travel will be combined with some tourist activity too. A larger number of visitors will be exposed to our country’s cultural and tourist attractions. We believe the gateway has been opened.”

Akhtaruz Zaman Khan Kabir, CEO, Bangladesh Tourism Board, said: “VoA is a positive step towards increasing footfalls in business travel and MICE. Our infrastructure is growing to accommodate more visitors with additional branded hotels and conference facilities. We hope to see more arrivals soon.”

JW Marriott is set to open a 700-key property near Dhaka’s international airport in 2Q2014, while a 300-room Marriott is under construction in the capital.

International inbound arrivals to Bangladesh grew from 3.2 million in 2005 to six million in 2012.

THE Muslim fasting month of Ramadan is traditionally a low period for business meetings at Malaysian hotels, but two Kuala Lumpur hoteliers and a travel management company interviewed said they were witnessing stronger demand for meeting packages compared to last year.

They credited this to the recovery of demand following the slowdown in 1H2013 due to the general elections in May (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 26, 2013).

Seri Pacific Hotel Kuala Lumpur’s director of sales-MICE, Mohan Bhanu, explained: “Many corporate companies and the government had deferred their trainings and meetings earlier in the year in anticipation of the 13^th Malaysian General Election on May 5.

“As the budget has to be used up before their current financial year ends, many are taking the opportunity to hold trainings, seminars, workshops in our hotel during the fasting month to benefit from our special meeting package promotions. This year, we are also seeing early corporate bookings, at least two months in advance prior to Ramadan.

“This year, we expect response to our meeting packages to increase by 30 per cent compared with last year, and this is based on current enquiries and bookings made.”

De Palma Hotel Ampang room division manager, L Kanthan, is also anticipating a 30 per cent increase in meeting package sales this year. He said the hotel had introduced Ramadan meeting packages where Muslim clients could forego their lunch and coffee breaks, in place of the hotel’s break fast buffet.

He added: “Take-up (has been) good, especially from our government clients who make up the bulk of our business.”

Travel management company Sutra Utama’s group managing director, Mohd Syed Razif Al Yahya, said: “Demand for business travel overseas to non-Muslim countries is as per normal during Ramadan. However, domestic meetings have slowed down a little – by 15 to 20 per cent compared with other months. In previous years, domestic meetings would see a slowdown of some 30 per cent.

“This year is different. There was a big slowdown leading up to the general election and immediately after, but meetings have started moving again.”

IN LINE with Japan National Tourism Organization’s (JNTO) shift towards South-east Asia, the regional tourism body from Kyushu is banking on its accessibility and transport options to attract more inbound arrivals.

At the Singapore leg of a two-city roadshow featuring sellers from the southern Japanese region, Naoyuki Sato, director general of the Kyushu District Transport Bureau, said in a message that South-east Asia was now “top priority for Kyushu, especially Singapore”.

Hiroyasu Konishi, manager, overseas division, Kyushu Tourism Promotion Organization (KTPO), said self-drive holidays were one form of travel the board was keen to further promote to Singaporeans.

“Singaporeans consider Kyushu a countryside destination and many families come to Kyushu for self-drive holidays. Compared to the congested roads of Tokyo and Osaka, Kyushu is easy to drive in. In Kyushu, we also drive on the same side of the road,” Konishi added.

Also introduced at the roadshow was the new Kyushu Railway Company’s Seven Stars in Kyushu cruise train, which would take passengers on a luxury 4D3N or 2D1N trip around the region and bundle in a high-end ryokan stay, from commencement of operations in October.

“Travel consultants can add such trips on to a six-day itinerary, for instance,” suggested Konishi.

JNTO data shows a total of 21,220 Singapore travellers visited the Kyushu region in 2012. In comparison, 235,160 Singapore visitors went to Tokyo and 132,320 travelled to Hokkaido.

Furthermore, KPTO has stepped up its effort to engage the trade, holding a fam trip for 36 travel consultants from six South-east Asian countries last month, and organising a roadshow in Bangkok for the first time.

However, Kyushu is still overshadowed by top-of-mind destinations in Japan such as Hokkaido.

SA Tours’ product manager, Ebonny Ng, said: “When people think of Japan, it’s still Tokyo or Hokkaido.”

He cited the example of Harmonyland in Oita, Kyushu, featuring Sanrio characters such as Hello Kitty, which was bigger than Sanrio Puroland in Tokyo but not as well known due to a “lack of awareness”.

On what else could be done to promote travel to Kyushu, Ng pointed out: “A few years ago, many Hong Kong and Taiwan dramas featured Kyushu as a setting, so there was an opportunity there (but it was not leveraged). But in Singapore, (travel) shows rarely go there.”

Ng observed that demand for Kyushu tours at SA Tours was seasonal, occurring mostly in June or December, and said that the company saw about 10 group tours to the region annually.

FOUR Seasons Hotels and Resorts is continuing to permeate the China market with its latest Four Seasons Hotel Shenzhen, which will open on September 1.

Cristina Dolendo, director of marketing, Four Seasons Hotel Shenzhen, said: “Today, there are more people who want to see another side of China other than the typical Shanghai and Beijing, so that is why Shenzhen is our new target.

“Shenzhen is the Silicon Valley in China, a city important for their technology, finance and manufacturing.”

Dolendo said Four Seasons Hotel Shenzhen would appeal especially to business travellers with its prime downtown location in Futian, directly opposite the city’s convention and exhibition centre.

Highlighting the hotel’s meeting facilities, Dolendo shared that the hotel offers a total of 1,800m² of event space, including a 360-pax pillarless ballroom.

Guests also have the option of hosting receptions amid nature or in rooms with floor-to-window ceilings offering city views at the hotel’s seventh-floor terraces, either option capable of holding up to 80 pax.

She said: “We want our guests to feel relaxed and comfortable despite being in a business event, by bringing nature and outdoor living to them.”

Dolendo said the hotel was targeting a “good mix” of both business and leisure travellers in the 266-key hotel.

Four Seasons Hotel Shenzhen also features two swimming pools – one indoor, one outdoor, a 24-hour gym, a business centre with full secretariat services and three dining outlets.

The property marks Four Seasons’ eighth hotel in China, aside from hotels in key cities such as Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou and Hangzhou.

BANYAN Tree Hotels & Resorts is hoping to reap the benefits of the falling Indian rupee and the resulting inhibited outbound travel for wedding and luxury tourism, with next year’s launch of Banyan Tree Kerala.

The group’s first property in India (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 28, 2013), the 59-villa resort is eyeing luxury groups, weddings, boutique events and luxury FIT clients.

Sriram Kailasam, general manager, Banyan Tree Kerala, said: “We have received many enquiries for venues for small destination weddings. Banyan Tree Kerala features a banquet area that can accommodate up to 200 people, and (the island on resort premises) provides a perfect setting for weddings.”

Seema Ahmed, general manager, Gainwell Travel & Leisure, said: “It is a boon to be able to offer our luxury clients a resort of this calibre in India. It has generated a great deal of interest and will provide an alternative option to overseas travel every time.”

She commented that other products such as spas and the state’s recently launched seaplane network (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 4, 2013) would be “in synergy” with the expectations of high-end travellers.

Audrey Chung, senior assistant vice president-global marketing network, Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts, revealed: “Besides Banyan Tree Kerala, we are keen on developing a property in Goa. We will also look at city locations like New Delhi and Mumbai if opportunities arise. We expect to announce our next project in India soon.”

Chung added that having seen a surge in business from China and India last year, the company was ditching its Europe-centric approach, and believed that the opening of the Kerala resort would become a catalyst for growth in India.

Trade sources expect the group’s next project is an Angsana-brand property in Goa.

*Our article previously reported that Banyan Tree Kerala was due to open next month, as per last information received. This has now been updated to reflect the latest information from Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts

SWISS-Garden International (SGI) Hotels, Resorts & Inns continues to expand aggressively through Malaysia with the addition of six more properties to its portfolio, bringing the total number of hotels and serviced apartments to 18.

According to Kem Siew, SGI’s vice president of sales and marketing, this bumper addition will increase the group’s total room inventory by 70 per cent, from its existing 2,500.

She said: “We are expanding our portfolio in tandem with demand and we want to increase our overall presence in Malaysia.” Siew added that the current occupancy rate for SGI’s city hotels stands at 80 per cent.

The six new properties, which are slated for completion within the next three years, are: Swiss-Garden Hotel Malacca, Swiss-Garden Hotel & Residences Cameron Highlands, D’ Majestic serviced apartments in Kuala Lumpur, Swiss-Garden Resort Residences Kuantan, Pavilion-Garden Suites in Kota Bharu and Damai Laut Sea Villas.

Siew said SGI was seeks to tap the “increasing demand” for serviced residences from both leisure and business travellers.

“Families that travel in big groups want to stay together instead of booking three or four hotel rooms, and there are corporate travellers who want to book a place for several months.”

According to Siew, SGI’s properties are largely popular among travellers from Singapore, Hong Kong and China, and that 70 per cent of SGI’s guests are from Asia, while 30 per cent belong to the Europe and Australia markets.

The bulk of SGI’s properties are concentrated in Malaysia, with the exception of one in Sydney.

Siew said: “Right now we want people to think of Swiss-Garden when they come to Malaysia, whether for a hotel or apartment experience. But in the long run, we definitely want to expand out of Malaysia into countries like Vietnam and China.”

MARRIOTT International is strengthening its presence in India, with the upcoming September 1 debut of Asia-Pacific’s first Fairfield property in Bengaluru and engagement with the local travel trade.

The 148-key Fairfield by Marriott Bengaluru Rajajinagar, situated close to Bengaluru International Exhibition Centre and 50 minutes away from Bengaluru International Airport, will offer three meeting rooms and 201m² of meeting space in total.

“We are launching our first Fairfield brand in Asia-Pacific with the opening of Fairfield Bengaluru on September 1 this year. Our plan is to open a number of Fairfield properties in Tier Two and Tier Three Indian cities,” said Vishal Gupta, director of travel trade sales-India, Marriott Hotels India.

“Marriott is adding four hotels on average every year in India. Fairfield, which is a mid-scale brand, will be an important part of our expansion strategy,” he added.

Marriott International plans to introduce the Fairfield brand in other Indian cities including Surat, Vadodara, Indore, Ranchi, Manesar, Goa, Mumbai, Lucknow, Noida and Visakhapatnam.

Marriott in February signed a franchise agreement with GHJM Hotels for the Fairfield by Marriott in Surat, Gujarat (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 7, 2013).

“Marriott has been a successful hotel group in the Indian market and we expect the Fairfield brand will be well accepted here,” said Manan Mahajan, vice president, Yatra Exotic Routes.

Marriott International is also looking to strengthen links with the travel trade, through which it derives eight per cent of its business in India and aims to increase this to 15-20 per cent by end-2013.

The travel trade was a “focus area” for Marriott this year, said Gupta.

Marriott International kickstarted customer appreciation events last week with Yatra Exotic Routes, is working towards popularising the Marriott Affiliate Program among Indian travel consultants, and is planning its first travel trade awards this year.

“We are asking travel trade partners to enrol in a pin number programme, which will give consultants access to wholesale rates,” said Gupta.