RIDING the growing wave of road cycling in Thailand, SpiceRoads Cycle Tours has rolled out a new tour led by a champion cyclist to entice biking enthusiasts.

Starting from Bangkok on January 31 and ending in Phuket on February 7 next year, the eight-day programme will be led by Sean Kelly, one of the most successful professional cyclists for over 18 years until his retirement in 1994.

The Ride with Sean Kelly tour is designed for cyclists who want to push themselves hard each day, as riders joining this programme “need to be fit and be able to sustain a minimum speed of 30kph”, according to Patricia Weismantel, product manager of SpiceRoads.

On the other hand, participants will experience riding alongside a former professional cyclist, with opportunities to get training tips and first-hand account of tales on the cycling circuit.

Participants will cover 700km across six cycling days, with overnight stays at resorts and afternoons free to spend at their leisure.

Priced at US$2,750, the programme will be fully supported by air-conditioned vehicles, with water, sports drinks and snacks provided along the way. Riders can bring their own bikes or rent a Trek 2.1C from SpiceRoads for US$200. The programme is limited to 20 participants.

Depending on the turnout for the inaugural tour, the Bangkok-based bicycle tour operator might roll out similar programmes with other professional riders in future, Weismantel revealed.

Bike tourism has been identified as an emerging segment by the Tourism Authority of Thailand, which hosted the inaugural Bangkok Bike Expo 2013 (TTG Asia e-Daily, April 1, 2013) in May and has recently piloted new cycling routes in central Thailand under the Pedal Around Thailand initiative as part of its ‘7 Greens’ concept.

VACATION rentals website HomeAway has entered an agreement to take over the majority control of Travelmob, in a continued push to go deeper into the Asia-Pacific market.

The Singapore-based Travelmob is an online start-up for vacation rentals in Asia-Pacific, with an inventory of over 14,000 properties. The site supports 13 different currencies and operates in Bahasa, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Thai, Vietnamese and English.

Following the closure of the all-cash transaction in a few weeks, Travelmob will retain 37 per cent of the business.

HomeAway and Travelmob first started dealing through a distribution partnership announced in March this year, and HomeAway expects to spend US$2 million in further growing its acquisition.

The move is the latest push by HomeAway to ramp up its presence in the region, which has seen it invest in China-based vacation rental company, Tujia.com, in partnership with Ctrip.com International; launch an Australia site in HomeAway.com.au; and seal distribution partnerships with Wego.com and Tripvillas.com. It also opened a sales office in Bangkok in April this year.

“Economists note over 100 million people will enter the Asian middle class each of the next several years, and Asia will have an increasing influence over the world’s economic growth. We believe this will have significant implications for not only travel but also for the purchase of homes, both of which drive HomeAway’s growth,” said Brian Sharples, CEO, HomeAway, in a media statement.

“We view Asia as a region where we can build tremendous incremental value for our shareholders and existing customers over the next several years. Given this opportunity, we’re excited to work with the experienced Travelmob team to address today’s market needs in Asia ­– where vacation rentals are mostly new, but alternative accommodations are not – to build scale and accelerate the development of the vacation rental industry.”

KOREAN Air and Etihad Airways have inked a pact that will see the two carriers codeshare on the latter’s Seoul (Incheon)-Abu Dhabi route, the first of more codeshare flights to come.

Should regulatory authorities from both countries approve, codesharing will begin on July 22 for the Etihad-operated flights on the route.

Under the agreement, Korean Air passengers will benefit from lounge access, priority check-in and excess allowances for top-tier programme members, valid on all Etihad flights. They will also be able to earn and redeem frequent flyer points.

Korean Air currently operates five-times-weekly flights between Seoul (Incheon) and Dubai, as well as thrice-weekly flights linking Seoul and Riyadh/Jeddah.

US CHAIN SLS Hotels has revealed that it will be making inroads into the massive Chinese market, beginning with the opening of a property in Shanghai next year.

According to a statement on parent company sbe’s website, the first SLS Hotel will debut in Palm Beach, Shanghai, to offer guests “an all-encompassing oceanfront resort experience”. Besides a full-service spa and fitness centre, there will also be a residential component.

More hotels are also under development in Beijing, Kunming and Wuxi, in collaboration with partner Palace Hospitality. The hotels are slated for 2015 openings.

“China is home to one of the fastest-growing tourism markets worldwide, and Shanghai, Beijing, Wuxi and Kunming attract a global community of business and leisure travellers whose sensibilities align very well with the SLS Hotels experience,” said Sam Nazarian , founder, chairman and CEO, sbe.

“After growing the brand successfully across the US, we’re honoured to share the SLS Hotels approach to hospitality with China, which is rooted in a humble commitment to uncompromising service, innovative design and captivating food and beverage offerings.”

INTI Universal Holdings and the Malaysian Association of Hotels Training and Education Centre (MAHTEC) signed an MoU yesterday, which will see MAHTEC give INTI’s hospitality graduates industry certification.

Effective immediately, the MAHTEC certificate is an additional award INTI students will receive upon graduation.

As an award given by the industry, the certificate is set to strengthen graduate employability, said Rohit Sharma, INTI’s chief operating officer.

He added: “This agreement with MAHTEC is the first step of many that we will take to elevate the standards of INTI’s hospitality programmes and raise the bar for hospitality education, training and development. It will lead to a greatly enhanced learning experience for students and (equip them with) work skills that will prepare them for a career with the best hospitality establishments in Malaysia and abroad.”

Students of hotel management or culinary arts will receive the MAHTEC certificate in addition to their diplomas upon graduation. INTI’s Diploma in Hotel Management programme is affiliated with Blue Mountains International Hotel Management School, while its Diploma in Culinary Arts course is affiliated with Kendall College.

Reginald T Pereira, director, MAHTEC, added that MAHTEC would also use INTI campuses in Sabah and Penang to offer short hospitality-related programmes for professionals in the industry.

IATA has come out to make its position known regarding the dispute over length of credit cycles in Sri Lanka (TTG Asia e-Daily, July 9, 2013), pointing out that IATA “does not determine the remittance frequency”.

The payment scheme in question, IATA’s Billing and Settlement Plan, provides a standardised interface between travel consultants and airlines and removes the need for travel consultants to provide individual bank guarantees for each airline they sell for.

According to an email to TTG Asia e-Daily from Albert Tjoeng, assistant director of corporate communications, Asia-Pacific, IATA, changes to the BSP agency programme operated around the world has to be proposed by the local Agency Program Joint Council (APJC) and approved by the Passenger Agency Conference (PAConf).

APJC comprises an equal number of representatives from both airlines and consultants, and is authorised to consider all aspects of the agency programme and make recommendations to PAConf.

IATA, as secretary to PAConf, “does not determine the remittance frequency”.

However, Tjoeng observed that moving to a seven-day credit cycle would reduce the financial burden of travel consultants as a result of lower financial guarantee requirement from more frequent remittances.

Sri Lankan consultants benefit from a bank guarantee that is 23 per cent lower, while the figure is 28 per cent for small consultants.

Furthermore, the seven-day cycle would bring Sri Lanka in line with best practices in neighboring BSPs, such as Australia, India, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, countries already on a weekly or more frequent remittance cycle.

Tjoeng also highlighted that the enforcement of the seven-day cycle had already been postponed thrice: to January 1, 2010, January 1, 2012 and July 1, 2013.

The secretary of Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Civil Aviation met with industry representatives on July 10, and agreed to proceed with the implementation of the weekly settlement for BSP Sri Lanka from July 1.

Sri Lanka’s APJC is also to submit a new proposal to PAConf in October 2013 for consideration.

TRAVEL consultants who sell adventure travel products may now join an association with their like-minded global counterparts, via a new membership programme unveiled by the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA).

The programme is meant to attract such travel consultants and strengthen the global adventure tourism network.

ATTA president, Shannon Stowell, said: “For years, we’ve looked to support and reach out to travel (consultants) specialising in adventure travel.

“Now, with our dedicated membership programme, we plan to more readily integrate these travel (consultants) into the adventure tourism supply chain, to offer specialised training and to connect them with partners that will bring more adventure travel offerings to consumers.

“Travel (consultants) have the power to influence buying behaviour with their traveller relationships and this is precisely what we wish to cultivate within our network.”

Annual, fee-based membership to ATTA costs US$150 per consultant and requires an accreditation number from organisations such as IATA, CLIA, among others.

Member benefits include invitations to events and fam trips, including ATTA’s upcoming Adventure Travel Mexico event; webinars on destinations, marketing, PR and adventure travel offerings; travel consultant page listing and traveller inquiry form on adventure.travel, a consumer-facing adventure portal; and opportunities to become destinations specialists and partner with destinations on co-marketing projects, etc.

Consultants will have to fill up an application form found on the association’s website, www.adventuretravel.biz, to apply.

INTERCONTINENTAL Hotels Group (IHG) has opened Holiday Inn Express Singapore Orchard Road, the first of two Holiday Inn Express hotels planned for the city-state.

The 221-room hotel marks the entry of the brand into the Singapore hospitality sector.

Located within walking distance of shopping malls, the hotel also boasts easy access to Somerset and Orchard MRT stations.

Guests can enjoy free Wi-Fi access within hotel premises, an express breakfast bar or grab-and-go breakfasts, and make use of the hotel’s self-service business centre and laundry room.

Holiday Inn Express Singapore Orchard Road is the third Holiday Inn Express hotel in South-east Asia, after Holiday Inn Express Phuket Patong Beach Central and Holiday Inn Express Bangkok Siam.

Holiday Inn Express Singapore Clarke Quay is slated to come on stream in 1Q2014.

Clarence Tan, COO South-east Asia and Resorts, IHG, said: “Globally, Holiday Inn Express is one of the largest and fastest-growing brands in the industry and, in South-east Asia, the brand has a particularly bright future ahead.

“We are confident that Holiday Inn Express will do well in Singapore, whether guests are here for a quick stopover or longer trip, for business or for leisure.”

To celebrate its opening, the hotel has rolled out a special rate of S$198 (US$157) for stays until November 30.