MALINDO Air will roll out more destinations in India following the launch of its first international route between Kuala Lumpur and New Delhi in June.

CEO, Chandran Ramamuthy, told TTG Asia e-Daily that the airline would commence flights between Kuala Lumpur and Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata in the second half of 2013, subject to regulatory approval.

He added: “We see India is a big and growing market. In terms of tourism arrivals, it is the second largest medium-haul market after China.”

Besides ramping up seat capacity, Malindo Air’s new Indian services might pave the way for lower airfares and new outbound destinations for Indian tourists, said Grandlotus Travel Agencies managing director, K Thangavelu.

“With Malindo Air’s new services and its affiliations with Lion Air, we can also look at twinning Malaysia with Indonesia. Indonesia is a new destination for the Indian market, but I think (products) with Hindu and Buddhist influences such as Bali and the Borobudur will appeal to them.”

After India, China will be the next country on Malindo’s expansion radar, with Beijing and Shanghai targeted as the first two points, according to Chandran.

Malindo Air and sister carrier Lion Air will move their bases to KLIA2 once the new airport becomes operational, including baggage check-through services, he revealed.

CHINATOWN Food Street in Singapore will be shut for renovations from May 1, though traffic along Smith Street will continue as per normal until further notice.

During the closure, shophouse units nine to 29 and 37 to 41 will be affected. Other units remain operational, said the Singapore Tourism Board.

A rejuvenated Chinatown Food Street will be opened in 4Q2013.

THAILAND welcomed 15 per cent more arrivals from India between January and March this year, and is stepping up efforts to woo even more travellers from the market.

This year, Thailand is targeting 1.3 million visitors from India. “It’s overwhelming to see such an increase and it only reinstates our belief of crossing the 1.3 million mark,” said Sethaphan Buddhani, director, Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Mumbai.

Continued efforts have been made to promote newer markets and segments of travel through fam trips. The NTO took a group of Indian wedding planners on an educational tour.

Delhi and Mumbai’s media and travel consultants travelled on a new THAI Smile direct flight to Phuket to showcase the destination for family holidays, while a similar group was also flown to Bangkok to mark the first Ahmedabad-Bangkok THAI Smile flight.

Separately, TAT has appointed Gaganjeet Bhullar as ambassador for golf tourism in Thailand as part of efforts to promote niche travel such as golf, weddings and honeymoon.

Thailand had also earlier picked a new minister for tourism and sports in Somsak Pureesrisak, who has indicated that visitor safety and security would be a prime focus during his tenure (TTG Asia e-Daily, April 18, 2013).

A gloomy economic climate notwithstanding, 38 per cent of travellers foresee higher travel-related expenditure this year, says a global study by CNN on travel and tourism patterns of consumers.

In comparison, 17 per cent said they would tighten purse strings, found CNN Consumer Connect – Travel and Tourism 2013, which drew responses from 3,106 individuals from more than 70 countries worldwide.

Survey participants reported spending an average of US$3,000 per holiday and making three leisure trips a year.

The report also found that 54 per cent of respondents from Asia-Pacific intend to travel within their home region, compared to the remaining 46 per cent who place visiting other regions at the top of their wishlist.

On a global scale, 51 per cent of travellers have specific Asia-Pacific destinations they plan to visit within the next 12 months. Australia, Thailand and Hong Kong are among the top travel choices within Asia-Pacific.

Meanwhile, 54 per cent are contemplating visiting new and emerging destinations and 58 per cent of respondents have booked entire holidays online.

And when it comes to choosing a destination, 65 per cent of Asia-Pacific travellers regard price as a key factor, followed by safety with 64 per cent and reputation with 57 per cent.

Duncan Morris, vice president of research, Turner International Asia Pacific, said: “These results are great news for the travel and tourism industry…At a time where money in the household is perceived to be tighter, spending on holidays is still obviously a priority.”

PATA has come together with Hong Kong Polytechnic University’s (PolyU) School of Hotel and Tourism Management (SHTM) to release a joint publication, Asia Pacific Visitor Forecasts 2013-2017, which, according to the collaborators, will help tourism practitioners anticipate future trends of the visitor economy.

Published annually with a quarterly breakdown, the Asia Pacific Visitor Forecasts 2013-2017 will offer information on visitor arrivals from key source markets to 41 destinations in Asia-Pacific, as well as visitor expenditures and departures of these PATA member economies.

Covering a five-year horizon (up from three), the forecasts also include price elasticity variables for a majority of the destinations.

According to Kaye Chon, dean of SHTM at PolyU, the forecasts will help tourism planners and operators strategise their long-term decision and policy making by predicting arrivals, tourism receipts and departures according to country/region of origins.

Added Haiyen Song, associate dean (research) and chair professor, SHTM, PolyU, who is heading the forecast unit: “Airlines, for example, can use these forecasts to predict traffic flows from different source markets, which plus their own data, can provide a general trend (of the industry). Travel (consultants) can use these data to look out for potential markets.”

PATA CEO, Martin Craigs, said: “The scope and quality of the forecasts will add value to our many different members across 17 time zones and many different functional groups.”

Song also presented forecast highlights at the PATA media briefing yesterday. He pointed out that visitor arrivals to Asia-Pacific will continue to grow with an average annual growth rate of 4.1 per cent from 2013-2017 and reach 581 million by 2017. North-east Asia will maintain a dominant position in the region’s inbound market, with its market share expected to reach 53.5 per cent by 2017.

China is predicted to remain the top inbound destination in Asia-Pacific, peaking at 147.4 million visitors in 2017, while its outbound traffic to the region will exceed 100 million by 2015.

The Asia Pacific Visitor Forecasts 2013-2017 will be available to government members and premier partners of PATA through the PATAmPower insights tool. Other members may purchase the forecasts, while customised versions are available upon request for an additional fee.

INDONESIA Lion Air Group launched its full-service subsidiary, Batik Air, yesterday, with a twice-daily Jakarta-Manado flight slated to be the latter’s first service come May 3.

The launch was postponed earlier this month to allow the parent group to focus on recovery following the Lion Air crash in Bali on April 13 (TTG Asia e-Daily, April 18, 2013).

Batik Air will begin operations with a fleet of six Boeing 737-900ERs this year, serving routes between Jakarta and Balikpapan, Pekanbaru and Ambon.

The aircraft has 180 seats including 12 business and 168 economy, offering a seat pitch of 32 inches and 29 inches in the respective classes. The interior is equipped with individual touch-screen entertainment monitors and telecommunications services.

Lion Air general affairs director, Edward Sirait, said: “(Passengers) will be able to make calls and access the Internet on board at a later stage. We are in the process of materialising (the telecommunication service) with related parties.”

Lion Group has also placed on order for five Boeing 787 Dreamliners – scheduled for delivery in 2015 – to strengthen Batik Air’s international operations.

A NUMBER of international sport events will take place in Vietnam this year, bringing with them hopes of stronger foreign arrivals into the country.

The inaugural Laguna Lang Co Triathlon kicked off the year’s race calendar on April 11. Held over four days at the new Laguna Lang Co integrated resort, which sits some 55km from Da Nang International Airport, the race was attended by 246 people, most of whom were foreigners who stayed onsite at Angsana Lang Co and Banyan Tree Lang Co.

Mui Ne in south-eastern Vietnam will host an off-road triathlon this month, an event that is expected to draw 350 participants.

Jean-Luc Voison, joint founder of race organiser, VietAdventure, said: “We have two other events, the Madagui Trophy and the Mountain Bike Forest Challenge, which are both based out of our new Talai Eco-Lodge. These events have been key to the success of (the Talai Eco-Lodge) as it is based in an area where there has been almost zero tourism until now.”

Later in the year, Danang will host the new Danang International Marathon, managed by US-based World Marathon Tours.

Ben Thanh Tourist in Ho Chi Minh City has been appointed official tour operator for Vietnam, and its vice director, Nguyen Minh Quyen, said the company had already secured 500 entrants from the US alone.

“This (event) is huge for Danang. We are working with many of the city’s five-star hotels, including Furama Resort Danang and Fusion Maia Resort, as well as three- and four-star options,” said Nguyen, adding that the company has developed a series of packages, including a 10-day tour that will drive business to hotels in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.

Nguyen added that Vietnamese consumers are also set to travel for the event.

He said: “We are seeing a lot of interest from locals who will take part in the fun run and make a holiday out of the event.”

Meanwhile, more events are being planned for Vietnam, including an ultra mountain race, golf tournaments and a multi-discipline race in Ninh Binh, a city in the north.

By David Lloyd Buglar

AYALA Land and the Makati Tourism Foundation are banding together to increase Makati’s visibility as an arts and culture destination through a year-long campaign, offering up event spaces that can also be booked by groups.

Make it Makati is the tagline for Ayala’s ongoing 60 billion peso (US$1.5 billion) redevelopment masterplan for Makati, which began in 2011 and divides the city into six distinct hubs for business, lifestyle, entertainment and transport.

Said Christian Pirodon, president, Makati Tourism Foundation: “We would like Makati to be known not just as a centre for business, but also as a centre of cultural activity, with historical sites of its own.”

Pirodon, who is also InterContinental Hotels Group’s area general manager Philippines, added that enhancing Makati’s leisure image would also allow hotels to attract more room nights from families and FITs.

Its entertainment district, Circuit, opened in January with an events ground, and will be augmented by a sports park due to open in October followed by a 1,500-pax Circuit Theatre for local and international, Broadway-level productions, as well as a number of 300m² Black Box spaces.

Retail outlets, dining options and accommodation are still under construction, and Ayala Land president, Antonino Aquino, predicts that about 90 per cent of Circuit will be complete by 2016.

Two major music festivals will kick off in May: Wanderland Musicfest, targeting 5,000 participants, and Circuit Fest, a skateboard and music festival aiming for a 15,000-strong crowd.

However, Mel Ignacio, assistant vice president, Ayala Land, said that the arts would not be the sole focus of Circuit. “We don’t want to limit (the Theatre) as an arts venue. We know that in other countries it could be utilised as a conference facility,” she said, adding that surrounding spaces such as rehearsal rooms and meet-and-greet areas would be attractive for private parties. “Our venue packages are designed to accommodate groups of less than 100 people or as large as 15,000-20,000.”

A foreign bank has already booked Circuit for a cocktails function for an estimated 800-1,200 pax later in the year, while Ayala Land’s Family Day in December expects to welcome 1,500 pax.

Ignacio also revealed that Ayala Land is looking for a site in Makati for a convention centre.

Meanwhile, the Makati Tourism Federation is rolling out a new Makati Loop coach tour that will make stops at parks, churches and art galleries, as well as a tourist information kiosk. Ayala Land is also supporting the foundation’s efforts with a smartphone app to promote Makati.

*Our original copy stated that the year-long campaign referred to Ayala Land’s Make it Makati tagline for its redevelopment masterplan and that the smartphone app was a product of the Makati Tourism Foundation. These are incorrect and have been changed.

ACCOR’S board of directors has given chairman and CEO Denis Hennequin the boot and instituted an interim team, following differences over the implementation of the group’s strategy.

A statement released by the French company said that the board “requested that the top priority be given to focusing energy and resources on transforming Accor’s business model. The board took note of Denis Hennequin’s reservations and unanimously voted to terminate his mandate with immediate effect on April 23, 2013”.

According to Reuters, Hennequin was employed in 2010 to speed up the implementation of an asset-light strategy, focusing on franchises and management contracts. However, stakeholders grew impatient when Accor shares performed poorly on the market, falling close to five per cent in 2013, and wanted to expedite asset sales and franchising for better returns.

Yann Caillère, previously president and COO has been appointed as CEO, vice chairman Philippe Citerne is now non-executive chairman, and board member Sébastien Bazin will take over Citerne as vice chairman.

Reuters stated that Hennequin’s predecessor, Gilles Pelisson, was shown the door in 2010 after “strategic differences” with the board.