HOTEL and serviced apartment operator V Group has opened V Wanchai² in Wanchai, Hong Kong, the group’s first full-fledged hotel.

The 79-room hotel is minutes away from the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, as well as the Hong Kong Exhibition Centre.

Its design incorporates Chinese elements such as its abacus-inspired wall feature in the reception area and the custom-made bird and flower carvings on the doors and headboards of its rooms.

V Wanchai² offers 30 studio-style Luxe rooms, 26 Premium Deluxe rooms (47.4m²), 10 Deluxe rooms (55.7m²) and 13 V Grand Suites (68.7m²).

Rooms feature TVs, audio systems, bath and rain showers, and wine coolers in selected rooms. Guests can access a complimentary DVD library, high-speed wireless Internet and local calls.

THAI hotel chain Centara Hotels & Resorts has laid hands on a third property in the Maldives through a partnership with RPI.

Centara signed the management contract with RPI in September last year and the property is currently being developed at a cost of US$36 million.

To be opened within the second half of 2014, the 110-room Centara Hudhufushi Resort & Spa will be located on the eastern side of Lhaviyani Atoll, a 25-minute seaplane ride away from Male International Airport.

The Thai chain currently operates Centara Grand Island Resort & Spa Maldives and will open Centara Ras Fushi Resort & Spa Maldives this month.

Chris Bailey, senior vice president for sales and marketing, Centara Hotels & Resorts, said: “Our international presence has grown extremely strongly during the past few years, and the Maldives has been a major success for us.

“We believe that having a third Maldives resort, in a very different location among the Maldivian islands, and with a different style (from) the existing two resorts, will give us a very powerful marketing tool.

“Our marketing division for the Indian Ocean region has recently been strengthened, and we have great confidence in (both) the region and our latest venture.”

Over the next five years, the Thai hotel chain is aiming to acquire more than 45 hotels and resorts, with the intention of reaching 100 properties worldwide by 2017 (TTG Asia e-Daily, August 1, 2012).

ACCOR has announced three new signings in Myanmar, joining other companies like Best Western International and Hilton Worldwide who have also revealed plans to open properties in the country.

Accor will develop three newly-built hotels – a 168-room MGallery hotel in Nay Pyi Taw, 366-room Novotel Yangon Max and 280-room Novotel Mandalay Mingalar – with the second to open by the end of this year (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 22, 2013).

Meanwhile, senior international development manager from Best Western International’s Asia and Middle East head office, Akarapong Sukjit, has confirmed that the chain has been discussing franchising and ownership options in Myanmar with potential investors.

He said: “We’ve had many meetings with local firms…There are many places we are interested in such as Yangon, Nay Pyi Taw, Mandalay, Kalaw, Bagan and other key destinations.

“After sanctions were lifted and after Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama visited, that gave us confidence in the market. There are tremendous opportunities here, and a lot of foreign direct investment.”

Last week, Hilton Worldwide also signed an agreement with LP Holding to manage the 300-room Hilton Yangon in Kyauktada Township, the brand‘s first-ever property in the country, scheduled to open in 2014 (TTG Asia e-Daily, March 6, 2013).

KOREA Tourism Organization (KTO) is targeting 100,000 arrivals from India in 2013, having identified a wide range of offerings that will appeal to the market ranging from traditional homestays to cuisine.

KTO will focus on developing high-quality tourism products and special incentive programmes for tour operators and travel consultants, while also promoting cultural events, sports, cuisine, temples and traditional homestays to Indian travellers.

After a very successful foray in New Delhi, KTO opened its second Indian office in Mumbai last year. South Korea saw 92,000 Indian visitors in 2012.

Lee Jae-Sang, director, KTO India, said: “We will provide detailed information and product knowledge to the travel trade, as well as promote the destination through roadshows along with advertising, joint promotions, tradeshows and fam trips on a pan-India basis.”

South Korea is also keen to ride on the wave of Bollywood films being shot in foreign locations, in addition to its appeal as one of the top five convention destinations in the world.

Vineet Gopal, secretary, Outbound Tour Operators Association of India and managing director, Engee Holidays, said: “MICE and film tourism will require designing packages to suit these travel segments. The potential for growth is enormous as Indians are looking for new destinations all the time.”

SRI Lanka’s third-largest hotel chain Jetwing Hotels is in expansion mode, with plans to nearly double its room stock over the next 24 months.

Jetwing Hotels’ chairman, Hiran Cooray, told TTG Asia e-Daily that the family-owned group would increase its current inventory of 540 rooms by another 400.

Four new hotels – Jetwing Yala, Jetwing Colombo, Jetwing Dambulla and Jetwing Reef Uppuveli – would be set up under the company’s new subsidiary, Jetwing Symphony.

Another property on Arugam Bay would be added on later, Cooray revealed, adding that there are plans for an IPO for the subsidiary in due course.

“We are absolutely bullish about the present (economic) situation,” he said.

Meanwhile, Jetwing’s Hotel J, said to be the country’s first budget property, is set for an April opening in Negombo. The hotel will offer customers a five-star bed, shower/toilet and Internet access for US$35-70 a night. Guests will pay for add-ons, including food.

Jetwing, which currently has 13 properties across the country, will also be managing a hotel in Chennai, India, opening at the end of the year. The company had slowed its overseas activities after the Sri Lankan market became active when the civil war ended in mid-2009.

“Our overseas development slowed down a bit because of the development back home. We earlier focused on Laos and Vietnam, and still manage our properties there. We also own a property in New Zealand,” Cooray said.

TRAVEL consultants will be able to search and book hotel content from multiple sources in a single screen with Amadeus Hotels Plus (Multisource), a new solution that integrates Amadeus’ GDS hotel properties with content from leading hotel aggregators.

Instead of shopping for rates across a variety of channels, travel experts can pre-pay, confirm bookings, issue vouchers and receive commissions instantly at the point of sale.

Said Kartikeya Tripathi, head of hotel distribution, Amadeus Asia-Pacific: “Changing consumer behaviour and enabling easier access to direct hotel content are creating both challenges and opportunities for our travel agency and hotel partners, which is exactly what this new solution addresses.”

Now available in India, China, Hong Kong and Malaysia, the platform will debut in other Asia-Pacific markets over the coming months.

Amadeus has also signed a full content partnership with B2B travel aggregator Travel Boutique Online in India, giving Amadeus Hotels Plus (Multisource) users access to more hotels in South Asia.

LUXURY cruise line Crystal Cruises is out to net more Asian travellers who are strapped for time with its new and shorter itineraries.

The international six-star luxury cruise operator’s calendar for 2014-2015 includes shorter cruise programmes, one of which is a new 14-day itinerary around Asia, beginning and ending in Singapore. Sailing next March, Crystal Symphony will call at ports in Malaysia, Thailand and Myanmar. All cruises up to April 2015 are available for booking.

Mimi Weisband, vice president of public relations for Crystal Cruises, said: “We want to expand our market and offer more choices to those who may be new to Crystal Cruises…There may be people who are short on time but still need a good getaway, so this is perfect for them.”

About 70 per cent of Crystal’s passengers are North American while the rest are international, with Asians being the fastest growing group, she observed.

“We are especially excited about the growth from Singapore as we had 21 per cent more Singaporean guests in 2013 compared to 2012,” said Weisband.

Helena Ow, general manager, Prime Cruise Asia, the appointed cruise specialist for Crystal Cruises in Singapore, said: “We have experienced double-digit growth with Crystal every year, with a minimum of 30 per cent.

“Customers know the brand and there is increasing awareness among them on the premier services available among cruises,” she added.

Crystal’s two ships, Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity, sail around the world on itineraries that can go up to 100 days.

Larger than their six-star luxury counterparts with a capacity of 1,000 guests each, Crystal Symphony offers 461 staterooms with sizes ranging 18.8-91m², while Crystal Serenity’s rooms are bigger from 21-125m².

Ships include entertainment by Tony Award-winning artistes and Broadway and West End performers, a golf driving range and putting greens featuring PGA golf instructors and clinics, and an upscale shopping arcade, among other options.

PHILIPPINES’ AirAsia (PAA) announced yesterday its intentions to acquire 49 per cent of Zest Airways and 100 per cent of Asiawide Airways, which would allow the Clark-based low-cost carrier to benefit from Zest’s operations out of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and its strong domestic network.

As part of the strategic alliance agreement, Alfredo Yao, the majority shareholder of Zest Airways and Asiawide Airways, will become the fourth Filipino investor in PAA, alongside Antonio Cojuangco Jr, Michael Romero and CEO Marianne Hontiveros.

“All Filipino shareholders will end up with 15 per cent each,” said Hontiveros at the signing. Funds will also be pumped in to “augment working capital”.

Zest has a domestic network of underserved but emerging tourist destinations such as Busuanga and Marinduque, as well as important connections from Incheon, Busan, Taipei, Jinjiang and Shanghai into its hubs in Kalibo, Manila and Cebu.

However, Hontiveros pointed out that would be no codesharing. “Zest will have their flights and will carry their own code, (while) PAA will continue its own flights. Each airline will operate separately, but we will synergise and cross-sell.”

AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes, said: “Zest Air has a bigger fleet (in the Philippines), while the AirAsia Group has a larger network, so we will combine the best of both.”

Speaking to TTG Asia e-Daily, Elizabeth Pablico, general manager of Wintrex Travel Corporation and owner-operator of two AirAsia Travel & Service Centres in Manila, said: “I’m glad as I will have more products to sell now that (AirAsia) will have domestic and international flights from Manila care of Zest Air.”

As for Zest, she said it would “benefit from a partnership with the largest low-cost carrier in Asia, which has a superior IT infrastructure”.

Maria Michelle Reyes-Victoria, president and general manager at Golden Eagle Travel & Tours, added that Zest was not as aggressive in promoting its flights, sharing that she prefers using Korean Air, Asiana Airlines and Philippine Airlines for her South Korea-bound clients.