SALES and visitorship figures at last weekend’s NATAS Travel 2013 may have fallen short of expectations, but travel consultants observed that longhaul business continues to perform well.

With the euro still weak against the Singapore dollar, Europe outperformed other evergreen favourites such as China, Japan and South Korea, destinations which rank among the top five.

CTC Travel’s senior vice president of marketing and public relations, Alicia Seah, said bookings to Europe comprised 20 per cent of their sales. She said: “Travellers are attracted to these 10-15-day packages to Europe as they are generally cheaper due to the favourable exchange rate.”

She added that CTC Travel, encouraged by this trend, has created new itineraries into Europe and also launched mono-destination packages for Germany and Italy.

Eva Wu, marketing & communications manager of SA Tours, shared the same sentiment. She said: “We were pretty surprised by the large take-up for our Europe packages and it was far and away the top destination choice.”

Chan Brothers Travel marketing & communications manager, Michelle Yin, also singled out Europe as a “perennial favourite”.

She added that the poor attendance at NATAS Travel could be due to its overlap with the Chinese New Year period.

The fair welcomed 53,344 visitors, down 15 per cent from the same time last year. Initial sales estimates by NATAS are between S$85 million (US$ 69 million) and S$90 million, less than last year’s S$100 million.

IN TANDEM with its evolution to an independent micro-market separate from New Delhi, Gurgaon achieved the highest RevPAR in the five-star hotel segment nationally last year.

According to STR Global, Gurgaon reported RevPAR of Rs7,200 (US$133) in 2012, which is 22 per cent and 27 per cent higher than rates in Mumbai and Bengaluru respectively. Gurgaon’s hotel market was also one of the few that did not see a dramatic performance decline during the economic downturn.

Furthermore, occupancy levels at four- and five-star hotels rose significantly in 2012, bumping up RevPAR from Rs6,000 in 2011 to Rs6,100 in 2012, reported STR.

Currently, there are 4,000 branded rooms in the city’s hotel inventory, with 4,500 more in the pipeline, according to Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL). More than half of future rooms fall within the midscale and budget category.

Gurgaon has benefited from corporate investments flowing into the city, infrastructure developments and its close proximity to Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi.

JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group’s executive vice president, Sudeep Jain, said: “We are, for the first time in the Indian hospitality market, starting to witness assets being offered for sale, with a transparent and defined process to sell them.”

“Looking ahead, we expect that the upcoming supply in the (Delhi International Airport) hospitality district will have minimal impact on the Gurgaon market,” Jain added.

“A large portion of the corporate sector prefers to work and stay in Gurgaon, as it develops into a separate micro-market.”

THE Singapore Tourism Board (STB) has taken its Only in Singapore – Right Now! campaign to Malaysia, following similar moves in China, Australia, India and Indonesia to launch marketing initiatives specific to key sources.

Similarly titled to the one launched in Jakarta late last year (TTG Asia e-Daily, November 26, 2012), the marketing push in Malaysia “aims to curate and deliver offerings and experiences based on a deeper understanding of consumer needs”.

STB said the campaign was coupled with the launch of YourSingapore Live website, which was specially designed for Malaysian visitors. Featuring the latest happenings, the platform also offers easy access to flights and event tickets booking.

Sophia Ng, assistant chief executive, marketing group, STB, was quoted as saying that the NTO wanted to raise awareness of the smorgasbord of experiences and lifestyle options in Singapore that would appeal to frequent travellers from the north.

“Just as we did in Indonesia, we have spent years engaging the Malaysian market and researching on consumer needs and behaviour. With the insights gleaned, we are now better able to engage the Malaysian visitor at a deeper and more meaningful level,” she said.

“Due to close proximity, ease of access and familial ties, it’s only natural that we see visitors from Malaysia returning repeatedly for visits. This also means that Malaysians are generally also very familiar with Singapore. Nonetheless, we think that more can be conveyed to entice Malaysians to visit our ever-evolving destination even more frequently.”

NO-FRILLS budget chain Tune Hotels has entered into a 60-40 joint venture with Apodis Hospitality to open 22 hotels in India, beginning with the first in Ahmedabad in 1Q2013.

Mahesh Gandhi, founder, Apodis Hospitality, said: “Tune aims to offer five-star beds at one-star prices. The aim is to offer rooms at US$50 or less.”

Each hotel will have 100-250 keys depending upon the size and needs of the market in which it is based. The chain, popular in Malaysia, is making inroads into Asia-Pacific (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 1, 2013).

Its entry into India brings it head-on with existing budget to midscale hotels in the market including Lemon Tree Hotels, Red Fox Hotels, Citrus Hotels and Tata Group’s Ginger Hotels.

BT Ramnani, director, Vensimal World Travel Agents, said: “The economic growth in India is spawning a whole new breed of small businessmen and traders who are travelling across the country. This is a large segment of budget-conscious people who look for good location and comfortable rooms at very reasonable prices. The scope for budget hotels and mid-market properties is unimaginably large.”

PK Mohankumar, COO, Gateway Hotels, said: “India is an undersupplied market and we need at least another 120,000 hotel rooms by 2015, of which half should be budget and mid-market hotels.”

According to research by ICICI Direct, the mid-market segment represents about 29 per cent of India’s total room inventory, growing at a compounded annual growth rate of 3.7 per cent from 2002 to 2011, while the budget segment accounts for six per cent of all rooms.

AZAMARA Club Cruises will premier a series of free night touring events on its itineraries for the Europe 2013 season.

Each voyage comes with an AzAmazing Evenings event, which will appeal to travellers ranging from wine lovers to history buffs.

For example, Azamara Quest’s Monte-Carlo to Andalucia voyage allows passengers to spend the evening at the Cordoniu Cellars. Guests will learn how Spain’s famous sparkling Cava wine is made, sample the varieties paired with regional specialties and watch a flamenco performance.

Azamara Journey’s Vatican to the Acropolis voyage, on the other hand, takes guests to a typical piedigrotta in Sorrento, Italy to enjoy a Neapolitan festival, which has its roots in medieval times.

Azamara’s voyages all feature late-night departures and overnight port stays at a destination, some for up to three days.