DRIVEN by recent additions in flight capacity, Indonesia is witnessing a boost in inbound arrivals from Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam.

Vietnam Airlines began four times a week Ho Chi Minh City-Jakarta flights last December, complementing AirAsia’s four-weekly flights on the same route.

Panorama Destination managing director, Raka Ramayana, said: “We started to penetrate the market last year and, this month, we are seeing (our efforts) materialise …thanks to (Vietnam Airlines’) new service between Jakarta and Ho Chi Minh City.”

Philippine Airlines commenced a Manila-Bali service last April in addition to its Manila-Jakarta route, and Cebu Pacific is planning to fly twice-weekly to Bali from March 15.

Bhara Tours managing director, Herman Rukmanadi, said: “We’ve seen growth in the Philippines market for Jakarta and Bali, and recently had 80 travellers staying in Bali for two nights.”

In December, Garuda Indonesia increased its Jakarta-Bangkok flights from twice to thrice-daily, with a load factor of about 79 per cent. It plans to begin a Bangkok-Bali service in September.

Herman said: “We’ve seen significant growth in traffic from Thailand in the last two years, and we expect more growth this year with Garuda’s additional frequency between Jakarta and Bangkok.

“The additional morning flight gives travellers the flexibility of staying in Jakarta for two nights and flying to Bali to spend another two nights.”

Buyers TTG Asia e-Daily spoke to welcomed the increased airlift.

Lac Hong Voyages Vietnam executive director, Jonathan Tran, said: “The new Vietnam Airline service opens more opportunities not only for traffic to Jakarta, but also beyond (to places) like Jogjakarta and Surabaya.”

He added that although his initial business to Indonesia had been corporate, there has been growing demand for leisure since last year.

However, Ami Tourist Vietnam managing director, Vo Thi Hong Diep, said: “Vietnamese travellers know about Indonesia as a growing economy but very little about the destination for a holiday.” She added that a direct Bali flight would bring Vietnam’s high-end travellers.

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ECONOMIC uncertainty in Europe has inflicted nary a dent in the silver market, with longhaul agents reporting growth and expecting further increases this year.

Comprising the elderly who travel without their children, travellers in this segment seek cultural and heritage immersion, and destinations in the Mekong region are popular, say travel consultants.

Prime Holidays Bulgaria general manager, Antoaneta Petrova, said: “The senior market saw a 25 per cent year-on-year growth in 2012, and this year we anticipate a further 30 per cent increment because we are now working with more retail agents in Bulgaria. The seniors here love to travel and many make it a point to take an annual trip. An average trip runs for 10 days.”

Travelpine.com Belgium saw a 30 per cent year-on-year growth in the segment. The agency’s product manager Asia, David Van Driessche, said full-board tours combining cultural and heritage sights with beaches were most popular among clients who chose to go with group series.

“This segment, usually in their 50s and 60s, have money to spend and typically stay in four- and five-star hotels. Many are also repeat travellers,” he noted.

Sweden’s Kina Resor chairman of the board business development, Per Camenius, expects Finnair’s new thrice-weekly Helsinki-Hanoi flights, launching mid-June, to generate interest in Vietnam among its senior travellers. The agency’s series tours to Myanmar, launched in February 2012, have seen good demand, with 17 groups handled to date.

Travel consultants observed that hotel partners were especially supportive.

Petrova said hotels had been willing to grant discounts to elderly travellers “as they are usually quiet and do not make a mess in the room”.

Noor M Ismail, director, business development at Asian Overland Services Tours & Travel Malaysia, who saw 10 per cent year-on-year growth in the senior market from Canada, said hoteliers would offer special rates and add-ons for long-stay seniors during low season.

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PATA will be aggressively making the case for the visitor economy throughout 2013, which is defined as all economic activities in a destination that benefit from direct and indirect expenditure of tourism dollars.

Addressing 150 travel industry professionals at a pre-ATF networking event in Vientiane on January 21, PATA CEO, Martin Craigs, said: “Laos is a prime example of a quickly growing destination where the visitor economy needs to be nurtured.”

In Laos, the visitor economy is estimated to contribute 18.2 per cent to national GDP, 15.9 per cent to total employment and 9.8 per cent of all capital investments, according to PATA statistics. Within South-east Asia, Laos is second only to Cambodia in terms of dependency on travel and tourism. Steps are being taken to create a PATA Laos Chapter, the 42^nd in the world.

Craigs also emphasised the importance of enhancing training for tourism professionals. The association is intending to hold four innovative week-long workshops for travel industry managers as part of its new PATAcademy in Bangkok.

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