MEDITERRA, a tour operator and wholesaler specialising in Mediterranean itineraries, is offering travel consultants a six-day fam trip to Turkey.
The tour begins at Istanbul on April 19 for US$895. ASTA, ARTA, PATA, NACTA and Skal members will receive a US$100 discount and surcharges for companions will be waived.
A wider selection of fam trips can be viewed on Mediterra’s website.
Travel consultants who book clients on any Mediterra tour or cruise by April 30 can obtain a US$250 discount.
BRITISH Airways has unveiled a promotion on fares between Singapore and Sydney.
Open for booking between March 31 and April 7, roundtrip fares to Sydney start from S$688 (US$554) for economy seats, S$1,888 for premium economy, S$3,388 for business class and S$7,888 for first class.
Tickets are for travel between March 31 to July 31, 2013.
The airline will be deploying its newest aircraft, the Boeing 777-300ER on all flights between Singapore and Sydney.
FOUR Points by Sheraton Bangkok, Sukhumvit 15 has rolled out two new customised events that organisers can weave into their overall meeting programmes at the hotel.
The ExecutiveChef is a dinner party where guests compete in a cooking challenge under the guidance of the hotel’s own executive chef. Inspired by the popular reality show, MasterChef, guests will have to create a dish that will impress the judges.
After the event, guests can sit back and enjoy their choice of soup and appetisers, and free flow of beer, wine and soft drinks.
The package, suitable for a group of up to 30 people, is priced from 3,500 baht (US$119.60) per person or 5,000 baht per team of two pax.
Event planners can also pick Movies Under The Stars for a post-meeting gathering. The movie party will be held on the hotel’s rooftop Garden Terrace, and is perfect for groups of 15 to 30 people. Priced from 2,000 baht per pax, the package includes selected cocktails, prosecco, beer and wine, as well as a menu of savoury and sweet nibbles.
Contact sarut.maneerat@fourpoints.com for more details.
KUALA Lumpur Convention Centre is encouraging event planners to inject a sense of relaxation into their meetings, training sessions or forums at the venue by switching chairs for colourful beanbags.
Under the new TenOnCall Beanie Experience, event participants can snuggle up in large, comfortable beanbags in various set-up configurations such as circle, half-moon and straight rows.
Angeline Lue, the centre’s director of sales & marketing, said the option was “ideal for clients who wanted to give a slight innovation to their meeting format”.
“It’s particularly ideal for training, brainstorming, teambuilding and creative networking. And with the beanbags’ funky colours, the meeting atmosphere will definitely be lightened,” Lue added.
TenOnCall Beanie Experience is enhanced with takeaway beverages, and complimentary Bean-ovation value-adds such as titbits, energy drinks, energy bars, comfortable slippers and a stress ball.
A beanbag can also be rented on its own at RM20++ (US$6++) a day.
THE 482-room Aloft Kuala Lumpur Sentral opened in the Malaysian capital last Friday, marking the entry of the Aloft brand into the country and setting a record for being the world’s largest Aloft hotel.
Its general manager, Paolo Campillo, is keen to attain a market mix of 50 per cent leisure, 30 per cent corporate and 20 per cent MICE.
The hotel will leverage on its good location in the commercial and transportation hub of Kuala Lumpur Sentral and its collection of event spaces to attract corporate business.
Aloft Kuala Lumpur Sentral boasts a large ballroom that can accommodate up to 1,000 people in a theatre setting and seven other function rooms.
Ganneesh Ramaa, manager of Luxury Tours Malaysia, said: “New international hotel brands in Malaysia will attract more global conferences and events to the capital. The hotel fills a niche as there are not many hotels in the city with large ballrooms.”
The hotel is looking at an occupancy rate of 65 per cent in its first year of operations, according to Campillo.
Meanwhile, the hotel had a roaring good start, achieving full occupancy over the F1 Malaysian Grand Prix weekend, which ran from March 22 to 24.
SINGAPORE will add the River Safari to its latest collection of attractions come April 3, a development that some DMCs here said would further boost the city’s appeal in the eyes of incentive clients.
Hailed as Asia’s first river-themed wildlife park, the River Safari was built between the Singapore Zoo and the Night Safari at a cost of S$160 million (US$128 million). The 12-hectare park features over 150 plant species and 300 animal species in eight river habitats including the Mississippi, Nile and Amazon rivers. It also contains the world’s largest freshwater aquarium.
It will join other new attractions in the city-state such as the Marine Life Park in Resorts World Sentosa, Gardens by the Bay and the Giant Panda Forest.
Pacific World’s regional director, Singapore and Malaysia, Selina Grocott, told TTGmice e-Weekly: “Singapore may be small but it certainly commands an enormous presence in Asia’s incentive industry. (The) ever-changing tourism landscape and constant opening of new and exciting developments continue to position Singapore as a preferred destination in this region.”
Daniel Chua, managing director of Singapore-based conference organiser, Aonia, said the River Safari would add to the country’s dense collection of attractions, an attribute that appeals to time-starved business event travellers.
“Clients need to minimise the travel time between destinations and attractions, and Singapore’s density of attractions means event participants can pack their days here with a variety of things to do and places to see,” Chua said.
Dennis Law, managing director of Star Holiday Mart, a travel company that specialises in both leisure tours and business events, pointed out that Singapore’s “new nature-based spots will enhance (the country’s) image as an eco-friendly place and not just a city destination”.
“Singapore in itself is already attractive for both business and leisure travellers…and new options such as the River Safari will complement all our existing attractions,” Law added.
Entrance fees during the soft opening phase, beginning April 3, are S$25 (US$20) for adults and S$16 for children aged three to 12.
Additional reporting by Karen Yue
THE Taiwan Chemical and Engineering Society has won the rights to host the 12th World Filtration Congress (WFC12) in 2016, an event that has always rotated in the US and Europe.
Although the International Delegates on Filtration (INDEFI) comprised only three Asian members – Taiwan, Mainland China and Japan, Guo-zhen Huang, a professor with Tamkang University’s department of chemical engineering, felt that Taiwan’s odds at winning were quite promising and made a bid for the event’s hosting rights.
Huang, who was joined by several other professors in putting forth the bid, expects WFC12 to attract an estimated 2,500 domestic and foreign visitors from more than 40 countries.
He believes that, besides establishing international academic authority in the filtration industry, hosting WFC12 in Taiwan will create opportunities for younger scholars to participate in international academic activities, internationalise Taiwan’s academia, and stimulate commercial activities and industrial development.
“Having won the rare opportunity to host (the congress) in Taiwan, we must be sure to impress the world, so that Taiwan may shine in this international professional arena,” said Huang.
THE Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACC) has approved of the partnership between Qantas and Emirates for a period of five years, following a six-month review process that began in 2012.
The tie-up will allow passengers to travel seamlessly through international and Australian networks and gain from frequent flyer benefits on both airlines.
Qantas and Emirates will also at least maintain their current capacities on the four routes they operate between Australia and New Zealand. Subject to approval in New Zealand, the ability to cooperate on these routes will allow airlines to market both Australia and New Zealand to their global networks.
Qantas Group CEO, Alan Joyce, said: “Customers are already responding very strongly to the joint network that Qantas and Emirates have built, and to the frequent flyer benefits that extend across it, with a significant increase in bookings.”
In September last year, Qantas inked a global agreement with Emirates, which saw the former drop Singapore as a stopover on the Kangaroo Route and the end of its partnership with British Airways on the sector (TTG Asia e-Daily, September 6, 2012).
The ACCC gave preliminary approval to the partnership in January this year (TTG Asia e-Daily, January 17, 2013), enabling the carriers to work together on joint sales, marketing and pricing strategies.
Qantas and Emirates offer a total of 98 flights a week between Australia and Dubai, with Qantas continuing daily services from Melbourne and Sydney to London, via Dubai. Passengers transiting in Dubai can connect to 65 one-stop destinations in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East.
MALAYSIANS are increasingly exploring new destinations, driven by air developments in the region.
According to a study by metasearch site Wego, Malaysian users searched 900 more destinations for flights than in 2011, bringing the total number of flight destination searches to 2,500. The behaviour of 100,000 travellers using Wego.com.my in 2012 up to February 2013 was analysed.
In terms of accommodation, users are now looking at stays in 400 new destinations out of almost 2,000 destinations in total, for the same period.
Internationally, Bangkok, Jakarta, Taipei and Singapore still reign, but may face competition from secondary destinations.
Dean Wicks, chief marketing officer, Wego, said: “Users are constantly finding new routes with AirAsia, Jetstar, Malindo Air and other carriers, which soon become popular especially if they are seen to be affordable.
“It’s driving a shift away from the traditional selections of Bali and Phuket in favour of destinations like Bandung, a favourite weekend retreat with Jakarta residents; Hat Yai; Macau; and Perth.”
He cited Istanbul as another destination that has caught the eye of Malaysian travellers, and believed that further developments in aviation would increase the popularity of secondary destinations further.
Within the country, Kuala Lumpur is the top search. One in every eight Malaysian users seeks flights to the capital and even more for hotels in the city.
Other cities in the top 10 are (in order): Langkawi, Penang, Cameron Highlands, Port Dickson, Johor Bahru, Genting Highlands, Kota Kinabalu, Malacca and Kuching.
Accommodation-wise, 16 per cent of Malaysians booked five-star hotels; 26 per cent booked four-stars, 31 per cent booked three-stars; 17 per cent booked two-stars; and the rest was spread among one-star and uncategorised hotels.
KINGDOM Property has sold The Suites Tower, part of its Southpoint Pattaya twin tower project, to a local Thai investor for development into internationally managed serviced residences.
The purchase of the 224-unit building represents about 30 per cent of Southpoint Pattaya’s saleable area, which generated strong buyer interest following its Environmental Impact Assessment approval in November last year.
Southpoint Pattaya is located close to Bali Hai in Pattaya City on an elevated site on Pratumnak Hill, within walking distance of the Royal Varuna Yacht Club. Valued at 2.5 billion baht (US$85.3 million), the development is slated for completion in 2015.
Unit sizes at the condominium range from 30m2 for studios, 41-87m2 for one-bedroom units and 61-97m2 for two-bedroom apartments. It includes a dedicated sky deck in each tower, an infinity edge lap pool, a fitness centre and a landscaped family zone featuring a children’s pool and playground.
Pattaya saw over eight million hotel guests in 2012, according to a release by Kingdom Property.
