SINGAPORE-based Asiatravel.com Holdings will unveil its new TACentre.com tomorrow, billing it as Asia’s first online travel wholesale platform which can provide traditional brick-and-mortar agencies with full packages 24/7 and for which they can get instant confirmation.

Far from being dead, traditional agencies in Asia were “doing well”, said Asiatravel.com’s executive chairman, Boh Tuang Poh. One reason was the continued growth in Asian outbound leisure markets, he explained.

The issues facing agencies, however, are rising costs and manpower shortages.

With TAcentre.com, agencies can improve their operational productivity, customer service efficiency and increase profitability, as the job of creating packages and finding the best rates have already been done for them, said Fred Seow, vice president marketing.

“Many online platforms claim to be online. The content is viewable online; the consultants still have to wait for confirmation. With TAcentre.com, they are able to get instant confirmation,” said Boh, when asked about the platform’s key differentiator.

– Full report in TTG Asia, October 19, 2012

ARRIVALS from Malaysia and Indonesia to Japan have rebounded significantly in the past 12 months, and the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) is reaching out to court Muslim tourists from these markets, alongside a marketing campaign to shore up Muslim visitor numbers from Singapore.

Said Motonari Adachi, JNTO’s executive director in Singapore: “The Muslim population within Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia shows immense potential. Demand from this segment is picking up and is expected to increase, partly because of the introduction of multiple-entry visas in the case of Indonesia and Malaysia, and the increase in low-cost airline capacity between Japan and South-east Asia.

“However, in order to capitalise on these burgeoning markets, we need to create more awareness, especially through travel consultants, that Japan welcomes Muslims, and that we have the facilities to cater to Muslims including the ability to offer halal food options.”

To aid travel consultants in selling Japan to the Muslim market, JNTO will launch a guidebook for Muslim visitors by year-end. Plans are also in place to open an office in Jakarta in April or May 2013, to act as a point of contact and information for Indonesian travel consultants and consumers.

In addition, JNTO has set aside part of its 2013 marketing budget for travel consultant roadshows in Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Kota Kinabalu, Surabaya and Medan. An e-learning programme for travel consultants in Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia is also on the cards.

Adachi revealed that Muslim buyers from Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia would be participating at Japan Travel Mart (JTM) for the very first time in November.

“We have representatives from TM Fouzy Travel & Tours in Singapore, the Bumiputra Outbound Tours Association in Malaysia and Panorama Tours in Indonesia attending JTM this year,” he said.

Between July 2010 and 2012, the number of visitors from Malaysia and Indonesia to Japan grew by 29.9 per cent and 10.4 per cent, respectively. Tourist arrivals from Singapore dropped by 14.7 per cent over the same period.

CAESARS Entertainment Corporation is looking to make its inaugural foray into Asia by establishing a hotel and entertainment business in India, and is searching for potential partners to build 15 hotels in the country over the next decade.

Mumbai, Bangalore, New Delhi, Goa and several tier-two cities are on the radar for the Las Vegas-based gaming company, which owns and operates over 50 hotels and casinos and seven golf resorts worldwide.

Neera Chanani, South Asia–head, Caesars Entertainment Hospitality, said: “We have spent the last year exploring the Indian market and there is a lot to offer. In the non-gaming space, we will focus on hotels and convention centres and building entertainment destinations within or adjacent to them.”

When asked how much Caesars was planning to invest in India, Chanani said: “There is no fixed figure in our mind.” He added that the company was looking to establish partnerships with event management and real estate companies, and was not averse to pumping in cash to invest in properties.

Anshuman Mitra, director, Starlite DMC New Delhi, said: “Caesars can look at innovative breakthroughs and pioneering efforts in the non-gaming entertainment segment that is largely untapped in India. It will be a coming of age for the Indian entertainment and hospitality industry and also for events business.”

PHILIPPINES’ AirAsia has added Singapore to its list of destinations out of Clark International Airport, where passenger terminal fees have just been reduced from PHP600 (US$14.50) to PHP450 for departing passengers on international flights.

Operating on Airbus A320 aircraft, AirAsia’s daily service to Singapore begins December 15, departing Clark at 06.10 and landing at Changi International Airport at 09.40. The return flight leaves Singapore at 10.10 and touches down at Clark at 13.40.

The new airlink is expected to boost Philippine arrival numbers to Singapore, which as of May 2012 totalled 299,366, a drop of 0.2 per cent year-on-year.

Meanwhile, international passengers departing from Clark are now required to fork out PHP450 per person, including a PHP350 terminal fee and PHP100 security fee.

Danny Cerdeña, general manager, Blue Voyage Travel Services, which is located in Pampanga (the same area as Clark Airport), said he had been receiving fewer requests for flights out of Ninoy Aquino International Airport, except for longhaul journeys.

According to Cerdeña, travellers to destinations such as Hong Kong, Bangkok, Singapore and Kota Kinabalu prefer the convenience that Clark Airport offers. “Flights (from Clark) don’t get delayed, and if they do, it’s very, very rare,” he said.

His clients to the US also prefer to fly Asiana Airlines out of Clark despite the long layover, because the airline offers complimentary short-term accommodation for early morning arrivals and free city tours, he added.

THE Myanmar Tourism Federation and Sphere Conferences, a subsidiary of Singapore Press Holdings, have inked a deal to organise Myanmar’s first-ever hospitality and tourism investment conference.

The Myanmar Hospitality & Tourism Conference will be held at the Traders Hotel, Yangon from February 26-28, 2013.

Positioned as a gateway for investors, owners, developers and operators of hospitality and tourism products to explore opportunities available in Myanmar, the conference will offer face-to-face meetings with local government officials, associations and industry leaders, and the chance to gain first-hand knowledge about the country’s tourism masterplan.

Chua Wee Phong, chairman, Sphere Conferences, said: “What we are hoping to achieve is to help others understand the needs of the tourism and hospitality sector in Myanmar…and then link businesses together so that the entire industry can grow.”

Patricia Cheong, general manager, Sphere Conferences, said: “There is notable interest among foreign investors in Myanmar, especially companies in the hospitality and tourism sector. Over the next 12 months, we will be hosting other conferences that centre on Myanmar, covering sectors such as banking and finance, technology and logistics.”

BINTAN Lagoon Resort, a Worldhotels affiliate, has launched a direct ferry service between Singapore and a new private immigration and ferry terminal on the property’s beachfront.

Two high-speed 266-passenger ferries have been deployed to service the 70-minute journey from Singapore’s Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal directly to the resort.

Roland Jegge, executive vice president Asia-Pacific, Worldhotels, said: “With the new, high-capacity ferry service, travelling to Bintan’s largest MICE resort is now more convenient, with each way of the journey reduced by 30 minutes.”

Robert Ramey, managing director of Mozaic Hotels & Resorts, the management company of Bintan Lagoon Resort, said: “Bintan Lagoon Resort is now the closest five-star resort destination to Singapore.”

FIFTY-ONE out of 72 award titles were retained by their 2011 winners at last Thursday’s 23rd Annual TTG Travel Awards Ceremony & Gala Dinner at the Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld.

Held yearly in conjunction with IT&CMA and CTW Asia-Pacific, the TTG Travel Awards recognises Asia-Pacific travel trade’s most outstanding organisations and individuals. This year’s edition was attended by 700 members of the regional travel trade and garnered a total of 60,000 valid votes – a 20 per cent increase over 2011.

“It’s heartening to see our industry colleagues innovate and reinvent their products to stay relevant and in demand,” said Darren Ng, managing director, TTG Asia Media.

“The fact that so many of our winners can return to reclaim their titles is testament to their constant drive for improvement, amid so many other up-and-coming competitors.”

Nine winners took home an award for the first time, including Song Saa Private Island for Best New Beach Resort, Amankora for Best Non-Beach Resort, Park Hotel Group for Best Regional Hotel Chain, Preferred Hotel Group for Best Hotel Rep Company and Mercury Travels for Best Travel Agency – India.

Among the returning winners, Wing On Travel reclaimed the Best Travel Agency – Hong Kong title after more than a decade since its last win in 2001, while Best Western International took home the Best Mid-Range Hotel Brand and an Outstanding Achievement Award for Best Marketing & Relationship Effort.

The other Outstanding Achievement Awards were handed out to Jean-Gabriel Pérès, president & CEO, Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts for Travel Personality of the Year; Thailand for Destination of the Year; and Deep Kalra, founder & CEO of MakeMyTrip.com for Best Travel Entrepreneur.

The Business Travel and MICE category was dominated by Thai organisations, including Thai Airways International (Best Airline – Business Class and Best South-east Asian Airline), Grand Hyatt Erawan (Best Business Hotel), Thai Convention & Exhibition Bureau (Best Convention & Exhibition Bureau) and Centara Grand & Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld (Best Meetings & Conventions Hotel).

Voting for the TTG Travel Awards 2013 will open in June 2013. The 24th Annual TTG Travel Awards 2012 Ceremony & Gala Dinner will take place in Bangkok on October 3, 2013.