THE EMPIRE Hotel & Country Club, Brunei will receive its largest single booking for the year in November when it plays host to Amway Korea’s Leadership Seminar.

More than 2,400 top Amway Korea distributors will descend on Brunei in four waves, with at least 600 delegates each for a total of 16 nights. Participants will use the opportunity to share their experiences, review past performances and prepare for the future.

Desmond Acheson, general manager of the 518-room Empire Hotel & Country Club, Brunei, said it would be the third Amway Korea event hosted at the property. Amway Korea had used the hotel for its annual Diamond Invitational events in 2005 and 2007.

According to Acheson, the hotel was shortlisted in late 2010 as a possible venue based on the success of previous events, and was officially named host venue last November.

Held from November 10-26, the Leadership Seminar will fully occupy the hotel.

Acheson said: “Some adjustments must be made. We have contacted some of our regular guests who usually come during this time of the year to see if they were willing to shift their travel dates.

“We’re really excited about this event as it will attract more than 2,400 new visitors to the Sultanate, all of whom will act as our ambassadors upon their return. They will talk about us to their friends and, hopefully, their friends will decide to visit us.”

DESPITE mounting interest among Singapore-based corporate firms to charter cruise ships for business events, this segment has yet to take off, according to Mona Foo, head of sales, Singapore, Royal Caribbean Cruises.

“In Royal Caribbean’s case, most of our charters derive from China, where there’s sufficient volume to warrant chartering large cruise ships, either wholly or partly. Multinational companies in Singapore tend to charter ships only if they can build numbers by roping in employees from other regional destinations,” said Foo.

Singapore-based corporate clients, as outlined by Foo, tend to request for cruise departures to Thailand and Malaysia for an average of three nights.

Speaking to an audience of travel consultants at a training session at Cruise Shipping Asia-Pacific on Tuesday, Foo emphasised that clients were drawn to hosting MICE events on ships as they offered more value. “Corporations don’t have to fork out for separate elements, itineraries and activities can be customised and there’s an opportunity to drum up publicity,” she explained.

Alex Yip, general manager, Siam Express, expressed that chartering cruises for MICE does make business sense, but in order for travel consultants and event planners to convince their clients to pick ships as a MICE venue, it was crucial that travel consultants and event organisers were given the opportunity to experience the different MICE products and services cruise lines have.

“Only then, will you be able to give the right advice in regards to which cruise ship suits a client’s event best,” he said.

EXHIBITION IT service provider, Info Salons, and group reservation technology provider, Passkey, have joined hands to launch a group/MICE hotel booking service in Greater China.

The partnership will allow Info Salons to provide a much more expansive suite of business travel services, including hotel reservations, to event organisers, exhibition visitors and conference delegates. Passkey’s cloud-based GroupMAX platform, which is said to be the most widely-used solution of its kind, will also enable Info Salons to become the first hotel booking provider in Greater China to offer one-stop business travel registration for event visitors and delegates.

Gu Xuebin, managing director of Info Salons Greater China, said the partnership resulted from three years of preparation.

Greg Pesik, Passkey CEO, said: “We recognise how essential having a local partner is not only to our success, but to the success of our clients. This partnership, as well as the investment in the technology integration, will help ensure that Chinese exhibition organisers, hotels and convention centres can rapidly enhance the level of business travel service they can provide to visitors and delegates.”

DEMAND growth for business travel is projected to slow down next year, according to the 2013 Industry Forecast by Advito, BCD Travel’s independent consulting unit.

The study said continued eurozone woes would soften growth rates in other regions, even in historically strong driver markets such as China. Demand, however, will continue to outpace supply, with airlines keeping a particularly tight hold on inventory. As a result, buyers are warned to brace for low- to mid-single digit price hikes in airfares and hotel rates.

Bob Brindley, principal at Advito, said: “With the current macroeconomic situation uncertain and limited capacity going into next year, it’s more important than ever that buyers have a clear understanding of their buying power going into their negotiations, make better use of data analysis in their decision making process, and closely monitor their travel spend.”

He added: “For instance, with airfares projected to increase, buyers should pay close attention to fare restrictions and recommend smarter purchasing behaviour for their travellers. On the hotel side, options include searching for internal savings such as minor downgrades in accommodation standards and expanding the number of properties used in high demand markets to improve the likelihood of booking availability.”

For the first time, the 2013 Industry Forecast also analyses secondary spend categories including dining, mobile roaming and ground transportation. These expenses are estimated to account for 18 per cent of total T&E, and will become a major savings opportunity in 2013 and beyond.

THE OCEANFRONT Hilton Fukuoka Sea Hawk Hotel in Fukuoka city, Japan is offering a limited edition meeting package for groups with 20 to 50 delegates.

Priced at JPY11,500 (US$147) per person, the Eureka package includes full-day use of a meeting room, lunch at Seala Buffet or take-out Japanese lunch box, two coffee breaks with refreshments, basic audiovisual equipment and stationery, and LCD projector with screen or flipchart.

Meeting delegates will also enjoy access to the hotel’s Iwaburo Stone Bath & Sauna once a day.

The Eureka package is valid from now till December 28. Contact Jeremy Nam, assistant director of sales at jeremy.nam@hilton.com or (81-92) 844-7901.

FOUR Seasons Hotel Singapore is offering complimentary environmentally friendly options for meetings booked by November 30 and held before the year is over.

Priced at S$90 (US$73) per person per day (full-day meeting package) and $75 per person per day (half-day meeting package), the Value Meeting Plus deal offers meeting planners the opportunity to use chinaware and silverware instead of disposable plating and utensils, enjoy a ‘green’ menu with vegetarian options upon request, and donate event decorations and display materials to a local organisation for recycling, among other green efforts.

To qualify for this sustainable meeting experience, a minimum booking of 10 guestrooms is required. Terms apply. Contact Chinen Phillips, director of sales, at chinen.phillips@fourseasons.com or (65) 6831-7007.

DAVID Barrett, former executive manager at Diethelm Events, has joined ONYX Hospitality Group as executive director, events at Amari Watergate Bangkok and Amari Orchid Pattaya.