SINGAPORE’S Banyan Tree Group has signed two agreements in a move to position itself as a provider of sustainable tourism development services and expertise, one with EC3 Global and the second with EarthCheck.

The group’s commercialised arm, GPS Development Services signed an MoU with EC3 Global, an international environmental management and certification company, which owns and manages the EarthCheck programme.

GPS brings to the partnership its expertise in project planning, development management, green technical advisory and engineering technology, which dovetails with EC3 Global’s proficiency in engaged destination management, building and precinct planning and design standards, community and destination master planning and certification.

Tapping on EC3 Global’s portfolio of more than 1,300 hospitality and travel clients in 73 countries will allow GPS to reel in extra revenue for the Banyan Tree Group.

Stewart Moore, CEO of EC3 Global, said: “The sustainability challenges of tomorrow will demand a new set of professional design skills and innovation. The partnership with GPS will offer our clients an integrated set of planning and design solutions.”

In the second agreement signed, Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts promised to continue participation in the EarthCheck programme.

EarthCheck assists travel and tourism businesses in monitoring and reducing their environmental footprint.

Banyan Tree already has 17 of its resorts in the EarthCheck programme, and is aiming to have its Banyan Tree and Angsana brand resorts certified and supported by expanded capacity-building frameworks.

FOREIGN carriers are protesting against the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority’s (AERA) proposed increase in charges at the newly refurbished Chennai airport.

Lufthansa, in a statement, has termed the increase in airport charges “unreasonable”, and said it “would have a strong negative effect on the economy of the (Frankfurt-Chennai) sector”. British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and Singapore Airlines have also voiced their objections against the move.

AERA has proposed a steep increase of 118 per cent and 48 per cent in international and domestic landing charges respectively from November 1, 2012. It is also looking at levying a minimum landing fee of Rs5,000 (US$90) per landing, as well as raising parking and housing charges for planes by 83 per cent.

A higher user development fee of Rs165 and Rs667 will be imposed on each domestic and international passenger respectively from January 1, 2013.

Chennai’s attempt to raise charges is the latest in a wave of substantial fee hikes at Indian airports, including New Delhi and Mumbai.

SINGAPORE’S Sentosa will welcome a new heritage hotel by 2015, as the Sentosa Development Corporation (SDC) has earmarked a 4.2-hectare area for hotel development.

Sitting between Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa and Mövenpick Heritage Hotel Sentosa, the former British military barracks – including six blocks and a parade square – can potentially house up to 550 rooms. SDC will put up a public tender later this month, and the successful bidder will be able to lease the site for 60 years.

SDC CEO, Mike Barclay, said: “Previously, we looked at transforming the site into a restaurant and lifestyle quarter along the lines of Dempsey, but according to food operators, it would have been difficult to achieve this due to space constraints. We also looked at retail (options) but decided against it, as the area is just too remote.

“Consequently, for this particular site, a hotel makes a lot of sense because on both sides of it there are already hotels that integrate heritage buildings alongside new builds. It fits in perfectly with our strategy of clustering,” he added.

T S Low, deputy CEO of SDC, told TTG Asia e-Daily that several hospitality chains and boutique hotel operators have already expressed interest in the project.

He added: “We are not looking for a specific class of hotel, but for a developer who would restore the heritage buildings on the site sympathetically, while adhering to the conservation guidelines laid out by the Urban Redevelopment Authority.”

Sentosa will boast 14 hotels with a total inventory of 3,134 rooms after W Singapore – Sentosa Cove opens this month (TTG Asia e-Daily, June 7, 2012), followed by the Mövenpick Hotel’s new Heritage Wing in November (TTG Asia e-Daily, August 3, 2012).

Other developments planned include an 860m cableway to transport 1,600 passengers hourly from the Merlion Plaza to Siloso Point and new pedestrian walkways linking the Sentosa Boardwalk to the beach.

FROM September 21, non-permanent residents in six Chinese cities – Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Chongqing, Guangzhou and Shenzhen – will be allowed to apply for visas to Hong Kong under the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS) from their residing cities instead of their hometowns, prompting concerns about the potential impacts of the influx of Chinese travellers on Hong Kong.

With the eased regulations, some 14 million people will qualify for visa applications, while an additional four million non-local residents from neighbouring Shenzhen will be eligible for multiple-entry visas to Hong Kong, which according to sources, will mostly benefit students and migrant workers with lower spending power.

Tomco Incentive and Travel Service, marketing director, Kevin Leung said: “Hong Kong is benefiting from China but at the expense of other markets. Hotel rates (in Hong Kong) are currently unbelievably expensive and I foresee rates will become even higher in the future.”

– Read more in TTG Asia September 7, 2012

CHINA Southern Airlines will commence twice-weekly flights between Guangzhou and Kota Kinabalu from October 31, 2012.

The new service is welcomed by Sabah’s travel trade, as it marks the first direct connection provided by a full-fledged Chinese carrier between Kota Kinabalu and China.

Borneo Trails Sabah general manager, KL Tan, said: “The direct flights would boost arrivals from Mainland China to Sabah as they currently travel via Hong Kong and Shenzhen.”

Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort & Spa Kota Kinabalu director of sales and marketing, Suzaini Ghani, said: “These new flights will open the door to China. Eventually, we’ll also have visitors from Shanghai, Beijing and other major cities travelling to Sabah via China Southern’s hub in Guangzhou.”

China – Malaysia’s third-largest inbound market after Singapore and Indonesia – has posted a 34.2 per cent year-on-year growth in arrivals in the first six months of 2012, according to Tourism Malaysia.

– Read more in TTG Asia September 7, 2012

THAILAND’S tourism industry is showing stronger interest in adopting digital technologies to enhance their businesses, but many are still staying away due to cost concerns.

Speaking at the Asia Pacific Digital Travel Forum held at The Landmark Bangkok Hotel last Friday, Pirasan Punyagupta, representative of the Software Industry Promotion Agency (SIPA) in Thailand, noted growing demand for IT across the kingdom, which the agency is trying to match with new support centres.

It already runs seminars and workshops in major cities, which are attended by a range of travel and tourism professionals, from hoteliers to tour operators, looking for B2B and B2C channels, as well as more effective means of business management.

Pirasan noted that independent hotels in Thailand were paying more attention to direct online booking mechanisms due to the fact that commissions were eating into their profit margins.

Recognising that affordability remains a key issue for SMEs, SIPA recommends cloud computing solutions and remote support services to help IT newcomers keep their capital investment fees down. Pirasan assured that the adoption of such solutions would eventually result in falling costs and rising profits as they help reduce waste costs and plug losses.

The agency is also working to promote online and electronic payment systems in Thailand, added Pirasan, who expressed his concern about the reliance on cash payments and bank transfers among small tourism businesses. While such payment methods suffice to serve the domestic market, international visitors do not trust the system.

“(Tourism) operators must introduce internationally accepted gateways such as PayPal to ensure security,” he said. “Small tourism businesses are losing guests because of trust (issues) over payments. They need a secure and flexible payment mechanism that can factor in different tariff structures and issue refunds.”

Reporting by Timothy France

CIRCOS Brand Karma has launched Blackbook reports that offer on-demand analyses of the online reputation of key destinations and individual hotels around the world.

Said Mario Jobbe, COO & co-founder of Circos Brand Karma: “We’ve learned that different stakeholders need different insights to compete analytically. The Blackbook reports are designed to get the right information to the right person in a meaningful way.”

Available in two editions, Blackbook reports are generated entirely from public online content.

The Market Blackbook analyses the top 20 hotels within a given destination and ranks them according to their social media presence, share of voice and overall satisfaction in online reviews, in addition to a detailed analysis of the overall market. Currently available for Bangkok, Shanghai and Singapore, reports of other cities will be released in the coming weeks.

The Hotel Blackbook profiles an individual hotel based on key performance indicators of its online reputation. Each report contains a detailed scorecard summarising reviews, social network postings, photos and videos by month, product, service and emotional trends, and monthly performance versus the market. They are now available on the 200 most-reviewed hotels in Bangkok, Beijing, Dubai, Hong Kong, London, Los Angeles, New York, Rio de Janeiro, Shanghai, Singapore, Sydney and Tokyo. Hotel reports of over 100 cities will be available by the end of 2012.

Designed to be applicable across the travel trade, Blackbook reports are priced from US$99 and can be purchased through www.brand-karma.com.

SINGAPORE Changi Airport is renewing passenger facilities in Terminal 2 to handle some 790 extra weekly flights when its Budget Terminal closes in September.

The Budget Terminal, which caters solely to low-cost carriers, is scheduled to cease operations at 02.00 on September 25, Changi Airport Group (CAG) announced in a statement. The closure would make way for the construction of a fourth terminal.

The six airlines currently operating at the terminal – Berjaya Air, Cebu Pacific, Firefly, Mandala Airlines, South East Asian Airlines and Tiger Airways – will begin operations at Terminal 2 the same day.

CAG is already beefing up infrastructure and manpower in Terminal 2 to accommodate the surge in passengers.

More automated immigration gantries are being added, the taxi waiting area in the arrival hall is slated for expansion, while ground handlers and service staff will undergo training to upkeep standards. Ancillary services will also receive a boost with an increase in the number of trolley retrievers, taxi coordinators and cleaners.

The group is also coordinating efforts with key partners such as the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority of Singapore, Singapore Customs and Certis CISCO to ensure that there is no shortage in manpower, especially during peak hours.

Senior vice-president for airport operations, CAG, Yeo Kia Thye, said: “As with all transitions, there may be initial teething issues and we do ask passengers to be patient with us.”

“We highly recommend that in the initial days following the move to Terminal 2, passengers arrive at the airport early for their flight.”

The Budget Terminal handled about five million passengers last year, while Terminal 2 saw 13 million passing through. Terminal 2 has a maximum capacity of 23 million passengers a year, and managed 21.6 million in 2007, before Terminal 3 opened in January 2008.

TOURISM Malaysia has just released the latest statistics on inbound tourist arrivals. Malaysia welcomed 11.6 million tourists from January to June, registering a growth of 2.4 per cent compared to 11.4 million arrivals for the same period last year.

Correspondingly, total tourist receipts rose by four per cent, generating RM26.8 billion (US$8.6 million) in revenue compared to RM25.7 billion in 2011.

The ASEAN region continued to be the largest contributor of tourist arrivals with a 73.8 per cent share of total arrivals. It also saw a one per cent decrease in arrivals due to the change in the system for recording arrivals, which is now based on nationality, rather than country of residence.

Thus, expatriates working or living in ASEAN countries were not regarded as ASEAN travellers. This was reflected in the decreased arrivals from Singapore (-4.8 per cent), Thailand (-11.5 per cent), Brunei (-1.2 per cent) and Cambodia (-4.2 per cent).

The top 10 generating markets were Singapore, Indonesia, China, Thailand, Brunei, India, Australia, the Philippines, Japan and the UK. These markets accounted for 87.5 per cent of total tourist arrivals.

The Philippines recorded the highest growth of 45.3 per cent year-on-year, followed by China (34.2 per cent), Japan (32.5 per cent), Indonesia (20 per cent), India (6.9 per cent) and the UK (5.9 per cent).

Longhaul markets that had posted significant growth were Oman (33.2 per cent), Russia (28.2 per cent), France (20.6 per cent), the US (18.9 per cent), South Korea (18 per cent), Kuwait (17.4 per cent) and Denmark (15.7 per cent).

Saudi Arabia saw a 71.7 per cent increase in arrivals because of a new rule that requires all outgoing travellers to own individual passports. Prior to this ruling, children travelled on their parent’s passports. Two periods of long holidays – January to March and June to July – also contributed to the increase in arrivals.