Thomas Mueller
STARWOOD Hotels & Resorts has appointed Thomas Mueller as general manager of the first Westin resort in Thailand, The Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa Phuket.
With more than 35 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Mueller was previously based in China, Australia, Malaysia, Singapore, Guam, Hong Kong, Belgium and Switzerland.
He was most recently general manager of The Sheraton Hongqiao Hotel in Shanghai.
Hervé Joseph-Antoine
PACIFIC World has appointed former Carlson Wagonlit Travel vice president Meetings & Events EMEA, Hervé Joseph-Antoine, as its global managing director, based in Singapore.
Together with Pacific World’s three regional directors, Manuel Ferrer, Cindy Zhang and Shaun Casey, Joseph-Antoine will oversee global strategy for the company, including developing the sales model, expanding the product offering and driving the geographical expansion.
Meanwhile, Jacques Arnoux, director of Pacific World Asia will now focus on maintaining key relationships and delivery excellence as a Pacific World board member.
MALAYSIA is now offering its Twin Deal programme, first launched in China last September, in Taiwan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and Europe.
The programme rewards both the client and the MICE planner. Depending on the size of the meeting, the client enjoys free souvenirs, welcome packages, cocktails, police outriders, etc, while the planner gains points which can be redeemed for a Malaysia trip.
A corporate meeting or incentive travel with at least 50 delegates automatically qualifies for the programme.
Ho Yoke Ping, general manager sales & marketing of Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), said Twin Deal saw “immediate” response in China when it was launched. To-date, MyCEB has secured 9,000 participants from China under the programme.
Ho said MyCEB was planning to appoint a sales representative in China “earliest by the end of the year”.
Only in operation since July 2010, MyCEB has established a global presence with the appointments of Moulden Marketing as its sales representative in Europe, Marketing Challenges International in North America, and Gaining Edge in Australia/New Zealand.
Last year, the bureau secured more than 49 international and regional conventions until 2016 in partnership with its affiliates.
THE CITY of Hyderabad is preparing to host a mega UN-related biological diversity convention from October 1 to 19, the longest (19 days) and the largest conference (an expected attendance of 8,000 to 10,000 participants) ever to be held in India.
Jalil (Gary) Khan, CEO, Hyderabad Convention Visitors Bureau, said the city would be under a massive spotlight as delegates set to attend the convention include prime ministers of 194 countries, and officials from the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.
The event will be held at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre. “Hyderabad was chosen as the venue as it has the facilities. Bombay or New Delhi do not,” said Khan.
According to Khan, the city’s inventory of 5,000 rooms will be able to accommodate the influx of delegates, as the convention will be held in three stages. “Hyderabad will not close down during the event – there are still rooms. New four- and five-star hotels are also coming up,” he said.
TAIPEI is bent on regaining its conventions ranking in Asia, which slipped to fourth last year, from second position in 2010.
To achieve this, the city has raised the maximum subsidy to NT1 million (US$32,500) per case this year, from NT500,000 previously, to motivate local associations further in their bid for conventions.
Beijing and Seoul overtook Taipei last year as the second- and third-ranked convention city in Asia respectively, according to ICCA, which conducts the ranking based on convention data submitted by the cities. Singapore was ranked first for the tenth year running.
Dayton Wang, chief, Department of information and Tourism, Taipei City Government, admitted that Beijing and Seoul in particular were “very competitive” in their marketing, but pointed out that the reason for them leapfrogging Taipei could be that not all meetings held in the city were submitted and factored into the ICCA ranking.
Last year, 123 events in Taiwan received subsidies, bringing 150,000 delegates and NT3 billion in spending. This compared with 104 events, 134,000 delegates and NT2.7 billion spending in 2010.
The Taipei City Government also marched into IMEX in Frankfurt for the first time this year in a bid to woo European buyers to meet in the city. “We still stand a good chance of attracting European meetings despite the European debt crisis. Taipei is relatively cheap and it is accessible as there are flights all over the world,” Wang said.
Meanwhile, the Taiwan Tourism Bureau has launched a new subsidy for 2012-2013 to increase incentive travel to Taiwan, and is offering grants, planning assistance, cultural performances and souvenirs.
ORION Expedition Cruises has raised rates on eleven sailings throughout 2013, on the back of record April sales following the release of its 2013 Calendar of Expeditions in March.
Orion reported that sales during the launch period were double the previous year, with increased number of bookings from both repeat and first-time customers.
The cruise line explained that the rate hikes were in line with yield management policy, and that a number of competitive lead-in fares for key destinations had been retained.
Orion founder and managing director, Sarina Bratton, said: “We have experienced unprecedented sales for a new calendar release, which reflects increasing confidence in the market, as well as recognition that the earlier you book, the better price you will receive.”
“As announced when we released the 2013 Calendar of Sailings, we held our launch prices till end of April and our guests responded positively.”
The new pricing has already been implemented on the Orion website, www.orionexpeditions.com. Revised savings levels are only guaranteed until the end of June, after which Orion will undertake another review of its rates.
INDONESIA’s capital will soon boast a purpose-built mega convention and exhibition centre, which will enable it to bid for large-scale conferences, including the coveted medical and scientific events.
Construction on the Jakarta International Exhibition & Congress Centre (JIECC) is slated to start in October, and the venue is expected to soft-open in 2014, according to Lilia Sukotjo, director of Alam Sutera Realty, which has been tasked with developing the facility.
Designed by Larry Oltmanns, who also fashioned the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre and Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre, JIECC will already surpass the largest venues in Indonesia by nearly 30 per cent once Phase 1 is completed. When Phase 2 is finished in 2017, it will be among the largest single floor venues in Asia.
Besides featuring 60,000m2 of exhibition space, a 5,400m2 ballroom and 2,700m2 of meeting space, JIECC’s plenary hall will be able to accommodate 18,000 – 20,000 pax and offer 45 breakout rooms. This compares with 5,000 pax and 13 meeting rooms at the existing Jakarta Convention Center in central Jakarta.
Located at Alam Sutera, a 700-hectare mixed-use development in Serpong, Tangerang, the JIECC site is a 30-min drive to the Jakarta city centre and 15 min from the international airport. Alam Sutera Realty is also building three hotels within the estate, and two others on the fringes of the development.
Sukotjo said her research pointed to JIECC being able to bring in “better ROI than hotels”. She said Jakarta Convention & Exhibition Bureau (JCEB) CEO, Indra Sukirno, had broached the idea of building the facility to Alam Sutera, at a time when the developer was looking for something “new” to help it secure “recurring income” rather than, say, residential sales.
JCEB’s Sukirno said: “For years, we’ve been crying for a purpose-built centre that can accommodate large medical and scientific events. The existing venues can’t even accommodate the growth in exhibition size as it is.”
Nakala Godahewa
SRI Lanka’s top tourism official, Nalaka Godahewa, abruptly resigned from several key posts yesterday over differences with the government on international marketing and promotion strategy.
Godahewa stepped down as head of the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Bureau, Sri Lanka Convention Bureau and Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism & Hotel Management, but retained his role as chairman of the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority.
Citing difficulties in amalgamating the four state tourism bodies as one of the reasons for relinquishing the posts, Godahewa stated his intention to focus on the development aspect of Sri Lanka tourism moving forward.
An industry leader who declined to be named said many were aware of Godahewa’s hands being tied in promoting the destination. “I hope (Godahewa’s) sacrifice will make the government take note and resolve some of these issues,” he said.
In recent times, Sri Lankan tourism bodies have encountered serious hindrances related to funding, with P.B. Jayasundera, secretary, Ministry of Finance & Planning, actively slashing their budgets.
Tourism representatives including Godahewa have also been absent from key international travel trade fairs over the past 18 months, due to permission to attend these events being withheld by the Ministry.
JAPAN Airlines (JAL) will boost its New Delhi-Tokyo services to seven flights a week starting December 2012, up from the current five weekly flights.
The carrier operated daily services to New Delhi till 2009, when the global economic crisis forced it to trim its frequency.
Shelly Egbert, manager-sales, JAL said: “We will utilise (Boeing) 787 Dreamliner aircraft on the additional (New Delhi-Tokyo) flights. We have all the necessary approvals required to begin the daily operations. At present, there is good demand (about 70 per cent load factor) on this sector.”
JAL recently deployed the Dreamliner on four out of five weekly flights on the route. A Boeing 777 plane is still being utilised on one of the flights, and will be phased out in due course.
Ashwani Gupta, managing partner, Dove Travels Amritsar, said: “The daily service to New Delhi will play a significant role in increasing the traffic between the two countries. Indian travellers are keen to explore cities like Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, while Japanese travellers will have more flight options to explore Buddhist circuits in India.”
Reporting by Divya Kaul
THE CIVIL Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) has progressed in its efforts to persuade the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to upgrade the nation’s aviation safety rating.
Following last month’s technical review by FAA officials in Manila, CAAP director Mon Gutierrez said the eighty-eight ‘significant findings’ discovered during the FAA pre-audit in January had since been cut down to two.
CAAP is currently acting on FAA requests to develop a new technical training programme based on recognised international aviation standards. It will also facilitate a revalidation process of Philippine carriers flying international routes. It will apply for a new FAA audit once these requirements are met.
The Philippine government is intent on regaining Category 1 status with the FAA, which downgraded the country’s aviation industry to Category 2 in December 2007.
Meanwhile, Gutierrez said CAAP was working to address the “significant safety concerns” that the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) raised during their last visit, such as “the lack of (qualified) technical personnel,” noting that the concerns echoed those of the European Union when it imposed a blanket ban on Philippine carriers in April 2010.
ICAO officers are scheduled to visit Manila for an airline compliance inspection in July-August.
Aileen Clemente, president, Philippine Travel Agencies Association, said: “CAAP is fast-tracking the (reinstatement) process with support from the government. We will be over the hump very soon – they know what needs to be done.”
