MALDIVES authorites have pleaded with foreign media outlets to be more objective when reporting about the political crisis in the country, saying it was beginning to affect its tourism industry.

Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb, who was appointed just five days after the country’s president Mohamed Nasheed was forced to resign on February 7 (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 8, 2012), said: “The situation is under control, but there have been alot of bad messages, exaggerated reports and misinformation going out through the international media. This is affecting tourism.”

According to Adheeb, visitors to the Maldives could be assured of safety due to the destination’s “one island, one resort” concept. “No tourist or hotel has been harmed in Male,” he added. “Whichever side (of the conflict) we are on, we know tourism is key and no one wants it harmed. We need to get this message across to the world.”

Regular clashes between Nasheed’s supporters and state elements, though confined to the capital Male, have already precipitated into an increasing number of cancellations from overseas markets.

Maldives Association of Tourism Industry members have so far reported some 500 cancellations, according to its secretary-general, Sim Mohamed Ibrahim.

“There is some concern, with lots of inquiries from China in particular,” he said. “Flights (from China) that are normally 80-90 per cent full are now coming in with only 60 per cent seats filled.”

David Kevan from UK-based CHIC Locations said while the company was still sending clients to the Maldives, they were actively monitoring the situation, “and without doubt it is negative destination publicity”.

Michelle Flake, contracting & marketing manager for Scaevola Travel, an inbound operator that handles the China market, said they were still getting enquiries and bookings on a daily basis.

“When clients ask me (about the situation), I tell them that as a foreigner living in the capital, I am not affected,” she said. “As for clients on a resort, unless they watch the news, they are unlikely to be aware of anything going on in the outside world.”

DESPITE the grim economic outlook in certain source markets, the Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) is targeting 44.2 million visitors this year, a 5.5 per cent jump over 2011. Shorthaul inbound traffic is forecasted to grow by 3.1 per cent, making up for the expected 1.9 per cent dip in longhaul numbers.

According to its 2012/2013 workplan, HKTB will continue to leverage on the Hong Kong – Asia’s World City branding, and has requested a marketing budget of HK$349.8 million (US$45 million), versus HK$351.8 million in 2011/2012.

The bureau is also seeking HK$56.2 million to fund the expansion of its Signature Events calendar, and is planning to advertise a list of potential event additions/upgrades in local newspapers to invite sponsorship from corporations. The three-year Mega Events Fund established in 2009 will also be extended for five years and receive a HK$150-million cash injection.

HKTB senior manager for event & product development, Mason Hung, said: “New elements mooted (for the events calendar) include a fishing boat parade on Victoria Harbour during the Birthday of Tin Hau Festival in May, as well as introducing a fire dragon in Victoria Park during the Mid-Autumn Festival.”

Despite being confident of realising an 11-per cent growth in MICE business, HKTB chairman James Tien said limited growth is expected for the meetings and incentive travel segments.

“Most of the MICE events for 2012 are booked well in advance. Key source markets will be mainland China, India and other shorthaul markets,” he said. “Mainland China is a big potential feeder market, and our four offices there are each staffed with a MICE representative to tap the traffic.”

Other initiatives in the works for HKTB include a revamp of its DiscoverHongKong and PartnerNet websites. Upgraded versions are set to roll out in mid-2012, with added features such as a B2B transaction platform for the trade partner portal.

THE ANNUAL World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) Global Summit will proceed in Japan this April as planned, with part of the programme hosted in Sendai to demonstrate the city’s rapid recovery from the earthquake and tsunami disaster last March.

Japan won the hosting rights to the 12th Global Summit in November 2010, and Tokyo was originally earmarked as the host city.

“However, after the disaster on March 11, Japan wanted to show the recovery (Tohoku has achieved),” a Japan Tourism Agency (JTA) spokesperson told TTG Asia e-Daily.

WTTC gave the Japan host committee the nod, allowing the Global Summit to kick off in Sendai on April 16 at the Westin Hotel Sendai, and proceed onwards to Tokyo’s Grand Prince Hotel New Takanawa from the later part of April 17.

Conference sessions will look at lessons on disaster recovery, as well as Asia’s travel and tourism business.

At press time, 400 domestic and overseas attendees have signed up for the summit in Sendai, while 1,000 have confirmed their presence at the Tokyo event.

The JTA spokesperson said a half-day post-show tour around Tokyo was being planned.

MALAYSIA generated RM58.3 billion (US$19.5 billion) in tourism revenue in 2011, a three-per cent increase over the RM56.5 billion earned the year before. The country received 24.7 million international visitors in 2011, only a marginal rise over the 24.6 million registered the previous year.

Tourism minister Ng Yen Yen attributed the hike in tourism receipts to Tourism Malaysia’s branding of the country as a luxury destination. “Our efforts to attract high-yield tourists to Malaysia have made a difference,” she said.

Since 2010, initiatives implemented to draw high-end visitors include the organising of annual luxury events like the 1Malaysia International Shoe Festival, 1Malaysia Contemporary Art Tourism Festival, as well as the packaging of helicopter tours.

“Private sector collaboration on events like the CIMB Asia Pacific Classic Malaysia golf tournament also positioned Malaysia as a luxury tourism destination,” Ng added.

Malaysia’s top ten source markets in 2011 were Singapore (13,372,647), Indonesia (2,134,381), Thailand (1,442,048), China (1,250,536), Brunei (1,239,404), India (693,056), Australia (558,411), the UK (403,940), Japan (386,974) and the Philippines (362,101).

The Indonesian market took a major hit last year, with arrivals declining by 14.8 per cent over the year before.

“The abolishment of Indonesia’s fiscal fee allowed its travellers to head to other countries without making a stopover in Malaysia,” explained Ng. “The opening of the integrated resorts and Universal Studios in Singapore, and the reinstatement of Garuda Air’s route to Europe further contributed to the decline.”

Markets that recorded the strongest growth were Kazakhstan, which grew by 65.9 per cent, New Zealand (+ 23 per cent) and Russia (+ 21.3 per cent).

“(Arrivals from) Kazakhstan were assisted by the thrice-weekly direct Air Astana flights from Almaty to Kuala Lumpur, while New Zealand benefited from the opening of a Tourism Malaysia office in Auckland last May,” said Ng.

“Russia saw an increase on the back of strong promotional efforts there, in addition to weekly Transaero flights which commenced last December.”

Reporting by N. Nithiyananthan.

DESPITE mainstream media reports that sales were mostly brisk during this year’s series of pre-NATAS consumer travel fairs, several travel company spokespersons whom TTG Asia e-Daily spoke to painted a different picture.

For instance, Chan Brothers Travel garnered a relatively muted response at its travel fair held at Suntec City on February 12, according to its marketing & communications manager, Jane Chang.

“Booking volume (during the fair) increased by about 10 per cent this year over 2011, which is well within our forecasts,” she said, adding that performance would have been better if not for the six rival companies holding their own fairs over the same weekend.

Eva Wu, marketing & communications manager of SA Tours, shared the same sentiment.

“Sales at our travel fair last weekend remained somewhat consistent (compared to) 2011. The management is satisfied with our performance, but we could have definitely achieved more if there wasn’t so much competition,” she said. “We hope to do better at the upcoming NATAS fair.”

On a more optimistic note, CTC Travel’s senior vice-president of marketing & public relations, Alicia Seah, is expecting the company’s overall business to soar by 40-50 per cent in the first half of 2012 compared to last year, based on strong sales figures at its travel fair held from February 11-12.

Seah estimates that business at the fair increased by 30-50 per cent compared to last year, with bookings for European destinations jumping by 15 per cent.

“Europe remains a top destination, not only because of the strong Singapore dollar, but also because of the overall reduction in prices for land tours and airfares. Travellers can now save as much as 30 per cent on European tour packages compared to 2011,” she said.

Europe was also a bright spot for Chan Brothers, with the company’s booking volume for the continent jumping by 30 per cent during its fair, “Singaporeans are still taking advantage of the strong Singapore dollar, and are venturing further afield, particularly on sea and river cruises,” said Chang.

LOCATED at the crossroads of the ancient Silk Road, the city of Kashgar in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region of mainland China is looking to grow various aspects of its fledgling economy, with tourism being prioritised as one of its pillars of development.

Speaking during a conference in Singapore to highlight Kashgar’s potential, the Kashgar Municipal Government’s party secretary, Chen Xuguang, said the city was looking to enhance its tourism infrastructure as well as air connectivity to forge “a new Silk Road in the air”. Cultural tourism would be the main focus of its enhanced tourism development thrust, he added.

“Kashgar is the bridge and window to the east and the west, and as it was in ancient times, a hub, being only a short flight away from major points in Europe, the Middle East as well as South-east Asia,” said Chen.

According to Andy Chee, director of Sinostar Strategic, a Singapore-based firm tasked to promote tourism investment in Kashgar and act as its international marketing representative, the Kashgar government is currently in discussions with various international airlines to start weekly chartered flights from Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai and Paris. The connections to Singapore and Hong Kong are tentatively scheduled to start this summer, he added.

Also in the pipeline are plans to transform two former consulates in Kashgar’s Old City into luxury hotels. Ang Gao, chief investment officer, Kashgar Development & Investment Holdings, said the city would have seven five-star properties by end-2012, all owned by the the local government, but managed by international brands.

Kashgar’s convention and exhibition facilities will also be given a boost, said Chee. Existing infrastructure such as its sports stadium will be utilised as MICE venues, while new facilities will be constructed, specifically in the east, where a mixed-use development is underway. An MoU has also been signed with Singapore-based Inspire Integrated Marketing to promote Kashgar as a MICE destination.

Currently, some two million tourists visit Kashgar annually, with the majority stemming from international markets. As highlighted by Chee, most of them are high-end, who visit the city on tailor-made itineraries as part of a pan-China tour. The city aims to attract 6.7 million tourists by 2015.

To kickstart its overseas promotion efforts, the Kashgar municipal government signed an MoU with NATAS on February 13 to jointly promote the destination to Singaporeans.

Robert Khoo, NATAS CEO, said details of the joint marketing initiative were still being fleshed out. “When the (Kashgar) municipal government approached us, we decided that it was an opportunity that was too hard to resist,” he said.

ZAIA, a Cirque du Soleil stage production based at The Venetian Macao, will bid farewell to audiences on Feb 19, after completing just 3.5 years of its 10-year contract.

The 90-minute production, which debuted in August 2008 as Macau’s first-ever resident show, was reportedly watched by over a million guests during its short-lived tenure.

According to a spokesperson for The Venetian Macao, the move to axe Zaia was a commercial one made after extensive research into consumer needs.

“Results showed us that customers wanted a greater variety of productions. Therefore, we decided to move on and redesign (the old venue into) a new multi-purpose theatre to meet customer needs,” the spokesperson said.

The redevelopment of the theatre which was purpose-built to house Zaia will convert the 1,800-pax venue into a multi-purpose one capable of accommodating a variety of performances such as concerts, plays and magic shows.

Air Cruise Travel executive director, Eric Chang, said: “The show was not doing well enough simply because there was a better option, the House of Dancing Water. In the eyes of (mainland) Chinese visitors, the show (Zaia) is very common and not a big difference from any good show in many theme parks or acrobatic performances in (mainland) China.”

NO changes are on the horizon for Costa Cruises’ plans in Asia-Pacific despite the Costa Concordia tragedy in January.

In an emailed statement to TTG Asia e-Daily, Buhdy Bok, Costa Cruises vice president Pacific Asia & China said the cruise line’s capacity growth target in Asia would hold steady at 40 per cent, and that all ship deployments to the region would proceed as planned (TTG Asia e-Daily, November 17, 2011).

“We believe that our Asian customers understand that the Costa Concordia incident was an exceptional event. So far, in Asian markets, we have not seen any impact on our business arising from cancellations,” he said.

The Costa Concordia ran aground off the coast of Isola del Giglio in Tuscany, Italy on January 13, requiring the evacuation of 4,252 passengers on board. The ship subsequently listed to the side and was partially submerged. Seventeen people were killed and 64 others were injured during the accident, with another 15 still unaccounted for.

When questioned by TTG Asia e-Daily about how exactly Costa Cruises would set about reassuring consumers about the safety of its ships, Bok explained that the Costa Concordia incident “deeply affected us all and we are committed never to allow such an incident to ever happen again”.

“Following the incident, Costa is working hard to rebuild the confidence and faith of our consumers, nurtured over the more than 60 years we have been operating cruises,” he said.

As part of its commitment to passenger safety, Bok explained that onboard crew members undergo a series of exhaustive training sessions to deal with crises, in full compliance with international safety regulations. All equipment on Costa ships is tested regularly, with staff performing evacuation drills every fortnight. Additionally, all guests take part in an evacuation drill within 24 hours of joining a sailing, he added.

“We remain fully aware of our responsibility to those who place their trust in us,” said Bok. “We now look to openly communicate the safety measures onboard Costa Cruises and reassure customers that Costa sailings are safe.”

SPECULATION is rife that Sonu Shivdasani, CEO and chairman of Six Senses BVI, is close to signing a deal with an American company, which may result in different shareholdings in the Soneva and Six Senses brands.

Sources expect the agreement to be signed within the next two weeks.

Speculation of the capital restructuring had been in the market since an organisational restructure of the company last July, which separated Six Senses and Soneva into three divisions run by three presidents – Shivdasani for Soneva, Bernhard Bohnenberger for Six Senses Resorts & Spas, and Jan Poul de Boer for Six Senses Properties.

The departure of several executives, as a result of Soneva management being property-based largely in the Maldives and a smaller Six Senses team in Bangkok, sparked rumours that the chain had hit a rough patch. Nearly half of its 15 resorts in operation across three brands (Soneva, Six Senses and Evason) are in Thailand, a destination in perpetual recovery mode since 2009. There was also a guess that its private residences sales were lukewarm as the rich got battered by the financial crisis and the ongoing Eurozone debt crisis.

In a phone interview from the Maldives, Shivdasani declined to confirm or deny that a capital restructuring was in the works. He responded, however, to questions on the organisational restructuring, saying: “Eva (his wife) and I want to focus more on Soneva, that’s why we restructured the company.”

He dismissed talk that residential sales were not doing well. “Our budget EBITDA is US$25 million and residences account for US$10 million. That’s 40 per cent of earnings. We had four sales in the Maldives; (Soneva) Kiri (in Thailand) sold 11 – eight have been built and we start building the other three in summer. Residences is a new income stream, that’s why we separate it (under the properties division).

“Business at Six Senses is up 30 to 40 per cent in revenue in the past 12 months. Thailand’s 30 per cent up on budget, (though) we’re still recovering from the Thai crisis.”

Asked why he wanted to focus more on Soneva, he said: “I’m getting old (laughs).

“Six Senses involves a lot of travelling. We now have 30 spas opened, 11 hotels opened and another 70 different projects in the pipeline, of which 20 are seeing quite a bit of activity. There are also lots of spas opening. Bernhard is doing a great job; he enjoys the travel and managing other people’s properties.”

Shivdasani is 46 years old – hardly old, many would say – and, at that age, already hugely admired globally for his ‘intelligent luxury’ concept. His sustainability practices won him The Most Environment Friendly Hotel Company award, one of four outstanding achievement awards in the annual TTG Travel Awards, in 2007.

BEST Western International is continuing its rapid expansion in South-east Asia with the addition of two new properties in Thailand and the Philippines.

The Best Western at Chaeng Wattana will open in 2014 in Chaeng Wattana area of Bangkok, close to government office buildings and the IMPACT Arena Muangthong Thani conference & exhibition centre.

The property will feature 188 guestrooms and facilities including a swimming pool, a fitness centre and an all-day dining restaurant. The hotel will also have six meeting rooms and three banquet halls.

Best Western International is already represented by four hotels in Bangkok; Best Western Mayfair Suites, Best Western Premier Amaranth Suvarnabhumi Airport, Best Western Plus at 20 Sukhumvit and Best Western Bangkok Hiptique. These properties form part of a Thailand-wide portfolio of 13 hotels and more than 1,200 rooms.

Meanwhile, Best Western International has launched its fifth hotel in Manila, Best Western The A. Venue Suites Makati.

Located in the Makati district of Manila, the property offers 70 suites in standard, deluxe, family and premiere categories, an indoor infinity-edged swimming pool, a kid’s pool, a steam room, a hot tub, a fitness centre and a Mediterranean restaurant. There are also five meeting rooms with more than 420m² of space and able to cater for 20-120 pax.

The launch of Best Western The A. Venue Suites Makati adds to two recently opened Best Western properties in Manila – Best Western Oxford Suites Makati and Best Western Premier F1 Hotel in Boniofacio Global City – and takes the company’s portfolio in the Philippines to six hotels and more than 600 keys.