Sam How
SAM How has been reappointed general manager of Singapore-based Asia-Euro Holidays, a travel firm he headed from 2006 to 2008.
He has 12 years of experience in the travel trade and was most recently vice president – product development of GTMC Travel, a company he led as general manager in 2004-2006.
How was also previously with Heart Travel, JP International Travel, Ananda Travel and Euro-Asia Holidays.
Iqbal Jumabhoy
SILVERNEEDLE Hospitality, an integrated investment, development and management firm that manages over 4,000 keys in Asia-Pacific, has appointed Iqbal Jumabhoy as its managing director and CEO, based in Singapore.
Jumabhoy was most recently the CEO of Rendezvous Hospitality Group, which owns and operates hotels in Singapore, China, Australia and New Zealand.
He also has prior experience in banking, real estate and corporate management, and previously served on the boards of listed companies in the UK, India, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand.
Headquartered in Singapore, SilverNeedle Hospitality has regional offices in Bangkok, Mumbai and Sydney, and is planning to expand its network to over 10,000 keys by 2016.
THIS YEAR’s ITB Asia will take place at The Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore, from October 17-19.
Suntec Singapore, which has hosted ITB Asia for the past four years, is currently undergoing major refurbishment (TTG Asia e-Daily, November 1, 2011). The show plans to return to the newly renovated venue in 2013.
Exhibition floor space at ITB Asia 2012 is expected to increase by about 15 per cent compared to last year’s event, which saw over 7,500 trade visitors in attendance, representing more than 90 countries.
The 2011 show also had the largest conference line-up ever, including the inaugural TTG Travel Agent Conference.
A NEW wholesale tour operator formed by a group of former Gullivers Travel Associates (GTA) staff is hoping to tap Asian group outbound travel to the tune of 25 million euros (US$32.8 million) a year, pitting itself against other European operators such as Kuoni, which is also going after a bigger slice of the market.
To help it stake a claim is no other than David Babai – founder of GTA who eventually sold the company to Cendant for US$1.1 billion in 2005 – who is coming on board G2 Travel as chairman, having recently seen the conclusion of his six-year non-compete agreement with GTA.
The birth of G2 comes as Kuoni completed its acquisition of GTA last May (TTG Asia e-Daily, May 6, 2011) and continues to strengthen Kuoni Destination Management, which is expanding in Asia.
G2 Travel is officially launching at the end of the month, having spent the last three months putting its foundations in place as a wholesale operator headquartered in Hong Kong, with offices in Bangkok, Jakarta, London, Rome and Bucharest.
David Littlefair heads the Hong Kong and Bangkok operation, while the Jakarta office is headed by Al Mulenga. Both were former general managers of GTA in Thailand and Indonesia, respectively. The names of the other three directors will be released in due course, said Littlefair in a phone interview.
While G2 Travel will also tap outbound group travel from the Middle East, Australia, North America and Europe, Asia is where “the growth story” is, according to Littlefair. The Bangkok office will cover Thailand and Indochina, with Vietnam outbound seen as “growing phenomenally”. Hong Kong will cover the Philippines, while Indonesia will look after Malaysia and Brunei. Most of the Asian business is expected to head for Europe.
Babai said in a statement: “The emerging economies are growing rapidly and with new wealth comes the desire to travel abroad. For the inexperienced traveller, longhaul destinations are incredibly exciting but a huge challenge owing to language barriers, cultural norms, difficulty in getting visas or simply the desire to find the food one likes to eat. Our team really understands how to deal with these issues and provide a memorable experience for the traveller at an acceptable price point, whilst earning a fair return for the effort and knowledge required.”
– Read why there is money in group travel, TTG Asia, February 10 issue
AIRASIA Japan, the low-cost carrier joint venture between AirAsia Berhad and All Nippon Airways, received its Air Operators Certificate (AOC) from the Japanese Civil Aviation Bureau on February 1.
The AOC will enable AirAsia Japan to operate aircraft in its fleet for commercial flights to international and domestic destinations.
AirAsia Japan is planning to operate international and domestic routes out of Tokyo’s Narita Airport by August (TTG Asia e-Daily, September 1, 2011), but the launch could be brought forward subject to aircraft availability.
AUSTRALIA has become the latest beneficiary of the Malaysian Convention and Exhibition Bureau’s (MyCEB) successful Twin Deal corporate incentive programme, which has secured over 9,000 participants since it debuted in China last September.
The two-pronged rewards programme targets incentive planners and participants, offering value add-ons that promise to enhance the quality of events held in Malaysia.
Ho Yoke Ping, general manager of sales & marketing, MyCEB, said: “With the establishment of the bureau and the launch of our new branding campaign and tagline Malaysia – Asia’s Business Events Hub, it is timely that we reintroduce Malaysia as an incentive destination to the Australian market.”
“There has been an increase in the number of Australian companies organising (overseas) meetings and incentive trips due to the country’s strong economy and strengthening Australian dollar. Malaysia’s proximity to Australia, connectivity and value-for-money status makes it an ideal choice for companies planning to reward their employees or clients.”
Ho said there was stronger Australian interest in Malaysia last year compared to before, and that MyCEB was expecting 16,000 Australian delegates to sign up for the Twin Deal programme between now and end-2012.
The programme was introduced to corporate event buyers during MyCEB’s inaugural sales mission to Melbourne and Sydney last week. The bureau is planning another roadshow to both cities by the second half of the year, and will also host a fam trip for key corporate and incentive players.
Twin Deal features offered to Australian planners are different from what are available to the Chinese market, said Ho.
“We plan to launch a series of Twin Deals, each tailor-made for the market, as the needs of each market is different. For the Australian market, we are offering a real Asian incentive experience, where one gets to experience the authenticity and diversity of Malaysia’s people and culture,” she explained.
Examples of privileges offered to Australian incentive participants are a complimentary canopy walk at Bukit Nanas Forest Reserve, a Feng Shui talk by a renowned local Feng Shui master and a Malaysia cultural session.
THE SANDS Expo and Convention Centre will see a coming together of Asia-Pacific’s leading travel industry stakeholders when it plays host to Low Cost Airlines (LCA) World Asia Pacific 2012 and Travel Distribution World Asia from February 8-10.
Travel Distribution World Asia will feature speakers such as Agoda.com’s COO Bryan Lewis, AirAsia Expedia’s CEO Dan Lynn, Golden Tulip’s managing director (South-east Asia) Mark van Ogtrop, Jin Jiang International Hotel Management’s CEO Bernold Schroeder, and Swiss-Belhotel International’s GM Askar Kamis among others.
LCA World Asia Pacific will be no slouch either, with chief executives from various budget carriers such as AirAsia X, Thai AirAsia, AirAsia Philippines, Scoot, Cebu Pacific, Spring Airlines, Peach Aviation, Nok Air, SpiceJet and GoAir, set to provide insights into growth opportunities within the market.
HOTEL Zhiwaling and Yangphel Adventure Travel, both part of the Yongphel group of companies, became the inaugural private enterprises in Bhutan to adopt the national philosophy of Gross National Happiness (GNH), when they launched in 2011 a three-year programme to integrate sustainable business practices into their operations.
Karma Lotey, the CEO of the Yangphel group of companies said: “The firm has been adhering to the principles of GNH for some time, but we thought it was finally time to formalise our processes.”
During the first phase of implementation, Hotel Zhiwaling and Yangphel set out to raise understanding among employees of the nine key components of GNH, and how its values could be integrated into the business. Workshops on waste management and environmental monitoring were conducted for staff members.
Isabel Sebastian, a sustainable tourism consultant drafted in to develop Yangphel’s GNH-based practices and business structure, said: “This exercise enabled both players to engineer benchmarks and indicators for the Bhutanese tourism sector. Now, there is a basis and reference point for companies in Bhutan to integrate the concept of GNH to achieve lower electricity consumption and carbon emissions while reducing waste.”
“What’s amazing was that the success of the first year, including a reduction in carbon emissions, was attained solely through behavioural changes (of employees),” Sebastian added.
A statement by Hotel Zhiwaling revealed that emissions per guest per night declined by 13 per cent in 2011 over the year before, after a waste segregation and recycling system was introduced as part of its GNH efforts.
Also commiting to its GNH philosophy, Yangphel launched a competition for its trekking crew, awarding a prize to those who collected the largest amount of waste along trekking routes for recycling. Responsible trekking and minimum impact guidelines were established and introduced in July 2011.
Subject to further funding from the Bhutanese government, the second phase of implemenation will take place in 2012, with the focus on educating owners and shareholders about the concept of sufficiency.
Sebastian explained: “Essentially, we want owners and shareholders to agree and declare a satisfactory profit level, and develop steps that will enable the organisation to transfer benefits to as many people as possible.”
DESPITE concrete moves to expand its tourism product offerings and seasonality (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 6, 2012), Bhutan is contemplating raising its minimum daily tariff to US$300 or more within the next four to five years, to restrict the profile of targeted source markets to a select few.
Levied on non-Indian foreign visitors, high season (March-May, September-November) tariffs were raised from US$200 to US$250 per person per night beginning this year. Low season tariffs remain at US$200 per person per night.
Speaking to TTG Asia e-Daily on the sidelines of the PATA Adventure Travel & Responsible Tourism Conference and Mart 2012, Kesang Wangdi, director general Tourism Council of Bhutan, said: “It is imperative for Bhutan to be a high-end destination. We want to concentrate on creating sustainable value and benefits for Bhutan in the long term, rather than pander to mass tourism in the short term.”
“We want to attract visitors for whom price is not the main criteria when selecting a holiday. Bhutan is an exclusive destination for a certain type of tourist with a particular mindset,” he added.
Anthony Wong, group managing director of Malaysia’s Asian Overland Services Tours & Travel, said: “Bhutan is right to consider increasing its tariff as it will protect local businesses, stemming the flow of revenue exiting the country. Bhutan is a gem and an exclusive destination, and people should understand that coming here is a privilege.”
Wong emphasised that Bhutan should explain clearly that the tariff encompasses a royalty fee used to fund the country’s health and education sectors. “If this were highlighted to consumers, a fee hike would have less of a detrimental impact on demand,” he said.
Buyers such as Hannah Methven, product manager for UK-based Explore Worldwide, and Jenny Campbell from South Africa’s Travel Experts said the lower end of the market would probably think twice about heading to Bhutan if tariffs were raised.
“Some clients might choose to go to Nepal or Tibet, which are not as expensive. Only fairly affluent FITs or the well-travelled will continue to choose Bhutan,’ said Campbell.
Tshewang Om, operations manager of Thimpu-based Om Travenza, said: “If the tariff was increased, from a business standpoint, this would make Bhutan harder to sell. However, it would be good for the environment and overall wellbeing.”
Sonam Wangmo, founder of Bhutan’s Yu Druk Tours and Treks, said: “It is more critical to ensure that we put measures in place to manage numbers and capacity, rather than just think of the bottom line.”
SINGAPORE earned an estimated S$22.2 billion (US$17.8 billion) in tourism receipts for 2011, while 13.2 million overseas visitors were recorded for the year—both new records, according to the latest figures from the Singapore Tourism Board.
The figure for tourism receipts met the forecasted range of S$22-24 billion. All major components saw year-on-year growth, with Sightseeing & Entertainment recording the highest growth (+37 per cent).
Source: STB
The 13.2 million International Visitor Arrivals (IVA) registered in 2011 exceeded the forecasted range of 12-13 million.
Source: STB
Indonesia (2,592,000), China (1,577,000), Malaysia (1,141,000), Australia (956,000) and India (869,000) were Singapore’s top five international visitor-generating markets.
Seventy-six per cent of total IVA came from Asia (including South-east Asia, North Asia, South Asia and West Asia, excluding Oceania). IVA from Europe saw a two per cent increase despite a four per cent drop in IVA from the UK.
Source: STB
Gazetted hotel room revenue for 2011 came in at an estimated S$2.6 billion, representing a 27.8 per cent year-on-year hike.
ARR was S$245 in 2011, a year-on-year increase of 13 per cent. Room rates for all hotel tiers increased, with the upscale tier posting the highest growth rate of 14 per cent.
AOR reached 86 per cent in 2011.
Robust performance in ARR and AOR resulted in a 15 per cent growth in RevPAR, which stood at S$212 in 2011. The upscale tier was the top performer in terms of RevPAR growth.
Source: STB
