ETIHAD Airways commenced on November 1 direct daily services from Abu Dhabi to Male, the Maldives capital.

The UAE flag carrier employs Airbus A320 aircraft on the route, configured with 120 economy- and 16 business-class seats.

An Etihad Airways official said the new service would cater to passengers from across the UAE and the Middle East, and also Europeans seeking connections to the Maldives.

Upul Peiris, COO of Adaaran Resorts in the Maldives, said Etihad’s new flights would help to boost connectivity between European source markets and the Maldives.

“More access means more clients. It would also help the Russian traffic as Etihad flies there too,” he said.

The Middle East accounts for 1.6 percent of total arrivals to the Maldives, and contributed 10,489 visitors during the first nine months of the year, an increase of 24.1 per cent over the same period last year.

EFFECTIVE today, TTG Asia Media is dropping the title ‘travel agent’, and substituting it with ‘travel expert’, ‘travel consultant’ or ‘travel professional’.

TTG Asia will also refer to travel agencies as travel firms or travel companies. The only exceptions are ticketing agents or agencies and consolidators.

The move is one outcome from the first TTG Travel Agent Conference held in Singapore last month, and is meant to further inspire the trade to adapt to a changing business environment, where it is clear they must add value in order to survive.

Many travel professionals have moved beyond the narrow confines of ticketing or merely booking a hotel room, making the term ‘travel agent’ increasingly an outdated and restrictive title.

TTG Asia Media took inspiration from the various speakers at its conference, in particular Adrian Caruso, master business coach from TA Fastrack Australia, who motivated the audience – a roomful of travel experts – to think differently.

“What is it that you are selling? A product? A service? A dream?” asked Caruso. “No. The answer is, YOU. You have become the product.”

Caruso urged travel professionals to present their clients with a list of their credentials and why they should buy from them, instead of presenting clients a brochure full of products (see TTG Asia group editor Raini Hamdi’s blog, Don’t sell yourself short)

Said Darren Ng, managing director, TTG Asia Media: “We hope to lead this change, which we feel is simple, yet significant and a powerful way to shift the mindset.

“The next step is for us to urge the national travel professional associations in the region such as MATTA, NATAS and ASITA; overseas associations such as ASTA and AFTA; and global bodies such as UFTAA and WTAAA to follow suit.”

So goodbye ‘travel agents’ – and welcome, travel experts.

ASTON International has discontinued its management of the three-star Aston at Grand Kuta Hotel & Residences, Bali.

The property has become increasingly popular among Indonesian, Australian and Japanese leisure travellers since Aston International took over its management in 2009, according to Aston International vice president of sales & marketing, Norbert Vas.

Vas said: “We had… successful years at Aston at Grand Kuta, but are now reserving the Aston brand for four-star hotels, while growing our mid-market Quest Hotels throughout Bali.”

In Bali, Aston already operates Quest Kuta Central Park which opened earlier this year, and is in the process of opening more Quest Hotels in Tuban, Denpasar and Seminyak.

Several other Quest properties are being developed in Surabaya, Jogjakarta and Cebu, The Philippines.

WARWICK International Hotels intends to make further inroads into North and South-east Asia, with plans to grow its regional portfolio of five hotels—which includes KC Beach & Pool Villas in Koh Samui, scheduled to open in April next year.

Its four other properties in Asia are KC Resort & Over Water Villas in Koh Samui, Celebrity International Grand Hotel in Beijing, Rembrandt Hotel & Towers in Bangkok, and Warwick Ibah Luxury Villas & Spa in Bali.

Clare Chiu, director of business development, Warwick International Hotels, told TTG Asia e-Daily that locations being considered for expansion by Warwick include Shanghai and second-tier cities in China, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and India.

“It is obvious why we should expand to China, Thailand and India,” she said. “However, we think that Cambodia and Laos have lots of potential too, as they are new destinations that are still relatively untouched by mass tourism.”

“We are keeping a close eye on all these markets, and we will make our move when the right opportunity strikes.”

Chiu said the group intends to adopt an expansion model in Asia different to the affiliate programme it employed in Europe and the US during the 1990s.

“In China for instance, we formed a global marketing alliance with Gloria Hotels. We envision that we might have to enter India using a local joint venture partner too,” she said.

When asked if the planned expansion in Asia was linked to the economic uncertainty in Europe, where the bulk of Warwick’s properties are located, Chiu said the group had been fortunate that its business in Europe had been “buffered by the excellent, central locations of our properties”, as well as a “loyal following”.

VOTE for your favourite productivity videos in PATA Singapore Chapter’s Our Productivity Story competition and you could be one of three lucky winners to walk away with an Apple iPad2.

Simply pick the winning video in each of the three categories: Hotels, Travel Agents and Other Services, where six finalists are vying to be crowned the most productive.

The finalists include Mandarin Orchard Singapore, Fairmont Singapore, Dynasty Travel International, International Paradise Connexions Tours & Travel, Adrenalin Events & Education and Vital Shared Services (a department under Singapore’s finance ministry),

The votes will contribute to half of the contest’s final results, which will be announced during the annual Tourism Ball on December 3.

Do note that the voting period has been brought forward to November 4 from November 14, and will end on November 23 instead of November 30.

For more information visit http://www.patasingapore.org.sg/pata_new/comp_video_voting.php

THE SINGAPORE Airlines (SIA) Group recorded significantly lower half-year earnings, as higher jet fuel prices took a toll on the company’s bottom line.

The Group, which consists of flag carrier SIA, SilkAir, SIA Engineering and SIA Cargo, posted net profit of S$239 million (US$188.5 million) for the first half of financial year 2011-12, a 62 per cent drop from the S$633 million generated a year ago.

The Group attributed the decrease in profits to increased expenditure on fuel, which shot up by S$747 million (+35 per cent) as jet fuel prices spiked 45 per cent over the period.

Group revenue, in the meantime, rose S$180 million to S$7.2 billion, a three per cent hike.

Broken down into subsidiary performance, SIA’s operating profit for the first half of financial year 2011-2012 fell 86 per cent to S$53 million, compared to S$380 million the year before.

Even though the airline carried a total of 8.5 million passengers (a year-on-year increase of 3.3 per cent), growth in passenger carriage was slower than expansion in capacity, resulting in a 1.9 percentage point dip in load factor to 77.5 per cent.

Meanwhile, SilkAir recorded operating profit of S$34 million for the first half, compared to S$36 million the year before. As a result, load factor was flat at 74.2 per cent.

INTERNATIONAL boutique hotel chain, Grace Hotels, has opened a 30-key property in the Chinese capital city, marking its entry into Asia-Pacific.

Grace Beijing, located in Beijing’s 798 Art District, occupies the former Yi House Hotel. The property houses modern art and contemporary furniture, and features decor inspired by the Ming Dynasty.

Facilities at the luxury hotel include Yi House restaurant, which serves Mediterranean and Asian cuisine, and Bar 798.

Philippe Requin, Grace Hotels CEO, told TTG Asia e-Daily in an interview that the hotel’s target traveller segment reflected the nature of the 798 Art District.

“We see a mix of local and international clientele with strong representation from the fashion, arts, film, photography and design communities that are attracted to the art district or have business there,” he said.

“There are also some discerning vacation guests who seek an alternative to the established city centre locations.”

Grace Beijing employs multiple channels to move rooms, including direct booking, tour operators and travel agents.

“There is a global trend towards more use of the Internet to research or book travel and accommodation, so we are constantly working to improve our web experience,” said Requin.

To advance Grace Hotels’ expansion into the rest of Asia-Pacific, the group has hired renowned hotelier Roberto Pelliccia to oversee opportunities in the region.

Although no firm plans have been laid as to Grace Hotels’ next opening in Asia, Requin said mainland China was “definitely among the countries in which we are hoping to develop”.

Grace Hotels’ other existing properties are in Mykonos, Santorini and Rhode Island.

THE NUMBER of foreign visitors to this year’s edition of EXCO Taiwan was double that of last year’s, as organisers continue to step up efforts to broaden the show’s MICE range.

“Our hope is to become a full-fledged MICE show like IMEX,” said Alex Lai, EXCO show manager and project manager, Exhibition Department, Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA).

Lai said more emphasis would be placed on the incentive travel and meetings segments for future shows.

“Right now we are strong in the ‘E’ because that is what TAITRA is – a trade show organiser. We also have the ‘C’ because of TICC (Taipei International Convention Center—both a venue and a conference organiser),” he said.

This year’s first-day attendance at the Taipei World Trade Center included a total of 103 foreign visitors, a 230 per cent jump over last year. Pre-registration generated more than 230 attendees from oversees, also a doubling.

The biggest share of overseas visitors were from foreign schools participating in a MICE training event held during the show.

Each year, the TAITRA International Trade Institute’s MICE training division invites the tourism departments of local colleges and universities to compete at EXCO by creating and manning booths for Taiwan’s MICE destinations.

Joining the 14 local schools at this year’s MICE Education & Training Area were eight universities from South Korea, Hong Kong, Thailand and Malaysia.

By Glenn Smith

KAHA Group, a major Indonesian travel consultancy, is entering the e-commerce arena through Karya Harmoni Indonesia, a joint venture with former Wotif product director Thailand, Indonesia and Indochina, Yusuf Ijsseldijk, who has been appointed managing director and CEO of the new entity.

The company will launch its full-service online B2B and B2C travel sales engine, Goindonesia.com, in mid-November, catering to Indonesian domestic and outbound travellers.

“The fact that there is a fast-growing domestic business for online players like Agoda.com, which only accepts credit card payments, shows that the online market in Indonesia is maturing,” explained Yusuf.

“There is a huge market here (in Indonesia) but very few players. There are e-commerce sites, but they are not fully online.”

Goindonesia.com, which will initially feature hotel and transfer bookings and later airline and package tours, will offer a range of payment options such as Internet banking, closed-amount payments via ATM, and credit card transactions.

“There is a big opportunity for us to cater for those who have been thinking of (buying products) online, but are reluctant to use their credit cards because of fraud worries,” said Yusuf.

Commenting on the possibility of cannibalising KAHA’s business as a traditional offline travel consultant company, Yusuf said: “There will be a shift of market, but KAHA’s (offline) market will continue to grow in line with the growth of traffic in Indonesia.”

“Traditional travel business will continue to grow, but the online business will grow faster,” he added.

GREEN MICE practices took centre stage at this year’s EXCO Taiwan 2011, the third edition of the annual exhibition and convention-focused show.

Exhibition service providers participating at the event told TTG Asia e-Daily the adoption of eco-friendly practices in the exhibition and convention industry was a steadily growing trend.

According to Tom Yang, deputy general manager of Uniplan Taiwan, which went green with its own presence at the show by relying on iPads and projectors instead of printouts for presentations, 30 per cent of his clients adopt green exhibition technology, with automotive companies being the biggest supporters.

“Automotive companies are big polluters, and they are sensitive about their image,” he explained.

Yang believes that suppliers can play a big part in getting their clients to adopt green practices. “It is our job to convince our clients to use green (exhibition) technology, and we tell them that their customers will appreciate the effort,” he said.

Rick Chen of Taiwan-based Olily Exhibition Design, which counts HTC, Samsung, Hermes and Louis Vuitton among its clients, was another of the eco-friendly exhibitors on show.

All materials used by his company are reusable, Chen claimed, adding that he avoids using wood in the construction of booths.

Instead, the booths are created with custom-made steel fittings, bolted for easy dismantling, and lit using LED lighting—which reduces energy usage by up to 80 per cent, according to Chen.

By Glenn Smith