THE INDONESIAN government has decided to meet the challenge of accommodating larger cruise ships at its ports, following growing demand from international cruise liners to call on its shores.

Ministry of Culture and Tourism director general of tourism marketing, Sapta Nirwandar, said: “It takes all stakeholders’ efforts to develop the market, including port authorities. Therefore, we are going to organise an international seminar for the stakeholders on developing cruises in Indonesia, inviting international experts to talk about it next week.”

The ministry’s director of international promotion, Noviendi Makalam, said: “The number of arrivals (on cruises) has grown since 2009, but with many international cruise liners now operating bigger ships – with a capacity of 1,200 and above – Indonesia is facing a challenge to meet the requirements for ports.”

“In Bali, which is the major port of call here, we have four cruise ports, but each is facing its own challenges. Not to mention other ports in Indonesia, which do not even have a dedicated port for cruise ships.”

Makalam said Indonesia received 68,598 passengers through 135 calls in 2009, which rose to 94,228 passengers from 189 calls last year.

Although the number of calls booked for Indonesian ports this year has dropped to 178, the expected number of passengers has swelled to 113,875, as the capacity of ships that are visiting are up. Forward bookings for 2012 show that there will be 215 calls with 137,200 passengers expected to arrive on Indonesian shores.

Nirwandar said: “The number of port of calls is also increasing, in line with the number of destinations. There is a growing interest to call on Probolinggo (East Java), for example, as more travellers want to visit Mount Bromo. Some ships do call there despite the lack of cruise facilities, but it would be better if we can get proper facilities.”

Package prices for cruises, which are now between US$50 and US$100, are also set to increase, according to Nirwandar.

INDIA’S first-ever home-grown cruise line, AMET Cruises, was launched on May 19.

The company’s luxury cruise ship, AMET Majesty, will operate out of Chennai and will sail to destinations such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, the Andaman and Nicobar islands, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore. Nearly 80,000 Indians go on cruises annually.

The AMET Majesty has 254 cabins that can accommodate 680 passengers. The ship has facilities such as a spa, sauna, swimming pool, discotheque, casino and three restaurants (with a la carte, buffet and vegetarian offerings), spread across its nine decks.

Prices start from 3,900 rupees (US$86) plus taxes per person, per night, and includes all meals. Distribution is currently done through live booking engines at Preferred Sales Agents across India. Online bookings can also be done on the company’s website.

AMET Majesty’s maiden Chennai High Sea voyage will depart from Chennai on June 9.

Currently, published June and July schedules also include short trips to Vizag (Vishakapatnam) and Port Blair, and long trips covering international destinations such as Trincomalee and Karaikal in Sri Lanka, Phuket and Langkawi.

By Anand & Madhura Katti

IN RESPONSE to growing demand, professional exhibition and conference organiser Reed Tradex inked a three-year contract with the Bangkok International Trade Exhibition and Convention Centre (BITEC) to secure space for its annual Manufacturing Expo, to be held between this year and 2013.

Reed Tradex deputy managing director for commercial Duangdej Yuaikwarmdee said that the 20 per cent annual growth of the country’s exhibition industry over the last few years, coupled with a number of forward bookings from exhibitors prompted the company to secure space at BITEC in advance.

This year’s B2B fair will cover 37,500m2 of exhibition space for 1,600 brands from 30 countries, up from last year’s 25,000m2 of utilised area by 1,300 brands from 25 countries. Some 42,000 buyers, including 2,500 from overseas, are expected to attend the event. Some 32,000 visitors came last year.

Duangdej said the lack of on-site accommodation at BITEC was not an issue because the company believes visitors and exhibitors should be encouraged to stay at the many hotels available in Bangkok. He explained that transportation to and from the venue was convenient.

BITEC marketing and sales director Panittha Buri said the centre was investing 250 million baht (US$8.2 million) on the development of a welcome hall and a walkway, linking it with the extended BTS Skytrain Onnut-Barings Line that is slated to open in August. It earmarked another 400 million baht for the renovation of six exhibition halls and a grand hall, with work to start next year.

By Sirima Eamtako

ASCOTT is extending its operations in Malaysia, having signed a management contract for the 200-unit Somerset Damansara Uptown Petaling Jaya, opening in 2016.

This positions the company as the largest serviced residence owner-operator in Malaysia, with over 1,500 apartment units across 10 properties. It has just opened the Somerset Jalan Ampang, while its other properties, comprising brands such as Ascott, Somerset, Citadines, Marc Serviced Suites, Seri Bukit Ceylon and Tiffani by I-Zen, are spread across Kuala Lumpur, Cyberjaya and Kuching.

Alfred Ong, Ascott’s managing director for South-east Asia & Australia, said: “As foreign investments continue to increase in Malaysia, we expect strong demand for our serviced residences. By securing our 10th property, we are able to reap greater economies of scale and position Ascott for further growth.”

The upcoming property in Petaling Jaya will be part of an integrated development that includes a 36,800m2 retail mall and five commercial blocks housing multinational corporations, including Deloitte, FedEx, L’Oreal, Lenovo, Symantec and Unisys. Its location is also nearby the upmarket Damansara Heights and Bandar Utama areas hosting various Fortune 500 firms.

The property will offer fully-furnished studios and one- or two-bedroom apartments, with shared facilities that include a swimming pool, restaurant, gymnasium, lounge, business centre and meeting facilities able to accommodate up to 900 pax.

Aside from Somerset Damansara Uptown Petaling Jaya, Ascott has three properties in the pipeline in Malaysia – Citadines Uplands Kuching opening next year, Ascott Sentral Kuala Lumpur opening in 2013, and Citadines D’Pulze Cyberjaya opening in 2014.

By Ellen Chen

A PARTNERSHIP formed in mid-January between CTC Travel and event organiser Uber Inc has reeled in corporate incentive business worth S$9 million (US$7.3 million) thus far.

Between July and September, the two Singapore-based companies will take a total of 2,500 delegates from regional insurance companies to Kuala Lumpur, Vietnam, Cambodia, Rome and Milan.

Although CTC Travel has its own dedicated MICE team, the agency’s senior vice president, marketing & PR, Alicia Seah, told TTG Asia e-Daily that there are synergies in the partnership.

“Uber Inc’s strengths lie in event planning and the provision of comprehensive convention services, while CTC Travel is a full-fledged travel agency, with economies of scale for air tickets and travel booking facilities for pre- and post-convention tours,” she explained.

Seah hopes that through the partnership, CTC Travel and Uber Inc will be able to bag 20 conventions and events before the year is over.

The partnership, however, will not restrict both companies from pitching for other MICE business independently of each other.

ESCALATING global oil prices caused SriLankan Airlines’ operating costs to rise by at least US$30 million in the three months leading up to April, according to the airline’s CEO, Manoj Gunawardene.

Oil prices rose from US$95 to US$125 per barrel during this period, burdening the airline with an extra US$10 million per month in operating costs, he said.

Since April, the airline has imposed a fuel surcharge on airfares.

Speaking to journalists while onboard the national carrier’s new Airbus A320-200’s maiden journey from France to Colombo last week, Gunawardene said while the financial status and outlook of the organisation remained stable, the last quarter had been a challenging one due to the fuel price fluctuations.

Meanwhile, SriLankan Airlines is planning to launch flights to Moscow on September 15, its first ever service to Russia and the former Soviet states, Aviation Minister Priyankara Jayaratne was quoted as saying in Colombo-based Daily News.

The paper said Moscow would be the national carrier’s 52nd destination. The airline will fly to the destination twice-weekly via Dubai.

ESCALATING taxes are putting a damper on the Maldives’ allure, with the impact not hitting home yet but expected to be felt keenly in the coming months.

Having introduced a new 3.5 per cent tourism goods and services tax (TGST) in January, to the chagrin of international tour operators who complained of the short notice given, President Mohamed Nasheed announced last Friday that the tax might be further increased to six per cent.

Although no time frame was mentioned, UK-based operators said they had been advised by hotels in Maldives to expect a hike by next January.

Chic Locations UK director, David Kevan, said the general concern was that the destination was beginning to outprice itself, to the advantage of rivals such as Mauritius and Sri Lanka.

“Most operators have been concerned by the Maldives’ pricing even before the latest round of tax increases.

“I don’t think you will find too many UK operators looking at growth for the destination over the next couple of years. In fact, I think most would be more than happy to see a single-digit increase in bookings,” he said.

UK, once the biggest visitor-generating market for the destination, was overtaken by China last year. Germany is in third place.

– Read more in TTG Asia, May 27 issue

THOUSANDS of expatriate workers in tourist resorts in the Maldives have become subject to new restrictions on repatriating foreign currency, introduced to combat ballooning budget deficits spilled over from the regime of former President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom.

The restrictions, according to rules enforced in a gazette notification by the Maldivian Monetary Authority (Central Bank) on May 13, permit workers to only remit their contracted salaries and nothing more.

There are more than 25,000 expatriate workers on the 100-odd luxury island resorts across the Maldives.

“What happens to tips that we receive in local currency, and other forms of (income)?” asked one worker on a resort, who declined to be named.

Most banks in the Maldives have begun limiting the release of US currency against the local currency, the rufiya, for repatriation. The move has inevitably affected the local tourism industry, the country’s main foreign exchange earner.

“There is confusion in the industry about how much can be retained by us in US dollars (for our work). There are no clear guidelines,” said a resort owner, who owns about three properties.

“There is also speculation that all the US dollars earned by locally-owned resorts will have to converted to the local currency,” the resort owner added.

MALAYSIA’S Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) lifted its travel advisory to Japan yesterday.

Malaysian citizens are still advised, however, to defer non-essential travel to areas in the north-east of the country, which are still experiencing the after-effects of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.

The Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) said in a statement: “The lifting of the travel advisory will surely help to boost the confidence of travellers to Japan. With the current special fare promotion to Japan by airlines, and the all-clear signal given, tour bookings are anticipated to rise, as travel agents step up efforts to attract Malaysians to travel there.”

Apple Vacations & Conventions sent a 20-pax tour group to Osaka yesterday, the first Malaysian group to Japan since March 11. The group was a joint promotion package with Singapore Airlines.

“We are offering great discounts of 30 to 50 per cent off our packages, with savings between 2,300 ringgit (US$757) to 2,700 ringgit per passenger, so we expect more bookings ahead,” said the company’s managing director, Koh Yock Heng.

Malaysia Airlines, which flies directly from Kuala Lumpur and Kota Kinabalu to Tokyo and Osaka, has also launched promotional fares to support travel agents.

Japan has become one of Malaysians’ favorite holiday destinations over the last few years. JNTO’s arrival statistics for 2010 showed a significant 27.9 per cent increase in Malaysian arrivals to Japan, with 114,500 visitors, compared to 2009.

During the peak holiday period last December, 17,400 Malaysians visited Japan, a 17.7 per cent jump over the same month in 2009.

Additional low-cost fares launched by AirAsia X from Kuala Lumpur to Tokyo (Haneda) last December also contributed to the surge in Malaysian visitors to Japan.

By Ellen Chen