HILTON Worldwide is adding a third property to its portfolio in the Maldives.

Malwatte Hotels and Resorts (MHRL), a subsidiary of Sri Lankan tea and rubber farming company, Malwatte Plantations, will own the new, four-star resort on Maanagalaa Island.

A source from Malwatte Plantations told TTG Asia e-Daily that an MOU had been inked with Hilton to oversee resort operations. A formal agreement will be signed within the next two weeks.

Construction on the resort gets underway in September, and is scheduled for completion by September 2013. The property will offer 70 bungalows in the initial stages.

Malwatte Plantations intends to raise over 606 million Sri Lankan rupees (US$5.5 million) from a rights issue to finance the US$26 million project.

Hilton’s two other properties in the Maldives are the Conrad Rangali Island Maldives Hotel and Hilton Maldives/Iru Fushi Resort & Spa.

THE INDONESIAN Ministry of Transportation has ordered Lion Air to ground 10 to 15 of its aircraft within the next three weeks, in an effort to improve the airline’s safety and punctuality record.

The restriction was imposed following persistent delays by the Indonesia-based low-cost carrier, including a recent five-hour holdup at Hasanuddin Airport in Makassar, which resulted in a warning from the ministry (TTG Asia e-Daily, July 13).

In a notice published on the ministry’s website, director general of air transportation, Herry Bakti Gumay, explained: “By restricting the (number of operational aircraft), there will be more ground time, and (we) expect this will create a balance between the number of aircraft and crew, and in time, reduce the frequency of delays.”

Gumay acknowledged that the restrictions might result in some of Lion Air’s routes being dropped. “There could (also) be an increase in ticket prices, but these will not exceed the economy (-class) ceiling price (set by the government),” he said.

Lion Air has issued a separate statement promising that it will not be reducing the number of routes and frequencies. The airline’s general affairs director, Edward Sirait, said: “By keeping the frequencies and routes, we are confident that we will be able to maintain the selling prices at the current level.”

INDIA tourism is already on the rebound following last week’s bomb blasts in Mumbai, the Maharashtra state capital.

The Leela Kempinski, Mumbai general manager, Biswajit Chakraborty, told TTG Asia e-daily that bookings were returning following last week’s incident, and that “cancellations at other Leela hotels across India were negligible”.

The hotel had cancellations for 250 roomnights in the immediate aftermath of the blasts, amounting to an estimated US$785,200 (3.5 million rupees) in losses, including from F&B.

Indian Association of Tour Operators president and India Vision Tours & Travels president, Vijay Thakur, confirmed that no tourists were affected by the terrorist act. “The incident had hardly any effect on inbound travel. Our interaction with countrywide members revealed that there were no cancellations at all,” he said.

Thakur explained: “Travellers have now become tough and understand this kind of syndrome happening worldwide.”

Meanwhile, the Maharashtra state government is taking steps to improve security in Mumbai. Maharashtra chief minister, Prithviraj Chavan, said that improving communication systems and expediting the purchase of surveillance equipment would be his top priority.

By Anand & Madhura Katti

CHOM VIEW Hotel in Hua Hin will spend more than 20 million baht (US$666,000) to turn its 52 two-bedroom garden view duplex suites into private residences, which it intends to lease out individually for 15-year terms.

The property owner, Koravic Bhanubandh Na Ayudhaya, said the rights for 10 of the residences had already been sold to repeat guests of the hotel. The units are priced between 1.23 million and 10 million baht each.

Koravic said the hotel was due to undergo a full refurbishment, in stages, between this year and next. The 52 units to be leased will be renovated in the first phase, which is slated for completion by November.

She added that prospective buyers could reap a full return on investment by renting out their units for hotel business for at least 60 days a year.

Over the past few years, the 134-key hotel has been running on weekends at 70 per cent occupancy to full house. On weekdays, it has been running at an average occupancy of 20 per cent during low season, and 80 per cent during high season.

Koravic said: “Our year-round average daily rate for the two-bedroom garden view duplex suites is 5,000 baht. For superior rooms, the rates start from 1,800 baht.”

Provided the Hua Hin lease project goes well, Koravic revealed that she was planning to build her third property in Phuket. Her second property, the 40-room Ma Du Zi hotel in Bangkok, is starting to see a rebound in business, after being affected by last year’s political crisis in the country.

By Sirima Eamtako

THAI Airways International (THAI) has reinstated its services to and from Japan to levels prior to the March earthquake and tsunami.

Pandit Chanapai, THAI executive vice president of commercial, said: “THAI has resumed all its regularly operated services on routes from Bangkok to five airports in Japan, back to the same level served prior to the Great East Japan Earthquake.”

He added: “Passenger traffic to and from Japan is regaining normal levels.”

Meanwhile, THAI will operate three additional flights per week on the Bangkok-Osaka (Kansai) route from November 16, utilising retrofitted Boeing 777-300 aircraft. With the introduction of these flights, THAI will operate a total of 17 weekly flights to Osaka (Kansai).

The carrier is also planning to adjust its winter programme for easier connections from Japan into Phuket.

THE SHANGHAI Marriott Hotel City Centre is scheduled to open in downtown Shanghai in September.

The five-star property will offer 664 rooms and 56 suites, an executive lounge, five F&B outlets, a spa and health club, a 25m swimming pool, a business centre, and an in-house meeting planner.

The hotel will have more than 2,000m2 of dedicated event space, including two ballrooms with 7-m-high ceilings, and 16 meeting rooms.

BUSINESS Events Sydney (BESydney) won business in 2010/11 that will inject an estimated A$186.5million (US$197.7 million) into the New South Wales (NSW) economy.

The 67 business events won by BESydney last financial year will attract an estimated 55,061 delegates, an increase of 28 per cent over 2009/10. The delegates are expected to spend a total of 205,385 days in the state.

Lyn Lewis-Smith, acting CEO and COO of BESydney, said the organisation would continue to work towards achieving Tourism NSW’s goal of doubling the state’s tourism receipts between 2010 and 2020, as well as contribute to the national target of doubling business event revenue from A$7.9 billion to A$15.8 billion by 2020.

Lewis-Smith said the Asian market delivered A$33.1 million of incentive business for Sydney last financial year. “Strong growth opportunities exist in the Asian market, and we will continue to evolve our strategies to win this business for Sydney,” she said.

A key event from the Asian region is the upcoming 2012 Worldwide Chinese Life Conference. The event will see 200 CEOs and approximately 4,000 representatives from mainly Asian finance and insurance companies visiting the city.

SINGAPORE Changi Airport kicked off a three-day Enchanting Japan fair at the airport’s terminal three today, bringing together various stakeholders in the travel and tourism industry to promote travel from Singapore to Japan.

Besides cultural and culinary exhibits, there will also be travel agent booths highlighting the various Japan travel packages avaliable.

The fair is an integral part of the Friends of Japan marketing drive, spearheaded by the Changi Airport Group (CAG), and backed by the Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO), local travel agents and airlines.

Motonari Adachi, executive director, JNTO, said that the fair was a good platform to showcase Japan.

He explained that JNTO was adopting a multi-pronged approach to promote Japan, collaborating with the media as well as local travel agents, to stimulate interest and reassure travellers that it was now safe to visit the country. JNTO is currently focusing its marketing efforts on China, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and India.

“Ultimately, we hope to see the number of arrivals return to 2010 levels by the end of this year,” he said.

In addition to the fair, CAG has sponsored advertorial features in local dailies to introduce lesser-known Japanese destinations such as Kyushu and Shizuoka. It has also partnered with Chan Brothers Travel to send radio DJs on a three-week Japan tour in end-July, to provide first-hand accounts of their trips there.

Meanwhile, Singapore Airlines is working closely with CAG to offer promotional fares to Japan, via Singapore, to Indonesian, Indian and Australian travellers.

TAUZIA Hotel Management has opened the Harris Hotel & Convention Festival CTLink in Bandung to target the local MICE market.

The 180-room hotel, the eighth Harris property within the portfolio and second to open this year, has the largest convention hall in Bandung, with a capacity for 4,000 people, as well as seven breakout rooms.

The hotel is aiming to get 30 per cent of its business from MICE and the corporate market, especially from factories in Pasir Koja, Padalarang and Bandung city centre. Its location with direct access to the Festival Citylink shopping mall is also expected to attract weekend holidaymakers. Bandung is a popular getaway destination for Jakarta residents.

The hotel’s general manager, Anton Susanto, said: “We are targeting 75 per cent occupancy (in the next six months), with an average rate of between 390,000 rupiah (US$46) and 400,000 rupiah. We expect to be able to achieve 20 to 30 per cent higher rates next year.”

The hotel’s launch rate was 468,000 rupiah per night. Bandung city’s average rates range from 450,000 to 490,000 rupiah.

MALAYSIA is a steadily growing market for China, with an eight per cent increase in arrivals expected this year. Last year, some 1.2 million Malaysians vacationed in China, an increase of 7.85 per cent over 2009.

Cooper Huang, Malaysian Harmony Tours and Travel CEO, said major events such as the Shanghai Expo and Beijing Olympics had heightened interest in travel to China.

He said: “China is an ever-growing source of business for us, as it offers a wide variety of attractions. This is enhanced with the rise in low-cost and Chinese carriers, plus ground costs remain very low.”

“The overall cost is very competitive, and an eight-day package can be around 1,500 to 2,000 ringgit (US$498 to US$665).”

Tian Xin, director for ASEAN countries of the China National Tourist Office, speaking at a roadshow in Kuala Lumpur to promote China in Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, said: “We are confident that South-east Asian arrivals will continue to grow. The region is a strong emerging market for China and there is especially huge potential in the Muslim travel segment.”

Currently, there are 141 weekly flights between China and Malaysia, offering 51,000 seats.

By Ellen Chen