MICE industry leaders in South Korea say the development of two new major convention and exhibition venues in Seoul will provide welcome relief from overflowing demand for large event spaces in the capital.

Dongdaemun Design Plaza and Exhibition Centre, a futuristic venue designed by architect Zaha Hadid, will open in Seoul’s leading fashion district on April 5, 2013. The Seoul Station Convention Centre (also referred to as Korail Centre) will open in 2015.

Korea Convention Society president, Kim Chulwon, said: “If South Korea wants to meet its tourism arrivals target of 200 million by 2020, there must be sufficient MICE facilities and hotels to cater to these people.”

“MICE demand from Japan and China is growing, and Seoul does not have enough facilities to accommodate these groups and events. The additional facilities will not only help to serve the growing demand, but their novelty will also build greater awareness of Seoul and South Korea as a whole.”

Esmond Oh, president of Korea MICE Association and president – business strategy, Ioconvex, said the lack of convention and exhibition space was not limited to Seoul. He explained that there were only 12 convention centres across South Korea, offering 200,000m2 of space.

However, Malaysia-based DiscoveryMICE president/CEO, Lee Choon Loong, is hoping that Seoul will upgrade its software as well, pointing to service standards and suppliers’ attention to details that are “sometimes not on par with other MICE destinations”.

MIKE Annetts, a founder of TTG Asia, passed away last week in the Gold Coast, Australia.

Former TTG Asia editor, Yeoh Siew Hoon, said in a blog post: “Mike was the man who brought TTG Asia to the region and gave me my break in travel journalism, the one who gave me that first job back in Kuala Lumpur as correspondent for TTG Asia.”

“I don’t think Mike got the credit he ought to for bringing an English travel trade newspaper out to Asia in those days, when the travel industry was just developing, and Asia was an infinitely foreign market,” she added.

Darren Ng, managing director, TTG Asia Media, remembers Annetts as “a very focused, hands-on person when it came to editorials”.

“But we remember him more as a polished gentleman, who had a presence, a lot of gravitas about him, and one who certainly enjoyed a tipple every Friday,” Ng added.

PREFERRED Hotel Group are set to soft open their 8 on Claymore Serviced Residences today, the first property under their Summit Serviced Residences brand to be unveiled in Singapore.

The serviced residence, which will launch officially in September this year, is managed by Royal Plaza on Scotts (TTG Asia e-Daily, April 25). The property will offer accommodation ranging from studios to two- to three-bedroom residences, and a three-bedroom penthouse unit.

Facilities include an outdoor pool with an open-air deck, cabanas and a barbeque area, a state-of-the-art gym with Technogym equipment, and a children’s pool.

FIREFLY will gradually take over the Kuala Lumpur-Sibu route from Malaysia Airlines (MAS), its codeshare partner, from July 1.

Firefly will use B737-800 aircraft to offer the same twice-daily services as MAS, which will withdraw from the route effective August 1.

Firefly’s managing director, Eddy Leong, said the airline was working to address concerns of travellers and travel agents from Sibu, on the unavailability of passenger and baggage through-check for those with onward flights via Malaysia Airlines.

Leong said: “On September 1, our departure control system upgrade which will allow passengers to through-check their baggage on multiple flights to their final destination will be operational.”

“Unfortunately, for the interim period until the upgrade is completed, passengers on the Kuala Lumpur-Sibu flight with onward journeys on Malaysia Airlines, will have to bear the inconvenience of checking out and recheck-in at the check-in counter.”

AGODA has entered into a partnership with Cathay Holidays Limited, the travel agency arm of Cathay Pacific Airways, through which Cathay Holidays will distribute agoda.com’s hotel product.

Cathay Holidays provides inventory to CathayPacific.com and creates tailored package trips featuring the carrier’s key destinations, including Hong Kong, Japan, Seoul, Beijing and Shanghai.

With the deal, travellers booking a ticket through CathayPacific.com will now have access to agoda.com’s worldwide instantly-confirmable inventory, while Cathay Holidays will be able to provide up-to-the-minute rates and promotions in more than 100 countries.

Wilfred Fan, managing director – North Asia at agoda.com said: “Agoda.com’s wide footprint of global hotels overlaps with Cathay’s extensive international routes, and both our companies can service customers in many languages.”

Vincent Li, managing director of Cathay Holidays Limited, said: “Agoda.com’s global coverage, promotions and instant confirmation will help us continue to add value for our loyal customers.”

BEST Western International has added the Best Western Bangkok Hiptique Hotel to its portfolio in Thailand.

The 50-key hotel, located in the heart of the Sukhumvit-Nana shopping, business and entertainment district, is the chain’s 13th property in Thailand, and will target both business executives and leisure travellers.

Facilities include a swimming pool, the Allure restaurant, and a rooftop bar.

THE THAILAND Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB) and Seoul Tourism Organisation (STO) have inked an MOU to jointly develop their tourism and MICE businesses.

This is the first partnership between TCEB and a South Korean city.

TCEB director, meetings & incentives, Puripan Bunnag, told TTG Asia e-Daily that details of the partnership would be revealed at a later date. “For now, it is understood that TCEB and STO will share information on potential event bids, and support each other at trade shows and road shows,” he explained.

“For example, when STO participates in IT&CMA in Bangkok, TCEB will connect it with top outbound Thai agents who can sell Seoul. We expect the same support from STO with TCEB holds road shows and trade shows in Seoul.”

Akapol Sorasuchart, president of TCEB, said the partnership would enhance bilateral cooperation between the two destinations, which already share strong trade ties.

“South Korea is considered a high potential MICE market for Thailand’s MICE industry,” he said. “South Korean arrivals form 6.1 per cent of total Asian MICE travellers to Thailand. In 2010, the growth rate reached 21 per cent, with 25,429 South Korean MICE tourists visiting Thailand. This generated US$52 million in revenue.”

Hong Heegon, who stepped into his role as president and CEO of STO just over a month ago, said that Thailand was the third most popular destination for South Koreans, after China and Japan.

Meanwhile, Puripan added that an MOU between TCEB and Busan Convention & Visitors Bureau, initially planned for last November, might follow soon after.

THAI Airways International (THAI) will launch a direct thrice-weekly Bangkok-Brussels service from November 17, making it the only South-east Asian carrier to operate on the route.

The airline will operate the flight using Boeing 777-200ER aircraft, with 30 seats in Royal Silk class and 262 seats in economy class.

Brussels is THAI’s 72nd destination. The airline will allow reservations for the Bangkok-Brussels service starting July 1.

AIRFARES search site Skyscanner will open its first Asia-Pacific operation in Singapore by September, as it embarks on ambitious plans to capitalise on the region’s booming aviation market.

The move comes on the back of the Edinburgh-based company releasing figures detailing a 75 per cent increase in turnover last year to 15.2 million pounds (US$24.3 million).

Ewan Gray, Skyscanner’s newly-appointed regional director for Asia-Pacific, said Singapore was the ideal base to build the Skyscanner brand in the region, as the company had already established a string of commercial relationships in the city-state. When pressed for other reasons, he added that Singapore was a “hotbed for talent”.

While Skyscanner has no plans in the pipeline for other offices in the region, Gray explained that Singapore, China, Indonesia, India and Malaysia were to be the main focus of the company’s expansion drive.

Gray added that these emerging segments pose a unique set of technical and business challenges for the company, owing to their “sophistication and speed of growth”. Nonetheless, Gray was confident that Skyscanner would see through these anticipated problems.

Skyscanner’s rapid rise in the last three years can be attributed to the brisk expansion of airline routes and alliances across the globe, alongside its own growing network of commercial partnerships with airlines, online travel agents and other travel-related organisations.

THE INFOCOMM Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), in partnership with SPRING Singapore, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) and Employment and Employability Institute, has called upon businesses in the F&B retail, hotel and attractions sectors to submit proposals on the development and adoption of mobile solutions.

Some S$15 million (US$12 million) has been set aside for this initiative, which aims to enhance the competitiveness and productivity of firms in the retail, hospitality and tourism sectors.

STB will be participating in the evaluation of proposals received, and will also be assisting the IDA in engaging the tourism industry for this project.

In a fact sheet released by the IDA detailing the programme, some possibilities cited include mobile apps that allow self-guided tours and a mobile hotel concierge.

According to a spokeperson for the IDA, hotels such as Mandarin Orchard and Parkroyal on Kitchener Road have successfully deployed mobile solutions to better track and manage customers’ requests, and consequently, there has been a decline in complaints received.

The IDA and its partners are looking to fund around 30 projects, which will have to be completed within a timeframe of two years.