THAILAND’s largest MICE event of the year, the Herbalife Asia Pacific Extravaganza 2011, to be held at the Bangkok International Trade and Exhibition Center from May 6 to 8, will attract more than 25,000 delegates from 13 countries.

This is the fifth time that the Herbalife group has chosen to host the annual event in Thailand. Last year’s edition was in South Korea.

Bangkok is also slated to host another mega MICE event next year. The 103rd Convention of Rotary International, from May 6 to 9, is expected to attract 25,000 delegates worldwide.

AIR BERLIN will increase direct services between Germany and Thailand this coming winter, from nine to 12 flights weekly.

The airline will introduce a new weekly flight between Berlin and Phuket from November 1, boosting its frequency there to three per week. It normally operates two weekly flights between Munich and Phuket during winter.

Air Berlin will also increase its Düsseldorf-Bangkok flights from four to five weekly, and Berlin-Bangkok from three to four weekly.

BEST WESTERN International has launched the BEST WESTERN Hotel Kyoto, the chain’s 15th hotel in Japan and first in Kyoto.

The 84-room hotel is located next to the fashion centre of Shinkyogoku and the Gion nightlife, entertainment and shopping area.

TTG Asia Media, the most established travel trade publishing house in the region, will launch a regional travel agent conference at ITB Asia this year.

The sole aim of the conference is to ensure that travel agents walk away from it with tangible learning points that they can apply to their business. Experts from within and outside the industry will show them how to compete in today’s marketplace.

“It is no longer about debates and more debates on whether agents will live or die. We’re done with that. There is room for travel agents worldwide,” said Raini Hamdi, group editor, Travel Group, TTG Asia Media.

“The question is, who are the new agents? Why are they standing tall? How did they do it? What can I learn from them? What lessons can I take from those outside the industry who are successful and whose models I can apply to my business?”

The TTG Travel Agent Conference was thus conceived as a practical How To, at a time when travel agents in Asia have enormous opportunities at their fingertips, thanks to huge markets such as South-east Asia, China and India; the rise of low-cost carriers; the rise of B:B travel hypermarts; and the rise of new niches such as cruising and luxury travel, to name a few.

Currently, Asia does not have a regional travel agent conference. “TTG Asia Media hopes to fill this gap,” said Darren Ng, managing director, TTG Asia Media. “We have been with the industry for more than 35 years, and launching this conference is again a reflection of our commitment to the trade.”

The TTG Travel Agent Conference, in partnership with ITB Asia, is a non-profit event and is free to ITB Asia delegates and TTG Asia readers. This year’s conference will be half day. The date, venue and time are being finalised and will be announced soon.

ITB Asia executive director, Nino Gruettke, said: “We are pleased to be partnering TTG Asia Media to launch the region’s first, dedicated travel agent conference. This event will further seal ITB Asia as the platform for travel exchange and strengthens its education component.”

In the meantime, TTG Asia Media is seeking the views of regional travel agents. Tell us about a topic you would like your conference to cover and/or a speaker you would like to listen to and learn from. Please email Raini Hamdi at raini.hamdi@ttgasia.com and TTG Asia editor, Gracia Chiang, at gracia.chiang@ttgasia.com.

THE NATIONAL Association of Travel Agents Singapore (NATAS) and Temasek Polytechnic School of Business have announced that they are teaming up to attract the younger generation of Singaporeans to the travel services sector.

The move is in response to recent changes to foreign workers’ levy and an increasing demand for new industry leaders.

Robert Khoo, NATAS CEO, said: “The travel services sector has long been dominated by a mature workforce and it is definitely an opportune period for new blood to be injected into the industry.

“In our quest, we will be partnering with Temasek Polytechnic to tap into its student pool. We are positive that this alliance will benefit the younger generation who are keen to join this exciting sector.”

Daniel Yeow, director, Temasek Polytechnic School of Business, added: “The objective of this collaboration is to harness the expertise of NATAS and its members, so as to equip our students from the Diploma in Hospitality and Tourism Management with the skills to perform effectively in an ever-changing, service-oriented industry.

“With their valuable experience, they will become valuable contributors to the tourism industry.”

A memorandum of understanding will be signed by NATAS and Temasek Polytechnic representatives on May 4.

BANGKOK’s luxury hotels have been seeing signs of recovery in the first three months of the year after a problematic 2010. But growing supply will continue to fuel the ongoing price war, according to Colliers International Thailand’s market report Q1/2011.

Hotels in the luxury segment saw occupancy rates increase to more than 70 per cent in the first quarter, compared to the mid-60 per cent figure in the same period last year, and the mid-50 per cent figure in the fourth quarter of 2010.

In contrast, their average daily rate (ADR) fell 16 per cent to just above 4,000 baht (US$133) from more than 5,000 baht in the first quarter of 2010, and about 5,000 baht in the fourth quarter of 2010 due to competition from upper-scale hotels, where ADR in the first quarter of this year remained stable year-on-year in the mid-3,000 baht range.

Meanwhile, their revenue-per-available-room (RevPar), which dropped significantly in the second quarter of last year during Bangkok’s political turbulence, improved quarter-on-quarter, as Thailand gradually regained traveller’s confidence through to the first quarter of this year.

“The concern now is that the industry may be in the beginning of a rate reduction spiral, especially with the expected future growth in supply in the luxury sector. Hotels in this sector already are highly competitive when compared to other cities in the region,” according to the report.

Colliers further stated that Bangkok’s current inventory of 15,100 rooms in the luxury hotel segment is slated to expand by 1,400 new rooms this year and another 6,000 rooms in the next two years.

Bangkok has a total of 698 hotels and 102,483 rooms, according to the Thai Hotels Association. At least 12 hotels and 2,362 rooms are set to open this year, with another eight hotels and 1,929 rooms to be added next year.

TOURISM Australia (TA) will start consumer marketing in Indonesia, as getting a visa is no longer an issue and distribution channels are in place.

TA general manager South/South-east Asia and Gulf Countries, Maggie White, said: “We have built the foundation. We have got the visas right. We have gotten the distribution (through major travel agents) pretty right. With those two fundamentals, we have a solid platform to start talking to the consumers through both traditional and social media.”

Speaking to TTG Asia e-Daily on the sidelines of the TA Jakarta and Surabaya road show in Jakarta yesterday, White said that the activities, which would start this financial year (July 2011 to June 2012), would be targeted to specific market groups instead of en masse.

“We are targeting young families. But then, the pattern here is that they travel with extended families, so it will (have to) become multi-generational,” White said.

“We have also noticed the growing up-market, techno-savvy travellers, who find travelling with groups is not hip. They prefer to travel independently and explore the destination on their own.”

At the roadshow, a number of State Tourism Organisations and suppliers present were tapping the market for the first time in many years. Tourism Western Australia representative-Singapore and Malaysia, Faridah Ibrahim, said: “When we talk to the agents, they still remember our products from before (in the 1990s), when TWA were more active here. What we need to do is create awareness with the consumers.”

The representative office in Singapore has applied for budget to include Indonesia in the portfolio and is waiting for approval.

The Tourism Northern Territory has also seen the potential of the Indonesian market to the destination, with the good connection between Bali and Darwin.

Tourism Northern Territory manager Singapore and Malaysia, Jacqueline Lee, said: “It’s only a 3.5 hours flight between Bali and Darwin, so the Northern Territory can actually be a weekend getaway. We have a good relationship with Jetstar and AirAsia and have done promotions in Bali.”

COX & KINGS Global Services (CKGS), along with Dnata, has launched C&K Marhaba Dubai Visa (CNKMDV) and Marhaba Meet & Greet Services.

CNKMDV visa processing services to Dubai and Sharjah started on April 15 from the CKGS headquarters in Mumbai. CKGS has also set up 11 offices in India �?? in Delhi, Amritsar, Jaipur, Kolkatta, Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Kochi, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru.

These offices will process tourist and transit visas in three working days. Tourist visas are valid for 30 days after entry and cost Rs4,550 ($103). Transit visas cost Rs3,550 ($80) and are valid for 96 hours.

Cox and Kings Global Services CEO, Sanjay Bhaduri, said: “This facility will enable a large number of Indians travelling to Dubai to have a smooth and seamless experience. All they have to do is visit our offices or go online on www.cnkmdv.com.”

Approximately 65,000 Indian visitors travelled to Dubai last year, and it is growing 15 per cent annually. Bhaduri said: “We are targeting 50 per cent (of the number), mostly leisure and holiday travellers, to avail of our Marhaba services.”

The remaining 50 per cent of visa applicants are labour-oriented.

Marhaba offers a meet-and-greet near the aircraft, buggy service, personal escorts through passport control, assistance at the conveyor belt, porterage, customs and handover at the pick-up point, among others.

This is the first time that CKGS is providing visa services to a diplomatic mission other than India.

By Anand & Madhura Katti

WITH higher arrivals expected for the next European winter season, hotels in Sri Lanka are sprucing up their room supply, with close to 1,500 rooms under refurbishment during the May to October off-season, industry officials said.

The industry generally relies on the European winter season to fill up its hotels, although India has recently become the number one tourism-generating market. The UK and Germany are the second and third largest.

In addition to the official room stock, there are also 7,000 rooms from the informal sector, said Anura Lokuhetty, president of the Tourist Hotels Association of Sri Lanka and chairman of the Asian Council on Tourism.

State-owned Sri Lanka Tourism (SLT) chairman, Nalaka Godahewa, said that based on this renovation programme that would see 10 per cent of room stock off the shelf, the SLT has set a modest target of 700,000 tourist arrivals this year over the 650,000 in 2010.

“However, we have found arrivals to be encouraging in the first quarter, and based on this interest, we feel we could reach 700,000 to 750,000 arrivals this year,” he said.