Thai Airways regains control of its future in 2024
After a nightmare 2022 when the airline recorded a loss of 272 million baht (US$7.6 million), Thai Airways International (THAI) entered the new year with cause for optimism following the announcement that net profit totalled 28.1 billion baht in 2023.
According to THAI’s statement concerning its end-of-year report, 4Q2023 saw the carrier and its subsidiaries’ total record revenue, excluding one-time transactions, of 45,170 million baht – 14.4 per cent higher than the same period in 2022.
On top of a general rebound in aviation and the tourism industry, leading to increased passenger demand and higher ticket sales, THAI cites a restructured debt programme and asset sales as significant contributing factors.
Many of the airline’s creditors have committed to reducing interest payments and extended repayment terms, which will see THAI finish up the court-supervised restructuring ahead of schedule before the end of this year.
By sticking to the agreed timetable and honouring repayment obligations, THAI will be able to return to The Stock Exchange of Thailand and resume trade in 2025, four years after being suspended.
The healthy financials have made 2023 the second most profitable year for the Kingdom’s national airline and is the third time THAI has recorded positive gains in nearly 15 years – a welcome reverse for the company, which filed for bankruptcy in 2020.
With a healthier bank balance, the airline is in the position to enhance its fleet and has signed an order with Boeing for 45 new aeroplanes (with the option to increase the order to 80), the biggest order in Thailand’s aviation history. On top of that, the carrier has also requested three new A350-900s from Airbus to help serve rising passenger demand.
Saudi woos Malaysia at trade show with new initiatives
Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) has unveiled a series of initiatives during its 2024 Malaysian Trade Roadshow held at the Westin Kuala Lumpur on the March 4, reinforcing the Kingdom’s commitment to Malaysian visitors.
The trade show saw the attendance of 18 Saudi stakeholders including DMCs, hotels, transportation partners and travel agents.
This marks a significant milestone in Saudi’s commitment to welcoming global visitors, aligning with Saudi’s Vision 2030, which envisions welcoming 150 million annual visits by the end of the decade. Notably, Saudi has been recognised by UNWTO and WTTC as the fastest large growing destination with international arrivals having increased by 156 per cent compared to 2019.
Malaysia is among the 63 countries eligible for Saudi Arabia’s e-Visa programme, making it easier for Malaysian travellers to visit the destination. Malaysian passport holders having the UK, Schengen or the US visit visas are also eligible for e-visa and visa on arrival.
In addition, the recently launched 96-hour Stopover Visa grants visitors travelling with SAUDI and Flynas the opportunity to spend up to 96 hours in Saudi continuing their onward journeys, making Saudi the perfect stopover destination for Malaysian travellers.
Moreover, Saudi’s airline capacity has increased in the past year alone to over 700,000 seats across three main carriers – Air Asia X, Malaysia Airlines, and SAUDIA – with plans to further increase frequency to cater to the growing demand.
During the roadshow, STA announced the unveiling of enhanced Umrah+ packages tailored specifically for Malaysian pilgrims. Accessible through the Nusuk platform, these packages simplify e-visa application processes and present curated experiences, inviting Malaysians to explore Saudi’s rich culture, historical treasures, diverse landscape, and exclusive events and festivals, such as AlUla Skies Festival, and Winter at Tantora.
Fliggy, Amadeus to give travellers more hospitality options
Online travel platform Fliggy has partnered with Amadeus by signing on to Amadeus Value Hotels, offering its customers an extensive array of hotel options worldwide.
Fliggy’s corporate travel management division Alitrip has also signed an agreement to support its customers’ corporate travel in and out of China, allowing its customers to shop and book hospitality content via the Amadeus Travel Platform.
Founded in 2016, Fliggy, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Alibaba Group, provides comprehensive solutions for Chinese travellers looking to book airline and train tickets, accommodation, car rental, package tours, and local attractions.
The incorporation of Amadeus Value Hotels into Fliggy’s platform enables Fliggy’s customers to access an even wider range of property types, destinations and room details at the time of search and booking. The platform will give both Fliggy and Alitrip customers access to real-time rates and the content they need to serve their customers.
Xiaochen Zhou, international hotels general manager, Fliggy, commented: “This expanded partnership strengthens our commitment to meeting the evolving needs of modern travellers and providing them with a seamless and enriched travel journey.”
“As the travel landscape evolves, our partnership with Fliggy ensures that its customers have access to a broader range of hotel content tailored to its preferences,” commented Joerg Schuler, executive vice president, media & distribution, hospitality, Amadeus.
Head for an adventure with Aurora Expeditions
Aurora Expeditions, an expedition company in Australia, has released a suite of unbeatable new adventure deals for travellers wanting to book the trip of a lifetime in 2024 and 2025.
From now until June 30, explorers can choose from an array of adventures with combinable air credits and voyage fares on offer, on the expedition company’s voyages to Antarctica, the Arctic, and beyond.
Arctic & Beyond 2024 adventures comprise Across the Arctic Circle departing June 6; Greenland Odyssey departing July 6; Jewels of the Arctic departing July 7; and Northern Lights Explorer which departs on September 8.
Starting in the later part of the year are the Antarctica 2024-2025 expeditions, such as Spirit of Antarctica on October 27; Antarctic Peninsula in Depth on November 6; South Georgia and Antarctic Odyssey on November 19; Antarctic Explorer on January 26, 2025; and Across the Antarctic Circle, which departs February 23, 2025.
For more information, visit Aurora Expeditions.
THAI adjusts flight schedules to accommodate stranded passengers in Germany
Thai Airways International (THAI) has adjusted its flight schedule between Thailand’s Bangkok and Germany’s Frankfurt to accommodate passengers stuck at the airport due to the strikes by ground staff and airport security workers at Frankfurt Airport on March 6 and 7.
The flights will be operated with Boeing 777-300ER which has a capacity for 348 seats.
Flights to Frankfurt will depart Bangkok at 12.40 and 23.40 on March 7; at 12.40 on March 8; and at 07.30 on March 9.
Flights to Bangkok will leave Frankfurt on March 8 at four timings: 15.45, 13.45, 14.45 and 20.55; and at 15.45 on March 9.
All timings stated are in local time.
Passengers scheduled to fly on those days can visit THAI’s website for updates.
Jazeera Airways names new CEO
Jazeera Airways has appointed Barathan Pasupathi as its new chief executive officer. He takes over the role from Rohit Ramachandran, who will be stepping down after over seven years with the company.
He was formerly the chief financial officer of Jazeera Airways, and brings to his role over 30 years of experience in aviation, oil and gas, and supply chain management.
Before joining Jazeera Airways, Barathan was CEO of Jetstar Asia.
Sarawak partners Tischler Reisen to grow European footfalls
Sarawak has launched its Gateway to Borneo campaign alongside the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on March 5 with longhaul travel specialist Tischler Reisen to lure more visitors from the European market.
In 2023, Sarawak attracted a total of 3.9 million visitors, an increase of 93.8 per cent compared to the previous year. Of those, a total of 57,496 arrivals hailed from Europe, marking a 121 per cent year-on-year surge.
This represents an 81.5 per cent recovery in the European market compared with 2019. The UK was the top source market, with Germany snagging second place with 7,738 visitors.
Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, Sarawak’s minister of tourism, creative industry and performing arts, is optimistic that 2024 will see Sarawak surpassing 2019’s European arrivals.
His confidence is bolstered by the MoU signing between Sarawak Tourism Board and Tischler Reisen.
“Building on the foundation laid in 2023, this partnership is a natural progression, aimed at enhancing Sarawak’s appeal as a premier destination in the eyes of European travellers,” Hamzah said.
“Tischler Reisen is set to leverage its extensive network of 600 agencies in Germany, promoting Sarawak through diverse tour packages, both offline and online. Through this collaborative effort, we’re confident Sarawak will ascend to greater heights as a preferred destination among Germany and neighbouring European markets.”
Gulf boosts Guangzhou’s tourism fortunes
Strong arrivals from Gulf states are driving recovery in China’s Guangzhou, with one hotel reporting rebound to pre-pandemic levels.
Franco Io, general manager of LN Garden Hotel, reported 100 per cent recovery in 2023 compared to 2019. “We’ve been surprised at how fast the foreign market has recovered,” he said.
He noted that the rebound has been predominantly led by Gulf states, mainly due to Emirates and Turkish Airlines being two of the first airlines to resume routes there.
“When China opened, they started flying immediately and this helped drive business from the Gulf,” Io added.
“In the Gulf states, everything is sparkling and new, and there is a lot of that going on in Guangzhou and China, so that has helped.”
Io said the surge in arrivals from Gulf states has been followed by strong South-east Asian arrivals. There was also a pick-up in arrivals from the European and North American markets at the end of 2023.
He added that arrivals are a healthy mix of business and leisure travellers keen to explore a destination that “flies under the shadow of Shanghai and Beijing”, but offers better value for money.
In addition, he noted an uptick in business travellers extending their stay for two to three days.
European tourists lifts tourism in Southern Thailand
European travellers have turned out to be Southern Thailand’s strongest tourism drivers, pushing up hotel performance to record-breaking levels while staying for weeks at a time.
According to a Bangkok Post report, tourists from Russia, Scandinavia and Germany, drawn to the region’s natural beauty, are the main contributors to an occupancy rate of 90 per cent or higher.
Pongsakorn Ketprapakorn, former president of Phang Nga Tourism Council, said: “Many hotels in the province, especially in Khao Lak, can charge higher room rates of between 6,000 baht (US$168.50) and 10,000 baht per night, exceeding the average of 5,000 baht in 2019.”
Ketprakorn explained that despite the surge in Chinese arrivals – nearly a fifth of all arrivals in 2023 – Phang Nga has no real access to a consumer base attracted to beach holidays and urban entertainment. The tourism sector contributes only between five and 10 per cent to the province’s economy.
Hotels in Krabi have also benefitted from long-term European visitors.
Charintip Tiyaphorn, owner of Pimalai Resort and Spa at Koh Lanta of Krabi, told the media that Chinese tourists were unable to secure any rooms during the Lunar New Year holidays, because it was 90 per cent booked by Europeans who had made their reservations up to 180 days in advance, beating out Chinese guests who tend to book closer to their travel time.
The strong advance demand allowed Pimalai Resort and Spa to punch up rates to in excess of 900 baht across all accommodation types.
Despite the Thai government’s enthusiastic embrace of China as key source markets with high-profile schemes to bolster the kingdom’s tourism industry, local tourism players believe that flight shortages and the destination profile of Southern Thailand may have dampened the potential for Chinese arrivals growth.
A Krabi Tourism Association spokesperson pointed to a shortage in direct flights from China to Krabi. Prior to Covid-19, the region had traffic from five cities in China.
Freelance travel agent, Lek Nawat, told TTG Asia that Chinese travellers were still more drawn to “established tourist centres, like Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket, where some of them feel more secure and confident” about moving around.
She explained: “Chinese tourists are still quite cautious when it comes to travel. Less well-known destinations raise lots of questions regarding activities, food, health and safety, and whether they can use digital payments. Never underestimate the importance of WeChat. There is also a lack of demand to visit (places) perceived to be off the beaten path.”
Scoot, the low-cost subsidiary of Singapore Airlines (SIA), has unveiled the six South-east Asian destinations that its fleet of new Embraer E190-E2 aircraft will fly to – Krabi, Koh Samui and Hat Yai in Thailand; and Kuantan, Miri and Sibu in Malaysia.
Expected to begin operations in May, Scoot’s E190-E2 services will offer direct connections to and from Singapore.
The first E2, aptly nicknamed Explorer 3.0, is expected to arrive in Singapore in April, and will take over Scoot’s existing flights to Krabi and Hat Yai from May 7, increasing flight frequencies to both destinations from 7-times to 10-times weekly.
The second E2 is also scheduled for delivery in April and will allow Scoot to operate to four additional cities – Koh Samui, Kuantan, Miri, and Sibu. Daily flights to Koh Samui will commence from May 13, with the frequency progressively increased to twice daily from early June.
The addition of the second E2 will also allow Scoot to increase its frequency to Miri and Kuantan from three to four times weekly from May 20 and June 3, respectively, as well as launch thrice weekly flights to Sibu from June 5.
Together with destinations served by Scoot’s existing fleet, the airline would operate 103-times weekly flights to Malaysia and 92-times weekly flights to Thailand by June.