Onyx Hospitality Group has joined forces with airasia rewards, a loyalty programme operating under the airasia Superapp (soon to be rebranded as airasia Move) to craft travel and stay experiences tailored for airasia members.
This collaboration enables airasia members to enjoy up to a 30 per cent discount on hotel rooms affiliated with Onyx Hospitality Group. Additionally, airasia members will have the exclusive privilege of earning 500 airasia points with the code PAA2324 till December 20, 2024.
The partnership allows airasia members to enjoy more benefits at Onyx Hospitality Group
In addition, airasia members who are also Onyx Rewards members are entitled to exclusive discounts on rooms, restaurants, and spas, as well as benefits such as room upgrades, flexible check-in and late check-out options.
Niwat Vaitayamongkol, senior director of brand and marketing communications at Onyx Hospitality Group, shared that the group has upcoming plans for more strategic partnerships “to curate the most exclusive experiences for travellers and guests staying at our hotels, particularly those who are Onyx Rewards members”.
airasia members with accumulated points can redeem them for flights, hotels, and cash vouchers from numerous renowned brands through the airasia Superapp, shared Bawornpak Siripanich, country head of airasia rewards Thailand.
Royal Caribbean International and world-renowned sports icon Lionel Messi debuted the Icon of the Seas at a naming celebration in Miami in the US, just shy of the cruise line’s 55th anniversary.
The milestone moment was held in the AquaDome neighbourhood and attended by Royal Caribbean executives, crew, employees, fans and partners.
Lionel Messi debuted the Icon of the Seas at a naming celebration in Miami
Messi, who inaugurated the highly anticipated vacation with a bottle-breaking, said: “Everything I’ve seen on Icon of the Seas is next level. There are experiences for the whole family to make memories that they’ll remember forever.”
Royal Caribbean Group president and CEO Jason Liberty described the new ship as a “culmination of more than 50 years of dreaming, innovating and living our mission – to deliver the world’s best vacation experiences responsibly”.
Icon of the Seas set off with vacationers for the first time on January 27, and will island-hop through the tropics on seven-night Eastern or Western Caribbean adventure from Miami.
Cape Fahn Hotel in Koh Samui introduces the new Ocean Cottage – the only two-unit luxury pool villa with glass walls facing the sea on its private islands.
Ocean Cottage allows guests to enjoy the beauty of the Gulf of Thailand from inside its spacious bedroom and living room, which features a bathroom with bathtub as well as an outdoor rain shower. The seaside terrace is a great place to socialise or just to lounge in private. There is even a private pool on the lower sunbathing patio.
Cape Fahn Hotel’s new Ocean Cottage allows guests to enjoy a luxurious stay by the ocean
Ocean Cottage is fully equipped with modern five-star hotel facilities and amenities combining perfectly with a luxury lifestyle.
Singapore and China have agreed to a 30-day mutual visa-free entry for their citizens, where the arrangement will begin on February 9.
Under the agreement, Singaporeans and Chinese citizens holding ordinary passports can enter China or Singapore without a visa for no more than 30 days if they are travelling for business, sightseeing, or visiting friends and family.
Singapore and China have confirmed a 30-day mutual visa-free entry for their citizens
Those who plan to engage in activities that require prior approval, such as work or news reporting, or plan to stay for more than 30 days, must still secure the relevant visa before entry.
Plans for the 30-day mutual visa exemption agreement were announced nearly two months ago, during the highest-level annual bilateral forum between Singapore and China, where Chinese vice premier Ding Xuexiang commented that the visa-free arrangement would “provide greater convenience for people-to-people exchanges”.
Currently, Singaporeans holding ordinary passports can enter China without a visa for 15 days for purposes like sightseeing, visiting family and business. Chinese citizens currently require a visa to enter Singapore.
Japanese organisations are adopting the use of more technology to cope with overtourism amid the country’s rapid inbound travel rebound.
In 2023, 25.1 million international travellers arrived in Japan, a dramatic uptick from the 3.8 million in 2022. Recovery has been particularly strong since September, when arrivals were only 3.9 per cent less than the number in September 2019, culminating in December data which was an 8.2 per cent increase on the number of arrivals in December 2019.
Smart bins have been installed to prevent littering at popular tourist spots such as Dotonbori in Osaka, pictured
With the world’s attention on Hiroshima in 2023 due to the G7 Summit, and an uptick of visitors since April, Hiroshima City plans to introduce an online ticket system for its Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum as early as March. The museum will also extend its opening hours by two hours for visitors who book online, in a bid to ease congestion.
From April to November 2023 alone, museum visitors totalled 1.5 million visitors, not far off the 1.8 million who visited over April to March 2019.
Osaka is also using technology to tackle some of the negative effects of the tourism rebound, using a subsidy from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism to install ‘smart bins’.
Some 20 solar panel-enabled bins have been installed to combat the increase in rubbish at popular tourist districts in the heart of the city such as Dotonbori, a growing problem as Japanese municipalities tend not to install bins, preferring people to take their rubbish home, even in areas where street food sellers are prolific.
The solar panels will sense when rubbish is building up inside the bin and compress the garbage by about 20 per cent. The bin can also send alerts to workers for it to be emptied before it is full, thereby reducing the chance of litter polluting the streets and protecting the urban environment.
The Maldives is seeing a change in its top five source market mix following its diplomatic spat with India. While India used to reign in 2023, it is now in fifth position.
For the period of January 1 to 23, 2024, Russia leads the pack and is followed by Italy, the UK, China, and finally, India.
India now ranks fifth in the Maldives’ top five source markets
Compared against 2023, India held pole position in terms of arrivals contribution, followed by Russia, China, the UK and Germany.
According to the Ministry of Tourism, there were 10,685 visitors from India during the first 23 days of the new year, while total arrivals for the same period was 140,646 visitors – up from 127,292 in the corresponding period in 2023.
China’s rise up the ranks has caught the attention of travel agents in the Maldives, who expressed hope that the enormous market, once the biggest source market for the Maldives in the pre-pandemic era, would compensate the drop in Indian arrivals.
Agents are hopeful that the increasing flights from China would bring more arrivals during the upcoming Chinese New Year holidays in February.
Malaysia Airlines recently announced that it will be introducing an exclusive private terminal transfer service for its passengers to travel in comfort between the Main Terminal Building and the Satellite Building of Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) Terminal 1.
This initiative is in collaboration with BMW Group Malaysia through their dealer partner, Ingress Auto.
Malaysia Airlines elevates customer experience with its private transfer service at KLIA
Beginning February 1, Enrich Platinum, Business Suite, and Business Class passengers flying with Malaysia Airlines will experience a heightened level of luxury as they will be chauffeured in style with the all-electric BMW i7. The 24-hour service offers a sustainable and premium travel option exclusively for Malaysia Airlines’ passengers, in addition to the Premium Bus transfer currently provided by the airport operator following the temporary suspension of the aerotrain service.
During this initial phase, a fleet of BMW i7 vehicles will be deployed to serve departing passengers, with the pick-up point located at Gate G1 of the Main Terminal Building. The airline will also be deploying additional units to serve arriving passengers in the near future, following the completion of the arrival lounge at the airport’s Satellite Building.
Passengers can enjoy the assurance that the premium service is intricately tailored to ensure individualised experiences, eliminating any concerns about sharing rides.
This exclusive service guarantees dedicated transportation, with vehicles allocated for solo travellers, couples, and families up to four passengers per car – ensuring a smooth and comfortable journey as part of the end-to-end customer experience.
Ahmad Luqman Mohd Azmi, CEO of airlines from Malaysia Aviation Group, said: “As the only carrier offering this temporary personalised service to our passengers in light of the aerotrain’s temporary suspension at KLIA Terminal 1, it underscores our dedication to elevating our standards of service to ensure a premium travel experience, while also reinforcing our commitment to embedding sustainable practices with the selection of the all-electric BMW i7 series. We look forward to extending this service to our arriving passengers as part of our continuous efforts to ensure a fuss-free and enjoyable experience driven by our inimitable Malaysian Hospitality.”
Rabian Ab Rahman, managing director of Ingress Auto, added: “The BMW i7, with its fully electric capabilities, represents the epitome of innovation and sustainability in the automotive industry, aligning seamlessly with our commitment to delivering
Sheer Electric Driving Pleasure in Malaysia. We look forward to contributing to the elevated standards of service offered by Malaysia Airlines.”
UN Tourism, rebranded from UNWTO, has opened applications for the 2024 edition of its Best Tourism Villages initiative.
The initiative, launched in 2021, is one of the pillars of the organisation’s Tourism for Rural Development Programme. It recognises those rural destinations where tourism is being effectively embraced as an opportunity or as a tool for sustainable growth or for preserving unique cultural and natural heritage.
The UN Best Tourism Village initiative recognises tourism villages that are able to drive rural development and local well-being; Japan’s Hakuba Valley, one of 2023’s winners, pictured
Over the past three successful editions, UN Tourism received almost 600 applications from nearly 100 countries.
Currently, the UN Tourism Best Tourism Villages Network brings together 186 members globally, comprising 129 recognised as Best Tourism Villages and 57 villages taking part in the Upgrade Programme. Together, they represent 55 countries across five world regions.
Applications are evaluated based on nine areas: Cultural and Natural Resources; Promotion and Conservation of Cultural Resources; Economic Sustainability; Social Sustainability; Environmental Sustainability; Tourism Development and Value Chain Integration; Governance and Prioritisation of Tourism; Infrastructure and Connectivity; and Health, Safety and Security.
Besides recognising tourism villages that meet the nine requirements, the initiative also includes an Upgrade Programme that supports applicants that do not fully meet the criteria and helps address the gaps identified in the evaluation process, as well as the UN Tourism Network which brings together representatives of both recognised villages and those in the Upgrade Programme together to exchange experiences, good practices and opportunities.
UN Tourism’s Members States can present up to eight villages through their National Tourism Administrations and via this form.
Applications will close on April 24 and the winners will be announced in 3Q2024.
Cathay Pacific has officially opened its first-ever lounge outside of an airport at the Shekou Cruise Home Port in Shenzhen.
This new ferry lounge further enhances the intermodal travel experience for Cathay’s customers and elevates sea-to-air connectivity between Hong Kong International Airport and the whole of the Greater Bay Area.
Customers can enjoy a breath-taking 270-degree view of the surrounding sea
Currently, there are 11 round-trip ferry services per day between the Shekou Cruise Home Port and the SkyPier Terminal. The ferry journey only takes about 30 minutes and customers can collect their ferry tickets, boarding passes, and through-check their luggage onto their Cathay Pacific flights to destinations around the world.
Cathay Pacific customers can enjoy effortless transfer using its codeshare ferry services to go directly from the Shekou Cruise Home Port to the SkyPier Terminal at Hong Kong International Airport. The lounge allows customers to rest and relax before boarding their ferry service while enjoying a breath-taking 270-degree view of the surrounding area, including a glimpse of Hong Kong in the distance.
All Cathay Diamond and Gold members, as well as First and Business class customers, Cathay Silver members, and relevant oneworld members travelling on Cathay Pacific flights are welcome to visit the Shekou lounge.
Cathay Group’s CEO Ronald Lam said: “As Hong Kong International Airport continues to strengthen its sea and land connections with neighbouring cities in the Greater Bay Area, we are excited to open our brand-new Cathay Pacific lounge at the Shekou Cruise Home Port to our customers travelling from the region.”
