Dorsett Melbourne has appointed Stephen Cane as its new general manager, bringing over 20 years’ experience in the hospitality industry to his new role.
Most recently area general manager at Accor, Cane moved back to Melbourne from London where he lived for 20 years, 12 of which he worked as general manager to four- and five-star hotels.
Japanese companies are advancing their efforts to tackle travel-related problems, such as carbon emissions and disruption to local people, amid rising demand for responsible tourism among consumers.
“Travellers increasingly desire to make more sustainable choices regarding their travel destinations, accommodation, transportation and so on,” noted Japan Airlines in a statement, while noting that those travellers “still lack sufficient options”.
To meet those changing needs, the airline has teamed up with diversified business enterprise Sumitomo Corporation to launch “Any Wear, Anywhere,” a clothing sharing service designed to eliminate the need for the transportation of large luggage to Japan from overseas.
JAL customers can choose a clothing set dependent on the season and purpose of travel, including leisure or business, which is delivered to and picked up from their chosen hotel. After use, the clothing is cleaned and reused.
It is estimated that the service will enable a typical user travelling from New York to Tokyo to reduce the carbon emissions from their travel by 7.5kg, by just cutting back on 10kg worth of baggage.
Tokyo-based company Airporter, Inc., meanwhile, aims to provide hands-free travel by offering a luggage drop-off service at Japan’s main travel hubs. Travellers can request for their luggage to be delivered to their hotel or departure airport within the cities of Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Fukuoka and Okinawa.
According to the company, the experimental initiative aims “to promote empty-handed tourism” and prevent “crowding of city buses caused by the increase in inbound tourists”.
This year’s surge in inbound tourists using city buses has been particularly problematic for Kyoto, whose municipal government, in September, introduced extra bus services, began encouraging greater use of the subway, ended the sale of one-day bus passes and began promoting services like Airporter that enable travel without luggage.
“We aim to realise sustainable tourism,” said Airporter.
China will temporarily exempt citizens of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia from needing entry visas in a bid to boost tourism recovery.
The exemption will be in effect from December 1 this year to November 30, 2024.
It will be available to those visiting China for business, tourism, visiting relatives and friends, or transiting for no more than 15 days.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and online travel platform Fliggy have signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) to strengthen their partnership in promoting Thailand’s tourism and improving Chinese tourists’ travel experiences in Thailand.
The LOI will formalise the TAT-Fliggy partnership, while further enhancing the cooperation in several areas.
Both parties will identify pilot locations and leverage technology to promote “smart scenic destinations” to improve Chinese tourists’ experiences. In addition, they will collaborate on developing and promoting emerging Thai destinations, dubbed “Potential Hidden Gems”.
The LOI will also see this strategic collaboration on promotional content and campaigns specifically for Chinese tourists, particularly during special events such as Double 11, Golden Week, and Chinese New Year.
To help ensure the safety and create a better experience for tourists at any destination across Thailand, a 24/7 Chinese customer service hotline will be set up to communicate with Chinese tourists and address their concerns.
Thapanee Kiatphaibool, TAT governor, said: “The partnership with Fliggy will provide TAT with a broader platform to showcase the charm of “Amazing Thailand” and a diverse range of tourism products and services. We look forward to working with Fliggy to attract more Chinese tourists to our country.”
Zhuoran Zhuang, CEO of Fliggy, added: “Cross-border tourism is showing a promising recovery trend. As a leading platform for Chinese outbound independent travel, Fliggy has formed a deep partnership with TAT to collaborate on service upgrades, experiential innovation, promoting travel destinations, and talent development. This collaboration will bring people more diverse and high-quality travel options to Thailand, thus further strengthening the confidence of local businesses and the tourism industry.”
Previously, Fliggy and TAT initiated joint campaigns to communicate the readiness of Thailand in welcoming Chinese tourists post-pandemic, including online travel programmes and livestream broadcasts promoting Thai travel experiences and special packages.
Hotel company Standard International has unveiled a new lifestyle hotel brand, The StandardX, which is said to be a youthful reinvention of the core brand, The Standard.
In a press release, the company explained that “The Standard is no stranger to reinvention” and that the “new hotel concept… takes the iconic brand back to its youthful roots”.
The StandardX design will be conveyed through “minimalist rooms, cultural programming, and intuitive hospitality without pretension”. Hotel locations will be carefully selected to allow guests to thrive in places “thrumming with cultural pulses” and rich in art, fashion, and music.
“Here, guests aren’t whisked away from the neighbourhood but rather are provided with the keys to unlock its hidden treasures,” stated the company.
The brand will make its first appearance in Fitzroy, Melbourne, Australia. Set to open in February 2024, The StandardX, Melbourne will be neighbours to “iconic record stores, sticky-carpeted punk clubs, legendary writers’ haunts, and beloved party spots”. Guests can expect to find Fitzroy’s charms reflected in the hotel’s interior spaces and 125 rooms, as well as a collection of art produced by local talents.
Facilities will include F&B venues and The Box, a retail outlet where guests can pick up daily essentials, snacks and more.
A Standard International spokesperson told TTG Asia that more properties in Asia-Pacific carrying the new The StandardX brand will follow the Melbourne debut, and none will be rebranded from existing The Standard properties.
Trip.com has launched the Hello Hong Kong campaign in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, where travellers from the four South-east Asian countries will enjoy a discount when making hotel bookings in Hong Kong.
From now until January 20, 2024, travellers from Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam will be able to enjoy 20 per cent off hotel bookings, while travellers from Thailand will be able to enjoy 20 per cent off hotel bookings from January 16 to March 17, 2024.
Travellers to Hong Kong who book their hotels or air tickets through Trip.com will also be able to claim a Hong Kong Night Treats voucher worth HK$100 (US$12.80). The voucher is available for use in participating restaurants and bars after 18.00.
This is part of Hong Kong Tourism Board’s (HKTB) global Hello Hong Kong campaign, introduced earlier this year to encourage travellers to visit Hong Kong. It also marks the first thematic marketing campaign between Trip.com and the HKTB outside of mainland China after the pandemic,
“South-east Asian travellers have traditionally enjoyed visiting Hong Kong, as shown by the visitor numbers – in the first nine months of 2023, five of the top eight short-haul visitor arrivals in Hong Kong were from South-east Asian countries, with visitors from Malaysia growing by more than 90 times compared to the same period in 2022.
“Our Trip.com data from the same period also bears this out, with the four countries participating in the Hello Hong Kong campaign ranking in the Top 10 markets booking trips to Hong Kong. We are happy to partner HKTB to welcome more travellers from South-east Asia to Hong Kong,” said Edison Chen, vice president of destination marketing & strategic alliances, Trip.com group.
Bangkok-headquartered EXO Travel has been certified as a B Corporation, following a rigorous evaluation of the impact of their operations and business model across five areas: workers, community, governance, customers and environment.
Contributing to the certification of EXO Travel as a B Corp were corporate activities such as providing extensive training opportunities and benefits such as parental leave, and flexible working environments; measuring and reducing their carbon footprint; as well as working with local hotels and transportation services and incentivising them to be more responsible in their business practices.
EXO Travel also gives back part of its profits through the EXO Foundation for projects that directly impact the lives of local people.
This significant milestone comes after a challenging yet transformative four-year assessment process, disrupted by the pandemic.
EXO acknowledges that the journey does not end here, and will use the assessment as a stimulus for continuous improvement and innovation, ensuring that its operations and offerings not only meet but exceed B Lab’s high standards of sustainability and ethical business practices.
Vietjet has commenced the first-ever direct services connecting Ho Chi Minh City to Perth and Adelaide, further expanding its footprint in Australia.
The debut flights make Vietjet the first Vietnamese carrier to fly to South Australia and Western Australia. This will more than double Vietjet’s weekly flights to Australia to 58 times weekly from December 2023, making it the carrier with the largest capacity flying between Vietnam and Australia.
Less than a year after entering the Australian market in April 2023, Vietjet currently flies to five Australian cities, including Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney.
The historic Trans Bhutan Trail has reopened as a trekking route across a nation famous for its stunning Himalayan landscapes.
The 403km route links the community of Haa in the west of the country with Trashigang in the far east, traversing 12 mountain passes and five suspension bridges. It also visits 400 cultural and historic sites, including 21 temples and four dzongs (traditional fortresses).
Originally a series of routes utilised by pilgrims, traders and armies, the trail was the sole way of travelling across the country until the 1960s. The routes fell into disuse with the construction of modern roads, but have been resurrected in an initiative spearheaded by King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck.
Aside from being a unique way of exploring Bhutan’s breathtaking mountains, history and religious landmarks, the trail highlights the Kingdom’s principles on environment and sustainable development.
Hikers are not required to complete the entire route – which typically requires 36 days of hiking and reaches a maximum altitude of nearly 4,000 metres above sea level – and can choose shorter, less challenging stretches. Sections have also been upgraded for mountain biking.
Bhutan’s travel sector is bouncing back from the lows of the global pandemic, buoyed by a multi-pronged promotional strategy and the announcement that the nation’s Sustainable Development Fee (SDF) was being cut by 50 per cent from September 1.
“In addition to the SDF incentives, the tourism department is implementing various marketing strategies to showcase Bhutan and attract more visitors,” said Dorji Dhradhul, director general of the Department of Tourism Bhutan.
“We are doing rigorous branding and carrying out a variety of advertising and promotional campaigns and activities to enhance Bhutan’s presence in the global travel industry,” he told TTG Asia.
Also, Dhradhul remains confident that greater visitor numbers will quickly justify the decision to reduce the SDF from US$200 per person per day to half that figure.
Visitors to Bhutan have been required to pay a daily fee since the country opened to international travellers in 1974 and it remains a key element of the nation’s “high value, low volume” tourism strategy. The travel sector has welcomed the reduction in the SDF and has been further reassured as the new rate will remain in place until August 31, 2027.
“Revenue generated from the SDF is allocated to various sustainability initiatives, including the conservation of the pristine natural environment,” Dhradhul said.
Funds from the SDF will continue to be allocated to measures to offset the carbon footprint of visitors, such as through planting of trees, and assisting the tourism sector by upskilling workers, maintaining trails, reducing the country’s reliance on fossil fuels and electrifying Bhutan’s transportation sector.
Dhradhul added that he anticipates surpassing income earned in 2019 from the SDF before the end of the year at the same time as the country attracts more visitors, thereby ensuring a strong revenue stream from the SDF.
Nearly 16,000 foreign travellers visited Bhutan in October, around 10 per cent higher than the agency’s forecast of 14,287 and putting the nation on target to hit 98,000 visitors for the full calendar year.
Key to further increase in inbound travellers will be greater promotional efforts with international travel partners and key opinion leaders, global media outlets and influencers “to amplify Bhutan’s prominence as a top sustainable travel destination in the world”, Dhradhul noted.
The agency is also keen to promote destinations outside the most commonly visited parts of the country, such as Thimphu, Paro and the Punakha Valley, and encourage them to explore less well-known areas and unique cultural attractions.
When asked where he would personally recommend visitors explore, Dhradhul was quick to name the natural hot springs of Gasa, particularly for anyone who has undertaken a trek through Bhutan’s stunning natural environment and wishes to ease their aching muscles.
