TTG Asia
Asia/Singapore Monday, 6th April 2026
Page 514

SWISS offers more services for upcoming winter season

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SWISS prepares for the coming winter season by offering its customers a wide range of air services. The SWISS winter schedules will include both new destinations and increased frequencies on selected existing routes.

The airline will provide flights from Zurich and Geneva to a total of 68 destinations, as well as restore the flight to Bremen in Northern Germany. It will also be increasing its frequencies from Zurich to various further German cities, with six more weekly flights to Düsseldorf, four more to Hamburg and an additional two to Hanover.

SWISS will include new destinations and increased frequencies on selected existing routes in its winter schedule

Other destinations flying from Zurich include Berlin (52 weekly flights), Barcelona (28 weekly flights), Amsterdam (28 weekly flights) and Athens (19 weekly flights).

The Czech capital of Prague and the Romanian capital of Bucharest will also have their SWISS services substantially expanded with an additional seven and five weekly flights respectively.

SWISS flights will be operated once again between Zurich and Vienna with three flights a day to the Austrian capital. The route will also be operated by sister Lufthansa Group carrier Austrian Airlines with multiple daily flights to London, Lisbon, Porto and Athens.

Portugal’s capital Lisbon will also receive 14 weekly flights from Zurich, and 11 times a week for Porto.

The service to Hamburg introduced this summer will continue with four weekly frequencies, and SWISS will further offer services to Geneva from the UK and Scandinavia.

The winter timetable period will run from October 29, 2023 to 30 March 30, 2024.

New hotels: dusitD2 Samyan Bangkok, Courtyard by Marriott Melaka and more

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dusitD2 Samyan Bangkok

dusitD2 Samyan Bangkok, Thailand
The 179-key dusitD2 Samyan Bangkok is just a 30-minute drive from Suvarnabhumi International Airport, and is situated on Si Phraya Road parallel to Silom and Sathorn roads in Bangkok’s central business district.

The hotel’s wide range of facilities comprises a pool, fitness centre, restaurants, bars, and event venues. Also available are laundry services and car park with automatic parking.

Courtyard by Marriott Melaka

Courtyard by Marriott Melaka, Malaysia
Courtyard by Marriott Melaka is located just 15 minutes away from the Melaka International Airport, and provides access to the city’s historical attractions, shopping district, and local street food scene.

Boasting 287 guestrooms and suites, the hotel also offers a fitness centre, rooftop infinity pool, F&B options, and function spaces.

Mantra Castle Hill Sydney

Mantra Castle Hill Sydney, Australia
Mantra Castle Hill Sydney boasts 82 guestrooms, as well as facilities like a restaurant, gym, barbecue deck, and conference room.

The hotel is located within the commercial and industrial precinct of Castle Hill and is just a three minutes’ drive from Norwest Business Park and The Hills Entertainment Centre.

Novotel Jodhpur ITI Circle

Novotel Jodhpur ITI Circle, India
Novotel Jodhpur ITI Circle offers 93 rooms and suites, with facilities such as a spa and steam facility, rooftop swimming pool, gym and event venues.

The hotel serves up pure vegetarian cuisine at its F&B outlets, and guests looking to experience the street foods of India can head to a 24-hour street-side eatery nearby.

The property has easy access to key heritage sites and commercial hubs such as Mehrangarh, Old Jodhpur, Clock Tower, and Masuria Hill, and is only four kilometres away from Jodhpur Railway Station and seven kilometres from the Jodhpur Airport.

The Chapman’s Challenge returns to Malaysia’s Pangkor Laut

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The fifth instalment of The Chapman’s Challenge is back on the beaches of Pangkor Laut from August 25 to 27.

Renowned for its challenging routes and breath-taking landscapes, this year’s edition of The Chapman’s Challenge has a new Official Timekeeper, NORQAIN. The race consists of a 3.8km road run around the island and 2.4km through the untouched rainforest, culminating with a 1km swim in the sea off Emerald Bay.

The Chapman’s Challenge returns to Pangkor Laut with challenging routes and breath-taking landscapes

The race is a tribute to Colonel Spencer Chapman, a British officer-naturalist who demonstrated extraordinary courage, endurance, and mental toughness during World War II.

The winner of the challenge will receive the 42mm NORQAIN’s Wild One Khaki timepiece (valued at 24,680 ringgit) by Swiss watchmaking company NORQAIN.

Priced from 2,600 ringgit (US$567) per villa for two adults, the package at Pangkor Laut Resort includes accommodation for two nights, return scheduled speedboat transfer to and from Marina Island Pangkor, daily meals, entry for The Chapman’s Challenge 2023, post-race refreshments for each race participant, and pre-dinner cocktails and beach barbecue dinner on August 26.

For more information, visit The Chapman’s Challenge.

Swiss-Belhotel plans ambitious growth in Indonesia

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Swiss-Belhotel International is set to grow its presence across Indonesia following the acquisition of its Indonesia management companies November last year.

Indies Capital Partners (Indies Capital), an alternative asset manager in South-east Asia, has acquired 60 per cent stake in Swiss-Belhotel International Indonesia and Zest Hotels International Indonesia from Ciputra Group Indonesia, with Hong Kong-based Swiss-Belhotel International Holdings owning the remaining 40 per cent.

Swiss-Belhotel International is set to expand across Indonesia; Swiss-Belinn in Timika, pictured

The new ownership is expected to open up opportunities for the hotel group, with a significant advantage in the financial support that Indies Capital can provide during the development phase of new hotel projects.

Emmanuel Guillard, senior vice president, operations and development Indonesia, Swiss-Belhotel International, remarked that the budget for any hotel project could go up in the middle of the development stage.

He elaborated: “In situations where investors may face financial constraints (during an ongoing project), Indies Capital has expressed its willingness to offer key financial assistance, such as providing money to secure loans for property owners and eliminate operational delays.”

Indies Capital will eventually help Swiss-Belhotel International Indonesia to acquire local hotel companies and consolidate them under its portfolio, according to Guillard.

“With our resources, we can provide upgraded standards and enhanced services that smaller hotels may struggle to afford, ultimately supporting their growth,” he said, adding that the taking over of existing hotels and acquiring hotel companies would speed up Swiss-Belhotel International’s plan in the country.

Discussing the future strategy, Guillard said Swiss-Belhotel International would focus on secondary and tertiary cities in Indonesia.

“The major cities are a bit saturated. With a large population spread across numerous islands, there are second- and third-(tier) cities which house 200,000 to 300,000 inhabitants, creating a demand for quality facilities. We do not have presence in every one of them, so the opportunity is there.”

Earlier this year, the hotel company took over the management of two midscale hotels in Eastern Indonesia, namely Swiss-Belcourt in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, and Swiss-Belinn in Timika, Central Papua. Additionally, it will expand its hotel collection in the Eastern region, including the upcoming Māua resort in Labuan Bajo, East Nusa Tenggara.

Development projects are also underway with the signing of the Swiss-Belexpress project in the Cipali toll area and the Swiss-Belinn project in Indramayu, West Java. A Swiss-Belhotel will also open in the Yogyakarta International Airport area in 3Q2023.

There are also several project developments planned in 2024, including in Lampung, Jember (East Java), and Pontianak (West Kalimantan).

Traveloka’s International Travel Fair to boost Thailand’s ongoing global tourism revival

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The Traveloka International Travel Fair 2023 will be held from May 29 to June 2, and will showcase a wide range of travel products at a discount, including transportation, accommodation and lifestyle deals from over 4,500 international business partners.

The International Travel Fair in Thailand last year saw a near six-fold increase in international flights transactions, with top Traveloka destinations across Asia such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea and Japan.

From left: Traveloka’s Iko Putera and Traveloka’s brand ambassador (Thailand and Vietnam) Baifern Pimchanok

The Thai Travel Services Association (TTSA) said that outbound tourism is recovering, and as many as one million Thais could visit Japan this year – TTSA also predicted that the total number of outbound tourists could reach between six to seven million, or about 70 per cent of pre-pandemic figures.

In addition, Traveloka will enhance its travel products with features including Student Tickets flights, Pay Upon Check-In, and Xperience, which provides customers access to both easy refunds and rescheduling on beauty and spa products, and more.

Iko Putera, CEO of transport, Traveloka, said: “The International Travel Fair is part of the company’s commitment in growing global tourism, while providing convenience to our customers in planning and realising their travel aspirations, especially for international travel.”

Asian Trails introduces new app for travellers to plan own experiences

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Asian Trails has joined forces with Vox City to launch Digital Trails, a new line of products that allow users to design their own travel experiences using a smartphone or tablet.

Asian Trails’ Digital Trails provides access to a mix of curated and insightful walking tours, including both guided and self-guided experiences. Users can choose to join guided walks led by local experts who offer unique insights into the destination, or opt to explore the city on their own and at their own pace using the GPS route maps, written explanations and audio guides available on the app.

Asian Trails’ Digital Trails lets users choose to join guided walks or to explore the city on their own using maps and guides provided on the app

This gives explorers the freedom and flexibility to plan their own days and travel independently, all while gaining local knowledge via the app.

Digital Trails is currently available in Bangkok, Thailand and Hanoi, Vietnam – plans to expand to other destinations in Asia are in the works.

In Bangkok, Digital Trails’ users currently have access to three guided walking routes and five self-guided walking routes, with written and audio content available in English, Spanish, Italian, Japanese and Chinese.

In Hanoi, Digital Trails’ users currently have access to three guided walks and two self-guided walking routes, with written and audio content available in English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean and French.

Indonesia’s tiket.com launches multi-currency feature to boost international transactions

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Indonesia’s first Online Travel Agent, tiket.com, has launched the new Tiket Multi-Currency feature in collaboration with Stripe (Asia-Pacific).

Tiket Multi-Currency enables customers to transact in 16 different currencies for purchases on all tiket.com products such as accommodation, flights, and attractions, as well as allows customers to cut any extra fees due to foreign exchange rates, which includes credit card administration fees when converting currencies.

Tiket Multi-Currency enables customers to transact in 16 different currencies for purchases on tiket.com products

International customers can configure their home currency through their tiket.com profile settings, which will be instantly displayed in all products, making payments and refunds.

The currencies include Indonesian rupiah, Australian dollar, Canadian dollar, Swiss franc, Chinese yuan, euro, Sterling pound, Hong Kong dollar, Japanese yen, Malaysian ringgit, New Zealand dollar, Philippine peso, Singapore dollar, Thai baht, US dollar, and Vietnamese dong.

Gaery Undarsa, co-founder and chief marketing officer, tiket.com, said: “The launch of this feature comes at the right moment when the trend of tourism, both inbound and outbound, has been increasingly peaking in 1Q2023.

“With the presence of Tiket Multi-Currency, we hope to pave the way to introduce tiket.com to international tourists, so that they can enjoy the convenience of planning their travel with a one-stop solution from tiket.com.”

New experiential and sustainable family travel with Siam Adventure Club

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The new Siam Adventure Club curates crafted itineraries to keep kids engaged and ensuring stress-free holidays for parents.

It is currently available at four resorts – Radisson Phuket Resort & Suites, Radisson Hua Hin Resort & Spa, Holiday Inn Phuket Surin Beach, and Holiday Inn Phuket Karon Beach.

Siam Adventure Club offers activities which focus on sustainability and community interaction for kids of all ages

Each Siam Adventure Club comprises an array of activities and amenities suitable for children of all ages. Activities will focus on sustainability and community interaction, as well as live entertainment and new opportunities to embrace technology such as virtual reality and AI.

Soon to launch is the Mini Sharks swimming school, as well as other revamped zones including Kids’ World, Arcade Galaxy, Hangout, Movie World and Champions Sports Bar.

Families can head out into their destination with sustainable experiences such as a day out at the elephant sanctuaries. In addition, dedicated events will also support local community projects through the group’s Destination Kids foundation.

New Siam Adventure Clubs will soon be launched in the popular Thai resorts of Pattaya and Khao Lak, and the first international Siam Adventure Club is being planned in Bali, Indonesia.

For more information, visit Siam Adventure Club.

Centara unveils new offers for its Maldives resorts

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Centara Hotels & Resorts’ new Paradise Found: Maldives Exclusive offer allows travellers to save up to 30 per cent when booking stays at Centara Grand Island Resort & Spa Maldives and Centara Ras Fushi Resort & Spa Maldives, while enjoying an array of exclusive privileges.

At Centara Grand Island Resort & Spa Maldives, guests will receive breakfast set-ups, a 15 per cent discount on seaplane transfers, spa treatments and dining, as well as a sunset cruise in the Indian Ocean, and access to snorkelling, diving, the lively Kids’ Club and much more.

Save on overwater villa stays at Centara Grand Island Resort & Spa Maldives, pictured

Couples and honeymooners can opt for an adults-only experience at Centara Ras Fushi Resort & Spa Maldives and enjoy complimentary hotel speedboat transfers, 15 per cent off dining and spa treatments, and a sunset fishing trip.

Booking is now open till July 31 for stays through December 20. CentaraThe1 members are eligible for an additional 15% discount.

For more information, visit Centara Hotels & Resorts.

Hong Kong attractions welcome visitors with fresh experiences

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Attractions in Hong Kong have embarked on new experiences to rebuild and court inbound travellers this year.

At Hong Kong Disneyland Resort (HKDL), the World of Frozen will be launched in 2H2023, alongside a host of other activities and projects. These include the iconic Castle of Magical Dreams, the outdoor music party Follow Your Dreams, the magical show Momentous, and newly-launched themed activities like Duffy and Friends Play Days and Marvel Season of Super Heroes.

Ocean Park has introduced new multimedia shows, pet-friendly programmes and a technology experience hub

HKDL’s director of sales for Hong Kong and international, Eva Lau, commented: “Overseas and mainland guests can enjoy unique Disney entertainment and services that they have not experienced in the past few years due to the pandemic.

“We are stepping up efforts to promote our offerings to international markets. For instance, our management team has recently been visiting the South-east Asia region, including Thailand and the Philippines, to promote our resort. We will continue to work with the tourism board, industry and corporate partners to promote world-class entertainment in Hong Kong.”

Numerous operational adjustments have also been made at Ocean Park to accommodate the rising attendance. Examples include two multimedia shows – Soul of the Ocean and Visions of Hong Kong – that seamlessly merges its entertainment expertise with conservation and education roots.

Pet-friendly programmes and the opening of a technology experience hub for kids, Explorer R, at Ocean Park will also bring fresh experiences to visitors from diverse backgrounds.

Rosalind Siu, executive director, sales, marketing and entertainment, Ocean Park, said: “As the tourism market gradually returns to normal, we plan to reintroduce the highly popular festive event Summer Splash in July, and stage the park’s signature Halloween Fest and Christmas celebrations in the last quarter. We will also relaunch Chill All Night in the four Saturdays of June as part of the Happy Hong Kong campaign, offering the public free access to two stunning multimedia lagoon shows.”

Siu added that Ocean Park has rolled out digital campaigns in target markets and offering promotional packages to tourists on top of organising fam tours for travel industry leaders from mainland China, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, and more.

Elsewhere in Hong Kong, the Peak Tram launched a vastly improved passenger experience with a redesigned terminal, upgraded facilities, and a larger capacity to serve international visitors in August last year.

Ongoing promotions include a special offer during its 135th anniversary which allows visitors to purchase a special combo of return Peak Tram tickets and Sky Terrace 428 admission tickets. There are also social media initiatives that reward visitors with a free limited edition Peak Tram souvenir. Visitors also enjoy a complimentary coupon booklet with special offers and discounts from over 20 merchants and partners at The Peak.

A spokesperson from The Peak said that these promotions have proven successful so far in achieving a large number of visitor engagement which has resulted in online ticket sales.