ibis Styles Bangkok Silom, Thailand
Spotting designs inspired by colourful Thai festivals, the new ibis Styles Bangkok Silom charms with a photogenic lobby, Instragrammable spots throughout, and groovy tunes.
The 264-key hotel collaborated with talented Thai artist, Tikkywow, to create an eye-catching mural at the entrance, with vivid pops of colour bursting onto Silom Road.
Promising travellers and locals an exciting spot to eat, drink, and socialise, the hotel is packed with all-day dining restaurant Prung Rod; open-concept bar POPUP – a co-working space by day and cocktail venue by night; and bohemian-style poolside rooftop bar BOHO. There is also a well-equipped gym, and the 300-pax Lumpini Ballroom.
The hotel boasts a great location in the heart of Silom, with easy access to Sala Daeng BTS Skytrain and Silom MRT subway stations.
Artotel TS Suites – Surabaya, Indonesia
Artotel Group, in partnership with Townsquare Group, has opened Artotel TS Suites – Surabaya. Located within Surabaya Town Square (Sutos), a culinary and entertainment centre, the hotel offers 126 rooms, nine Meetspace function rooms, Artspace art gallery, Deck gastropub, and Rooma all-day dining restaurant.
Artotel Batam
Artotel Batam, Indonesia
Located in the Penuin Centre shopping area, Artotel Batam features 138 keys across two room categories. The hotel has two F&B outlets, Eatspace and Barspace. Social and business functions can be held at one of three Meetspace meeting rooms. There is also a dedicated art gallery, Artspace.
Palace Beach Resort Fujairah, the UAE
The palatial beachfront Palace Beach Resort Fujairah welcomes guests into an Arabesque environment set amid the natural beauty of the Indian Ocean and surrounding mountains.
There are 167 rooms and suites on offer, along with a spa, gym and luxurious dining destinations. Young travellers can find entertainment at Qix Club.
Fazlani Natures Nest, tucked away in a tranquil hamlet called Takwe near the popular hill station towns of Lonavala and Khandala in Maharashtra, India, is well known for its integrated healing treatments built on recognised alternative healthcare principles like naturopathy and ayurveda.
But look deeper and one will discover that the resort is also home to a school that provides free education to 150 homeless children, many of whom have gone on to excel in various areas of studies.
There are opportunities for students and resort guests to interact in meaningful ways
The Fazlani International School is registered with India’s Central Board of Secondary Education, and was started in 2006 by Abdul Kader Fazlani, a respected philanthropist and chairman of Fazlani Group.
School operations are managed by a trust. While there is no boundary to separate the school and resort areas, both co-exist with little interference.
Speaking to TTG Asia, Fazlani said the school aims to prepare students for admission into reputed institutes for higher studies. Students residing in the dormitory abide by a school curriculum and enjoy activities in areas demarcated for them.
However, there are opportunities for students and resort guests to interact in meaningful ways.
For example, resort guests can register to visit the Hobby Studios where they can participate in craft activities with the children. They can also join in sports activities with the children during game hours.
An even more valuable form of interaction involves resort customers who volunteer their knowledge as guest lecturers, subject to the school’s approval.
Fazlani remarked: “The school has become an important part of the retreat’s day-to-day activities, giving our guests who come for healing experiences an opportunity to engage with the children in different ways.”
Fazlani: committed to preparing homeless children for higher studies
Reflecting on the success of the school’s mission, Fazlani said many students have been successful in competitive exams set by famed Indian engineering, medical and architecture colleges. Some have also gone abroad for higher studies.
“We have trained a few children and provided them with employment in the resort. A number of our students have also excelled in sports like equestrian and skating on a national level,” he added proudly.
Renowned business jet operator VistaJet is putting a fun spin on the upcoming Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival with five creative private tours that introduce travellers to full moon rituals in various parts of the world.
Designed in partnership with some of the world’s leading hotels and tour operators, the itineraries cover China, Malaysia, Japan, Greece, Peru and Bolivia.
High-end travellers can access intriguing destinations more easily with private jet
In Japan, for example, the full moon getaway will be a 10-day voyage featuring kaiseki meals (traditional multi-course dinner) at every step, sake tasting with geishas in Kyoto, interaction with a renowned Japanese calligraphy artist, a private full moon appreciation ceremony in a temple with never-before-seen dance and taiko performance, and more.
For VistaJet’s Inca adventure, travellers will explore the lost city of the Incas over three weeks, calling at key destinations such as La Paz, Tiwanaku, Lake Titicaca, Sacred Valley and Lima. Flying over the Sacred Valley of the Incas in a hot air balloon, diving into Lake Titicaca, accessing secretive historical places, and sharing an extraordinary display of Chinese lanterns in Machu Pichu under the full moon are all part of the experience.
These tours are the latest additions to VistaJet’s Private World collection, which are primarily aimed at high-end leisure travellers as well as corporate incentive travel groups.
According to Amy Yang, director of marketing communications & partnerships in Asia for VistaJet, the company has been working with a broad range of hotels, high-end tour operators and luxury lifestyle specialists, such as yacht and luxury car manufacturers, private estates and wineries, to create unique travel experiences for its clients.
While most of VistaJet customers are travellers on corporate assignments, some continue to utilise the business jet operator for leisure purposes.
Yang said: “Travel today is all about providing unique and extraordinary experiences. For some of the more intriguing destinations, the only way to get there efficiently is by business jet. Our role is to help people to visit these places time-efficiently and in comfort, and create once-in-a-lifetime adventures for our clients across the globe.”
Besides Private World, VistaJet’s core business in private air charters has seen strong pick up. The company employs a subscription model where clients pay for a bespoke set of flight hours to be utilised anytime and for any destination. Subscription volumes are up 43 per cent year-on-year in 1H2022, and Ang expects numbers to continue climbing for the second half of the year.
She told TTG Asia: “Prior to the pandemic, McKinsey had a report that said only 10 per cent of people who could afford to fly on business jets, were doing so. That meant 90 per cent of the potential market was missing. Then, Covid happened and those who were part of the 90 per cent started to re-evaluate how they travelled.
“Covid changed peoples’ mindset. Rather than just think about the extra money involved in flying privately, they thought about the advantages of (doing so). It was safety and security that drove people to business aviation.”
She explained that customers were sold by the ability to “only fly with people (they) have vetted”, go through fewer touchpoints compared to flying commercially, and avoid crowds typically seen in a busy commercial airport.
“The other issue with commercial aviation is the airlines have reduced their route network, so many of routes…no longer exist commercially or there is only one flight a day. Also, not every commercial aircraft has a first-class cabin,” she added.
Non-fully vaccinated long-term pass holders and short-term visitors aged 13 and above travelling to Singapore will no longer need to apply for entry permit from August 29.
The Ministry of Health said today that these travellers will also not be required to undergo a seven-day quarantine on arrival or take a PCR test at the end of their isolation due to the improving local and global Covid-19 situation.
Non-fully-vaccinated travellers to Singapore will neither require an entry permit nor serve quarantine from August 29
However, a negative pre-departure test within two days of departure for Singapore as well as compulsory Covid-19 travel insurance for short-term visitors will remain as entry conditions.
With the relaxed entry policy, the health ministry reminds all travellers to defer their travel plans to Singapore should they test positive for Covid-19.
“They should only resume their travel when they test negative, and at least 72 hours from the time they first test positive,” it added.
Vaccinated travellers are advised to resume their trip to Singapore only on or after the seventh day if they continue to test positive, while non-fully vaccinated people aged above 12 years old should only do so on the 14th day if they continue to test positive.
All inbound travellers will continue to file their electronic health declaration up to three days before arrival.
Centara Hotels & Resorts has selected Metta Boonyaritipong as opening general manager for Centra by Centara Hotel Bangkok Phra Nakhon, a new hotel set to open this October.
The seasoned hospitality professional first started in southern Thailand as personal assistant to the group general manager for Centara resorts in Suratthani. She steadily rose through the ranks in Centara Koh Chang Tropicana Resort before moving to Chonburi to look after two hotels – Centara Pattaya Hotel and Centara Nova Hotel & Spa – ending as hotel manager for both properties.
Most recently, Metta was general manager at Centara Sonrisa Residences & Suites Sriracha, a post she has held since July 2020.
HotelPORT, a specialist in technology and distribution solutions for the hotel industry, has entered into a new technology agreement with Sabre. This partnership will integrate PropertyVIEW, HotelPORT’s AI-powered content monitoring and audit solution into Sabre’s Content Services for Lodging.
PropertyVIEW combines artificial intelligence and machine learning technology for a holistic view of hotel details across direct and third-party channels. All hotel details are checked and audited across the hotel’s distribution channels to ensure accuracy and brand continuity, including descriptive information, amenities and images.
The HotelPORT and Sabre partnership will give customers access to over one million property options
By integrating into Sabre Content Services for Lodging, HotelPORT will provide visibility to GDS content for hotels in addition to OTAs, metasearch engines, meetings and events, and maps and navigation channel content accuracy status from one single solution – giving customers access to over one million property options.
Fred Bean, CEO of HotelPORT, said: “Our solution has been developed to ensure that hotel content is accurate and up to date by browsing through currently approved assets across distribution channels that matter and reporting on inaccuracies, errors, and omissions.
“By partnering with Sabre, we can now add visibility into the Sabre GDS for our extensive list of partner hotels on a global scale and I look forward to working with the team.”
SiteMinder will acquire hotel guest engagement suite GuestJoy, a cloud-based app that allows hoteliers to automate personalised, direct, contactless guest communications before, during and after their stay.
A partner since 2017, the app is already a part of the SiteMinder ecosystem and will be fully integrated into the SiteMinder hotel commerce platform following the completion of the acquisition this year.
GuestJoy’s automated and personalised guest communications will allow SiteMinder to offer a fully integrated user experience for hoteliers
The acquisition follows the launch of SiteMinder’s all-in-one hotel commerce platform in April, which unifies its channel management, distribution and booking engine products with real-time market insights, automated payments, website-building capabilities and more than 1,500 partner integrations for accommodation providers to grow their businesses online.
GuestJoy will further expand SiteMinder’s robust hotel commerce offering, allowing hoteliers to automate and digitise their guest communication, drive upsell revenues, and strengthen direct guest acquisition.
Sankar Narayan, CEO and managing director, SiteMinder, said: “GuestJoy is highly regarded within the hotel tech industry for its simple user experience, seamless guest communication functionalities and integration capabilities, which are essential for the modern hotelier to deliver a winning and profitable guest experience, while also optimising their booking and ancillary revenues.
“GuestJoy’s capability to automate and personalise guest communications will allow SiteMinder to offer a fully integrated user experience for our hoteliers, as we continue to deliver on our hotel commerce platform vision.”
Hilton has announced six landmark signings in Asia-Pacific across its portfolio of luxury brands in the year to date.
With the signing of Waldorf Astoria Xi’an, Waldorf Astoria Shanghai Qiantan, Waldorf Astoria Kuala Lumpur, Waldorf Astoria Sydney, Conrad Nagoya, and an LXR Hotels & Resorts property in Bali, Hilton’s pipeline of luxury hotels in the region increases to 20.
The all-villa resort, LXR Bali, will open in 2023
Nils-Arne Schroeder, vice president, luxury, Asia Pacific, Hilton, said: “With more destinations in Asia-Pacific becoming increasingly attractive to luxury travellers today, we are seeing a growing demand for our brands which are known globally for providing unforgettable stays, delivered with unrivalled hospitality and intuitive, personalised service.”
When open, Waldorf Astoria Xi’an will be one of the tallest buildings in the ancient Chinese capital of 13 dynasties, while Waldorf Astoria Shanghai Qiantan will be the city’s second Waldorf Astoria hotel.
Waldorf Astoria Kuala Lumpur and Waldorf Astoria Jakarta are set to open in 2024. They mark the brand’s entry into Malaysia and Indonesia.
The Waldorf Astoria brand will be introduced to Japan and Australia with Waldorf Astoria Osaka in 2025 and Waldorf Astoria Sydney in 2026, doubling the brand’s presence in Asia-Pacific over the next five years.
To open in 2023 is Conrad Kuala Lumpur, the brand’s debut in Malaysia, and in 2026, Nagoya will launch its first Conrad hotel, Conrad Nagoya.
The first LXR-branded resort in South-east Asia will open in Bali next year and feature 72 villas in the resort.
The Singapore government will make mask-wearing optional from August 29, taking a further step towards the country’s return to post-lockdown normalcy.
Currently, mask-wearing is not required in outdoor environment.
Mask-wearing will be optional from August 29 in Singapore
With the masking policy update, mask-wearing will not be required at airports and will remain optional on private transport modes such as taxi and private-hire buses.
However, masks will be required on public transportation as well as indoor public transport facilities such as train stations. It will also be required in environments frequented by vulnerable and older people, such as healthcare facilities.
On flights, mask-wearing requirements will depend on the rules or laws in the destination country as well as the carrier, said the Ministry of Health’s director of medical services, Kenneth Mak.
At events such as concerts and events, deputy prime minister Lawrence Wong said mask-wearing would be optional and subject to the decision of event organisers and venue operators. He noted that such events are unlikely to have many vulnerable and older people in attendance.
A new Oracle Hospitality and Skift survey, Guest Expectations for 2025, has identified Comfort, Control and Convenience as the three essential ‘Cs’ of hotel technology.
This research centred on four major themes: guest-facing technology; labour and operations; automation and guest data; ancillaries, upgrades, and non-room revenue.
Travellers prefer contactless check-in and check-out to remain a constant feature at hotels
Conducted across nine global markets in five languages, more than 5,000 consumers responded about what they expect from the next phase of hotel technology and services,
Contactless is the way to go
Surveyed guests agreed that contactless is king – 53.6% of travellers said that they would most like to see contactless check-in and check-out remain a constant feature at hotels, while contactless payments were just as popular with 49.1% of travellers saying they would most like to see them permanently retained as they visit hotels in the future.
Amenities are also important as travellers want the comforts and convenience they enjoy at home, so hotels should offer guests the ability to control their own environments and give them a smooth transition from their everyday lives.
Beyond wanting hotels to meet their entertainment needs (44.6%), guests showed strong interest in personalised amenities and services throughout the hotel with 43.2% opting for voice-activated controls for all amenities in their rooms (such as lights, curtains, door locks, sinks, showers, TVs), and 34.4% wanting to use their own devices for access throughout the hotel.
Automation vs the human touch
Automated services can replace mundane activities that require more time and attention from staff, freeing them up to provide more direct, one-on-one service at any given time.
According to the survey, about 26% of travellers said they “strongly agree” that they would be more likely to stay at a hotel offering self-service technology to minimise contact with other people. 47.1% of consumers said they would be more likely to stay at a hotel that offered self-service, but that they also appreciate a personal greeting from time to time.
While 29.3% of travellers said that they are “very interested” in staying at a hotel that uses automated messaging for most customer service requests, only about nine percent said that they preferred to speak directly with an actual person for all of their service needs.
About half of all travellers (47.6%) are interested in automated messaging services, but they acknowledged that it depends on the service request. In reality, most guest stays will end up in this middle ground, with some simple requests more easily fulfilled via a mobile device or a chatbot, and others requiring a more direct interaction.
Generation gap
The survey showed a huge generational difference when it came to interest in mobile messaging services. Nearly 35% of both Gen Z and millennial travellers said they were “very interested” in staying at a hotel that uses automated messaging for most customer service requests, as compared to 21.3% of Gen X travellers and just 14% of baby boomers.
While these statistics reinforce stereotypes that younger people are more comfortable with technology, they do not clearly state that all boomers want to be treated exclusively with white glove service, and that all Gen Z travellers want to be left alone.
Supporting the example that one size rarely fits all, Gen Z travellers were actually the most likely to say that they were upset when there was no attendant at the front desk while they travelled during the pandemic. Nearly 25% of travellers aged 18 to 25 agreed with this statement, in comparison to 13.9% of baby boomers.
By opening new lines of communication through mobile messaging services, it will offer all guests more opportunities to connect in the ways they feel most comfortable, enabling hotels to build deeper and more meaningful relationships with their customers.
Virtual experiences
Virtual reality and metaverse applications are gaining popularity among hoteliers when it comes to future technology investments. In fact, more than one-third of travellers are keen to explore a hotel virtually before they book.
On the conference and events side of the business, metaverse meetings are all the buzz with 46.4% of consumers that identified as frequent business travellers interested to attend conferences remotely from their home or office through a metaverse experience.
Getting personal
According to the survey, consumers were generally positive about giving away their personal data if it meant that hotels would put that data to use not only in a responsible way, but also in a way that benefits them directly.
While approximately 30% said they were happy with whatever it takes to make their trip better, nearly 45% said they were interested only if they get to consent first, and that the data should be used to present better offers and advertisements or provide more personalised service.
Even when they freely offer their information, travellers continue to be quite cautious about data security. Nearly 20% said that privacy and security of the personal data they provide to hotels and other travel providers “keeps them up at night”.
More than half (55.6%) also said that while they were “somewhat concerned” about data security, they are willing to make trade-offs and trust that companies are using their information responsibly.
Most recently, Metta was general manager at Centara Sonrisa Residences & Suites Sriracha, a post she has held since July 2020.
