TTG Asia
Asia/Singapore Saturday, 24th January 2026
Page 701

Australia’s World Expeditions expands into North America

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Australian company World Expeditions has acquired a majority holding in US-based tour operator, Adventure Travel West, to support its expanding client base in the US.

Based in Denver, Colorado, Adventure Travel West operates multi-day, small group active holidays in the Western US National Parks and Hawaii, including hiking, active sightseeing, adventure, wildlife, and off-road adventures. Adventure Travel West is also committed to sustainable travel and incorporates Leave No Trace principles across all its itineraries.

World Expeditions has acquired Adventure Travel West for tours in North America

Paving the way for World Expeditions’ expansive reach into North America, World Expeditions CEO, Sue Badyari, said: “We’ve been impressed by the quality and the variety of Adventure Travel West’s offering, the professionalism of its management and the calibre of its guiding team over many years.

“North America’s vast National Parks and little-known wild spaces make the West an inspiring backdrop for active adventures, and Adventure Travel West has an impressive array of authorised permits to operate guided walks in the renowned national parks of Grand Teton, Yellowstone, Yosemite, Sequoia Kings Canyon, Grand Canyon, Grand Staircase Escalante and Vermilion Cliffs to name a few,” she added.

This acquisition fits World Expeditions’ strategy to expand its operations up north, stemming from its long-time presence in Canada where the Ottawa office was established in the late ’90s with the Great Canadian Trails brand, and the recent launch of North America Active featuring a range of cycling and walking holidays.

“The buy-in of Adventure Travel West builds on this presence and will help us realise our goals of further expanding our ranges in several of our product areas. We will also be crafting some charity challenge programs to support our charity partners across the globe, through Huma, our charity brand,” said Badyari.

The World Expeditions Travel Group comprises 17 brands, including New Zealand’s Adventure South, Trail Journeys and Great Walks of New Zealand, as well as the Tasmanian Expeditions, Blue Mountains Adventure Company, Australian Walking Holidays, World Youth Adventures, and Australian Cycle Tours in Australia.

HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens returns in April

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SINGAPORE - APRIL 13: Marcos Moneta of Argentina dives to score a try on day one of the HSBC Rugby Sevens Singapore at the National Stadium on April 13, 2019 in Singapore. (Photo by Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images for Singapore Sports Hub)

Singapore will host the HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens on April 9-10, in a step towards the return of large-scale live events in the country.

The tournament, to be held at the National Stadium at the Singapore Sports Hub, will welcome top rugby sevens players from 16 countries such as Fiji and New Zealand.

HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens returns in April (Photo credit: HSBC Singapore Rugby Sevens)

Jetstar Asia resumes services to Perth

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After more than four years, Jetstar Asia has resumed its Singapore to Perth services, with the first flight taking off for Perth on March 11.

Moving forward, Jetstar Asia will operate four-weekly services to the Western Australian capital.

Jetstar Asia has resumed its Singapore to Perth services

This is the airline’s third Australian destination following the relaunch of flights from Singapore to Darwin and Melbourne.

Singaporeans were one of the largest group of visitors to Perth pre-pandemic, and now with quarantine-free travel, Jetstar Asia’s CEO Bara Pasupathi, expects the route to be well received.

Pasupathi said: “While we have operated a handful of services over the past two years to support business needs in Perth, Jetstar Asia is very excited to officially add Perth back into our schedule.”

Jetstar Asia currently operates services to 11 destinations in South-east Asia and Australia.

Beijing 2022 game sites to be converted into attractions

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Various venues used for the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games will be transformed into sports, entertainment and tourist facilities, with most of them working towards opening before China’s May Day holiday season.

According to Yan Jiarong (phonetic), spokesperson of Beijing Organising Committee for the 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, facility conversions are now underway.

Beijing’s Shougang Park will be retained as the Beijing Winter Olympic Park

Yan said competition arenas in Yanqing and Zhangjiakou would be developed into entertainment centres and resorts for all season visitation. These would come with ski trails designed for intermediate and advanced ski enthusiasts, as well as beginners.

Beijing’s Shougang Park, which houses the towering jump used for the Games’ big air skiing events, will be converted into the Beijing Winter Olympic Park, gifting the Chinese capital city with a second Olympic park. The other Olympic park is the Olympic Green in Chaoyang District, a legacy venue from the 2008 Olympics and Paralympics.

Two of the six Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games venues – the National Indoor Stadium (used for paralympic ice hockey) and the National Aquatic Centre (used forwheelchair curling) – are legacy venues from the 2008 Games.

Centara drives expansion across Asia, Middle East

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Thailand’s Centara Hotels & Resorts is moving towards its goal of 200 hotels and resorts by 2026, with eight new properties set to launch this year and more in the pipeline.

The eight new hotels and resorts, comprising 1,066 keys, will emerge in Thailand’s Bangkok, Korat and Ubon; and international destinations such as Laos, Oman and Qatar.

Centara Grand Hotel Osaka will open in mid-2023

A core component of the company’s growth strategy will be through collaboration with a strong development partner, specifically to launch new projects within Thailand, under both existing and new brands. The luxury Centara Reserve concept, which debuted in December 2021 with Centara Reserve Samui, will be enhanced with a second property in Krabi. The company is also considering projects in up-and-coming local destinations such as Koh Lanta and Cha Am.

Come 2023, an Osaka hotel as well as COSI Phu Yen Hotel in Vietnam are set to launch. In 2024 and 2025, the company will welcome two new upscale resorts in the Maldives.

Furthermore, Centara is exploring a new opportunity in the medical wellness segment with an established operator from Europe. Koh Tao and Samui are potential locations under discussion.

The company said its international growth focus would be centred on South-east Asia, the Indian Ocean, Japan, China, and the Middle East.

At an operational level, Centara will continue to invest in technology. It recently revamped its website, booking, property management and reservation platforms, and is now concluding the rollout of its CRM solution.

Talent development and sustainability will take centrestage too. The company has committed to staff training and a target of reducing energy and water usage by 20 per cent within the next decade as well as certifying its entire portfolio by respected environmental accreditation bodies by 2025.

Despite pandemic challenges, Centara posted 1.09 billion baht (US$33 million) in revenue for 4Q2021, an increase of 54 per cent year-on-year. The growth is expected to gain momentum this year, with the acceleration of global travel and hospitality recovery, Thailand’s further easing of travel restrictions, and strong performance of Centara’s key international destinations such as the Middle East and the Maldives.

Gold Coast steps up domestic courtship with million-dollar campaign

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Destination Gold Coast has launched a month-long campaign, titled Press Play, to lure Australians travellers and make up for two years of domestic travel disruption.

The NTO is particularly keen on courting high-spending travellers and working adults from around Australia, particularly Melbourne and Sydney.

The Press Play campaign aims to encourage Australians travellers to visit the Gold Coast

Destination Gold Coast CEO Patricia O’Callaghan said Press Play is a tactical-led campaign that builds on “creating urgency around travelling now” and that encourages Australians to “embrace the spontaneity” in booking a Gold Coast getaway.

To drive immediate visitation, Press Play pulls together attractive fares and holiday packages from 4,400 tourism businesses.

“We know that while travel remains high on the agenda for Australians and short lead times continue to be a trend, there is still some hesitancy to book interstate as we re-emerge from Covid-19,” she said in a press statement.

“With aviation connectivity now largely restored and over 100 deals on offer from tours, attractions, dining, and accommodation, we are coming out of the gate strong to position the Gold Coast as a stress-free and memorable holiday destination for families, couples and multi-generational travellers.”

O’Callaghan said the campaign will be bolstered by two aviation partnerships to ensure the Gold Coast is in the minds of interstate travellers. Both airlines will offer competitive airfares that are set to generate up to 20,000 inbound seat sales to the region.

Jetstar’s role in Press Play is funded by the Australian government, as part of the Recovery of Regional Tourism Program, an initiative of the country’s COVID-19 Relief and Recovery Fund.

Museum of Underwater Art sculptures swim up to Queensland

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Ultimately destined as micro reefs in the Great Barrier Reef, five of the Museum of Underwater Art’s (MOUA) sculptures will be put on display at the Museum of Tropical Queensland before being installed in their final underwater home.

Museum of Tropical Queensland presents the Museum of Underwater Art’s Ocean Sentinels above the surface exhibit provides a unique opportunity for visitors to connect with the artworks and learn about the Great Barrier Reef and its future.

See the world-class MOUA sculptures at the Museum of Tropical Queensland

MOUA board director, Paul Victory, said: “The chance to see the world-class sculptures in the flesh and learn about their stories, promoting reef conservation and the link between art and science to a wider audience, is incredible.”

“This unique exhibit allows the public to enjoy and experience the next stage of the Museum of Underwater Art and learn about the important work we’ve been doing with coral planting, reef health surveys, providing education and work opportunities for Indigenous guides, and more,” he added.

The sculptures have been created to highlight the important work of world-leading marine scientists. World-renowned artist Jason deCaires Taylor designed and created the hybrid form sculptures that celebrate the work of eight marine scientists and community members, who have been influential in reef protection studies.

“I hope that in years to come a variety of endemic species such as corals, sponges and hydroids will change the sculptures’ appearance in vibrant and unpredictable ways,” deCaires Taylor said. “Like the Great Barrier Reef itself, they will become a living and evolving part of the ecosystem, emphasising both its fragility and its endurance.”

The second stage of the MOUA project offers a unique tourism experience in Townsville North Queensland, and is expected to generate more than A$22 million (US$15.9 million) each year for Townsville’s visitor economy, said member for Mundingburra Les Walker.

“The Palaszczuk government has invested A$4 million in the Museum of Underwater Art because we know how important it is to invest in projects to bring visitors to Townsville. We know the Museum of Underwater Art has great potential to attract divers and snorkelers from across Australia and the world,” said Walker.

“The timing of this new investment in tourism is welcome after the economic impact of Covid-19. This is a fantastic addition to the region’s tourism attractions as we show North Queensland to the world ahead of the 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games,” he added.

It is envisaged that the sculptures will be installed by June 2022, with the final location to be decided by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. They will be installed in shallow depths, allowing snorkellers to get up close to the sculptures.

Singapore moves ahead with streamlined Covid measures

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Streamlined Covid-19 safety measures announced last month that were soon postponed due to a surge in daily infections, will finally come into effect today (March 15).

The easing of measures, according to Singapore’s Ministry of Health, includes the removal of safe distancing requirements for mask-on settings and the application of a single safe distance of 1m for all settings.

Mask-wearing remains compulsory even as Singapore eases other Covid-19 safety measures

Smaller events and group settings with 1,000 or fewer people can proceed without being subject to any capacity limit. For events and group settings involving more than 1,000 people, such as cruises, live performances and tourist attractions, only 50 per cent of the venue’s capacity may be utilised.

Travellers entering Singapore on Vaccinated Travel Lanes or from Category 1 areas China, Taiwan and Macau can also now choose to submit an unsupervised self-swab antigen rapid test (ART) result within 24 hours of entry, instead of undergoing a supervised self-swab rapid test at a test centre in the city-state. The advanced submission must be made through the Sync website before proceeding with their activities in Singapore.

MOH said the easing of the Covid-19 testing regime for arriving travellers is view of the low imported infection numbers – around one per cent of total daily infections – as many countries have already passed the peak of their Omicron infection waves.

“These are important steps to take to prepare ourselves for a new Vaccinated Travel concept in the coming weeks, where fully vaccinated travellers generally need not apply for approval to enter Singapore, and will undergo simplified test requirements,” MOH said in a statement.

Selong Selo Resort & Residences welcomes new GM

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Andrew J Leith has joined Selong Selo Resort & Residences in Lombok, Indonesia as general manager.

Leith brings more than two decades of international hospitality experience with him. His hospitality background includes private resorts in the Caribbean, branded luxury resorts in the Maldives, luxury villa retreats in Bali and Heron Island Resort in Australia. He has also held senior management positions at Angsana Ihuru in the Maldives, and Point Grace on Turks and Caicos.

A New Zealand native, Leith has been living and working in numerous leadership roles in Bali for the past 10 years.

Prior to this appointment, he was general manager at The Layar Designer Villas and Spa, and a partner with S.E.I.N.A. Management, a hospitality management and consultancy company on the island that supports villas, hotels and restaurants.

TTG Conversations: Five Questions with George Cao, Dragon Trail International

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Although Chinese outbound travel sentiments have fluctuated with waves of Covid-19 variant infections around the world, the intention to travel has been increasingly positive, observed George Cao, co-founder and CEO of Dragon Trail International.

In this episode of TTG Conversations: Five Questions, Cao shares findings from his company’s regular Chinese travel sentiment studies and discusses what that means for Chinese outbound business travel and events, how Chinese incentive events could be conducted, and how destinations should prepare for the return of the Chinese travel market.