PATA casts bullish projection for 2022 APAC arrivals
Tourism Australia beckons travellers with big holiday plans
Tourism Australia is encouraging travellers to book their next big holiday Down Under in a massive campaign being rolled out in Germany, France, Italy, Canada, the US and the UK.
The A$40 million (US$28.6 million) Don’t Go Small. Go Australia campaign supports Australia’s reopening without on-arrival quarantine to fully vaccinated international travellers from February 21 this year.
Minister for trade, tourism and investment Dan Tehan said Tourism Australia was prepared to ramp up its international marketing efforts once the border reopening was announced.
“The world has been waiting two years to get Down Under for a holiday and our latest ad campaign will remind them of what they’ve been missing,” Tehan said in a statement.
“After Covid-19, the world is looking forward to taking a holiday and we want that holiday to be in Australia,” he added.
The new campaign marks the beginning of a long-term strategy to restart tourism to Australia, with more investment in tourism marketing to come in 2H2022, according to Tehan.
The campaign will run across TV, print, digital and social channels in key markets and feature some of Australia’s most iconic destinations and experiences.
Tourism Australia managing director Phillipa Harrison said: “Don’t Go Small. Go Australia is about reminding travellers whether they are dreaming of discovery or looking for relaxation – Australia is the perfect destination for an epic adventure.”
In addition to iconic attractions and landmarks, Australia has welcomed many new products during the travel freeze.
“The new campaign shows travellers what they’ve been missing in Australia – the vast landscapes, our world-famous icons and the epic adventures. We are inviting travellers across the world to think big, and say G’Day to the holiday they’ve been waiting for,” said Tourism Australia chief marketing officer Susan Coghill.
“We have chosen locations and activities to reflect the wide diversity of tourism experiences Australia has to offer. We also considered the popular destinations and cities which have been impacted the most by the pandemic and put them in the spotlight,” she added.
To convert interest into bookings, Tourism Australia has also published inspiring and up-to-date travel information on Australia.com, which will be supported with offers from global partners.
The existing Come and Say G’Day – Australia is Yours to Explore, which launched in Singapore ahead of its reopening last November, will continue to be rolled out across Asia as travel resumes.
World’s largest ibis Styles to open in Thailand
Accor has inked a management agreement with Golden Asset Company to open ibis Styles Bangkok Twin Towers, a 666-key hotel that will be the world’s largest property under the brand.
The initial phase of the hotel is set to debut in 3Q2022, with an official opening in 2024.
Located in the city centre within a short distance to business districts and shopping landmarks such as MBK, Siam Paragon and Siam Discovery, the hotel will feature three restaurants, meeting rooms, an outdoor swimming pool, fitness centre, and spa.
Garth Simmons, CEO, Accor Southeast Asia, Japan and South Korea, said: “Bangkok has long been a strategic hub in South-east Asia and a much-loved destination for all types of travellers from around the globe. The signing of ibis Styles Bangkok Twin Towers, the largest ibis Styles property in the world, reaffirms our positive outlook towards inbound travel and the long-term success of Thailand’s tourism industry.
“We are very excited to add this new trendy hotel experience to the Bangkok hotel scene and expand the presence of our renowned ibis Styles brand.”
ibis Styles has a portfolio of more than 550 properties across 50 countries. In Thailand, there are eight ibis Styles hotels in operation, with the ibis Styles Bangkok Twin Towers joining as the ninth.
Accor’s new campaign offers savings on stays in Thailand
In support of Thailand’s reopening, which now welcomes fully vaccinated travellers from all over the world without a long quarantine, Accor has launched the For the Love of Amazing Thailand campaign.
More than 70 hotels and resorts across Thailand are dangling savings of up to 30 per cent on room rates. Brands featured include Sofitel, Mövenpick, Swissôtel and ibis Styles.
For stays of seven nights or more, travellers will enjoy a 30 per cent discount. For shorter stays, a 20 per cent discount applies.
The offer is available for booking from now until June 30, 2022, for stays until June 30.
Members of Accor Plus will receive an additional 10 per cent discount.
Click here for more information.
End of the line for Crystal Cruises
Crystal Cruises has officially announced its closure after laying off all 238 employees at its Miami headquarters.
This follows the seizure of Crystal Symphony and Crystal Serenity in the Bahamas over US$4.6 million in unpaid fuel bills.
A Florida court has appointed Michael Moecker & Associates to handle creditors’ claims, which includes those made by passengers, travel agents, suppliers and employees.
The closure of Crystal Cruises’ US office comes after its parent company, Genting Hong Kong, filed for liquidation.
In an interview with Seatrade Cruise News, former Crystal president Jack Anderson said it was uncertain if the company could be reformed.
He shared that following Genting Hong Kong’s move to liquidate, the Crystal management team received interest from “many” parties for specific assets and from “some” for the company as a whole. All those parties were referred to the joint provisional liquidators.
Ovolo Hotel Group rolls out Plant’d initiative
Ovolo Hotels has adopted a plant-based philosophy by making a commitment to vegetarian-lead offering, Plant’d, across its hotel restaurants globally.
Billed as the first hotel brand globally to do so, this move towards ethical eating and conscious cuisine follows the success of its Year of the Veg campaign which launched in October 2020, where venues transitioned to a vegetarian and plant-based cuisine offering for an initial 365 days.
“Meat is being removed for a second year in a row at Ovolo Hotels. With a number of our Ovolo venues already serving plant-based cuisine, we have decided to go the full 100 per cent… we want to ensure we are doing our bit to help preserve our environment, promote healthy eating and enhance the image of amazing vegetarian and plant-based dining,” said Ovolo Group’s founder and CEO, Girish Jhunjhnuwala.
Ovolo’s Group creative culinary partner, Ian Curley has worked with the hotel’s restaurants across the group including Hong Kong, Australia and Bali to take the Plant’d veg pledge.
On transitioning to a vegetarian-lead offering, Curley, stated: “A key focus for us has been ensuring we are creating something that still appeals to everyone – from vegans to flexitarians, and those who are simply keen on expanding their palette.”
The Ovolo team has also developed a Plant’d Playbook whitepaper which includes information on the reasons Ovolo has made the switch with their F&B offering; what to know before you go veg; tips on defining F&B menus; and learnings along the way. The whitepaper is publicly available via Ovolo’s Plant’d webpage on ovolohotels.com.
SIA, Scoot to use sustainable aviation fuel from 3Q2022
As part of Singapore’s decarbonisation efforts, all Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Scoot flights out of Changi Airport will be powered by blended sustainable aviation fuel in a one-year trial starting in 3Q2022.
Supplied by ExxonMobil, the product will comprise nearly 1.3 million litres of neat SAF (sustainable fuels that are unmixed or undiluted), which will be supplied by Neste and produced from used cooking oil and waste animal fats, and blended with refined jet fuel at ExxonMobil’s facilities in Singapore. This blended fuel will be delivered to Changi Airport via the airport’s existing fuel hydrant system by end-July 2022.
ExxonMobil was selected as the vendor for the trial after a request for proposals was put out in November last year. It is a follow-up to a study conducted by the Singapore government and industry players earlier that year on the operational and commercial viability of using SAF at Changi Airport.
The use of the SAF over the one-year pilot is expected to reduce about 2,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.
Han Kok Juan, director-general of CAAS, said: “Sustainability will be a key CAAS priority in the coming years as we revive air travel and rebuild the Singapore air hub. The CAAS-SIA-Temasek SAF pilot is an important building block in our effort to develop a sustainable air hub. It will operationally validate SAF integration options in Singapore and provide insights on end-to-end cost components, potential pricing structures for cost recovery and support future policy considerations for SAF deployment.”
Lee Wen Fen, senior vice president, corporate planning, Singapore Airlines, pointed out that SAFs are “a critical pathway for the success of the SIA Group’s commitment to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050”.
Changi Airport Group executive vice-president of airport management Tan Lye Teck added that the airport is committed to becoming a sustainable air hub, and will work with all stakeholders to drive the adoption of SAFs.
Taiwan plans shorter quarantine for travellers by March
Taiwan aims to ease her blanket on-arrival quarantine requirement for people entering the island from March, in recognition of the need to resume normal life and reopen to the world, the government said yesterday.
While Taiwan has never implemented a full border closure during the pandemic, arrivals have generally been limited to citizens and foreign residence permit holders and with a compulsory two-week quarantine on arrival.
The government now intends to cut on-arrival quarantine to 10 days before the middle of March. Health minister Chen Shih-chung told reporters that infections could be detected within that period with testing.
In an interview with Taipei Times, Chen said the new measures would also permit the entry of foreign business travellers and that the Central Epidemic Command Center might establish business travel bubbles to facilitate shorter quarantine periods for such travellers.
However, a complete removal of on-arrival quarantine before the summer holidays was unlikely, according to Chen.
Standing alongside reopening plans is an acknowledgment that Taiwan will need to reopen safely. Conditions for Taiwan’s reopening include sufficient medical supplies and preparations, as well as a continued expansion of Taiwan’s vaccinated population. Some 30 per cent of Taiwan’s 23.5 million residents have obtained a booster shot. The government wants the figure to hit 50 per cent before easing entry requirements.
News media reported that premier Su Tseng-chang expressed confidence in the government’s ability to cope with rising local infections that might come with the reopening.
“The government must also take into account livelihoods and economic development, gradually return to normal life, and step out to the world,” stated the office of premier Su Tseng-chang.
TTG Conversations: Five Questions with Jenny Ang, EHL Campus (Singapore)
A continued rise in demand for wellness and holistic travel experiences, blend of work and leisure during travels, contactless interaction and many other trends will shape the hospitality industry in 2022 and impact the hospitality profession, opines Jenny Ang, managing director of
EHL Campus (Singapore).
In this episode of TTG Conversations: Five Questions, Ang also shares her observations on the types of human expertise the travel and hospitality industry will increasingly need to respond better to new travel trends and traveller expectations, and how EHL is evolving its professional and executive curriculum to deliver on talent needs.
Asia-Pacific will need over 17,600 new aircraft by 2040: Airbus
Airbus International has projected a need for 17,620 new aircraft across Asia-Pacific as passenger traffic continues its growth of 5.3 per cent per annum over the next 20 years and retirement of older, less fuel efficient aircraft sets in.
In a press statement, Airbus said 30 per cent of these new aircraft will replace older, less fuel efficient models. Of the total expected demand, 13,660 will be in the Small category, such as the A220 and A320 family, while 2,470 will be Medium and 1,490 Large.
“We are seeing a global recovery in air traffic and as travel restrictions are further eased, the Asia-Pacific region will become one of its main drivers again. We are confident of a strong rebound in the region’s traffic and expect it to reach 2019 levels between 2023 and 2025,” said Christian Scherer, chief commercial officer and head of Airbus International.
Airbus said the region’s middle class, who are the likeliest to travel, will increase by 1.1 billion to 3.2 billion by 2040, and the propensity for people to travel is set to almost triple by 2040.
Scherer said the Airbus portfolio is well-positioned to enable sustainable aviation. “Our modern portfolio offers a 20 to 25 per cent fuel burn and therewith CO2 (carbon dioxide) advantage over older generation aircraft. We pride ourselves that all our aircraft products are already certified to fly with a blend of 50 per cent SAF (sustainable aviation fuel), set to rise to 100 per cent by 2030.
“In addition, our newly launched A350F offers efficiency gains of 10 to 40 per cent compared to any other large freighter, existing or expected, both in terms of fuel consumption as in CO2 emissions.”
In view of further ongoing innovations, product developments, operational improvements as well as market based options, Airbus aims to achieve the air transport sector’s target to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The PATA Asia Pacific Visitor Forecasts 2022-2024 Full Report released on February 15 is predicting international visitor arrivals (IVAs) growth rates of 126 per cent to 84 per cent for mild, medium, and severe scenarios in 2022 versus 2021.
The increase in the absolute number of IVAs is predicted therefore to range from 72.5 million to 175.7 million under the severe and mild scenarios respectively, lifting the total volume of visitor arrivals to between 159 million and 315 million, under those same scenarios respectively.
While it is a positive and welcome development after two years of extremely difficult conditions, the international travel and tourism sector of the Asia-Pacific region still has much to repair and revitalise.
The forecasted increases in 2022 arrivals, for example, still only return them to 23-45 per cent of the level of foreign arrivals received in pre-pandemic 2019.
Moving forward to 2024, IVA growth over the next three years is projected to be positive, with the volume of IVAs in 2024 being equal to, or better than that of 2019, under two of the three scenarios.
PATA CEO Liz Ortiguera said: “Our latest forecast report numbers, based on data as of November 2021 reviewed in conjunction with our recent research advisory panel updates provided on January 24, 2021, provide the definitive outlook for Asia-Pacific visitor arrival forecasts. As noted by our panel, the effect of the Omicron variant is projected to have a small incremental impact for now, with the key earlier assumptions still driving the forecast.
“Equitable access and deployment of vaccines plus a practical risk-based approach to health and safety protocols in travel is foundational to not only the travel sector’s sustained recovery but to the overall global recovery from the pandemic.
“We share the World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) view that the pharmaceutical sector must address barriers to access and affordability for all destinations. Furthermore, as acknowledged by the WHO, travel bans will not prevent international spread. Instead, travel channels should remain open with clear, practical guidelines as recently shared by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and WHO.”
Ortiguera also noted: “Various research studies and early travel patterns indicate a heightened consumer interest in a pivot to the right side of travel – longer journeys, more authentic experiences, and nature-based, wellness-oriented, and socially-conscious travel offerings are among the key trends for today’s travellers.
“Destinations can expedite their recovery by staying top-of-mind with consumers, communicating requirements with clarity and consistency, and offering a sustainable, healthy destination experience.”