Tripadvisor rolls out new app, digital campaign
Tripadvisor has unveiled a refreshed mobile app for iOS and Android users, just in time for the travel rebound happening across the globe.
Available in the App Store and Google Play, the new app allows users to get travel guidance and tips; book all their travel plans in one place, from over 400,000 experiences and 2.3 million accommodations worldwide; and use a trip planning tool to save and organise traveller-recommended places.
The app also contains the latest Covid-19 health and safety information for hotels, restaurants, tours, and attractions. Users can also submit travel and dining reviews and post travel-related questions in the Tripadvisor forums.
The app launch coincides with the rollout of Tripadvisor’s new digital campaign, reminding travellers that “vacations miss you”. The campaign features 15- and 30-second digital videos on the travel giant’s social media channels and website to inspire wanderlust.
“We took this past year to refresh our native app to better surface timely and relevant guidance and tips from travellers who have been there before,” said Lindsay Nelson, chief experience and brand officer, Tripadvisor.
“Providing more personalised inspiration for consumers, whether they’re already at their destination looking for a hidden gem nearby or planning ahead, is exactly how we’re helping everyone become better travellers.”
Lufthansa, Swiss resume Hong Kong flights
Lufthansa and Swiss International Airlines (SWISS) will offer six-weekly flights between Hong Kong and Europe for business and private travel.
While SWISS already connects Hong Kong with three-weekly flights to Zurich (Wednesday, Friday and Sunday), Lufthansa will ramp up operations in July and start flying from Hong Kong to Frankfurt, also three times per week (Monday, Thursday and Saturday).
Customers departing to Zurich and Frankfurt will have access to Lufthansa Group’s vast European network with flight connections to Austria, France, the UK and almost every other European country.
Under current border rules, travellers from Hong Kong are allowed to enter Germany, Austria and Switzerland, but they are required to show either proof of full vaccination or full recovery from Covid-19, or a negative antigen rapid or PCR test result prior to boarding a flight from Hong Kong.
For Lufthansa, flight LH797 will depart Hong Kong at 23.25 to arrive in Frankfurt at 06.05 every Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Return flight LH796 will take off from Frankfurt at 21.55 to land in Hong Kong at 15.45.
Meanwhile, for SWISS, flight LX139 will take off from Hong Hong at 23.45 every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday to arrive in Zurich at 06.10. Return flight LX138 will depart Zurich at 12.25 to arrive in Hong Kong at 06.15.
Trade reacts to India’s relief package for tourism industry
The Indian government has announced a few fiscal relief measures for the tourism sector reeling under the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. This marks the first such initiative that the government has rolled out to aid the tourism sector since the outbreak of the pandemic.
Addressing reporters in New Delhi on Monday (April 28), finance minister Sitharaman said that once the tourist visa issuance for international travel is restarted, the first five hundred thousand tourists will be issued visas free of charge. The benefit that will be available only once per tourist would be applicable till March 31, 2022. Since March last year, the Indian government has suspended issuing tourist visas.
The minister also shared that travel agents and tour guides will be eligible for loans up to Rs. 1 million (US$13,470) and Rs. 100,000 respectively, without any processing charges or collateral requirement.
“These are much-needed steps towards the revival of tourism – a sector that is a significant contributor to the (country’s) GDP, foreign exchange receipts and employment generation – with a cascading force multiplier effect on allied sectors. The 5 lakh (five hundred thousand) gratis visas will serve to catalyse much-needed inbound inflows,” said Madhavan Menon, managing director, Thomas Cook India Group.
“Without these initiatives, it will take the industry much longer to bounce back,” commented Manbeer Choudhary, chairman, Jewels Group of Hotels.
However, a section of the industry feels that the measures announced have failed to address the woes of the industry completely. A few were disappointed that loans are only being offered to around 904 travel and tourism stakeholders registered with the Ministry of Tourism.
Jyoti Mayal, president, Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI), said: “We have been recommending our members to register with the Ministry of Tourism over the years but the process is tedious and requires a lot of documentation. Most of the members engaged in domestic tourism are registered with state tourism departments. The outreach of this relief is minuscule.”
TAAI has urged the government to also consider stakeholders registered under the Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME) to widen the eligibility of loans.
Thailand’s tourism confidence plunges to all-time low ahead of reopening
Thailand’s tourism confidence index in 2Q2021 fell to a 10-year low of 11 points as the ongoing pandemic hampered recovery and dampened business confidence, but the Tourism Council of Thailand (TCT) is optimistic of a rebound when the country reopens to international visitors this week.
According to a TCT statement, only 50 per cent of tourism businesses remain open, while 36 per cent have closed temporarily, and four per cent have shuttered permanently. In addition, tourism businesses which remain open said they only have enough funds to last them another six months.
However, once foreign tourists start returning to Thailand and domestic travel resumes, the index should rebound to 33 points in Q3 this year, predicts TCT president Chamnan Srisawat.
He said if Phuket’s Sandbox scheme which will see the resort island reopen to vaccinated foreign visitors from July 1 prove successful, operators in other destinations across Thailand will be confident to welcome visitors as well.
Pattaya mayor Sontaya Khunpluem said there are plans to reopen Koh Larn island off the coast of Pattaya in the near future. Meanwhile, Pattaya city aims to vaccinate at least 70 per cent of its population ahead of its planned September reopening.
With its phased reopening plan to vaccinated visitors, Thailand’s government is targeting three million foreign tourists this year. However, CCT Group president Wichit Prakobgosol said that target would be “very difficult” to achieve, if Thailand was unable to immunise more than 70 per cent of the country’s population and open 10 pilot provinces including Bangkok within 120 days as planned, and if China were to maintain its outbound travel ban.
He said: “If we can only open nine provinces and China hasn’t opened the country yet, there may be only one million tourists coming to Thailand. However, if the Chinese are able to go aboard, we could see three million tourists.”
Fresh relief booster for Indonesia’s tourism industry sparks mixed trade reactions
The Indonesian government has rolled out a 60 billion rupiah (US$4.2 million) incentive package to the pandemic-hit tourism sector, triple the amount of a similar initiative in 2020.
The incentives range from 20 million rupiah to 200 million rupiah for each recipient from six sub-sectors of the tourism and creative industries. The selection process for the incentive recipients is ongoing.
Last year’s 24 billion rupiah incentive package allocated to the tourism sector was granted to a total of 232 recipients. Sandiaga Uno, minister of tourism and creative economy, expects 800 recipients this year. Besides cash incentives, the government will also provide training courses to help tourism businesses survive during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The fiscal aid has triggered mixed reactions among hoteliers and tour operators in Indonesia. While some welcomed the support, others deemed the stimulus insufficient to tide businesses through the crisis.
Artotel Group COO Eduard Pangkarego, said that the financial aid would provided a much-needed lifeline for hospitality staff. He recalled that the hotel group’s staff used last year’s government incentives to set up small-scale businesses for extra income.
Other stakeholders, though, are less exuberant. Sudarsana, general manager business development and marketing communications at Santika Indonesia Hotels and Resorts, said that the incentives will lend little help to the ailing industry due to their short-term benefits.
He suggested that the budget instead be used to procure more vaccines to speed up the nation’s vaccination programme, which would pave the way for the recovery of the local economy, and the tourism industry.
Sandiaga told TTG Asia that as the ministry is in the midst of developing tourism villages, business entities that are located around tourism villages would receive priority consideration for the incentives during the assessment process.
That prerequisite fails to ensure a level playing field, as it puts travel businesses located in big cities like Jakarta, where tourism villages are rare, at the losing end, claimed Hasiyanna, managing director of Jakarta-based Marintur Indonesia and chairman of ASITA 71 Jakarta chapter.
SIA, Scoot launch carbon offset scheme
A voluntary carbon offset programme launched by the Singapore Airlines (SIA) Group will enable customers across its passenger airlines to offset their carbon emissions via dedicated microsites.
SIA and Scoot customers can now offset carbon emissions on the respective airline microsites at any time before or after a flight. Both airlines will also match the offsets that these customers purchase for the first six months from the launch of the programme.
Corporate customers will be able to participate in the programme from 4Q2021. In addition, SIA customers can also use their KrisFlyer miles and HighFlyer points to offset their carbon emissions from 4Q2021.
The offsets will be provided via the BlueHalo digital solution, which has been developed by Australia-based Tasman Environmental Markets. This allows customers to immediately calculate and offset the emissions associated with their journey.
The SIA Group said that the carbon offset projects selected have “a proven and measurable impact on communities and the environment”. Contributions from the SIA Group’s customers would help to protect forests in Indonesia, support renewable solar energy projects in India, and provide efficient, clean burning cookstoves for rural families in Nepal.
Qatar Airways unveils new business class suite on Boeing 787-9
Qatar Airways has launched its new wide-body aircraft, the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, featuring a new business class suite, on a number of key routes to Europe and Asia.
The aircraft’s inaugural service from Doha to Milan took place on Friday (June 25), followed by routes to Athens, Barcelona, Dammam, Karachi, Kuala Lumpur and Madrid.
The Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner has a total passenger capacity of 311 seats – 30 business class suites and 281 seats in economy class.
Arranged in a herringbone pattern, in a 1-2-1 configuration, each business class suite has direct aisle access with sliding privacy doors. Other features include a 79-inch fully-flat bed and a dedicated phone holder, equipped with wireless charging technology that is compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
In economy class, each seat is equipped with a 13-inch Panasonic IFE touch screen in addition to a personal electronic device holder for both mobile and iPad devices.
Qatar Airways said in a statement that it has continued to fly its fleet of 30 787-8s throughout the Covid-19 pandemic due to its strong fuel efficiency and excellent reliability record. The airline added that its investment in the 787-9 once again underscores its commitment to sustainability and achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
HotelPlanner strikes deal with Singapore Swimming Club
Travel technology platform HotelPlanner has entered into a partnership with the Singapore Swimming Club that will give club members exclusive group rates when booking hotels around the world on the platform.
The partnership also entitles each Singapore Swimming Club member to a US$100 hotel voucher. Singapore Swimming Club is the country’s largest non-golfing, members-only recreational club.
Christopher Lee, executive vice president, Asia Pacific at HotelPlanner, said that the partnership marks the company’s first collaboration with a recreational club in Singapore.
He added: “With pent-up demand for travel growing, we are also keen to explore more partnerships with other recreational and sporting associations in Singapore and the entire Asia-Pacific region.”
HotelPlanner is a supporter and partner of professional sporting events and leagues, including the United Soccer League, National Hockey League’s New Jersey Devils and the Ladies Professional Golfing Association.
Motel-inspired Avani resort headed for Chaweng
Come mid-2022, Koh Samui will see the arrival of Avani Chaweng Samui Resort, a 76-key property situated along Chaweng Beach Road.
The resort will feature a swimming pool with cabanas and a multi-level deck, in addition to a 24-hour gym and a social bar that doubles as a check-in area. As well, the resort’s guests will get priority access to the restaurant at Seen Beach Club Samui, a sister property located next door.
For the resort’s design, Thailand-based studio Soho Hospitality took its cues from motor hotels that gained popularity in mid-century America as a convenient lodging option for vacationing families. The result is a predominantly contemporary space infused with mid-century influences.
The new resort in Chaweng will be Avani’s tenth property in Thailand, with more developments in Thailand, the Maldives and the Middle East.
This year’s ITB Asia will be held virtually for the second year in a row, with the physical show postponed to 2022.
Set to take place from October 25-29, ITB Asia 2021 will be held in conjunction with MICE Show Asia as well as Travel Tech Asia.
Organiser Messe Berlin said in a statement: “After close observations of international developments of the Covid-19 pandemic and extensive conversations with local authorities and partners, the show organisers made the difficult decision to move the show completely virtual.
“The decision is made as Singapore moves to Phase 3 (heightened alert), where the current limit for MICE events is set at 250 attendees.
“In addition, the recent surge in Covid-19 infections in the Asia-Pacific region has dimmed the positive outlook for the aviation sector, undermining previous optimism among travellers as regional countries tighten border controls and travel restrictions to control the spread of the virus.
“Therefore, after careful consideration, Messe Berlin (Singapore) concludes to postpone the physical ITB Asia to 2022 and hold this year’s event virtually.”
Similar to the previous year, ITB Asia Virtual will be hosted on ITB Community in Asia. Key features of the event include an interactive social networking page, a live business matching platform, a line-up of key industry speakers, comprehensive supplier directory, knowledge library, and on-demand videos.
ITB Asia 2022 will return to Singapore on October 19-22, 2022, at Sands Expo & Convention Centre.