Oakwood turns residences into workspaces
As the remote working trend gains pace, Oakwood is now offering a day-use room package across 17 properties in Asia-Pacific.
The Work from Oakwood package caters for guests who seek personal space and residential comfort, alongside conducive work areas and amenities. Guests can avail a well-equipped private kitchenette, as well as each property’s recreational facilities, such as the fitness centre and pool, where available.
Available from 07:00 to 19:00 daily, each package is inclusive of complimentary Wi-Fi, complimentary morning and afternoon snacks alongside all-day coffee and tea; black and white printing of up to 30 sheets of documents daily (cumulative); 20 per cent off colour printing; and 20 per cent discount at the property’s owned restaurants, if any.
Participating properties are: Oakwood Hotel & Apartments Brisbane (Australia), Oakwood Residence Shanghai (China), Oakwood Apartments Sanya (China), Oakwood Premier Prestige Bangalore (India), Oakwood Residence Whitefield Bangalore (India), Oakwood Premier Cozmo Jakarta (Indonesia), Oakwood Apartments PIK Jakarta (Indonesia), Oakwood Hotel & Residence Surabaya (Indonesia), Oakwood Residence Cikarang (Indonesia), Oakwood Hotel & Residence Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Oakwood Hotel & Residence Sri Racha (Thailand), Oakwood Residence Sukhumvit Thonglor Bangkok (Thailand), Oakwood Suites Bangkok (Thailand), Oakwood Residence Sukhumvit 24 Bangkok (Thailand), Oakwood Residence Hanoi (Vietnam).
In Singapore, a package will be launched soon at the Oakwood Premier AMTD Singapore, while a day-use option at the Oakwood Studios Singapore comes with a minimum booking of seven days.
MATTA Fair 2020 goes virtual route
The Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) will hold its first-ever online B2C travel fair, from September 23-30, as part of a bid to kickstart the country’s tourism recovery from the impact of Covid-19.
The MATTA Fair Online will feature mainly domestic travel packages by about 100 participating exhibitors from across the country. The focus of the online fair is on domestic travel, with a tagline Buy Now Travel Later.
MATTA secretary-general, Nigel Wong, shared that MATTA had chosen an online format this year for the annual fair, which traditionally has been held physically, to provide greater convenience to the growing segment of tech-savvy domestic travellers. He foresees rising demand for online travel bookings when borders reopen to leisure international travellers.
Plans for a two-day physical B2C MATTA Fair in Kuala Lumpur this November is also underway.
As part of its next phase of recovery, MATTA has recently developed a B2B platform to connect its members to international buyers. “At the moment, we are onboarding suppliers including product owners and tour operator packages,” said Wong, adding that they hope to launch the platform sometime next year.
PATA offers free online tourism training
PATA has launched an e-learning platform for travel agents, tourism professionals, and destination marketers who want to refresh their knowledge, learn new skills and stay relevant.
The destination platform is developed and promoted within the OTT agent training platform, which is accessed by over 150,000 travel professionals worldwide.
The free online courses allow participants the opportunity to watch videos, complete assignments and earn a certificate while learning from travel professionals and experts. Current coursework is available for Palau, Kenya, the Marianas, Tahiti, Bangladesh, Guam, Kiribati and Macau, China.
PATA CEO Mario Hardy said: “The current pandemic has allowed many tourism professionals to take this opportunity to increase their knowledge and education, thus improving their careers and products. Furthermore, destinations are struggling during these unprecedented times to find meaningful avenues to engage with various stakeholders.
“Participating in the PATA eLearning Platform is the perfect opportunity for travel professionals to furthermore develop insights into various destinations, while destinations can effectively engage with travel professionals in a meaningful manner.”
As part of the launch, PATA government members have the opportunity to participate on the eLearning Platform by uploading free training courses onto the platform until March 2021. Courses can be up to 10 pages of informative insights for travel agents and tourism professionals. At the end of the course, participants will be asked to complete a short quiz to test their knowledge and receive a certificate of completion.
PATA government members who wish to keep their course on the training site after March 2021 can do so by paying an annual fee of £1,750 (US$2,240).
KidZania KL inks exclusive deal with Klook
KidZania Kuala Lumpur (KL) has signed an exclusive online travel agent (OTA) partnership with Klook to co-invest in initiatives to enhance and refresh the visitor experience at the indoor children’s theme park as well as curate marketing and promotional activities.
In support of KidZania KL’s mission to provide interactive and inspirational role-playing experiences for kids aged four to 14, Klook will also develop an interactive experience zone that would encourage kids to explore and be inspired by the journey of building a tech start-up.
Shahrul Nizar Ahmad, mayor of Kidzania KL, said: “This partnership allows us to tap into Klook’s current user base in Malaysia, as well as its strengths in the inbound tourism market when international borders reopen.”
He added that more Malaysians are also booking their tickets online to reduce contact, and the company’s partnership with Klook “will result in a better customer experience overall by speeding up the entry process, especially with additional safety measures that we are taking such as temperature checking of every guest.”
Chuan Sheng Soong, general manager for Southeast Asia, Klook, shared that the partnership with KidZania KL will “help drive visitorship to the centre as well as enhance guests’ overall experience through Klook’s suite of merchant solutions”.
He added that both sides will be working together “to refresh and develop tech-centric experiences within the edutainment centre as well as curate marketing campaigns to meet joint business objectives and market needs”.
“Klook is also looking to work closely with government organisations such as Tourism Malaysia and open to teaming up with other industry partners to boost the recovery of the domestic tourism market,” he said.
Tourism Malaysia will lend its support to further promote this partnership via its marketing channels.
TTG Conversations: Five questions with Robert Hecker, Horwath HTL
With safety, hygiene and personalised care taking the front seat in the new normal, budget and mid-range hotel brands may find themselves in a more advantageous position. Horwath HTL’s Robert Hecker, managing director, Pacific Asia, asserts that the segment’s traditionally low-touch approach can now work in hotels’ favour.
In this new episode of TTG Conversations: Five questions video series, Hecker talks about how brands must now pay even closer attention to their messaging and identity, in order to grow confidence in consumers. This is especially pertinent in Asia, where a plethora of family-owned hotels and local brands are scrambling for survival.
A time for growth
What key technologies have gained momentum across the hospitality industry as a result of the pandemic?
Covid-19 has not created a new movement but greatly accelerated the digitalisation of the industry. For example, contactless and cashless payment systems have already been on the market for some time, but the need to reduce person-to-person contact has accelerated this transformation.
Similarly, online learning and development platforms for companies have been available since pre-Covid, and there was already a trend for companies to shift in-person training sessions to learning management systems and virtual training sessions, but Covid-19 also sped that up.
Other technologies that have seen swifter adoption include tools that enable internal and external collaboration, like Slack, Microsoft Teams and Zoom, as well as those that enable increased operational efficiencies, such as chat-bots.
How much more do you anticipate digital hospitality will grow from this point?
While many larger companies have already been investing in technologies to enable automation and other work efficiencies since pre-Covid, a large proportion of smaller companies still have not.
In Singapore, there are government grants such as the Productivity Solutions Grant that SMEs can tap into to fund their digitisation, which may cause a further acceleration in the adoption of certain technologies.
In addition, data will guide businesses in the hospitality industry, such as small restaurants, to take the guesswork out of their daily routine and base their decisions on data.
With tech solutions coming to the fore, and social distancing becoming the norm, what place does the human touch have in the Covid world?
Once again, this shows how Covid-19 is accelerating certain trends that were already in place. For example, the implementation of technologies such as kiosk check-ins and keyless entry will continue to proliferate especially in the economy and mid-tier segments, where human interaction is not expected and the hotel experience is much more transactional.
In the luxury domain, however, high-touch service will still be expected to create an elevated, immersive experience, combined with intentional and meaningful human touchpoints as well as technology to replace non-essential interactions. Social distancing and other measures that have been taken during the pandemic have only emphasised the need for human beings to connect and build relationships with others.
How do you predict Singapore’s S$320 million (US$236 million) credits might be channelled towards hotels and/or benefit the local hospitality industry?
With many companies in Singapore still having their employees work from home and hotels strongly pushing out staycation packages, we may start seeing a trend of Singaporeans choosing to take their staycations over the weekdays as well, rather than simply long weekends. The tourism credits will also encourage spending on local attractions, especially amongst families with children.
For Singaporeans – especially millennials – who are used to jetting off to Bali or Bangkok over the weekend, this extended period of stay in Singapore has also led to an increased appreciation of the nooks and crannies that may have been passed over before.
Rather than leaning heavily on the credits or the staycation demand to pull through, how should hotels relook their offerings to maintain a competitive product?
The tough economic reality would likely see Singaporeans curtailing their expenditure until clear signs of recovery appear, so hospitality brands truly need to return to the basics of ensuring excellent products, services and customer experiences to retain and grow a following, as well as to establish an efficient operating model.
While it may seem counter-intuitive to do so during a downturn, it is more important than ever to invest in ensuring a compelling brand story and double-down on training.
How can hotel players around the region rally and work together with each other, or with other travel suppliers, to stay afloat?
During this period, we have seen multiple stakeholders coming together to provide mutual support to each other and the industry, with initiatives coming both from public and private sectors.
An example of the former would be the Ministry of Manpower of Singapore hiring hotel employers who had been displaced due to the pandemic.
(On the private sector side,) EHL alumna Melissa Lou co-founded online marketplace Delegate, which helps users source event venues and vendors, and during this period companies are able to list for free.
Sky Hotel Management launches to provide owners with more asset management flexibility
Bangkok-based Beacon Sky Hospitality Co has launched a new independent hotel management company that promises to give property owners more flexible and cost-effective asset management.
Sky Hotel Management takes on the role of a Third Party Operator (TPO), allowing hotel owners to enter into a franchise agreement with an international brand but rely on the independent hotel management company for operations expertise.
Mark Van Ogtrop, director of Beacon Sky Hospitality, commented in a press statement that the use of TPOs is “already widely accepted in the US, Europe and the Middle East, but in Asia (it is) a growing trend”.
Park Inn by Radisson sets foot in Jeddah
Radisson Hotel Group has established the first Park Inn by Radisson property in Jeddah, bringing its portfolio to over 45 hotels, resorts and serviced apartments in operation and under development across Saudi Arabia.
Yet another milestone for the company with this opening is the appointment of Maram Kokandi as the world’s first female Saudi general manager in the global hospitality industry.
Park Inn by Radisson Jeddah Madinah Road consists of 84 contemporary rooms and suites, various casual dining spaces, spa and fitness facilities with separate areas for men and women, and three meeting rooms equipped with free high-speed Wi-Fi and audiovisual equipment.
Corporate event planners are supported by the brand’s Smart Meetings and Events promise, which offers attentive service from start to end.
A gateway to the holy city of Makkah, Jeddah attracts travellers from across the globe as a centre for international business and a canvas for public art. Located within close proximity of King Abdulaziz International Airport, the Park Inn by Radisson Jeddah Madinah Road is about 25km from the heart of the city, making it an ideal location for both business and leisure travellers.
InterContinental Singapore serves up stay-and-dine deals
The luxurious InterContinental Singapore has launched exclusive two-, three-, and five-night packages for wholesale and travel agents.
Priced from SG$890 (US$657) nett for two nights, the package includes breakfast and afternoon tea for two guests, and return limousine transfers in a Mercedes S-Class.
The three-night package throws in dinner for two while the five-night package features two dinners for two at award-wining restaurants Man Fu Yuan or Ash & Elm.
Hotel guests can also enjoy curated experiences of the city, such as discovering the vicinity in a Vespa sidecar and guided heritage trails of the surrounding neighbourhood.
The Nepalese government will reopen the country’s borders to international tourists from October 17, 2020, following an almost eight-month-long shutdown.
Incoming travellers will be required to obtain a negative Covid-19 PCR test result within 72 hours before departure, after which, they will not be subjected to any kind of quarantine or self-isolation upon their arrival in Nepal.
Trekking and mountaineering groups will also be allowed to take foreign clients up to the mountains from October 17, government spokesperson and foreign minister Pradeep Gyawali told a briefing, reported the Nepali Times. The decision was made during a cabinet meeting based on the recommendation of the Covid-19 Crisis Management Committee, it added.
As part of the country’s phased reopening, the government has allowed domestic flights, intercity buses, hotels and restaurants to reopen from September 17, according to the report.
The South Asian country’s reopening for tourism will provide a welcome relief to the local communities who eke a living out of trekking and mountaineering tourism, including travel agents, guides, Sherpas, and mountain workers.
Recently, Bahraini prince Sheikh Nasser Bin Hamad Al Khalifa led an 18-member team on an expedition to climb the Lobuche Peak and Mt. Manaslu. The country hopes that their expedition will spread a positive message around the world that Covid-19 health and safety protocols have been adopted by the tourism activity operators in Nepal.