October 19, 2016 Singapore

44 Pages·2016·23.84 MB·English

October 19, 2016
Singapore

October 19, 2016
Singapore
Human touch prevails
Spot these headturners @ ITB Asia
Personalised products, hybrid models will give travel agents the edge
By Dannon Har for a large proportion of global said they are “developing tech-
Spot these headturners at ITB
Travel agents that are able to ca- travel sales. For instance, 80 per nologies to reinvent our busi-
ter to the ever-evolving needs of cent of Chinese travellers booked ness”, such as APIs that connect Asia
their customers and offer spe- via an offline agent last year, stat- directly to their agents’ systems.
cialised, integrated online and ed the Chinese Outbound Tour- “Technology has changed the
offline services, will continue ism Research Institute. landscape of travel... but DMCs
to be well sought after despite The report added that success- create packages – we design F
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perts rather than a sales channel, service by consultants should Moreover, Vijay Sharma, HUNK OF THE DAY
said members of the trade inter- then follow, providing a human country director Singapore &
viewed by the Daily, so that they touch and sealing the deal. The Malaysia of Club Med, which
China arrivals shine for Singapore
don’t compete in the success of such a hybrid works through a “big network
same space as OTAs or approach is also evident of agents”, highlighted the need
metasearchers. in some OTAs opening for travel agents especially in the By Paige Lee Pei Qi were important contributors as
“Reservations by call-centres and brick- luxury and family segments. He Arrivals to Singapore rose 12.5 well.
travel agents account and-mortar stores. said: “Travel agents are a strate- per cent in 1H2016 over the Daniel Goh, manager of Siam
for over two-thirds of In the study, Claude gic priority for Club Med due to same period in 2015, according Express, said: “(China) will be
all SLH (Small Luxury Blanc, CEO of Travel & their customer reach and ability to latest figures from the Singa- a strong performing market in
Hotels of the World) Co, surmised: “We work to sell upscale products. pore Tourism Board (STB), and 2017 because of the strengthen-
bookings,” said Mark on a research online, “Families are almost 70 per of the resulting 8.2 million visi- ing Chinese yuan.”
Fitzell: designing
Wong, the group’s vice specialised trips purchase offline model. cent of our clientele (as) we ca- tors, the majority came from In- However, inbound agents here
president Asia Pacific. We have websites and ter to children’s needs as much donesia (1.4 million, up 7.3 per are bracing for slower business
“Many of our luxury resorts a limited social media presence, as adults in terms of food, en- cent) and China (1.5 million, up from other markets in 2017, due
and country houses are not lo- but most customers like to talk to tertainment and activities. Travel 55.2 per cent). to economic uncertainties.
cated at point-to-point destina- our experts via the call-centres.” agents play a role in advising the This signals a change in source Judy Lum, senior vice presi-
tions. Therefore, our guests need Dynasty Travel is one agency right resort to families depend- market potential for Singapore, dent sales & marketing interna-
more assistance with planning.” forging ahead with a hybrid ap- ing on their wish list.” with China quickly overtaking tional market at Tour East Singa-
Wong attributes the value proach. They had in July this year Sharma added that he prefers Indonesia as the chart-topper. pore, said failing industries and
of agents to their luxury clien- launched a Mobile Concierge offline agents as the level of en- Low See Peng, regional direc- rising unemployment as well as
tele who are mostly “cash-rich, service where agents travelled to gagement offered through OTAs tor, Greater China, STB said: the “effects of Brexit setting in”
but time-poor”. “Trusted travel meet clients at a venue of their is very low. “This strong performance could will “affect (UK) holidaymakers’
agents provide a one-stop ser- choosing. This marks the first Similarly, Fitzell said: “The be attributed to Chinese resi- decisions”.
vice that will assure customers of time a full-service agency is of- online space is cluttered and dents’ increased propensity to GTMC Travel’s CEO Samson
hassle-free trip planning and ex- fering this in Singapore, said the consumer is looking for ex- travel and STB’s increased efforts Tan urged Singapore to “create
perienced travel advice, pre- and spokesperson Alicia Seah. pertise (and personalisation). to market Singapore in Tier 1 more niche tourism products,
post-trip,” he explained. Using technology to aid the Agencies will... focus more on and Tier 2 cities since June 2015.” step up (courtship of) untapped
According to an Amadeus know-how of agents is favoured being destination specialists and Low added that the increased central Asian markets and do
study released last week, tradi- by DMC Diethelm Travel as well. (serve) segments such as luxury, flights from cities like Guang- more roadshows” to combat
tional travel agents still account Managing director Lisa Fitzell adventure and weddings.” zhou, Chengdu and Chongqing 2017’s expected slowdown.
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19.10.2016 TTG Show Daily ITB Asia 2
News
Thailand eyes growth in more markets
TAT plans more offices in South-east Asia, Central Europe and South Africa to beef up in-market reach, activities
By Chadamas Chinmaneevong Authority of Thailand (TAT) to minimise He said risk reduction was a priority the country’s dependence on high-volume
A fragile world economy and unpredicta- losses by investing in emerging markets, since he took office in September 2015, markets like China and Western Europe.
ble tourism sentiments in Thailand’s main TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn told and one of the things TAT has done is to TAT has also turned its focus to South-
source markets have pushed the Tourism TTG Asia Show Daily. crack down on zero-fare tours to reduce east Asia, which contributes almost as
much arrivals as China. As of August, the
region accounted for 25 per cent of inter-
national arrivals into Thailand. Chinese
arrivals made up about 30 per cent.
Yuthasak said there is potential to grow
South-east Asian numbers by promoting
Thailand as a weekend destination and by
dangling shopping,
medical treatments
and wellness pro-
grammes as key lures.
TAT plans to open
offices in countries
such as Cambodia,
Myanmar and the
Philippines over the
Yuthasak: TAT next few years. Yutha-
to have global sak believes that “(ar-
presence rivals from) these
countries will grow at
least 10 per cent in the first year of the es-
tablishment of the new offices”.
Beyond the region, TAT opened an of-
fice in Prague mid-August to tackle Cen-
tral European markets, and will further
extend its reach in the western world with
an office in Sao Paulo, Brazil and Toronto,
Canada by September 2017.
Once these are accomplished, TAT in-
tends to establish a physical presence in
Johannesburg to oversee marketing in
South Africa.
“With the South African office, TAT’s
network will cover all regions of the
world,” remarked Yuthasak.
IN BRIEF
MBS revamps guestrooms
Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands (MBS)
is in the midst of a rejuvenation of all
its 2,560 guestrooms, targeted for 2017
completion, with 1,000 guestrooms
in Tower 3 already upgraded. Besides
aesthetic changes, upgrades include
additional direct data portal, USB ports,
power outlets and reading lights, said
Mike Lee, vice president of sales.
Renovations typically kick in at the
seven-year mark for hotels, but MBS is
revamping in its fourth year due to high
occupancy (96.4 per cent from April-
June), Lee explained. – Paige Lee Pei Qi
The Face Suites offers luxury living
Opened in early 2016, The Face Suites is
a 200-suite hotel located within walking
distance of the Petronas Twin Towers.
It offers one- and two-bedroom suites
in four categories to cater to leisure and
business travellers. All suites feature a
living area, kitchenette, bedroom with en-
suite bathroom and a work space.
Mariner of the Seas extends season
Mariner of the Seas has extended its
sailings in South-east Asia till next June,
making it Royal Caribbean Internation-
al’s longest-ever Southeast Asian season.
Vacationers will now have 64 sailings in
the region to choose from. Highlights
include the Salsa Cruise this December
and the second Cosfest Sea Cruise next
February.
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19.10.2016 TTG Show Daily ITB Asia 4
Marketplace
Qatar Tourism Authority
Plaza Premium Lounge, Taoyuan International Airport
Qatar Tourism Authority works with the public to have achieved consistent growth over a
and private sectors to plan, regulate and pro- decade. Between 2010 and 2015, tourism ar-
mote a sustainable tourism sector in Qatar. rivals averaged 11.5 per cent annual growth.
The organisation’s leadership is highlight- In August, Qatar Tourism Authority
ing tourism as a priority sector and an im- launched a new corporate brand and domain
portant part of the nation’s efforts to diversify name to align with the destination brand
its economy in pursuit of the Qatar National launched last November, and to unify the or-
Vision 2030. ganisation’s online presence under the single
It projects that the tourism sector’s total VisitQatar.qa domain.
contribution to the country’s economy will The first phase of its new corporate
reach 5.2 per cent by 2030, and up to website was also launched, promising more
9.7 per cent of Qatar’s non-hydro-carbon up-to-date information on its destination
economy. promotion efforts. Work is also underway to
According to the UNWTO, Qatar is one make VisitQatar.qa available in multiple lan-
of the fastest growing destinations in the guages such as French, Italian and German.
world, and the only country in the Middle East Contact: [email protected]
Plaza Premium Lounge
Headquartered in Hong Kong, Plaza Premium and limousine services.
Lounge is a global service brand and industry It now operates in over 140 locations in
leader in Premium Airport Services. 35 airports globally, and counts over 3,500
It broke into the market in 1988 with the employees.
world’s first independent airport lounges at Most recently in July, Plaza Premium
Hong Kong International Airport and Kuala Lounge made its debut in Taiwan with four
Lumpur International Airport. airport lounges at Taoyuan International
Since then, Plaza Premium Lounge has Airport. Located at the departure terminals in
grown to provide a range of services from Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, the new lounges
designing, operating and managing premium – decked out with a timber and trees theme –
airport lounges, both independently and on span over 2,500m2 and can comfortably seat
behalf of airlines, transit hotels, private relax- 600 in total.
ation suites, meet and greet services, dining Contact: businessdevelopment@plaza-
concepts, business and conference centres network.com
Jayakarta Hotels & Resorts
Pan Pacific Hotels Group
One of the major hotel players in Indonesia, J Hotel properties are built with budget-
The Jayakarta Group owns two hotel brands conscious travellers in mind, and come with Pan Pacific Hotels Group is a wholly-owned Pacific Rim, while the Parkroyal brand offers
– Jayakarta Hotels & Resorts and J Hotel. essential facilities needed for a convenient hotel subsidiary of Singapore-listed UOL Group leisure and business hotels and resorts in the
Properties under Jayakarta Hotels & Re- stay. Limited, one of Asia’s most established hotel heart of cities and interesting locales across
sorts are of four-star standards and geared Currently, the group manages eight hotels, and property companies with a portfolio of in- Asia-Pacific.
towards leisure and business travellers. two boutique suites and one residential vestment and development properties. Based in The group will open Pan Pacific Beijing
Facilities include meeting rooms, swimming condominium in various business and resort Singapore, Pan Pacific Hotels Group owns and/ in May 2017, its first property in a first-tier
pools, fitness centres, spas, and other ame- areas in Indonesia. or manages 40 hotels, resorts and serviced Chinese city.
nities to provide a comfortable stay. Contact: [email protected] suites with some 12,000 rooms including those Other properties in the pipeline include Pan
under development in Asia, Oceania, North Pacific Yangon in 2017, Pan Pacific Serviced
Best Western Premier Ion Delemen America and Europe. The Group comprises two Suites Puteri Harbour and Parkroyal Langkawi
brands: Pan Pacific and Parkroyal. Resort in 2018, as well as Pan Pacific London
The new upscale hotel in Malaysia’s Genting rants and bars, most of which offer floor-to- The Pan Pacific brand promises premium and Parkroyal Melbourne in 2019.
Highlands is scheduled to open in 4Q2016, ceiling windows or al fresco seating areas that accommodation and services in Asia and the Contact: [email protected]
offering a collection of 300 rooms, ranging merge seamlessly with the natural surround-
from studios to one-, two- and three-bedroom ings. There will also be a sky garden, a heated Pan Pacific Beijing
suites, all with separate living areas, bedrooms swimming pool, luxurious spa, fully-equipped
and kitchenettes. All rooms will offer modern fitness centre, children’s play area, and exten-
amenities including flatscreen TVs, international sive space and conferences and events.
power outlets and complimentary Wi-Fi, as well Guests will be able to access the Genting
as spacious bathrooms and large windows that Highlands’ many other attractions – including
overlook the lush Titiwangsa Mountains. Resorts World – using the hotel’s complimen-
The new hotel also incorporates a vast array tary shuttle bus service.
of amenities. There are no fewer than six restau- Contact: (60) 1 800 22 8218
Best Western Premier Ion Delemen

19.10.2016 TTG Show Daily ITB Asia 6
Analysis
A whole sale of
the market
The wholesale accommodation
market is ripe for another round of • Hotelbeds
• GTA
consolidation. Raini Hamdi, Paige
• MetGlobal
Lee Pei Qi, S Puvaneswary and
• Travco
Mimi Hudoyo explain why • JacTravel
T
he hotel wholesale business, which has Bedsonline
been unravelled by online technology,
is ripe for yet another round of consoli- Asiatravel.com
dation as big players become more acquisitive
while small and/or traditional players struggle
to make it in a highly competitive industry.
The latest trigger is the sale of Hotelbeds
(http://bit.ly/261FLD1) to UK private eq-
uity firm Cinven Capital Management and
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, and
that of Kuoni Group – which owns GTA – to
Swedish private equity firm EQT (http://bit.
ly/1UyCROe).