ASEAN bursts into travel

Transcription

Official ATF Daily
January 21, 2011 • Phnom Penh • Kingdom of Cambodia
4
ASEAN bursts into travel
Regional market tipped to grow by double-digits, with the return of outbound incentive groups
By Sirima Eamtako
and Mimi Hudoyo
ASEAN outbound tour operators are expecting double-digit
growths in business this year,
thanks to a stronger regional
economy and more intra-regional flights.
Shroff International Travel
Care Philippines managing director Arjun Shroff forecasts
Philippine outbound to grow
up to 18 per cent this year, with
about half of the travellers opting
for Asian destinations.
“Asia is priority. It is the most
affordable destination and is easy
to connect with as airlines have
been launching new routes and
increasing flights between cities
within the region.” Shroff cited
as examples Cebu Pacific Air’s
ongoing route expansion to Vietnam, Indonesia, China, Hong
Kong and South Korea, Jetstar’s
new thrice-weekly Darwin-Manila service starting February 9,
and Philippine Airlines’ new sixweekly Manila-Delhi flights.
KBS Thailand managing director Kosol Boonma said increasing intra-regional air traffic
from the Philippines was also
benefiting Thailand.
“We are already recording a
30 per cent growth on inbound
series from the Philippines for
bookings up to October, compared to a 30 to 40 per cent drop
last year over 2009. This shows
confidence in Thailand has returned,” said Kosol.
At the same time, Kosol expects Thai outbound to grow 10
per cent, nurtured by a stronger
baht. He is seeing bookings
building up strongly for the
March-April school holidays to
Asia and Europe.
Over in Malaysia, business is so
good that MP Travel and Tours is
opening a third office this month.
The company handled around 20
groups of about 40 pax last year,
mainly to Indonesia, and is planning a two-night 200-pax incentive to Bandung in April.
“Indonesia is good (in promoting itself to Malaysians),”
said general manager Chris Ng.
Bankrupt Best Tours forces
agents to re-strategise
By Gracia Chiang
THE demise of Best Tours in Belgium late
last month is forcing smaller Belgian tour
operators to re-look their strategies in anticipation of the big boys in the market
becoming only bigger in the wake of the
collapse.
This may in turn
result in niche, awayfrom-the-massmarket ASEAN destinations
such as
Indochina being featured more prominently in Belgium than Lambert: think
ever before.
niche
Best Tours was
largely seen as the biggest Belgian-owned
outfit specialising in Asian destinations
such as Thailand, Vietnam and China.
Marc Lambert, CEO, Antipodes Voyages, said the focal issue in the Belgian market now was that its bankruptcy meant that
the “bigger players were getting even bigger”. “In order to fight big players like TUI
and Thomas Cook, which are generalists
that also cover Asia in their programmes,
Australasia specialists like us need to find
niche destinations and products in places
like Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar.”
Lambert said his plan was to focus on
“more FIT, upmarket business as well
as boutique hotels” instead of competing with the high-volume operations of
the big guns who were launching charter
flights to Asia.
In a bid to increase bargaining power
and find new revenue streams, Herman De
Waele, general manager, Dewi Asia Tours,
said he was tweaking his business model
from a predominantly B2C to a B2B one,
with an online platform to be operational
by the end of this month.
“We do mainly direct selling now but
we need to find new customers. With this,
I’m also hoping that we can get more incentive commissions from airlines.”
De Waele said his
target was high-end
clients who stay at
four- to five-star properties, instead of the
“cheap, empty box”
tours that Best Tours
used to run.
Working with only
De Waele: think
five
agents now, De
high-end
Waele was looking
to increase this to 50 agents and double
turnover, now 1.5 million euros (US$2
million), within three years. To reflect this
change, a rebranding might also be on the
cards, he added.
Herman Hannon, travel consultant,
Asteria Expeditions, also said he was
pursuing the premium segment where
“clients don’t mind paying more for very
good service”. “We’re not going to be like
the big companies who push hotels to give
them lower rates,” he said, adding his aim
at ATF was to discover niche products in
Cambodia and Vietnam, moving away
from popular ASEAN destinations like
Indonesia and Thailand which are dominated by the big players.
Best Tours ceased to exist as a company on December 23, leaving a trail of
debts (TTG Asia, January 14, 2010). Switzerland’s Kuoni group has since bought
the brand and is now transferring its
business management practices to salvage
its reputation.
On the other hand, Ng said
Indonesia outbound incentive
was also showing strength, especially for a Malaysia-Singapore
combination.
Jakarta-based Lily Tours business development manager Ati
Chandrasari expects this market
to grow 20 per cent this year, on
top of a 10 per cent growth last
year, as firms resume trips postponed due to the financial crisis.
Bandung-based
Excellent
Holidays managing director Anton Handojo said an improved
economy, exit tax exemption and
the availability of regional flights
from Bandung were all helping
to boost the outbound market
from Bandung, with a 10 per cent
growth expected for this year.
He said while Singapore’s
Universal Studios were attractive
to FIT and families, a growing
number of seasoned travellers
were looking for new destinations. “I am going to introduce
a combination of Cambodia and
Vietnam via Singapore or Kuala
Lumpur.”
Thailand’s Diethelm Travel
Group CEO Richard Brouwer
said the booming ASEAN market
had not escaped his radar. The
group, which has been focusing
on Europe and US markets for
more than 50 years, is looking to
service high-end and expat travellers from ASEAN markets such
as Indonesia.
News
JANUARY 21, 2011 • ttg asia official atf daily 2
Squeezed out of Bali
As Australia keeps growing, Europe hard-pressed to sell island
Editorial
Raini Hamdi Group Editor
Ollie Quiniquini Deputy Editor
Esther Faith Lew Senior Sub Editor
Gracia Chiang, Brian Higgs Sub Editors
Sirima Eamtako Bureau Chief Thailand,
Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos
Karen Yue Senior Reporter, Singapore
Mimi Hudoyo
Senior Correspondent, Indonesia
S Puvaneswary Reporter, Malaysia
Patrick Tan Photographer
Redmond Sia, Haze Loh
Creative Designers
Lina Tan Editorial Assistant
C O N TRI B U TOR S
Bernie Rosenbloom, Rahul Khanna,
Steve Finch
s a l es & m a r ke t i ng
Michael Chow Publisher
Katherine Ng, Marisa Chen
Senior Business Managers
Fiona Heng Marketing Services Executive
pub l i sh i ng se r v i ces
Tony Yeo Division Manager
Agnes Loy Senior Production Executive
Nancy Lee Production Co-ordinator
Betty Loo Advertisement
Administration Executive
Carol Wong Circulation Executive
TT G As i a M e d i a
Darren Ng Managing Director
By Mimi Hudoyo
EUROPEAN buyers decry being
squeezed out of Bali, which is expecting another spurt of growth
in the Australian market this year.
A UK buyer has charged that
Bali hoteliers are “arrogant”,
merely interested in Australian
tourists, and have increased their
contract rates by 20 to 30 per cent
for the UK market.
Other European buyers are
less scathing, but have described
Bali as “challenging” to sell. TUI
Netherlands product manager
Asia, Sebastian de Vries, said: “On
the one hand, the Holland market is price-sensitive and the euro’s devaluation (is not helping).
On the other hand, air fares have
increased and hotel prices in Bali
are up because the island is doing well with the Australian and
regional markets.”
East Travel UK director Dorothy Heng, said the company began looking to Bali as a possible
alternative to Thailand following
the latter’s political riots last year,
but “we found that the majority
of hotels were always full, so we
turned to Cambodia, Laos and
Vietnam instead”.
Bali hoteliers deny giving longhaul markets the short shrift. In
fact, several said they were trying
to achieve a balanced mix as it
was risky to have too much business from one market. But many
have been able to maximise yields
by turning to OTAs, which they
said was also good for cashflow
because of immediate payments.
As well, they said European
buyers had too many prerequisites like rooms by the beach, quiet areas and lower rates, while the
Australians were easy-going.
“We do try to balance Australia
with other markets,” said Kuta
Seaview Boutique Resort and Spa
resident manager, Ketut Swabawa
– even though a 70 per cent share
at his resort last year does reflect
a business skewed to Australians.
Bali Rani general manager Anton Adijaya said from forward
bookings, it was clear Australian
business could still grow for the
hotel, but he would keep to the
current share of 50 per cent Australian and 50 per cent OTAs and
other markets.
Brunei Tourism steps up marketing with two overseas offices
By S Puvaneswary
Brunei Tourism has appointed Beijing-based Longway as
its marketing representative for China/Hong Kong and the
Walshe Group to represent it in Australia/New Zealand.
The appointments are for a two-year period and mark the
sole overseas offices for the sultanate.
Brunei Tourism CEO, Sheikh Jamaluddin Sheikh Mohamed, said the NTO would work with these representatives to conduct travel trade and media activities.
China/Hong Kong is the sultanate’s second largest
market after Malaysia, generating 13,224 air arrivals in
the first seven months of 2010. Australia is the fifth largest
market, with some 8,440 air arrivals during the same period, while New Zealand is eighth, with 5,146 air arrivals.
This year, Brunei Tourism is targeting a 20 per cent
increase in air arrivals over last year, an ambitious goal
as previous annual targets were just around 11 or 12 per
cent. A five-year masterplan will be unveiled in July.
Accor enters
Sihanoukville
By Raini Hamdi
THE Accor Group will be present
in Sihanoukville, the port city in
southern Cambodia, with the
opening of a new-built 54-room
Ream Resort in 2013, which will
be part of its MGallery portfolio.
MGallery’s footprint is growing in the Mekong region, with
four other management contracts secured – 107-room Hotel
de l’Opera Hanoi, 69-room Veranda High Resort Chiangmai,
118-room Veranda Resort & Spa
Hua Hin and 75-room Songtsam
Retreat at Shangri-la, the first
MGallery hotel in China. With
eight MGallery hotels in operation in Asia, and the 174-room
Hotel Muse Bangkok announced
earlier, the collection has grown
to 14 to-date in Asia.
Accor’s senior vice president
sales and marketing, Graham
Wilson, said the chain was also
enjoying rapid growth with its
Pullman and Novotel brands in
ASEAN. A Pullman will open in
Bali and Danang by mid-2011
while three Novotels will open
in Bangkok this year. “We remain
heavily committed to Bangkok
and see growth opportunities
across destinations in Thailand,”
he said.
The Trade Show for the Asian Travel Market
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news
Philippines moves on from fiasco
By Brian Higgs
THE Philippines is reverting to triedand-tested slogans such as Wow Philippines as it develops a new brand campaign
for 2011 and beyond after the spectacular failure of the Pilipinas, Kay Ganda!
branding shortly after its November
15 release.
“We will only make the announcement
when we are ready,” said Benito Bengzon
JR, Philippine Department of Tourism
(DoT) assistant secretary, International
Tourism Promotions.
“In the meantime,
we will continue going
about our usual efforts
such as participating
Lim: “actionin travel fairs and enoriented”
gaging the media, and
introducing more joint promotions and
tactical advertising.”
Asked what lessons had been learnt
from this episode, Bengzon said the NTO
“should have consulted stakeholders and
partners beforehand”.
“There will be more thorough discus-
Companies expanding
Mayflower to bloom in Phnom Penh
MAYFLOWER Acme Tours Malaysia
plans to set up its first foreign retail outlet
in Phnom Penh by the first quarter. The
outlet will be a full-fledged travel agency
offering inbound, outbound and ticketing services. Its director/general manager,
Chin Ten Hoy, said: “It will carry a neutral
brand instead of the Mayflower name. We
don’t want local tour operators to view
us as competition. At the same time, we
want Malaysian agents to use us as their
groundhandlers in Cambodia.”
Mayflower also has plans to set up offices in Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam by
2014. It has not ruled out joint ventures
with existing travel agencies or setting up
a new company with a local partner.
In Malaysia, Mayflower has eight retail
outlets and plans to open another two by
this first quarter. – S Puvaneswary
Homegrown hotel sees new stars
ITS flagship property rated five-star recently, homegrown hotel Borei Angkor
Resort & Spa is now expanding in Siem
Reap with a three-star property to open
later this year and another four-star
project on the cards.
Borei Angkor Resort & Spa general
manager Philip Kao said: “We are the first
locally-owned and managed hotel in Siem
Reap to be classified as a five-star hotel. As
a company we want to cover a whole spectrum of accommodation from three-star
to five-star.”
The Siem Reap hotel opened in 2000
with 29 rooms and has since gone through
several upgrades. A million-dollar refurbishment last year saw the interiors of its
188 rooms refreshed and 50 staff added.
A new fine-dining restaurant serving up
royal Khmer cuisine will also open later
this year.
A new sister three-star hotel, 36-room
Twizt Hotel, will open by October, hoping to cash in on the “growing number of
domestic tourists who are now travelling
to Siem Reap but are looking for modern,
value-for-money options”, said Kao, adding the company would launch a four-star
hotels within two years. – Gracia Chiang
sions in the future, and we need to be
more deliberate in what we do,” he said.
Putting the debacle behind it, the
country is introducing a new “actionoriented” five-year national tourism development plan focusing on access and
infrastructure, according to DoT secretary
Alberto Lim.
“Manila is getting congested, and the
Clark airport development, which will
eventually serve as our version of Narita
or KLIA (Kuala Lumpur International Airport), will take awhile, so in the
meantime other airports will have to
be developed as soon as possible,”
said Lim.
The Philippines will also make mandatory the accreditation of primary tourism
enterprises such as hotels, attractions and
services, which will bring the standards in
rural areas closer to that of the big cities.
“This will ensure the consistent safety, security, quality and experience for our visitors,” he explained.
Another priority is maximising growth
in emerging markets such as China, India,
Russia and the Middle East, said Lim.
News
Firefly’s good deal
Lower domestic fares convince India of East Malaysia’s appeal
By S Puvaneswary
FIrefly’s entry in the Kuala
Lumpur-East Malaysia sector has
boosted the appeal of Sabah and
Sarawak among price-sensitive
Indian tourists, which have previously eschewed these destinations owing to the high cost of
domestic flights on these routes.
The low-cost carrier’s flights,
launched on January 15, have
brought down airfares significantly, aiding Malaysian tour
operators’ efforts to promote
Sabah and Sarawak to the Indian
market.
Kuna Seelan Velayutham, Hibiscus Travel & Tours managing
Viewpoint
director, plans to come up with
new itineraries incorporating
nature, adventure and culture.
He already sells Sabah to Indian
repeat visitors.
For Red Apple Travel & Tours
managing director Arokia Das
Anthony, the lower airfares give
him an in with the Indian MICE
market, which would not mind
travelling on budget carriers if
this resulted in savings. “This is
timely as Kuching has a number
of new city hotels with MICE
facilities, and the nightlife there
has improved,” he said.
He intends to work with hotels
in Kota Kinabalu and Kuching on
What are East Malaysia’s chances?
“(The lower fares) will make
Sabah and Sarawak a lot easier
to sell. Tourism Malaysia has
regular roadshows to Chennai
but never promotes East
Malaysia. It’s time it does so to
drive awareness of Sabah and
Sarawak and make it easier for
us to sell these destinations.”
Kumar Asirvatham
Managing director
Fly Albatross Travel & Tours, Chennai
“Many Indians don’t know that
Sabah and Sarawak are part
of Malaysia. More consumer
awareness is needed. Sabah
should be pushed to the highend and honeymoon segments
that wouldn’t mind travelling
low-cost as the savings could
be used elsewhere.”
M Shanmuganantham
Director
Vacationer Holidays, Bangalore
fam trips for his Indian partners,
for them to promote the destinations before the Indian peak season from mid-April.
Meanwhile, Tina Travel &
Agencies is developing new leisure programmes combining
East and West Malaysia as well
as food trail programmes in
Kuching. Adam Kamal, its managing director will be in India
from February 22 for sales calls
in metro cities with five partner
hotels in Sabah and Sarawak to
raise awareness of East Malaysia.
Average airfares between Kuala Lumpur and the two East Malaysian capitals are also expected
to drop further once Firefly and
AirAsia increase their frequencies on the routes. Zero-fare
deals are also expected during
low periods.
Firefly will up its frequencies
on January 24 to thrice a day to
Kota Kinabalu and four times
a day to Kuching, adding 3,969
more seats a week on the sectors. AirAsia, which currently
has 11 daily flights to Kota Kinabalu and 12 a day to Kuching, is
expected to announce frequency
increases soon. Malaysia Airlines
also flies nine times a day to Kota
Kinabalu and eight times a day to
Kuching.
Call for more JapanMekong direct flights
By Karen Yue
that the opening of Tokyo HaneLIMITED air access between da international terminal had
Japan and the Mekong region brought about more flights to
countries is putting a dampener the region, but capacity was still
on the Japan Association of Trav- not enough.
el Agents’ (JATA) effort to drive
Ippei Takahashi, director of
traffic to the region.
Island Marketing Japan Office,
JATA, as part of the
pointed out that bookMekong Area Tourism
ings out of South Korea
Promotion Committee,
for Cambodian properruns fam trips for teachties were easily double
ers and travel agents,
that of Japan’s because
among other initiatives.
of more direct flights
Last year saw seven
from South Korea to
school tours to Vietnam
the region, particularly
and more are expected Furusawa: limSiem Reap and Phnom
this year, said Toru Fu- ited charters
Penh.
rusawa, JTB Corp genCharters are an operal manager, international af- tion but demand remains poor
fairs and tourism promotion.
for lesser-known destinations.
More flights would yield even
JTB Corp had 30 charter
better results though, said Furu- flights with 120 to 150 seats each
sawa, who added that Japan had to Siem Reap last year. “Our chardirect flights to only two cities in ter flights help but to a limited
Vietnam – Hanoi and Ho Chi extent as we haven’t been able to
Minh City. “Japanese carriers are secure more aircraft to support
still recovering from the (eco- more charters,” Furusawa said.
nomic) crisis and cannot immeTour Network ran charters to
diately mount new services.”
Cambodia a few years ago but
ASEAN Resort Net director “take-up was not so good”, said
Eiji Ogata said while Japan had Shibata, who suggested that Japgood air connections to Bangkok anese operators banded together
and Phuket as well, “there’s more to achieve the numbers required.
to the Mekong region than just
Ogata, however, doubted that
these two places”.
conservative small and mid-sized
Yoshinobu Shibata, Tour Net- Japanese agencies would agree to
work managing director, noted “share business this way”.
Delegates get together at the show
Patrick Tan finds out it is time for a renewal of friendship and business partnerships on TRAVEX Day One
So Mara, Cambodia Secretary of State and
permanent vice chairman of ATF 2011
Executive Committee, Dr Sok An, Deputy Prime
Minister and chairman of ATF 2011, Samdech
Techo Hun Sen, Prime Minister of the Kingdom
of Cambodia and First Lady Lok Chumteav Dr
Bun Rany, and (far right) Dr Thong Khon, Minister of Tourism and vice chairman of ATF 2011
with his spouse on his left
Radisson Suites Bangkok Sukhumvit’s Den Ferdinand
Navarro, Key to Business Success Thailand’s Kosol
Boonma, Radisson Plaza Resort Phuket Panwa Beach’s
Siriwan Nipatcharoen and Carlson Hotels Asia Pacific’s
Ya’kob Zaini
Tourism Malaysia’s Musa Yusof, Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board’s Dr Victor
Wee, Ambassador Mohd Hussein, Ministry of Tourism Malaysia’s Dr Ong Hong
Peng, Ministry of Tourism Malaysia’s Dr
James Dawos Mamit and Choice Taxi
Cambodia’s Choi Dae Yong
Royal Cliff Beach Resort’s
Shreyash Shah and Victor
Kriventsov
Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Sansern
Ngaorungsi and Suraphon Svetasreni, and
Tourism Authority of Thailand Vietnam’s
Pichai Raktasinha
Grand Park City Hall Singapore’s Francis Tan, Park
Hotel Group Singapore’s Cindy Goo, Inspired by Asia
UK’s Steve Johnson, Island Marketing Japan Office’s
Ippei Takahashi, Park Hotel Group Hong Kong’s Pauline Cheung and Park Hotel Clarke Quay Singapore’s
Dino Lim
Holiday Inn Bangkok Silom’s Myla Caceres, Fiesta Reisid Reisibüroo
Spain’s Heldur Allese, Holiday Inn Resort Phuket’s Ittivudh Sumongkol, InterContinental Bangkok’s Melinda Lampier, InterContinental
Hanoi Westlake’s Bennett Peter and Holiday Inn Hotels & Resorts
Chiangmai’s Usa Boonchalakulkosol
religious.pdf 1 12/24/2010 9:57:27 AM
Come visit us at booth 326
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12/24/10 12:08:07 PM
thailand: Briefing
Royal Palace & Temple, Bangkok
The tide finally turns
Thailand faces 2011 with optimism as it leaves its troubles behind. By Sirima Eamtako
NTO
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is targeting
15.5 million visitor arrivals and
around 600 billion baht (US$18.5
billion) in tourism revenue this
year. It is also eyeing 91 million
domestic trips, generating some
432 billion baht in revenue, as
part of its strategy to balance inbound and domestic travel and
reduce the country’s dependence
on foreign visitors.
TAT’s balanced strategy covers four other tourism elements
– monetary value versus emotional value, short-term market
recovery and long-term market
expansion, peak season equals
low season, and gaining revenue
while preserving tourism assets.
The NTO would deliver its
key message, Amazing Thailand
Always Amazes You, through traditional promotional channels,
digital marketing and social media networks such as Facebook,
Twitter and YouTube, said TAT
governor Suraphon Svetasreni.
Celebrity and events marketing will also be part of the TAT’s
2011 promotional strategy.
Hotels
International
brands will continue to expand
ATF day4 p6,8 Thailand.indd 6
this year. Locally-managed properties will likewise mushroom,
particularly in the boutique and
design hotel segments.
New entrants in Bangkok
this year include four Starwood
Hotels and Resorts properties:
198-room The St Regis Bangkok, 403-room W Bangkok, 308room Aloft Bangkok-Sukhumvit
11 and 214-room Le Meridien
Suvarnabhumi Golf Resort &
Spa. Accor will open at least
two hotels – 380-room Novotel
Bangkok Impact and 166-room
Hotel Muse Langsuan, an M
Gallery Collection.
Room supply in Phuket is
poised to grow by 4.1 per cent
this year, according to C9 Hotelworks Phuket Hotel Market Update, Mid-Year Edition, August
2010. As of the first half of 2010,
the island had 43,770 rooms.
Phuket’s pipeline includes
198-room Rawai Palm Beach
Resort, 140-room U Phuket,
200-room Four Points by Sheraton Phuket-Makham Bay and
244-room Holiday Inn Phuket
Mai Khao Beach Resort.
Koh Samui will get 379 rooms
courtesy of three upscale brands
– Conrad, Mövenpick and Starwood’s Luxury Collection – Vana
Belle. Chiang Mai will welcome
the rebranded 286-room Mövenpick while Pattaya may see the
opening of the long-awaited 239room Le Meridien resort.
Access
“Growth will come
from Asia and the
Middle East this year.
The strong baht may
hurt the UK, US and
Europe, but not in the
high-end segment.”
Chanin Donavanik
CEO
Dusit International
Korean Air
launched twice-weekly flights
between Cheongju and Bangkok in September, while Qatar
Airways introduced six-weekly
Doha-Phuket flights in October.
Thai Airways International’s new
daily Bangkok-Haneda service
and increased frequencies in the
winter timetable brought its operations to 564 weekly flights to
61 destinations in 34 countries.
Land transport infrastructure
between Thailand and its neighbours in the Greater Mekong
Subregion (GMS) is another area
continuously being strengthened, according to Suraphon.
The 1.2km R3A Highway now
links Thailand, Laos and China.
Discussions have also begun on a
high-speed train linking Bangkok
and Kunming via Laos. “All these
initiatives will further leverage
Thailand’s position as the hub of
the GMS,” Suraphon said.
Rates
The baht’s strength
against the currencies of the US,
the UK, Europe and Scandinavia
has clipped the 2010-2011 season. Association of Thai Travel
Agents honourary advisor Apichart Sankary believed the season would run from early December to end-March, instead of
November to April, but average
occupancy would still reach 80 to
90 per cent.
He added that overseas wholesalers and tour operators might
have to slash package rates by 10
per cent to stimulate last-minute
bookings. Room rates will remain frozen for the third consecutive year, with only a handful of
hotels managing slight increases.
Recovering Asia-Pacific economies would stimulate bookings
this year, said Thai Hotels Association vice president Surapong
Techaruvichit.
Onyx Hospitality Group senior vice president sales Suravut
Thongthaem agreed, saying that
India, Russia and China would
be the growth markets for the
group’s Thai hotels in 2011. He
said: “Bangkok will remain stagnant due to oversupply while the
corporate market has yet to rebound. Phuket will see continuous growth due to more direct
flights but Koh Samui will face a
room oversupply in 2012.”
12/28/10 3:33:32 PM
thailand: insider
Products
New links make it easier to enjoy the kingdom’s treasures
The Express Service provides a
15-minute nonstop journey for
150 baht per trip. Making eight
stops on its 30-minute journey,
the City Line charges from 15
to 45 baht, depending on the
number of stops travelled.
Contact
Airport Link Call Centre
Tel 1690
Chiang Mai Exhibition and Convention Centre
Chiang Mai’s exhibition
and convention centre
What Barring further delays, the
long-awaited Chang Mai exhibition and convention centre will
open early next year. Its facilities
include 10,000m2 of exhibition
space, a large convention hall
and three medium-sized meeting rooms.
Initiated in June 1996, the
project was to break ground in
2006 but was delayed due to
technical and bidding glitches.
Work finally began last year,
with a budget of 1.8 billion baht
(US$59.9 million). The facility’s
developer, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports will, however,
require another 500 million
baht for interior work. And an
additional one billion baht may
be needed for surrounding infrastructure unless the ministry
can secure investments from the
relevant authorities for electricity, water and road systems.
Suvarnabhumi Airport
Rail Link baggage checkin facility
What Passengers will soon be
able to check in their luggage at
Bangkok’s Makassan City Air
Terminal Station before boarding the express train to Suvarnabhumi Airport. The baggage
check-in system, developed by
the State Railway of Thailand
and the Airports of Thailand,
is to be ready by early this year.
The 28km Suvarnabhumi
Airport Rail Link, opened last
August, offers two transit options between the airport and
downtown Bangkok – the Express Service and the City Line
Commuter Train. The two lines
operate on the same tracks at
speeds of up to 160km per hour.
Thailand-Laos bridges
What Two bridges linking
Thailand and Laos over the Mekong River are in the pipeline.
The third Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge will link Thailand’s
Nakhon Phanom with Lao’s
Thakhek. The foundation of
the 630m bridge was laid out
in March 2009 and the bridge
is expected to be completed by
September 2011.
The fourth Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge will link Thailand’s
Chiang Khong with Lao’s
Huayxai and will be connected
to a section of the Asian Highway that links Laos, China and
Thailand. Work on the 480m
bridge began in March 2010
with an expected completion
within 30 months, or around
September 2012.
The first Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge linking Thailand’s
Nong Khai and Lao’s Vientiane
opened in 1994. The second
linking Lao’s Savannakhet with
Thailand’s Mukdahan followed
in 2006.
The Tourism Authority
of Thailand said the first two
bridges, both international
border checkpoints, play a major
role in promoting cross-border
travel and trade and facilitate
overland movement throughout
the Greater Mekong Subregion.
ity of 6.5 million domestic and
international passengers to 12.5
million (five million international passengers and 7.5 million
domestic passengers) until 2020.
The expansion will include a
passenger terminal, car park
building, public utility system
and service road.
Contact
Tel (66-2) 535-1424
Email [email protected]
Phuket International
Airport expansion
Thai Tiger Airways
What Work began in October
2010 on the five-year Phuket
International Airport development project from fiscal years
2011 to 2014.
According to its operator, Airports of Thailand, the
number of flights and passengers at Phuket International Airport already reached six million
passengers in 2010.
The 5.8 billion baht project
will thus expand the airport’s
current annual handling capac-
What Scheduled for take off this
year, Thai Tiger Airways will enter the Thai market with cheap
fares on domestic and regional
routes.
At press time, Thai Airways
International (THAI) was
working with Tiger Airways to
complete the 51:49 joint venture
with a registered capital of 200
million baht.
The low-cost carrier (LCC)
is initially slated to operate eight
routes: from Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport to Chiang Mai,
Phuket, Kuala Lumpur, Penang,
Macau, Chennai and Shenzhen,
and one between Phuket and
Chiang Mai.
The LCC will use five Airbus
A320 aircraft leased from Tiger
Airways in 2011 and another five
in 2012.
My choices
Thailand
compiled by sirima Eamtako
James Reed
CEO and group managing director
Destination Asia
Paul Stevens
Director of operations
Accor Thailand
Puttipong Prasartthong-Osoth
President
Bangkok Airways
What is your biggest
challenge in 2011?
Firstly, managing the US dollar situation,
particularly in destinations quoting in this currency. In Thailand, we have completely moved
to quoting in Thai baht. Secondly, corporate,
incentive and conference business is growing
but budgets per group have fallen compared
to 2006 and 2007 levels. Lastly, human
resources. With our rapid expansion in the
region, we will be looking for additional staff.
One of the biggest challenges is the additional hotel supply. Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang
Mai, Samui and, to a lesser extent, Phuket,
will have an oversupply for most of 2011.
That said, air access has improved with more
flights set to service Thailand. Legacy and
low-cost carriers are both helping to create
demand. Then again, we may have to go
through some growing pains as the country
absorbs the additional supply of rooms.
New competitors in the region, such as Thai
Tiger Airways, that may affect (our business).
Has ASEAN taken off as a
single destination?
The trade in the region and international tour
operators who attend regional trade shows
know of ASEAN. But customers, especially
the vast majority of Americans, Canadians
and Europeans, do not. We need a stronger
branding campaign to get the message
across on ASEAN as a single destination.
Yes. The location in relation to major source
markets, the ever-increasing air capacity and
the largely undiscovered natural beauty and
cultures in many areas still hold ASEAN well
into the future. ASEAN is a multi-destination
location and requires return trips by visitors
to really experience its variety, which allows
the region as a whole to benefit from each
other’s success.
Maybe in the near future, as the difference
in the character of each country is still very
significant.
Which ASEAN destination,
apart from yours, are you
most impressed with and
why?
I am impressed with all ASEAN destinations
as each has its own charms. There is no one
better ASEAN destination than another.
From a marketing point of view, I would say
Malaysia and Singapore have done well
in the past two to three years in raising
their profiles. Cambodia and Vietnam carry
unique positions as they have very colourful
historical points of interest that inspire visits.
One of the interesting trends lately has been
the sub-marketing of destinations within
countries. I believe this niche marketing will
continue to grow as visitors look for more
“trophy” destinations.
None in particular as each country has something unique to offer.
ATF day4 p6,8 Thailand.indd 8
12/28/10 3:33:40 PM
Bleed size : 39x27cm
Trim size : 38x26cm
MEET THE NEW BUYERS
Icebreaker
strike a lucrative deal with these newcomers to asEaN tourism forum. compiled by gracia chiang
Klaus Ludwig
CEO
KL Reisen
Germany
Gene Harley
Managing director
Advantage International, LLC
The US
Denis Pavageau
FIT director
Voyageurs du Monde
France
Celia Magno Ranara
General manager
Vanity Travel & Tours
The Philippines
What do you do? I’m the
founder and CEO of KL Reisen,
which has been around for 23
years. It is lovely that I am in
charge of Asia in particular. It
has a lot to offer visitors – great
cultures and hospitable people.
What do you do? Advantage
is an event/travel planner that
designs and coordinates group
travel events for the US media,
incentives and social groups.
In addition, I produce and host
travel shows, and write blogs
and articles on travel.
What do you do? Voyageurs
du Monde is a tour operator
that only sells directly to clients.
We have 400 staff who are fully
specialised according to country
or continent, and our specialty
is the FIT market. We have 14
shops in France and one in
Brussels. I manage 12 product managers and coordinate
around 30 countries.
What do you do? I am the
general manager of Vanity
Travel & Tours based in the
Philippines.
What are you looking for at
ATF 2011? New programmes
that offer different ways of accessing a tourism destination as
well as tour operators who want
to do more than just compete
only on price.
What do you like about buying
travel? Travel is a word I do not
like because it limits everything
to a technical matter. I’d rather
speak about meeting people and
their cultures, and becoming a
witness of cultural heritage and
sensational landscapes.
What is the hardest thing about
buying travel? Prices as well as
finding a way to reach satisfactory results since putting pressure
on providers will end up affecting the end-consumer badly.
How can sellers get your attention and impress you? With
ideas and concepts that reflect
their pride in their destinations
as hosts.
What upsets you most about
sellers and/or travel tradeshows? Boring programmes that
haven’t changed for years and
operators who don’t care who is
coming and why customers are
visiting that country or region.
What is the best destination
you’ve ever been to and why?
Myanmar. The people are open
and warm, respectful towards
visitors and have a lot to show in
terms of culture and Buddhism.
What is the easiest travel
destination to sell and why?
Destinations full of curiosities
such as Tibet. Since we are an
operator interested in culture, it
is important that a destination
has lots of heritage to offer, is
well-presented by tour guides
and has reasonable prices.
What is the one destination
you’d like to visit but never had
the chance to? New Zealand. I
expect to find beautiful landscapes and interesting conflict
between the native people and
those who arrived in the shadow
of colonialism.
ATF day 4 p10 Buyers.indd 10
ATF 2011? New destinations,
resorts, properties and activities
to add to our list for clients. I’m
also looking to design packages
and partner local companies for
direct business.
What do you like about buying travel? Introducing our US
clients to new destinations.
buying travel? Not being able
to see the destinations, resorts,
hotels and companies firsthand.
We pride ourselves on selling
what we know and where we
have been.
How can sellers get your attention and impress you? Give me
their information and tell me
what they can do to make my
job easier.
sellers and/or travel tradeshows? Sellers that talk and do
not listen. Do not generalise
– ask me what I need after your
general statement on who/what
you are and meet “my” needs.
South Africa. They offer something for any client.
What is the easiest travel destination to sell and why? The
Caribbean. It is nearby and easy
for larger groups of more than
500 people, and yet exotic and
different.
you’d like to visit but never
had the chance to and why? I
hope to see more of the Mekong
Region. I just have not had the
time to design a visit.
ATF 2011? New charming
boutique hotels and resorts, and
to strike deals with everyone to
guarantee the best rates for all
our clients.
What do you like about buying
travel? Visiting a new place each
year.
buying travel? Nothing!
How can sellers get your attention and impress you? I like to
have productive appointments
where we decide on things.
ATF 2011? My objective is to
find tour operators that we can
tie up with in other ASEAN
member countries.
What do you like about
buying travel? It gives me the
opportunity to discover potential tourism business in other
ASEAN member countries. It
is also easy and convenient to
buy a customised travel programme that will allow visitors
to discover the beauty of the
destination.
What is the hardest thing
about buying travel? When
sellers find it difficult to give
confirmation for peak season
bookings.
sellers and/or travel tradeshows? When appointments are
not productive.
How can sellers get your
attention and impress you?
By offering competitive rates,
good allotments for hotel
rooms and airline seats, and a
list of potential travel destinations.
you’ve ever been to and why? I
have 20 favourite destinations in
the world but I personally love
Indonesia and Japan.
sellers and/or travel tradeshows? Poor presentation,
not-so-competitive rates and
slow response time.
What is the easiest travel destination to sell and why? Indonesia. We have good deals there
and the French go on vacation
around July/August, which is
a great season to go to this country. The honeymoon market is
strong from July until the end
of October. Indonesia is a very
charming place with nice hotels
and great service at affordable
prices. In addition, it is a very
diverse destination – when you
move to a different island, it feels
like a different country.
Boracay is one of the best
destinations I have been to so
far and I am proud to say that
it is in the Philippines.
had the chance to? Myanmar!
It has been my dream to visit
this country and I will one day.
I just need time. I am attracted
to this destination because of
its diversity and I would like to
meet their peaceful people.
“Do not generalise –
ask me what I need
after your general
statement on who/
what you are and meet
‘my’ needs.”
Gene Harley
Managing director
Advantage International, LLC
The US
What is the easiest travel
destination to sell and why?
For us Filipinos, Asian countries are still the easiest travel
destinations to sell despite
different religious beliefs as
many appreciate the temples
and cultures of other Asian
countries.
had the chance to? It is hard
for me to choose just one
destination as I have several on
my bucket list that I would like
to visit someday – Egypt to see
the pyramids, Italy to see the
Leaning Tower of Pisa, France
to see the Eiffel Tower and
India to see the Taj Mahal.
12/27/10 11:20:06 AM
T
TAPPING INTO THE LUCRATIVE
BUSINESS TOURISM SECTOR
he official launch of the Malaysia
Convention & Exhibition Bureau
(MyCEB) on 22 November 2010 by the
Hon. Minister of Tourism, Dato’ Sri Dr. Ng
Yen Yen, was a timely one. MyCEB is a onestop centre to assist meeting and event
planners to bid for and stage regional and
international business events in Malaysia.
Just weeks before that, the Malaysian
Government, through the Economic
Transformation Programme, had revealed
its plans to grow the share of arrivals for
business tourism from five per cent (of
total tourist arrivals into Malaysia) in 2009
to eight per cent by 2020. This translates to
a growth from 1.2 million business tourists
to 2.9 million for the same period.
The business tourism sector is
expected to continue to be a major source
of foreign exchange earnings for Malaysia,
especially with Malaysia’s growing appeal
as a venue for meetings, incentives,
conventions and exhibitions.
On average, the estimated spending
for each international business tourism
visitor is USD2,399 (RM7,418), which
is three times more than the average
leisure visitor spend. In 2009, the business
tourism sector welcomed 1.18 million
delegates, which contributed an estimated
USD3.2 billion (RM9.9 billion) in direct
visitor expenditure.
Based on the International Congress
and Convention Association (ICCA)
Rankings in 2009, Kuala Lumpur leaped
five spots to the 22nd position in city
rankings, from 61 meetings in 2008 to
72 meetings in 2009. This places Kuala
Lumpur as one of the five leading
meetings destination in Asia Pacific,
alongside Singapore, Beijing, Seoul and
Bangkok.
Malaysia was also one of the only four
Asia Pacific countries that improved its
world rankings in 2009 for international
association meetings organised in 2009,
from 32nd to 31st place.
The collaboration between MyCEB
and industry partners such as the Kuala
Lumpur Convention Centre, Sarawak
Convention Bureau, Borneo Convention
Centre Kuching and the other states of
Malaysia has been a winning combination
for the country.
The addition of new infrastructure
including
the
SAS
International
Convention Centre Kuantan opening in
2011, the proposed Sabah International
Convention Centre in Kota Kinabalu and
the 93,000 sqm MATRADE Exhibition and
Convention Centre will further enhance
Malaysia’s competitive position, providing
more options for national, regional and
international business events.
Malaysia’s popularity as a choice
destination for meetings and conventions
has resulted in the successful hosting of
international summits such as the World
Congress of Accountants 2010 which
attracted a record 6,000 delegates, the Asia
Congress of Neurological Surgeons, 14th
Asia Oceania Congress of Endocrinology
and the World Engineering, Science and
Technology Conference.
Malaysia has also secured over 20
international association meetings (of
a minimum 1,000 delegates each) to
be held between now until 2016. These
events are estimated to attract over 37,000
delegates and contribute almost RM270
million (USD87 million, EUR62 million) in
international visitor expenditure to the
country.
Malaysia’s most recent win has been
the 7th International AIDS Society HIV
Conference in Pathogenesis, Treatment
and Prevention in 2013 which will be held
for the first time in Asia. The conference
is expected to attract between 5,000 and
6,000 delegates.
Having MyCEB and a range of services
and facilities for business events, Malaysia
is set to gain a bigger share of the lucrative
business tourism industry.
For more information on MyCEB,
contact Ms. Phang Wei Yin, Public Relations
Manager, at +603 2034 2090 / email
[email protected], or visit www.
myceb.com.my.
Malaysia
Where business and
leisure meet
Come discover a wide range of exciting attractions and world-class services
for your clients at the Malaysia Booth No.
264
For more information, please visit the following websites:
Official website: http://www.tourismmalaysia.gov.my/ • Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/friendofMalaysia/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/tourismMalaysia
Or contact us directly through:
Email: [email protected] • Tel: +603 2615 8188 • Fax: +603 2693 5884/0207
Introducing …
BEST WESTERN PLUS @ 20 Sukhumvit
Strategically located on Sukhumvit Soi 20, the 78 tastefully decorated rooms
and suites are the ideal abode for a stay in the Thai capital. With a modern
and funky design, inviting accommodation and quality facilities, the hotel is
a great choice for both leisure travellers and business executives.
Opening soon in March 2011
For more information, visit www.bestwesternasia.com
Untitled-2 2-3
Introducing …
BEST WESTERN Bangkok Hiptique
The 50 guestrooms of BEST WESTERN Bangkok Hiptique hotel are well-appointed
and feature Thai, hip and contemporary designs. Styled with exquisite
fabrics and woods, the décor is a palette of rich, earthy tones.
It is a home away from home boutique hotel that delivers comprehensive
and high impact satisfaction for today’s demanding travel market.
Opening soon in February 2011
12/28/10 5:07:24 PM
Introducing …
BEST WESTERN PLUS @ 20 Sukhumvit
Strategically located on Sukhumvit Soi 20, the 78 tastefully decorated rooms
and suites are the ideal abode for a stay in the Thai capital. With a modern
and funky design, inviting accommodation and quality facilities, the hotel is
a great choice for both leisure travellers and business executives.
Opening soon in March 2011
Untitled-2 2-3
Introducing …
BEST WESTERN Bangkok Hiptique
The 50 guestrooms of BEST WESTERN Bangkok Hiptique hotel are well-appointed
and feature Thai, hip and contemporary designs. Styled with exquisite
fabrics and woods, the décor is a palette of rich, earthy tones.
It is a home away from home boutique hotel that delivers comprehensive
and high impact satisfaction for today’s demanding travel market.
Opening soon in February 2011
12/28/10 5:07:24 PM
INTRA-ASEAN TRAVEL
Rise of regional market
ASEAN relies on ASEAN as traditional longhaul markets continue to be mired in economic woes
Brunei
By S Puvaneswary
Cambodia
By Steve Finch
Indonesia
By Mimi Hudoyo
Laos
By Bernie Rosenbloom
Myanmar
By Rahul Khanna
ASEAN marketshare
Marketing to the region
In the first six months of 2010, ASEAN air arrivals
accounted for 51.8 per cent of the sultanate’s total
visitor tally.
From January to June last year, Brunei received
94,387 air arrivals, of which 48,897 were from
ASEAN countries. The ASEAN influx represented a
20 per cent hike over the same period in 2009.
The top ASEAN markets were Malaysia
(24,233), Singapore (7,963), the Philippines (6,385),
Indonesia (6,201) and Thailand (2,208).
Brunei Tourism is pushing new niche and thematic
products in the region.
The NTO would promote diving as its latest offering and engage industry partners in joint
marketing efforts in regional markets, said director
of marketing and promotion Jean Christophe Robles
Espinosa.
Brunei is working with Malaysia on creating an
ASEAN Trail of Islamic Heritage in the region and
promoting Islamic tourism packages both in ASEAN
and internationally. It is also exploring opportunities to work with Sabah and Sarawak on promoting
Data from the Ministry of Tourism indicated that
Cambodia received more than 540,000 visitors from
ASEAN in the first eight months of 2010, representing a 20 per cent hike over the same period in
2009. Around a third of total arrivals to the country
from January to August were ASEAN nationals.
Vietnam topped the ASEAN tally, with its
numbers increasing 50 per cent year-on-year to
302,833. Thailand came in second with 61,545 visitors, followed by Malaysia (52,269), Laos (49,577)
and Singapore (27,757).
Cambodia’s efforts to improve its regional marketshare centre on the country’s hosting of the ASEAN
Tourism Forum (ATF) 2011 in Phnom Penh.
The country is expecting some 1,600 delegates
including 400 international buyers and 100 media
professionals to grace the event. It is thus putting
its best foot forward to showcase its attractions
through pre- and post-ATF tours to Siem Reap and
Sihanoukville, which it is positioning as the region’s
latest beach destination.
Cambodia will also press on with its Kingdom of
Wonder advertising campaign throughout the year.
“To get more visitors from the region, we need to
improve access. We must provide more means to
travel from Thailand, have more flights from Laos
and maybe introduce a daily public bus service
between Cambodia and Laos. There should also
be ease in obtaining visas at border gates. If visa
regulations with Laos and Thailand are relaxed, we
could get a lot of tourists extending their trips in
Cambodia.”
ASEAN is by far Indonesia’s biggest market, contributing between 43 and 45 per cent of total arrivals in
the last few years.
Singapore and Malaysia, in that order, are the
country’s top two source markets. From January to
August 2010, Singapore arrivals grew by 5.07 per
cent year-on-year to 721,403 while Malaysian visitors increased by 14.31 per cent to 709,808.
Sapta Nirwandar, director general of marketing
of Indonesia’s Ministry of Culture and Tourism, said:
“ASEAN will continue to be an important market for
Indonesia. Looking at the trend, there has also been
growing interest from the Philippines and Vietnam.”
Indonesia intends to beef up its presence in its
major markets this year.
Nirwandar said: “We will have around 14 events
in Malaysia and 10 in Singapore. These include
travel fairs, sales missions and events. This way, we
will be hands-on in the markets and can constantly
remind the markets of us.”
One market segment that is showing promise
for the country is the Buddhist community as Indonesia develops a “trail of civilisation” that highlights
its Buddhist temples, including Borobudur. The trail
had been in the market for a few years now and was
finally showing results, said Nirwandar. “In 2009,
400 monks from Myanmar chartered a flight to visit
Brastagi (West Sumatra) for a pilgrimage tour. These
kinds of tours have great potential.”
“The new generation of travellers is easy-going,
wants to try new things and have firsthand experiences. More travellers are into special-interest
tours. Indonesia has a lot to offer these clients.
Beyond Bali and Jakarta, there are Lombok, Komodo
and Raja Ampat (Papua) that would appeal to this
market segment. The government will do well in
promoting more special-interest tours to the ASEAN
market. But access to secondary destinations has to
improve.”
ASEAN arrivals to Laos reached 788,574 from
January to June last year, up 12 per cent over the
same period in 2009. ASEAN accounted for 71.1
per cent of total visitor arrivals.
Thailand dominated the regional chart with
601,277 arrivals in the first half of 2010, contributing 76.2 per cent of ASEAN arrivals. Vietnam was
next with 169,459 visitors. Malaysia (6,516), the
Philippines (4,265) and Cambodia (2,765) rounded
up Laos’ top five markets.
In 2009, ASEAN countries commanded 80.2
per cent of the annual tally due to a strong late-year
surge of Thais and December 2009’s South-east
Asian Games.
To reach the ASEAN crowd, the Lao National Tourism
Association will participate in ATF 2011, the Thailand
Travel Mart, PATA Travel Mart in India and ITB Asia
in Singapore. It will also host the Mekong Tourism
Forum in Pakse in May.
“Improving access is critical. Currently, the bulk of
ASEAN arrivals comes from neighbouring Thailand
and Vietnam as road and air access is easy. But
there are no direct flights from Malaysia, Singapore
or the Philippines. Laos must also understand the
needs of ASEAN visitors who seek low prices, quality
service and culture rather than nature. We must offer multi-country packages, remain flexible and offer
culture-based study tours. Incentives are another
possibility.”
Thailand is Myanmar’s biggest market out of ASEAN.
From January to September 2010, 38,825 Thais
visited the country.
Malaysia contributed 11,124 visitors while Singapore sent 8,336. These three countries accounted
for 28.88 per cent of Myanmar’s total arrivals in the
first nine months of 2009.
Numbers from other ASEAN markets were minimal due largely to the absence of direct air links.
The Ministry of Hotels and Tourism is taking the
bilateral route to increase its ASEAN marketshare.
It has been working with its ASEAN neighbours
through coordination meetings on joint promotion
and marketing activities. This yielded an agreement
in October to join Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam in
promoting the four countries as a single tourism
destination to compete with the more established
countries in the region.
ATF day 4 p14-15,21 intra-ASEAN travel.indd 14
The trade says ...
“Visitors from ASEAN are fond of shopping. To
attract them, Brunei has to become a shopping
destination with malls selling branded goods and
duty-free items. Brunei also needs to attract more
foreign airlines and low-cost carriers (LCCs). Currently, Cebu Pacific and AirAsia are the only two
LCCs servicing Brunei.”
Khirul Zainie
Managing director
MegaBorneo Tour Planner
Om Som Sun
General manager
Mekong Heritage Travel, Phnom Penh
Awan Aswinabawa
CEO
A&T Holiday, Lombok
Sivone Sonepaseuth
Managing director
CEL Travel, Vientiane
“It may be time to rethink the strategy for ASEAN
and focus on yield rather than volume. In general,
good prices and relaxed visa regulations are the key
to attracting more visitors. But suppliers have been
treating the ASEAN market as a cheap segment,
going for volume instead of yield. There are several
well-to-do consumers in the region.”
Aung Naing
Managing director
EPG Travel Company Ltd, Yangon
12/27/10 11:25:45 AM
Malaysia
By S Puvaneswary
The
Philippines
By Ollie Quiniquini
ASEAN marketshare
Marketing to the region
The trade says ...
ASEAN is Malaysia’s tourism powerhouse, accounting for nearly 16.2 million or 76.41 per cent of
total arrivals in the first eight months of 2010. This,
however, was a slight decline over the same period
in 2009 when ASEAN contributed 77.16 per cent of
the country’s arrivals.
Singapore topped the ASEAN tally from January to August last year, with more than 8.5 million
visitors. Indonesia was a far second with around
1.6 million arrivals, followed by Thailand (954,687),
Brunei (729,000) and the Philippines (326,546).
Numbers from Cambodia and the Philippines
both grew 10.4 per cent, albeit on a low base. Thailand was the only ASEAN country to post negative
growth, falling 1.5 per cent.
Tourism Malaysia is going niche in ASEAN as it
pushes special-interest products and events such as
the Petronas Malaysian F1 Grand Prix, the Genting
Trailblazer and the Rainforest World Music Festival.
The NTO is going after the niche, high-end segment of the ASEAN market by promoting dive sites,
UNESCO World Heritage site Mulu National Park
in Sarawak, Danum Valley in Sabah and Langkawi
Geopark, among others.
Tourism Malaysia would also highlight art tourism to bring in more affluent travellers, said deputy
director general (marketing) Amirrudin Abu.
Rural communities will not be neglected as the
NTO will promote homestay programmes and support agent consortiums in Malaysia and Singapore
for the Malaysia Rail Tourism tour packages.
“The government recently removed import duty on
around 300 items to promote Malaysia as a shopping destination. Local retailers should capitalise
on ASEAN tourists’ love for shopping and work
with travel agents and Tourism Malaysia’s overseas
offices to push Malaysia as Asia’s shopping haven.
The NTO’s overseas offices must highlight the
diversity of cultures in the country as this is what
makes Malaysia, Truly Asia, as opposed to many
other ASEAN countries that are mono-cultural. The
homestay programme should also be hyped up more
as this would really appeal to ASEAN visitors.”
ASEAN remains a largely untapped market for the
Philippines still.
From January to September 2010, the region
accounted for less than 10 per cent of arrivals.
ASEAN numbers came up to 216,389 – while a
16.2 per cent increase over the same period in
2009, this was still just 8.4 per cent of the country’s
total visitors tally.
The Philippines’ top five ASEAN markets
during this period were Singapore, Malaysia,
Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam. Singapore has
been consistently topping the ASEAN list, growing
at an annual average of 15.8 per cent for the last
five years. Indonesia and Vietnam have also been
showing much promise, with the former posting
annual average hikes of 9.2 per cent.
The Department of Tourism (DoT) will embark on
product-focused campaigns to highlight the Philippines’ new activities and attractions.
DoT assistant secretary Benito Bengzon
said: “We will continue our aggressive stance in
the region through roadshows, participation in
international trade fairs, fams for media and agents,
and joint promotional campaigns with partner
airlines and hotels.”
The NTO intends to zero in on Indonesia this
year, particularly the “upscale Indo-Chinese market
segment that loves shopping, entertainment, casinos
and nightlife”, Bengzon added.
In late 2009, the DoT closed its ASEAN regional
office in Singapore and appointed marketing
representatives in Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam.
TTG_180x114mm_dez_4.pdf
Khadijah Abd Raman
Managing director
RM Travel & Tours
“It’s timely that the Philippines is working on its strategic marketing plan. The country is already on the
right track by declaring its intention to have pocket
open skies to attract more flights. Accessibility is the
first step in gaining marketshare.”
Aileen Clemente
President
Rajah Travel Corporation
12/23/10
– Continued on page 21
10:02:55 AM
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CMY
K
ATF day 4 p14-15,21 intra-ASEAN travel.indd 15
12/27/10 11:25:48 AM
Vietnam: Briefing
Halong Bay
Vying for the spotlight
Suppliers, developers and investors make a beeline for Vietnam as it soars in popularity.
NTO
The Vietnam National Administration of Tourism
(VNAT) started a competition
in August 2010 to search for a
new 2011-2015 tourism logo
and slogan to replace the current
Vietnam – The Hidden Charm,
which has been used in the country’s global tourism advertising
campaigns from 2005 to 2010.
In 2009, Vietnam launched
the Vietnam – Your Destination
tourism promotional campaign
with sub-themes such as Friendly
Vietnam Welcomes You; Impressive Grand Sale in Hanoi, Danang
and Ho Chi Minh City; and Back
to the Origin for overseas Vietnamese. The campaign helped to
increase foreign visitor numbers
by 34.2 per cent in the first nine
months of 2010 over the same
period in 2009, contributing 3.7
million arrivals.
To stimulate more tourist arrivals, the government waived
entry visa fees for foreign tourists
who visited the country in the
last three months of 2010. The
country aimed to welcome 4.2
million foreign visitors last year,
with some industry optimists expecting the target of five million
arrivals to be reached.
Visitor numbers are expected
ATF day4 p16,18 Vietnam.indd 16
to grow by 10 to 15 per cent annually over the next five years.
Commission. To date, Air France
and LOT Polish Airlines are the
two EU carriers that operate direct flights between Vietnam and
European cities while Lufthansa
operates flights via Bangkok.
Access
In 2010, Vietnam Airlines launched eight
routes that linked three key Vietnamese cities with China, Myanmar, Japan and Hong Kong.
All Nippon Airways also increased its Tokyo-Ho Chi Minh
City service from five-weekly to a
daily flight, while Qatar Airways
launched a four-weekly DohaHanoi service and increased its
Doha-Ho Chi Minh City frequency from four to seven flights
a week.
Meanwhile, LOT Polish Airlines introduced a thrice-weekly
service between Warsaw and Hanoi, and Air France resumed its
Paris-Ho Chi Minh City service
after a six-year suspension, with
three flights a week.
The October 2010 aviation
agreement between Vietnam and
European Union (EU) member
states is expected to result in increased direct air access from Europe. It will allow any EU airline
to operate flights between any
EU member state and Vietnam,
where a bilateral agreement exists and traffic rights are available, according to the European
Hotels
“Vietnam is a hot
destination. There is
a lot of demand for
the country as it now
offers a range of products and services and
better air access than
five years ago.”
James Reed
CEO and group managing director
Destination Asia
Vietnam had
345 hotels and 36,911 rooms
nationwide as of December
2009, according to a survey by
property research firm Grant
Thornton.
In 2010, the country welcomed
more four- and five-star hotels
such as the 284-room Sheraton
Nha Trang, the 182-room Life
Resort Danang, the 393-room
Crowne Plaza West Hanoi and
the newly-branded 287-room
Mövenpick Saigon.
Starwood Hotels and Resorts
will open the 242-room Sheraton
Hoi An Resort and Spa this year,
ahead of the 2012 openings of Le
Meridien Saigon in Ho Chi Minh
City and The Westin Resort &
Spa, Cam Ranh.
Accor will also open a slew of
properties in the next two years,
including three Pullman hotels
and about 800 rooms in Danang,
Hanoi and Vung Tau; 111-room
Hotel De L’Opera; 230-room
Novotel Hoi An Imperial and
279-room Mercure Danang.
Best Western International
will expand its Vietnam portfolio
from one to three hotels when it
opens the 60-room Best Western
Dalat and 200-room Best Western Premier Nha Trang this year.
Rates
Patrick Basset,
Accor’s vice president operations
for Vietnam, the Philippines,
Japan and South Korea, said Vietnam experienced a slight pricing reset due to the slowdown
in travel following the global
economic crisis and new supply
entering the market.
Although demand and markets improved in 2010 in Hanoi
and Ho Chi Minh City, Basset said competition remained
strong and Vietnam needed more
rooms to attract its fair share of
the South-east Asian market.
According to Grant Thornton’s 2010 Hotel Survey, five-star
hotels ran at 53.3 per cent occupancy and US$130 a night in
2009, down from 2008’s rates of
56.9 per cent and US$195 respectively. Four-star hotels registered
53.8 per cent occupancy and
US$78 a night, down from 60.7
per cent and US$118 respectively
in 2008.
12/27/10 11:23:34 AM
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Vietnam: insider
Products
Room and access boost holds destination in good stead for tourism
Artist’s impression of the new Phu Quoc Airport
Phu Quoc Airport
What The new Phu Quoc
Airport, occupying around
25,500m2, will be able to handle
seven million passengers per
year.
A project of the Southern
Airports Corporation, the
airport in southern Vietnam’s
Kien Giang province is slated
for completion by October this
year. It is being built according
to international standards, both
in design and facilities.
Contact
Website www.vietnamtourism.
gov.vn
Outrigger Vinh Hoi Bay
Resort and Spa
What The Outrigger Vinh Hoi
Bay Resort and Spa, opening in
2013, will have 210 guestrooms
and 47 villas.
Facilities include six F&B
outlets, a cooking school, a wellness centre, an amusement zone
for kids and teenagers, a fitness
centre, a library, an adventure
centre and retail outlets.
The resort will be co-designed
and managed by Outrigger
Hotels and Resorts Asia and
developer Vietnamese American
Hotel and Resort. It will be part
of the integrated Vinh Hoi Bay
Golf Resort, which comprises
four hotels and covers 325 hectares of beachfront land.
Located on Vietnam’s central
coast, the resort is 29km north
of Quy Nhon in Binh Dinh
province, between Danang and
Nha Trang.
Contact
Email [email protected]
beachfront land, the integrated
development is located about
an hour by car from both Hue
and Danang international
airports.
Once completed, it will
be one of Vietnam’s first
integrated resorts, said to be a
replica of Banyan Tree’s flagship
Laguna Phuket in Thailand.
The first phase of Laguna Hue
is expected to be ready by 2012.
Contact
Website www.banyantree.com
What Accor, together with
investment firm Benthanh
Group, will develop at least
eight ibis properties in key cities
such as Hanoi and Danang. The
300-room Ibis Saigon Centre,
a current project, is expected to
open in 2012.
Also in the pipeline is the 170room Ibis Saigon South, which
is being developed by Viethan
Hotel Joint Stock.
The new properties will give
Accor a portfolio of 10 Ibis hotels
in Vietnam by 2012.
Ten other hotels under Accor
brands Pullman, Novotel,
Mercure and MGallery Collection will open over this year and
next.
Contact
Website www.accorhotels.com
Ibis Saigon Centre
Sheraton Nha Trang Hotel & Spa
Ten Ibis hotels by 2012
Starwood projects
What Starwood Hotels and
Resorts will open at least four
properties in Vietnam within the
next four years. These projects
follow the March 2010 opening
of the 284-room Sheraton Nha
Trang Hotel and Spa, which
makes it three for Starwood
in the country. In the pipeline
are 242-room Sheraton Hoi
An Resort and Spa opening in
2011, 330-room Westin Resort
& Spa, Cam Ranh in 2012 and
349-room Le Meridien Danang
Resort and Spa in 2013.
Contact
Website www.starwoodhotels.
com
Laguna Hue
What The US$200 million
Laguna Hue development will
include two resorts – Banyan
Tree Hue and Angsana Hue –
with 350 rooms, an 18-hole golf
course designed by Nick Faldo,
and residences.
Occupying 280 hectares of
My choices
Vietnam
compiled by sirima Eamtako
Duncan MacLean
General manager
Furama Resort Danang
David Mannix
General manager
Intrepid Travel Vietnam
Pham Ha
CEO
Luxury Travel Company
What is your biggest
challenge in 2011?
With the expected 49 per cent increase in
available hotel room supply in Danang and
Hoi An, the challenge is to have the hotels
running at a reasonable occupancy rate. But
the present flight services and frequencies
serving the destinations are not enough to
increase arrival numbers significantly. It is
important to have direct flights from Bangkok
serviced by reasonably good-sized aircraft.
The biggest challenge is to stay ahead of
the game in an increasingly competitive
environment. Vietnam is riding a wave of
very impressive growth and there are many
international and local companies that want a
piece of the pie. With so many new entrants
in the marketplace, keeping prices competitive while maintaining service quality is the
main challenge for a company of our size.
Obtaining a 30 per cent growth in 2011
should be our biggest challenge as the world
economy is still very fragile and the economic
recovery in Europe and North America is
gradual. We (may face) some difficulties in
increasing sales volume and arrival numbers
from longhaul markets.
Has ASEAN taken off as a
single destination?
No, I do not think it has and I do not think it
will for a very long time. From the traveller’s
perspective, I have not seen any joint promotions or advertisements that promote any
or all destinations under the ASEAN banner.
Awareness of this “campaign” is very low.
Although the ASEAN nations are in the same
region, I don’t think it will ever be a single
travel destination, and I’m sure tourists don’t
think of it that way either. Destinations tend to
be grouped into smaller geographical regions
such as Indochina or single destinations such
as the Philippines and Indonesia.
Absolutely yes. ASEAN is a perfect single
destination. There are many diverse and
attractive ASEAN countries with a huge population of 600 million – many of them are able
to travel easily within the region. And with
low-cost carriers offering low fares, people
are encouraged to travel more.
Which ASEAN destination,
apart from yours, are you most
impressed with and why?
I am most impressed with Myanmar because
of its rich culture and beautiful traditions. This
country has huge potential and is only held
back by its political situation. Myanmar is still
a relatively unknown country to foreigners
and is attractive to those looking for new and
exciting experiences.
From a tourism perspective, Thailand
stands out as it has been presented to the
marketplace in a colourful and impactful way,
thanks to the consistent and strategic efforts
of the Tourism Authority of Thailand.
Myanmar, Indonesia (Bali), Thailand (Phuket),
Malaysia and Singapore are high-demand
destinations. Their efforts in promoting
themselves have definitely paid off.
ATF day4 p16,18 Vietnam.indd 18
12/27/10 11:23:45 AM
IT&CM China 2011 2011中国（上海）国际奖励旅游及大会博览会
13 -15 April 2011 | ShanghaiMart Expo
2011年4月13-15日 |
上海世贸商城
引领中国MICE行业新浪潮
Leading China’s
Next MICE Wave
中国(上海)国际奖励旅游
及大会博览会
Bringing Together Chinese and International
MICE Exhibitors & Buyers In One Dynamic Marketplace.
汇聚全球以及中国MICE 供应商和买家共同打造一个瞬息万变的市场
Have You Registered to Experience the IT&CM China Advantage?
您是否已经注册并享受到中国（上海）国际奖励旅游及大会博览会的独特优势？
Business 商业机遇
• 32 Appointment Sessions. Guaranteed. 32场商业约谈。绝对保证。
• MICE Exhibition Showcase 会奖旅游资源展示
84% of 2010 exhibitors expect to receive orders in the next 6 to 12 months
2010年的参展商中，84%预期将在之后的6至12个月收到订单。
Business generated per exhibiting company reached up to USD
1 million
中国（上海）国际奖励旅游及大会博览会平均为每家参展公司创造了价值高达100万美元
的业务。
2010 exhibitors choose
IT&CM China to:
2010年展商选择中国（上海）国际奖励旅游及大会博览会的理由是：
- Generate New Sales Leads 增加新的销售
- Promote Company, Products & Services 推广公司、产品以及服务
- Network 社交
- Stay Competitive 保持竞争力
Learning 学习
• Seminar Sessions 研讨会
Play 娱乐
• Networking Functions 交流活动
• Pre and Post Show Tours 旅游
Hosting Programme For
Buyers and Media Available.
为买家和媒体特设的招待计划现在开始申请。
Last Call for Registrations
报名从速，请抓紧时间报名注册
Exhibitors 参展商| Buyers 买家| Media 媒体
www.itcmchina.com
Organised by
Local Host
FOR INTERNATIONAL
EXHIBITORS, BUYERS AND MEDIA
国际展商、买家和媒体，请您联系
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FOR CHINA-BASED
EXHIBITORS, BUYERS AND MEDIA
中国展商、买家和媒体，请您联系
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Tel 电话 : (65) 6395 7575 Fax 传真: (65) 6536 0896
Email 电子邮箱: [email protected]
Tel 电话: (86) 021 6295 9990 Fax 传真: (86) 021 6270 6030
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ITCMChina2011_TTGChinaFP_260X380NEW FA.indd 1
Supported by
12/20/10 11:37:08 AM
www.atfindonesia.com
Tourism For A Global Community Of Nations
ATF 2012 TRAVEX | 13 to 15 January 2012
The ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) is a cooperative regional effort to promote the ASEAN region as one tourist
destination where Asian hospitality and cultural diversity is at its best.
Come attend this trade-only mart as:
Buyers
Exhibitors
Be part of the ATF 2012 exhibitor delegation
and represent your country to some 500 Buyers
and Media! Open to travel trade suppliers from the
10 ASEAN destinations only: Brunei Darussalam,
Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar,
Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
HOSTING PROGRAMME AVAILABLE
Keen to buy into ASEAN? ATF 2012 showcases the
largest contingent of ASEAN destination products and
services. Come gather the latest information on
ASEAN tourism products and services, establish new
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trade.
Media
HOSTING PROGRAMME AVAILABLE
Get the latest scoop on ASEAN travel trade news,
developments and trends! ATF is ASEAN’s foremost
annual travel trade event, well-attended by media
from around the world. Editorial representatives from
established travel trade media publications are eligible
for the hosting programme!
Participation Details, Hosting Programme and Online Registration Available At:
www.atfindonesia.com
HOST COMMITTEE
TRAVEX SECRETARIAT
Ministry Of Culture And Tourism
Republic Of Indonesia
Sapta Pesona Building
Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat No. 17, Jakarta 10110
Tel: +62 21 383 8167 • Fax: +62 21 384 9715
Email: [email protected]
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1/5/11 3:23:51 PM
News/INTRA-ASEAN TRAVEL
Trend watch
1
UK medical tourists are
Asia-bound
UK-BASED Y. S. Travel has seen
a 10 per cent jump in medical
tourism to Singapore, Malaysia,
Thailand and India since last
year. Managing director Yusuf
Seedat said many UK residents
had been travelling overseas for
treatments as total package cost,
inclusive of travel, medical procedures and hotels, is around
half the price of the procedure in
the UK. Insurance companies are
also paying agents to send their
clients overseas for treatment.
2
Luxury diversification
TRIWAY Travels Bangalore has
started a luxury outbound unit
to make up for the drop in revenues from airline commission
cuts. Triway Vacations offers tailormade and exclusive itineraries
to the Indian high-end market.
Russian turnaround
New destinations and cultural elements now order of the day
By Brian Higgs and
S Puvaneswary
THE TIDE is changing in Russia as more travellers seek new
destinations and unique cultural
experiences. And Asia fits this
new bill perfectly, say Russian
operators.
Natalia Shiknikova, travel
manager of Moscow-based Anteco Luxury Travel, said: “Russians are tired of the usual destinations in Europe and America.
They want to go to new places,
and Asia is important because of
the variety it offers.” Anteco’s new
packages, for example, include
tours of Papua New Guinea.
Spurred by this new trend,
Saint Petersburg-based Pitertour
is seeking partners in Laos, Myanmar, Brunei and the Philippines. Operation manager Irina
Dorokhina explained: “Russians
used to go mostly to Bali. Now,
Vietnam is popular. But many
operators already sell these, and
we want to be different.”
Moscow-based Alliance Online Travel is likewise looking
for suppliers in the Philippines,
Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos.
General manager Catherine
Kholodok is zeroing in on Cambodia for sightseeing tours and
plans to gradually introduce Myanmar and Laos programmes.
Language barriers, however,
could stymie the uptake for new
destinations such as Cambodia,
said Kholodok. “Asia has really
good prices but it’s mainly attracting those who can speak
English. We have to solve this
problem,” she said, pointing
out that more Russian-speaking
guides were needed.
Russians are also increasingly
incorporating local experiences
in their holidays.
Elena Dyakova, director of
Khabarovsk-based Tour Agency
Amur Voyage, has been getting
more requests to combine historical and cultural experiences
with beach stays. She now combines tours of Bali with visits to
Borobudur and sees Cambodia
as a rising star that lends itself
well to beach-and-culture (Angkor Wat) itineraries.
Old favourites, Thailand
and Bali, are not out of the picture though. Tour operators in
Khabarovsk report a spike in demand, thanks to Pegas Touristik’s
charters to Bangkok and Phuket
since early 2009 and to Bali from
last October.
Hot leads
Jumbo leap for Asia hotels
SPAIN’s jumbonline.com will
add hotels in Asia to its portfolio
this year. Director Franco Bracotto aims to have 20,000 hotels
on the online B2B platform by
year-end, with new additions
in Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong
Kong, Cambodia, Brazil and
the US. The booking engine has
11,000 hotels in Europe, North
Africa, the US and Mexico. It
provides XML bookings to 130
big accounts, including Thomas
Cook, and delivered two million
passengers last year.
Cambodia-Vietnam interest
ARFEL Tours Philippines
is seeking accommodation
and tours in Cambodia and
Vietnam for its student groups
in June and July and a meeting
in November. The budget per
person is US$800 to US$900,
inclusive of airfare, for six days.
Rise of regional markets
Continued from page 15
Singapore
By Gracia Chiang
Thailand
By Sirima Eamtako
Vietnam
ASEAN member countries generated around 3.04
million visitors for Singapore in the first eight months
of last year, accounting for some 40 per cent of total
arrival numbers. This was a 33.5 per cent yearon-year increase compared to the same period in
2009. The top five ASEAN markets were Malaysia,
Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam.
Leong Yue Kheong, Singapore Tourism Board
(STB) assistant chief executive – international group,
attributed the growth to “improved travel sentiment
due to robust regional economies, the draw of the
new integrated resorts, various marketing initiatives
by STB’s regional offices and tactical promotions by
airlines and hotels”.
At press time, STB could not divulge strategies and
targets for 2011 as planning was still ongoing. A
spokesperson said details would only be revealed
at the Singapore Tourism Industry Conference early
this year.
ASEAN numbers grew 12.14 per cent from January
to September 2010 to over 3.1 million, around 27.7
per cent of total arrivals during this period.
Malaysia was Thailand’s top ASEAN market,
growing 15.54 per cent to 1.4 million visitors.
Numbers from Laos fell 5.87 per cent to 466,720
while Singapore arrivals grew 15.55 per cent
to 415,949. Vietnam came in fourth, increasing
by 7.03 per cent to 278,824 arrivals. Indonesia
rounded up the top five with a 37.85 per cent hike
to 205,890 visitors.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) will press
on with its Amazing Thailand – Always Amazes
You campaign that will focus on activities popular
among Asian visitors, including those from ASEAN.
Sub-campaigns include Amazing Thailand Shopping Paradise and Amazing Thailand Golf Paradise.
The TAT will also leverage Thailand’s geographic
advantage as a gateway to the Greater Mekong
Subregion (GMS) by air (258 weekly flights between
Thailand and the five GMS destinations), road (two
existing and two upcoming bridges to Laos) and
water (Mekong River).
“As long as the Thai political situation remains
stable, ASEAN travellers will want to visit Thailand,
which is already an established destination for these
markets. Visitors from Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar
and Vietnam come for shopping and medical visits
while Singaporeans take advantage of low-cost carrier access to enjoy value-for-money products. But
Thailand can improve standards of service providers
when it comes to language as well as rules and
regulations to curb misconduct.”
In the first 10 months last year, Vietnam recorded
4.17 million arrivals, a 39 per cent growth over the
same period in 2009.
Cambodia topped the list of ASEAN arrivals with
217,389 visitors. This represented an astounding
97.2 per cent jump that can be largely attributed
to better access, thanks to Cambodia Angkor Air’s
July 2009 launch and a recent visa-free arrangement between the two countries. Thailand was the
second-largest ASEAN market, growing 41.1 per
cent to 181,122 visitors. Malaysia took third place
with a 28.4 per cent increase to 167,201 arrivals.
At press time, the Vietnam National Administration of
Tourism was expected to announce its new tourism
slogan and logo for 2011 to 2015. This would
replace the “Vietnam – The Hidden Charm” brand,
which the country adopted in 2005.
“Economies in ASEAN are recovering fast, and
visitors from the region are neither difficult nor
demanding. Vietnam can easily attract them with
reasonable prices and a wide variety of tourism
products, from history and culture to beaches. The
key to increasing marketshare, however, is visa exemptions. Better access and road links with neighbouring countries would also help. Moreover, most
ASEAN tourists like to shop so Vietnam could have
more shopping facilities and sales. Tour guides must
also be able to speak various ASEAN languages.”
“ASEAN can produce volume but most ASEAN markets look for budget packages. Almost 80 per cent
of agencies I met at a recent travel mart in Indonesia
were sourcing for low-tier and budget accommodation. Wholesalers, I was told, were marking up room
rates by as low as S$1 (US$0.77) per roomnight. So
to attract more ASEAN tourists, we have to extend
good rates, accept lower yield to secure deals, and
respond fast. Agencies in Asia communicate with
us on MSN for instant information, unlike those in
international markets who use email.
Jaclyn Yeoh
Managing director
Siam Express Singapore
Nino Jotikasthira
Regional director Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia – FIT
Hotelbeds
Pham Ha
CEO
Luxury Travel Company
Snapshots
ATF delegates are on a roll!
Enthusiastic buyers and sellers keep the show floor and booths buzzing with activity. By Patrick Tan
Chumpol Silapa-archa, Thailand’s Minister of Tourism and Sport,
arrives at ATF 2011 with a warm smile
Tourism Authority of Thailand’s
Sansern Ngaorungsi
Agoda International Malaysia’s Chan H Gee, Sunway Hotel Georgetown’s Siti Sajada Salleh, Sunway Resort Hotel & Spa Malaysia’s
Jeffrey Hanafiah, Vanity Travel & Tours Agency Philippines’ Celia L
Magno Ranara, Sunway Hotel Hanoi’s Dao Thi Thu Hien Cherry, Sunway Resort Hotel & Spa Malaysia’s Harjeet Kaur, Sunway International Hotels & Resorts Malaysia’s Fanny Ng and Sunway Hotel Phnom
Penh’s Pheakdey Kong Helen
Fortuna Hotel Hanoi’s Ngo Thanh Huong Vera, Vietnam Airlines’ Bui
Bich Ngoc, Ministry of Culture, Sports & Tourism Vietnam’s Bui Duy
Hung and Fortuna Hotel Hanoi’s Dam Xuan Minh Charlie
Amara Singapore’s Winnie
Chew, Grupo Trans Hotel
Spain’s Bert Goethals and
Amara Sanctuary Resort
Sentosa’s Frankie Lam
Ministry of Tourism Cambodia’s Heng Sodany, Hul Seila, So Visothy, Plong Thoeun, H E Chea Bora, Lor
Thoura, Tek Sophy and Song Tong Hap
Furama Jomtien Beach’s Wanniwat Srisupapol, Furama International Thailand’s Pittayapath Jiracharoenporn Pete, Furama International Singapore’s
Ivan Chan, Furama Xclusive Villas & Spa Indonesia’s Ramia Adnyana, Best
Travel Deals Singapore’s Patrick Lee, Luxury Events Portugal’s Cristina
Figueira, Furama International Singapore’s Daphne Sim and Vione Tan, and
Furama Chiang Mai’s Wirachart Wattaphanich
Far East Hotels Singapore’s Alvin Yeoh,
Changi Village Hotel Singapore’s Charles
Goh, Millenium Globalindo Holiday Indonesia’s Eddy and Albert Court Village Hotel
Singapore’s Serrin Sim
Victoria Hotels & Resorts Vietnam’s Irene
Wong, Executive Edge Australia’s Anthony
Brownrigg, Victoria Can Tho Resort’s Vo Xuan
Thu and Victoria Angkor Resort & Spa’s Hanno
Stamm
Raffles Grand Hotel
d’Angkor’s Leah
Holzworth, Raffles
Hotel Singapore’s
Marisa Ng, Swissotel Hotels & Resorts
Singapore’s Karen
Tan, Swissotel Nai
Lert Park Bangkok’s
Allen Howden, Fairmont Singapore’s
Cheryl Yuen and
Swissotel Merchant
Court Singapore’s
Jack Chua
Embassy of Brunei Darussalam’s PG Dato Abu Bakar Ismail (fifth from left) and
Brunei Tourism’s Sheikh Jamaluddin Sheikh Mohamed (sixth from left)
Snapshots
ATF 2011 now in full swing
Optimism is in the air as delegates schedule meetings and get ready to talk shop. Pictures by Patrick Tan
B2B Cambodia (Travel/Tours/MICE)’s Thourn Sinan, Green Earth Cambodia’s
Sam Oeun Ly, Mekong Tourism Coordinating Office’s Mason Florence and 4
Rivers Floating Lodge Cambodia’s Valentin Pawlik
Cambodia’s Ministry of Tourism Secretary of State So Mara and Tourism Minister Dr Thong Khon
with Indonesia’s Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik and Governor of North Sulawesi Dr
Sinyo Harry Sarundayang at the handover ceremony. Indonesia will host ATF 2012 in Manado
Flex Travel Switzerland’s Gunnel Burri and Marina
Blue Pacific Tours & Travel Malaysia’s Anne Tan Bay Sands Singapore’s Kenneth Leong
and Aspen Holidays Malaysia’s Edwin Teng
Asara Villa & Suite Thailand’s Benjaphon Angsaengtham and Moving
Images Pakistan’s Murtaza Ali
A&A Holidays US’ Mario Scozia and
Gran Melia Jakarta’s Tavi Noviana
Ventoteso Italy’s Mara Armanini and Rama Candidasa
Resort & Spa Indonesia’s Komang Astawa
Best Western International Thailand’s Mike Kingpayom and Phakphisut Karcharoen, Best Western Ban Ao Nang Resort and Ao Nang Bay Resort & Spa’s
Kaewrunda Tongmakkul, Sun Trips Thailand’s Euam Akapatangkul, Best
Western International Thailand’s Vivat Sae-Tae, and Best Western Phanganburi Resort’s Risto Honkanen and Ubolphan Kvarme
Victoria Hotels & Resorts Vietnam’s
Irene Wong and Orbitz Worldwide
Thailand’s Valerie Kew
Regency Tours India’s Neeraj Rustagi, Etravel.co.in’s Rajiv
Gokani, Dove Travels India’s Ashwani Gupta and PNB Darby
Park Executive Suites Malaysia’s Badrul Rezal Baharudin
Grand Azure Travel Macedonia’s Zhaklina Gjorshevska and
Slavko Gjorševski
Wanhar Express Travel & Tour Pakistan’s Iftikhar Awan,
Urdam Tours & Travels Pakistan’s M. Asghar Shaheen
and Tourism Malaysia’s Nor’asikin Haron

ASEAN bursts into travel

Transcription

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