By TTG Asia
ROYAL Caribbean International is intending to resume cruise operations in Japan, in view of the stabilised situation there and recent lifting of travel advisories by countries such as Singapore (TTG Asia e-Daily, May 13) and China.
The cruise line will now deploy Legend of the Seas to ports of call in the country, starting with Okinawa on August 1, after its Hong Kong summer season.
The ship will then operate 11 sailings, including a number of charters to destinations such as Okinawa, f*ckuoka, Kagoshima, Beppu, Nagasaki and Hokkaido, from late July to early October.
Royal Caribbean said the sailings were mostly based on the ship’s itineraries originally planned for this year, which do not call at areas affected by the disaster.
By TTG Asia
WITH an election in the country scheduled for July 3, the Thai Hotels Association (THA) is hoping that the incoming government will be able to resolve the industry’s lingering problems.
Addressing members at yesterday’s monthly gathering, THA president Prakit Chinamourphong said the association would urge the new government to address the issues of hotel licensing and zoning.
He said hotels in the country were facing competition from a burgeoning number of serviced apartments operating without a proper license. The demarcation of areas for hotel development would help curb current oversupply in areas such as Bangkok.
According to Prakit, hotels in the Thai capital run with average room rates (ARR) of just above US$100 per roomnight, compared to hotels in Hong Kong and Singapore, with ARR at about US$250.
Hotels in Bangkok finished the first quarter of 2011 with an average occupancy of 60 per cent, a 10 per cent increase over the same period last year.
In May, hotels are expected to run at more than 60 per cent occupancy, up from around 30 per cent occupancy during the same month last year, when the Thai capital was besieged by political unrest and about 20 hotels were forced to close for weeks.
By Sirima Eamtako
By Mimi Hudoyo
GARUDA Indonesia today launched its Makassar-Singapore daily flights, in line with the opening of the South Sulawesi capital as its third hub, after Jakarta and Bali.
Garuda president and CEO, Emirsyah Satar, said: “Makassar is growing fast as a business city and it is strategically located in the eastern part of Indonesia.”
Makassar’s Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport will serve 13 of Garuda’s domestic and regional destinations – Ambon, Balikpapan, Biak, Denpasar, Jakarta, Jayapura, Palu, Surabaya, Gorontalo, Manado, Ternate, Timika and Singapore.
The airline also revealed that its fourth hub would be developed in Medan, Sumatra, serving western Indonesia.
In the meantime, the airline has raised frequencies on a number of regional services, including Jakarta-Beijing from three to five flights per week, Denpasar-Seoul from three- to five-weekly, Jakarta-Singapore from seven to eight times daily, and Jakarta-Bangkok from daily to twice a day.
By TTG Asia
ACCOR is adding 21 new hotels in Indonesia, which will increase its capacity by 4,526 rooms.
The new properties will expand the company’s Indonesian portfolio to 74 hotels, including 40 existing hotels and 13 previously announced properties that are under construction.
The 21 properties include the 316-room Pullman Jakarta Central Park, opening in 2011, as well as the 230-room Novotel Jakarta Gajah Mada, 151-room Kuta Beach Heritage, 604-room ibis Bandung Supermal, 200-room all seasons Bali Nusa Dua, 183-room all seasons Bali Benoa, which are all opening in 2012.
Scheduled to open in 2013 are the 180-room Novotel Banjarmasin Airport, 240-room Mercure Palu, 169-room Mercure Serpong Alam Sutera, 200-room ibis Makassar Losari, 198-room ibis Jakarta Senen, 150-room Formule 1 Semarang, 136-room Formule 1 Bali Kuta Sunset Road, 200-room Formule 1 Jakarta Daan Mogot, 186-room Formule 1 Yogyakarta Jend Sudirman, 120-room all seasons Bali Kuta Dewi Sri, 189-room all seasons Bali Kuta Circle and 196-room all seasons Jakarta Thamrin.
In addition, the 230-room Mercure Pekanbaru, 208-room Novotel Sentul and 240-room ibis Jakarta Cawang are slated to launch in 2014.
By TTG Asia
BANGKOK-based Onyx Hospitality Group’s economy brand concept Ozo will make its inaugural appearance in Hong Kong in February 2012.
The 250-room property, located on Hennessy Road, will undergo an extensive refurbishment before being relaunched as Ozo at the Wesley, Hong Kong, in late 2012.
Peter Henley, CEO of Onyx Hospitality Group, said: “We are truly delighted to have this unparalleled opportunity to debut the Ozo brand in such a prime location in one of the world’s most vibrant cities.”
By TTG Asia
MALAYSIA-based Genting Group is expanding its global operations to Florida with the development of Resorts World Miami, part of its plan to grow its international leisure, hospitality and entertainment business.
“Resorts World Miami will be a landmark mixed-use development for Miami, Florida, and the United States,” said Genting Group chairman and chief executive, Lim Kok Thay.
Having recently purchased a 13.9-acre (5.6-hectare) land parcel from US-based The McClatchy Company for US$236-million, Genting’s masterplan for Resorts World Miami includes a mixed-use development comprising a hotel, residences, and convention, entertainment, restaurant, retail and commercial facilities.
Located in downtown Miami and linked to the South Beach, Resorts World Miami will be located near the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County, as well as the upcoming Museum Park development comprising the Miami Art Museum and Miami Science Museum.
Resorts World Miami will be Genting’s second venture in the United States, after Resorts World New York at the Aqueduct Racetrack in New York.
By Ellen Chen
By TTG Asia
GO VACATION Thailand, based in Bangkok, has chosen Dubai-based Illusions Online to be its one-stop travel technology solutions provider, replacing its four in-house software systems for B2B transactions, accounting, contracting and website.
Go Vacation Thailand managing director, Christoph Mueller, said that while the cost of the switch was “many times” more than what travel technology providers in Thailand would charge, he believed that the investment was worth it.
“We are expecting a 20 per cent increase in business after the first year of operating under this new travel technology,” he said.
Go Vacation Thailand’s new system is expected to go live in November.
Bali-based Go Vacation Indonesia has also signed up to implement Illusion Online’s system, which is scheduled to be fully operational in May next year.
A decision has yet to be made on whether the system will be implemented at Colombo-based Go Vacation Sri Lanka.
– Read the full report in TTG Asia, June 24 issue
By Sirima Eamtako
By TTG Asia
THOMAS Cook India (TCI) is expanding its presence beyond India to the rest of South Asia, and is actively advancing its B2B, MICE, e-business and luxury travel operations.
TCI COO Leisure Travel (inbound), Vishal Suri, told TTG Asia e-daily: “We want to expand beyond India into South Asia. We opened our office in Nepal five months ago, and we’ll open Sri Lanka and Mauritius offices before the winter high season.”
According to Suri, TCI is planning to widen its B2B distribution network to 20 source markets within the next two to three years, through the establishment of 10 self-owned and 10 representative offices. The DMC currently has seven offices abroad, and recently created a small, dedicated team to handle its growing e-business segment. Asia, the Middle East and South America are its emerging markets.
Intending to triple its MICE business from the current eight per cent of total revenue, TCI will triple the size of its MICE team to 28 staff.
TCI is also working to enhance its lucrative luxury business segment with more attractive and personalised offerings, like the option for fast-track immigration.
By Anand & Madhura Katti
By Feizal Samath
SRI Lanka Tourism is planning to launch a five-year tourism master plan to help achieve its ambitious target of 2.5 million visitors by 2016.
Nalaka Godahewa, Sri Lanka Tourism chairman, said that the plan would outline the next development stage of the Sri Lankan travel industry.
“It will be a collective set of ideas, visions and goals put forward by industry members, academics and other parties who share an interest in the local tourism industry. We have reviewed (the input), analysed it and put forward a vision that will guide us over the next five years,” Godahewa was quoted by the Colombo-based Daily News as saying.
Godahewa said that in order for Sri Lanka to become one of the most popular destinations in the world, it would be necessary to concentrate on developing its service standards and quality of products on offer.
Sri Lanka received 278,959 visitors from January to April, up 41 per cent over the same period last year. This year, Sri Lanka is targeting 800,000 arrivals, up from 650,000 in 2010.
By Mimi Hudoyo
THE INDONESIAN Airline Ticketing Agencies Association (ASTINDO) has inquired about the refund procedure for its members’ deposits in Mandala Airlines after the airline resumes operations following fresh investment.
ASTINDO also raised questions about its members’ share in the company after the airline is revamped, with Indonesia’s Saratoga Group set to take a 51 per cent majority; Tiger Airways, 33 per cent; and Mandala’s creditors, including ASTINDO, 16 per cent.
ASTINDO’s head of ticketing division, Pauline Suharno, said: “ASTINDO members’ portion is considered part of the 16 per cent shares belonging to all 345 of Mandala’s creditors. What will our composition be like?”
She said ASTINDO had never approved the conversion of the airline’s debt into shares. “We want the airline to refund our members in cash rather than shares, especially when the share value is not clear.”
Suharno claimed that the agents’ deposits and claims totalled 42 billion rupiah (US$4.9 million), and that the entry of new investors would not benefit creditors.
“Saratoga has been given low prices to be able to acquire the majority of shares,” she explained. “The value is not equal to the price creditors have to pay to convert the airline’s debt into shares.”
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