AVIATION - LuftHansa quits Manila

TTGasia.com, Jan 11 - 17, 2008

Lufthansa’s imminent departure from the Philippines puts additional strain on an already meagre Europe-Philippine seat capacity – and while impact on business should be minimal – raises concerns on air fares, perception and government policies. Lufthansa is discontinuing its daily Frankfurt-Manila service via Guangzhou on March 30. General manager Philippines, Guam and Micronesia, Mr Christopher Zimmer, told TTG Asia pulling out after 26 years was a purely commercial decision. He said: “We have major expansion plans in China and India but capacity at Lufthansa remains the same. We need aircraft to service new routes. KLM is now the only airline plying the Europe-Philippine route with daily non-stop Amsterdam-Manila flights. However, Asian and Middle Eastern carriers also get a substantial share of the Europe-Philippine traffic.

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ACCOMMODATION - Asian hotel sales hit record US$10.8 billion

Traveldailyasia.com, 1/22/2008

Hotel transaction activity in Asia reached US$10.8 billion last year, more than double the previous high of US$5 billion recorded in 2006.
During 2007, the Asian hotel market witnessed 83 major (valued above US$5 million) transactions. Japan recorded the highest transaction activity totalling US$6.8 billion; including four out of the five largest transactions including the IHG / ANA portfolio sold by Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels.
"Asia's hotel markets continue to perform well, driven by strong local economies and expanding leisure markets," said Scott Hetherington, Managing Director Asia, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels.
On average, investors paid approximately US$225,000 per room for hotels across Asia.

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THAILAND - Resort's 'white beach' inflames residents' ire

Bangkokpost, January 23, 2008

Villagers in Phangnga's Takua Thung district have demanded immediate legal action against a resort developer who cut down a lush mangrove forest in the area to create an artificial beach.
Three rai of the mangrove forest, which local people have looked after for 20 years, had already been cleared, he said.
''A few days ago, workers started dumping huge amounts of sand onto the land despite it being a protected forest area,'' said Mr Sommai.
According to villagers, the developer of the White Sand Villa project bought a seven-rai block of land adjacent to the protected mangrove forest two years ago and planned the construction of a luxury resort and pier.
''We are not against business development in our community, but it must not destroy our traditional way of life and our precious natural resources,'' he said.
Local people's loyalties had been divided by cash poured into the community by the resort developer.

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MIDDLE-EAST - Saudi women traveling solo can now stay in hotels

eTN, Jan 22, 2008

Women in Saudi Arabia can now stay in a hotel or a furnished apartment without a male guardian, Al Watan newspaper reported. This, following a government decision that comes as the country faces increasing criticism for its severe restrictions on women. The daily paper, deemed close to the Saudi government, reported Monday that a circular from the Saudi government authorizing hotels to accept lone women as long as their information is sent to a local police station.
The decision was adopted after a study conducted by the Saudi Ministry of Interior, the Supreme Commission of Tourism and the religious police authority known as the Commission for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, reported the Al Watan.

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AVIATION - More Stars in the sky

expresstravelworld.com, Jan 2008

Star Alliance-the world's biggest airline alliance- recently celebrated its tenth anniversary by inducting two Chinese carriers-Air China based in Beijing and Shanghai Airlines in Shanghai- while its Chief Executives Board unanimously approved Air India's membership in Beijing.
By inducting an Indian carrier, Star has now filled its 'white spots' of India and China. Russia and South America will be next, according to Star CEO Jaan Albrecht. Talks are on with TAM Brazil to replace Varig and restore Star to Latin America. Next year, Turkish Airlines and EgyptAir are expected to join, extending the alliance in South East Europe and North Africa. Air India will become a member once integration of its systems to align with those of Star is completed within 15-18 months, said chairman and managing director, Vasudevan Thulasidas, who specially flew to Beijing for the announcement.

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BALI - Indian tourists to Bali up 81%

The Financial express, Jan 17 2008

The number of Indian tourists visiting Bali in the first eleven months of 2007, jumped 81.6% to 19,204 from a year earlier, a tour operator said.
“I believe the number of Indian tourists visiting Bali will continue to increase, because the Indian and Balinese people have many things in common,” Cokorda Agung, the tour operator, said.

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VIETNAM - Resort projects proliferate in central Vietnam

thanhniennews.com, January 16, 2008

Gia Minh Conic Company broke ground last Saturday on its Conic-Lang Co resort project with an investment of VND400 billion (US$25 million).
Two other high-end resorts also began construction last December and should be in operation by 2010.
Singapore-based Banyan Tree Hotels and Resorts has just received the investment certificate from Thua Thien-Hue Province’s People’s Committee for a $1 billion project, the largest ever eco-tourism resort in the province.
The project is designed to contain seven high-end hotels with a total of 2,000 rooms, an 18-hole golf course, and areas for meeting and shopping.

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THAILAND - Marine tourism the cornerstone of 4-year provincial development plan

Phuketgazette, January 18, 2008

The provincial government’s next four-year development plan aims to establish the island as a world-class marine tourism destination by 2012 while sustaining annual 10% increases in tourism-industry revenue over the four-year period starting in 2009.The ambitious plan, drawn up by the Governor’s Office, was presented to elected local officials and representatives of government agencies at a meeting at the Phuket Merlin Hotel yesterday afternoon.The event was chaired by Phuket Governor’s Office Chief Rapeepat Na Nakorn in place of Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit, who left Phuket yesterday on a study trip to Spain and Portugal.Gov Niran plans to visit marinas, deep sea ports and medical facilities in both countries before his return on January 25.

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AUSTRALIA - Tourism reverses as more check out than in

Theage.com.au, January 21, 2008

FOR the first time in almost 20 years, the number of Australians going overseas for their holidays is poised to overtake the number of foreign tourists coming here, as one market booms and the other stagnates.
Preliminary estimates by the Bureau of Statistics suggest that foreign tourism into Australia stagnated again last year. Tourist numbers totalled 5.65 million, a rise of just 2%, on top of a rise of just 0.6% in 2006.
In sharp contrast, the number of Australians holidaying overseas shot up 11% in the 11 months to November, and has risen more than 60% in the past four years, as fears of terrorism have subsided and the dollar's value has soared.

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CAMBODIA - to double luxury golf courses by 2010: official

AFP, 19-01-2008

Cambodia doubled its number of luxury golf courses last year to four and hopes to have eight by 2010 in a bid to lure more high-end tourism from the fast-growing sport in Asia, officials said Thursday.
Cambodia in 2007 opened its only two PGA-rated courses in the popular tourist town on Siem Reap, in northwest Cambodia near the famed Angkor temples which remain the country's biggest draw for foreign visitors.
A third course backed by South Korean investors is expected to open in Siem Reap in 2009, said Suos Yara, secretary general of Cambodia Golf Association.
Three other multi-million-dollar golf projects are also under construction near the capital Phnom Penh and along the border with Vietnam, with another planned near the seaside resort of Sihanoukville, he told AFP.

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REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS - Thailand-based developer's foray into Langkawi signals a new trend

Bangkokpost.com, January 21, 2008

As he sees it, Langkawi's emergence is not a threat to Phuket and actually complements the Thai resort island. The trend, he believes, is to view the whole Thai-Malaysian-Singaporean peninsular area as the ''Caribbean of the East''.
''Stretching from the Andaman Sea is Phangnga, Phuket, Krabi, the coastal area of Trang, then there is Langkawi, the coastal area of Penang all the way down to Singapore, then the northern islands of Indonesia,'' notes Mr Lai. ''From there it goes back up the Gulf of Thailand to Pattaya and from there a little bit east to Rayong and then Sihanoukville in Cambodia. This area is now being identified as the Caribbean of the East and I think this trend will become more and more obvious and significant.

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BALI - to Spend US$538,000 on Tourism Promotion

Balidiscovery.com, (1/19/2008)

Tempo Interaktif reports that the Provincial Government of Bali will spend Rp. 5 billion (US$538,000) on tourism promotion from a total tourism budget of Rp. 11 billion (US$1.18 million) for the Island.The Head of the Bali Tourism Authority, Gde Nurjaya told Tempo that Bali is targeting 1.9 foreign visitors in 2008, explaining, "that is a realistic figure because last year the number of foreign tourists hit 1.6 million."The 2007 figures represented a marked improvement from 2006 when 1.2 million (Editor: 1.26 million) foreign visitors came to Bali.

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CHINA - booming budget hotels profit from no frills

eTN, Jan 16, 2008

The number of budget hotel rooms has mushroomed in the past eight years from practically zero to over 100,000 with more than 100 brands competing for a bite of China's rapidly expanding domestic tourism market. More than a 100 brands have emerged.
The fast-developing Chinese budget hotel industry resembles the U.S. motel boom of the 1950s, which was fuelled by tourism and expanding highways.
"China has a population four times that of the U.S, and the potential to be the world's biggest budget hotel market," said Wang Lie, chief financial officer at budget chain Hanting Hotels.
Big and small Chinese investors, plus foreign heavyweights such as Morgan Stanley, Warburg Pincus and Merrill Lynch, are piling into the industry, even though fierce competition and sinking room rates now threaten to hurt profits.

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FIJI - Cruising is booming

matangitonga.to, 11 Jan 2008

In the words of Japan's Nippon Maru owners (Mitsui OSK) - "the South Pacific has an image of paradise and our cruisers want more of it."So regional tourism organisation south-pacific.travel, with support from ProInvest, has drafted a cruise strategy for the region. Former Pacific Asia Travel Association VP Peter Semone lead the strategy development. Semone has identified four Beacons to enable the South Pacific to capture its due share of the global cruise boom.Beacon 1 is about shore excursions and land based services. People want interesting things to do ashore after days at sea, so ports of call need to ensure a variety of creative shore excursions.

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BALI - Organic farming takes root in post-bomb Bali

Inside Indonesia 91: Jan-Mar 2008

Since the second bombing in 2005, tourism numbers have slowly returned to something resembling pre-bomb levels. The memories have faded, the tourism fantasy has gradually reasserted itself, and a real post-tourism economy has yet to take shape. Some seeds of it have been sown though, mostly in the form of enterprises that feed off or into tourism in various ways: a shift from providing tourism facilities to longer-term expatriate and business accommodation, meeting and conference facilities, international hospitals and health centres. The smart operators, the big players, have quietly moved at least some of their investment out of tourism into real estate, or anything less vulnerable than tourism.
Earlier this decade it seemed rice-farming might die out altogether in Bali
At the same time, somewhat less spectacularly, the agriculture sector has begun to transform itself, from the production of rice and subsidiary crops for subsistence, to a growing emphasis on cash crops. While some of the problems of Balinese agriculture have been exacerbated by tourism-driven prosperity and cultural modernisation, tourism has also provided new opportunities for agriculture, including a growing range of niche markets for premium and healthy foods for hotels, restaurants and the expatriate community.

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THAILAND - Holiday season sees B2bn boon for tourism sector

PHUKETGAZETTE, Jan 9 2008

Businesses in Phuket’s tourism sector enjoyed a prosperous festive season, with many hotels fully booked and more than 2 billion baht generated by the industry during the period December 24 through January 2.Runjuan Tongrut, assistant director of Tourism Authority of Thailand Southern Region 4 Office, made the announcement at a press conference on January 2.A large number of Thais and foreigners came to Phuket to celebrate Christmas and the New Year, with many Europeans choosing to stay on the island beyond the New Year, K. Runjuan said.She added that an estimated five million people visited Phuket last year, which equated to an estimated 95 billion baht generated by the tourism industry in Phuket.

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CAMBODIA - largest airport planned for seaside resort: minister

RadioAustralia.net.au, 12/01/2008

Cambodia's seaside airport near Sihanoukville is slated to become the country's largest as a new focus is placed on bringing tourists into the area.Tourism Minister Thong Khon told the AFP newsagency the airport would be bigger than Phnom Penh International Airport.A year after its re-opening, service at the Sihanoukville airport remains limited to chartered domestic flights.But plans are underway to make it a regional travel hub, with the first phase of a 200 million-dollar expansion expected to be completed by March.

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INDONESIA - Indonesia's Lion Air to Buy 49% of a Brisbane-based Airline

Balidiscovery.com (1/12/2008)

A number of press reports are suggesting that Indonesian Lion Air (PT Lion Mentari Airlines) is eyeing a 49% share in an Australian domestic air carrier as a possible precursor to establishing a feeder network for the establishment of international flights between Indonesia and Australia.Australian press reports say that discussions are at an advanced stage between Lion Air and Brisbane-based Sky Air World.

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MIDDLE-EAST - meet Jordan’s Aqaba

eTN,Jan 11, 2008

Jordan is continuing to cultivate its new tourism oasis Aqaba to full bloom. It has indeed become, in recent years, a buzzword for business meetings in the Hashemite kingdom. The Gulf can cater to hundreds of delegates expecting high standards in hotels and services, as well as, adequate conference facilities.
Jordan’s tourism calendar is visibly dynamic with ASEZA or the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority’s statused as an autonomous financial and administrative institution responsible for the management, regulation and development of Aqaba.
The peace treaty between Egypt and Jordan has prompted talks of joint ventures and created a promising investment climate. All developments show Jordan becoming the destination of choice at the same time, a country that avails itself suitable investment environment for foreign companies because of ASEZA. Tourism has reached 12 percent of GDP, at one time, before the Middle East peace standoff slowed down tourist traffic.

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MACAU - set to surpass Hong Kong as tourist destination

eTN, Jan 10, 2008

Hong Kong - The number of visitors to Macau jumped almost 23 percent last year, putting the fast-growing gambling haven on track to surpass neighboring Hong Kong.
The tiny, former Portuguese-ruled enclave of about half a million people registered more than 27 million arrivals in 2007, up 22.7 percent from the previous year, according to government statistics.
Hong Kong registered more than 28 million visitor arrivals, an increase of more than 10 percent on 2006 and a record. If growth rates are maintained, Macau will take the lead this year.

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REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS - Tourism as a good Samaritan for the poor

eTN, Jan 09, 2008

Since 2004, SNV and the UNWTO has forged ahead with pro-poor sustainable activities, especially in regions where SNV is active such as West/ East/ Southern Africa, Southeast Asia, the Himalayan region, the Andes/ Amazon region, the Central American region and the Balkans. The organization seeds money to launch activities.
“It is working,” said Dirk Essen, SNV’s chairman and director of the board. For instance, in Lao PDR, two projects in the area of Viengxay in the north-eastern part of the country were completed. There are approximately 200 limestone karst caves of historical and cultural importance. SNV guided in developing and marketing the area, turning the war shelter into a poverty shelter.

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MALAYSIA - Malaysian tourism targeting big spenders next

eTN, Jan 08, 2008

Malaysian tourism has said it is seeking to increase the numbers for mid to long-haul visitors market by 20 percent during its extended Visit Malaysia Year campaign.
"They will in bring in more revenue as they would usually spend twice more than the average tourist," said Malaysian Deputy Tourism Minister Donald Lim, explaining Malaysian tourism's new marketing strategy, following encouraging visitor numbers during its Visit Malaysia Year 2007 campaign.
The tourism ministry has estimated that the campaign brought in 20.7 million tourists, bringing the total receipt to US$13.7 billion.

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PHILIPPINES - Boracay authorities told to enforce construction ban

Philippine Daily Inquirer, 01/05/2008

MANILA, Philippines -- Boracay Island in Aklan continues to bustle with the construction of vacation homes and hotels, and Environment Secretary Lito Atienza isn't at all pleased.
Atienza has warned local government officials they must enforce the moratorium on the construction of structures on the "overloaded" island or face administrative sanctions.
He singled out Malay town Mayor Ciceron Cawaling for ignoring the moratorium imposed by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in August last year and a resolution passed by the municipal council backing the move.

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HONG KONG - Tourist arrivals in HK reach new peak

chinaview.cn, 2008-01-07

Tourist arrivals in Hong Kong surpassed the 28 million-mark in 2007, up 10 percent on 2006, the Hong Kong Tourism Board said Monday.
Once finalized, tourist spending for last year is expected to have grown to more than 130 billion HK dollars (16.7 billion U.S. dollars), breaking the 119.43 billion HK dollars record in 2006.
Per capita spending by overnight arrivals is forecast to be about 5,100 HK dollars compared with 4,799 HK dollars in 2006.
As for same-day in-town visitors, their average per capita spending is expected to rise to about 1,100 HK dollars from 1,015 in 2006.

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VIETNAM - Two-decade FDI attraction tops US$83.1 billion

VNECONOMY, 03/01/2008

Viet Nam has drawn around US$83.1 billion worth of 8,590 foreign direct investment (FDI) projects over the past two decades, according to an official from the Foreign Investment Department.
According to Director of the Department Phan Huu Thang, the FDI flow into Viet Nam increased rapidly during the 1991-96 period before declining from 1997 due to negative effects of the regional financial crisis. The sector, however, started to show signs of recovery since 2000.
Average investment capital of each FDI project has also increased gradually with the exception of several years following the regional financial crisis.
From US$7.5 million per project per year during the 1988-90 period, the figure has almost doubled during the 2006-07 period.

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VIETNAM - Advertising Vietnamese culture through tourism

Nhan Dan Online, January 5, 2008

Minister of Culture, Sport and Tourism Hoang Tuan Anh stressed that the tight co-operation between tourism and culture, between businesses and artists were of great importance in popularising the image of Vietnam to international tourists.
The Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism held a get-together last night at the National Puppetry Theatre, Hanoi between leaders of 12 art organisations of the ministry and representatives of 60 travel agencies. This is the first ever official get-together between tourism managers and artists since the merging of three sectors: culture, sport and tourism.
Minister Hoang Tuan Anh emphasised that travel agencies should introduce international tourists to Vietnam’s heritage such as Hue Royal Court Music, Central Highlands gongs, classical opera and particular, water puppetry so as to develop both Vietnamese culture and tourism.

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CHINA - Tourist arrivals to Three Gorges Dam hit record high in 2007

chinaview.cn, 2008-01-06

China's Three Gorges Dam attracted a record high of 1.25 million tourist arrivals last year, a year-on-year increase of six percent, according to tourism developers.
The dam received 310,000 foreign tourists in 2007, up 35 percent from 2006, said Xu Ting, a marketing clerk with the Yangtze River Three Gorges Tourism Development Co., Ltd.
2007 was also the third consecutive year for the dam to host more than one million tourists, according to Xu.
The dam area will see more tourists this year thanks to the great national events of the basic completion of the Three Gorges Project within the year and the Olympic Games in August, Xu added.

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BALI - Tourism Expert Calls for a Freeze on New Accommodation

Balidiscovery.com (1/5/2008)

A leading academic and observer of Balinese tourism from Udayana University’s Tourism Study Department, Drs. I Putu Anom, has called on the Government to call a halt to the building of new accommodation in order to stop the diversion of land from agricultural purposes and to allow existing accommodation operators to consolidate their business positions. Quoted in BisnisBali, Anom said the Government must act firmly in refusing to issue new accommodation permits.

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BALI - If Only Bali Had Listened to its French Consultants

Balidiscovery.com,(1/6/2008)

Bali-based tourism commentator, Gregorius, recently published an op-ed article in the Bali Post asking why a Bali Tourism Study and Report to the Indonesian Government prepared by the consulting firm Societe Centrale pour l'equipment Touristique Ouetre-Mer (SCETO) has been largely ignored. That study, produced in 1971, painted a bleak picture of Bali's future unless a master plan was adopted that focused on preserving culture and emphasized developing quality tourism products for the Island.
One of SCETO's recommendation was reserving specific areas of the island for "mass tourism" development – such as Nusa Dua, Sanur and Lovina. Areas outside these tourism enclaves would be reserved for higher priced boutique properties, carefully controlled to preserve the local character of Bali and avoid the pitfalls of unregulated development.

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NEPAL - Right Track Ahead for Nepal

eTN Nepal (NE) Jan 03, 2008

Year 2007 proved to be an encouraging year for Nepal and its tourism industry. Thanks to steady development in the Peace process and return to political stability in the country, Nepalese tourism succeeded to bounce back after suffering badly in the past 6 years.
Nepal enjoyed 27.1% growth in Tourists arrival by Air in 2007 with the arrival number reaching 360,350 all time high since the year 2000. As per Nepal Tourism Board, the total number of tourists arrival to Nepal is expected to cross half million mark after adding the number of tourist who arrived by road.

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FIJI - tourism losses hit $200m

eTN, Jan 02, 2008

The loss in tourism earnings was the result of fewer visitors, shorter lengths of stay and discounted rates.
"It has been a very difficult year, with the loss of numbers and employees working short hours. The industry had to reduce rates to make business," he said.
"Everyone reduced their rates from the airline to the hotels to the transport.
"Certainly in the TAG (Tourism Action Group) recovery program, everyone contributed to the reduction. It has been a very challenging year for the industry.
"The foreign exchange earnings subject to confirmation will be a $150m-$200m loss," he said.
Fiji Visitors Bureau chairman Patrick Wong said while he expected visitor numbers to exceed the forecast, fewer people stayed in hotels and at heavily discounted rates.

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MIDDLE-EAST - Sultanate Oman among 2008 hottest destinations

arabianbusiness.com, 29 December 2007

Widely known as Arabia's best kept secrete, Oman is becoming increasingly popular as a tourist destination, also has lastly emerged into the travel world enlightening a land of friendly people and spectacular landscapes. The Sultanate of Oman is a conservative country that is concerned in developing tourism in a way that sits at ease with these principles. He affirmed that as Oman encourages more tourism, it is trying to preserve its ethnicities, like its environment, national dress, markets, the turtles, and dolphins, while using them as its major draw.

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THAILAND - New hotels to heat up competition

Nationmultimedia.com, December 27, 2007

Operators nationwide can expect only a modest rise in their room rates compared to this year.
THA president Chanin Donavanik said the number of new rooms was expected to increase by 30,000 during 2006-2008, with more than 3,000 set to hit the market next year in the capital.
It would appear that many new hotels are planned for major destinations such as Bangkok, Samui, Phuket, Pattaya, Hua Hin and Chiang Mai.
"I noticed four hotel categories increasing their presence in the market: guest houses, serviced apartments, boutique hotels and international chains," said Chanin.
He said the new hotels would bring about tougher competition in the coming year, meaning operators would be forced to increase their room rates by less than the adjustment in earlier years.

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BALI - A Dream Industry Driven by Strong Communications

Balidiscovery.com, (12/28/2007)

Professor Dr. Gde Pitana, the former head of the Bali Tourism Authority (BTA) and now an expert staff for the Minister of Culture and Tourism, offered his informed overview of Indonesia's tourism industry in a special op-ed piece published in the December 27, 2007 edition of the Bali Post. Terming tourism as an industry that "sells dreams," Pitana said that the real challenge for tourism practitioners is not only in how to create dreams, but also in how to ensure dreams and expectations are realized by visitors to a destination. In order to cultivate and create a positive image for Bali tourism, Pitana insisted that Bali must always provide the public with sufficient quality information that is accurate, consistent and transparent.

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BALI - Visitors Spending More, But Leaving Sooner

Balidiscovery.com, 12/29/2007)

The authoritative Indonesian Digest prepared by Ibu Wuryastuti Sunario reports:The most recent 2007 Passenger Exit survey conducted among international visitors to Indonesia reveals that, on average, tourists spent US$ 57.89 more per stay this year than was the case in 2006. At the same time, length of stay declined by 0.7 days, reports the Department of Culture and Tourism in its website budpar.go.id

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INDIA - Kashmir plans luxury hotels for high-spending tourists

earthtimes.org, Dec 26, 2007

Jammu (TVLW) - The Jammu and Kashmir government has worked out a proposal to have five-star hotels in Gulmarg, Pahalgam and Srinagar to cater to the needs of high spending tourists.
Currently, the valley has only one hotel of five-star category, Grand Palace, at the eastern bank of Dal Lake in Srinagar. But it alone hardly meets the accommodation requirements of tourists during the peak season.
In Srinagar, according to the proposal, another five-star hotel would be constructed at the site of the Tourist Reception Centre in collaboration with a firm owning chain of luxury hotels, a tourism official said here.

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ACCOMMODATION - Trend in luxury hotels to continue upward climb: industry experts

eTN, Dec 26, 2007

There may be worries about the world economy – especially with the ongoing subprime crisis and rising standards of living – but that hasn't stopped interest in luxury hotels from making a steady comeback.
With the recent entry of a new player in Singapore's luxury hotel industry, the exclusive St Regis, competition looks set to heat up.
St Regis opened the Saturday before Christmas, but even before it officially commenced business, the hotel has already sold out almost all its year-end dinner parties.
Singapore's hospitality sector is experiencing one of its strongest recoveries in over a decade despite the US subprime setback.
In November, the average room rate (ARR) set a new milestone of S$226 per night, the highest ever in any month and up 29.8 per cent over last year, according to figures from the Singapore Tourism Board (STB).

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VIETNAM - Local MICE tour market bursting at the seams

Vietnam net bridge, 24-12-2007

According to Saigontourist Travel Service Co., 2007 has been a boom year for the MICE market. Even in the low season, October and November, Saigontourist won several big MICE-tour contracts. In December alone, the company conducted 40 tours and served 5,655 visitors among which there was a group of 2,700.

Earlier, Saigontourist rocked the MICE market when, for the first time, it clean executed a Southeast Asian tour on a 5-star cruise ship for 800 professors and doctors of otolaryngology (branch of medicine that deals with the anatomy, function, and diseases of the ear, nose, and throat). Next, a multinational group with 650 Europeans, Americans and Australians was hosted at the Caravelle and Sheraton Hotels. And soon there is to be a tour for Japanese athletes coming Vietnam for a marathon in Da Lat.

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INDIA - The Indian tourism market is maturing

Expresstravelworld.com, december 2007

The outbound leisure market is expected to grow by 20 per cent with 15 million tourists by the year 2011. With the spending ability increasing and the number of free individual travellers growing faster than ever, outbound tourism is bound to be on the rise. This implies opening up of newer areas of tourism to cater to this growing market. Accordingly, this growth can also be witnessed by the coming in of newer tourism boards into India. The future of tourism in the Asia-Pacific region belongs to India and China; countries that will take tourism in the region to newer heights. The future for outbound tourism from the country looks very bright, posing a challenge therefore for the NTO's to bring in unique products along with matching the barometers of service standards.

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CHINA - Foreign Investment Eyes Chinese Tourism Market

chinahospitalitynews.com, December 24, 2007

At present, annual foreign investment estimates of RMB30 billion to RMB40 billion account for 25% of total Chinese tourism capital.
The National Tourism Administration of China said that during the period of the 11th Five-Year Plan, China plans to build 12,697 tourism projects with more than RMB1.78 trillion of investment, of which over RMB138.5 billion are from foreign enterprises.
According to media reports, Chinese tourism industry will maintain 10% of year-on-year growth, and individual tourism consumption will increase by 9.8% annually while corporate, group and business traveling grow by 10.9%. By 2010, China's total tourism revenue will account for 8% of its GDP.

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BALI - The Russians are Coming!

Balidiscovery.com (12/23/2007)

Assisted by regular flight service from Moscow to Bali on Thai Airways and Singapore Airlines and visas-on-arrival, Russian arrivals to Bali are booming – up +64.56% year-to-date January-November 2007..The December – January period if high season ex Russia with travel operators organizing charter flights to Southeast Asia to handle the added demand.Big spenders, often traveling with limited English, evidence of the growing importance of Russian tourists in Bali are the hotels offering Russian language menus and directories of services and a large number of shops posting Russian signs in their windows.

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BALI - a Bargain Destination for Japanese Travelers

Balidiscovery.com, (12/22/2007)

Republika on Line reports that Japanese tourists consider the cost of a Bali holiday as relatively inexpensive, costing only Rp. 5 million (US$526) for a three day holiday including accommodation at a star-rated hotel.Quoting a Ubud-based travel agent, Ni Wayan Kawiani, the low cost of a Bali holiday has made the island a repeat destination for many Japanese travelers. Popular with both young Japanese and older office workers, the Japanese, according to Kawiani, see Bali largely as a safe and secure destination.

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UAE - Trillions ploughed into Middle East tourism

TVLW, Dec 19, 2007

The success of the tourism market in the Middle East has been illustrated by a new study, which reveals that 13.33 trillion dirhams (£1.8 trillion) has been invested in the industry to date.
According to research by Fast Future and Global Futures Foresight, the funds have been focused on building new hotels and leisure projects, developing aviation, supporting infrastructure and promoting tourism.
Investment in the travel markets of Syria, Oman, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and others shows no signs of stopping, with plans in place to enable the construction of 900 new hotels in the Middle East with £288bn of financing.

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INDONESIA - launches 2008 tourism campaign to howls of protest

eTN, Dec 21, 2007

Indonesia launched its new Visit Indonesia 2008 (VI 2008) tourism campaign to howls of protest when eagle-eyed readers of the campaign’s Website and in-flight TV advertisements spotted grammatical errors.
The campaign slogan, inaugurated by Indonesian Tourism Minister Jero Wacik last week, is also plastered on Indonesia’s flag carrier Garuda planes, Website and on its promotional TV ads.
The country is embarking on the campaign to revive its flagging tourism industry which recorded a drop of 2.3 percent, or about four million foreign tourist arrivals, in 2006.
Critics have pointed out, the VI 2008 tourism tagline, “Celebrating 100 years of a nation's awakening,” should instead read “national” or be preceded by a definite article. The tagline refers to the founding of “Boedi Detomo” or “Noble Endeavour” by medical students in the then Dutch-ruled Indonesia.

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MALAYSIA - Malacca highlights Dutch connection

eTN, Dec 19, 2007

The Malaysian state of Malacca has announced its latest tourism product, repackaging its Dutch historical link into a 2-kilometer "Dutch Heritage Trail."
The trail follows the Holland Days in Malacca event organized by the state tourism, culture and heritage department along with the Dutch embassy and other departments in September. "We hope more local tour companies will organize guided tours to boost the trail" said Rahman Karim, state tourism, culture and heritage head, at the launching ceremony.
Covering buildings, shipwrecks, gravestones, "golden era" as a shipping port of call for ships plying between the West and the East route.excavations and artifacts, tourists taking the 2-km trail will be taken on a tour of the Dutch influence during Malacca's" golden era" as a shipping port of call for ships plying between the West and the East route.

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THAILAND - Phuket's Villa Santi partners with the IndoChine Group

Asiatraveltips.com, 19 December 2007

Villa Santi, a newly established luxury resort and villa development in Phuket, has signed an agreement to partner with the IndoChine Group - a Singapore-based company which operates stylish bars, restaurants and nightclubs around the region and in Europe - to open IndoChine Villa Santi next month.
The IndoChine Group, a veteran in stylish and sophisticated bars, restaurants and entertainment in Asia and Europe, currently has 15 outlets in Singapore and establishments in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, Hamburg in Germany, and New Delhi in India.

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MALAYSIA - Langkawi cashes in

TTGasia.com, Dec 14 - 20, 2007

THE tourism industry in Langkawi is pinning its hopes on its new Geopark status to capture the imagination of leisure and meetings and incentives travellers seeking a unique beach destination in South-east Asia.The trade is banking on more tourist traffic coming from Singapore via Kuala Lumpur in 2008 with the deregulation of Singapore-Kuala Lumpur flights to allow low-cost carriers to ply the route. The anticipated boost in traffic is expected to spill over from the Malaysian capital to secondary destinations.In 2008, all infrastructure and tourism projects are directed towards enhancing and promoting the Langkawi Geopark. An important project on Tuba Island is the provision of access and a viewing gallery at Wang Buluh Cave. “The people of Tuba Island are getting excited about the projects coming into their backyard, including a coastal rural road that would provide a scenic drive and also potentially attract fishing enthusiasts,” Langkawi Development Authority (LADA) general manager, Datuk Kamarulzaman Abdul Ghani, said.

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THAILAND - Hotels aid Pattaya evolution

TTGasia.com, Dec 14 - 20, 2007

BUOYED by its proximity to one-year-old Suvarnabhumi Airport, Thailand’s main gateway, Pattaya is seeing a burgeoning number of new hotels while existing properties are being upgraded. Pattaya is having a renaissance, the trade says.Amari Hotels and Resorts sales and marketing vice-president, Mr Duncan Webb, said the overall outlook for Pattaya as a destination now was light years away from what the beach resort was 10 years ago. He added it had become an established beach resort with international standards and the destination was continually evolving with new developments.The once small fishing village, which began its transformation to a beach resort in the 1960s, had a negative image for many years. But the city administration has been working hard to erase its sleazy image, in a bid to transform the beach resort into a family- and business-focused destination.

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MALAYSIA - Malaysia, Iran venture

TTGasia.com, Dec 14 - 20, 2007

Tourism stakeholders in Malaysia and Iran want to set up a joint committee to promote tourism related activities between the two countries and curb illegal practices among agents. Bumiputra Travel Agents Association president, Mr Syed Razif Al Yahya, and 14 other travel agents from his association met with Iran Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization general-director of Foreign Tourism Development, Mr Mohammad Ali Pakseresht, early last month in Tehran, where the latter had, in principle, agreed to a joint committee. Mr Syed Razif said he would meet Tourism Minister, Datuk Seri Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor this week, to moot the idea of having tourism ministry officers in the committee to give it effective enforcement powers to curb bad practices among travel agents in Malaysia.

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THAILAND - Bookings hit the roof for south Thailand

TTGasia.com, Dec 14 - 20, 2007

Thailand is seeing unprecedented confirmed bookings to Phuket, Khao Lak and Krabi this high season.Tour operators told TTG Asia Phuket and Khao Lak in particular, devastated by the December 2004 tsunami, were seeing an absolute turnaround and Krabi was hot on their heels.Diethlem Travel Asia chief operating officer, Mr Richard Brouwer, said: “For us, the absolute winners are Phuket and Khao Lak; hotels are full and right now, some have even stopped selling.”In terms of clientele, Mr Brouwer said Khao Lak was a gathering place for Germans and Scandinavians while Phuket enjoyed a mix of tourists from every market worldwide.Stockholm-based TUI Nordic product area manager for Italy and South-east Asia, Ms Lin Wessblad, said her company saw about 6,000 clients booked for Phuket per month this high season from October 2007 to April 2008. Krabi and nearby Koh Lanta were also doing very well in terms of volume at about 3,000 clients a month.

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VIETNAM - Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels inks second deal in China Beach, for 2007

Jones Lang LaSalle , 14 December 2007

As exclusive advisor to Magnum Asia Limited, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels (the “Firm”) is pleased to announce the completion of the acquisition of a 39-hectare prime beachfront site in Danang to US-based Kor Realty Group LLC (“Kor”). This deal marks the Firm’s second transaction this year on world-famous China Beach, Vietnam’s premier resort destination and one of the region’s most promising tourism markets.
Mr Craig Collins, Managing Director Investment Sales Asia, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, together with Ms Heng Sue Lin, Vice President, negotiated the transaction on behalf of Magnum Asia Limited.
Lining over 750 metres of pristine coastline, the spectacular beachfront site is slated for the development of Viceroy China Beach, a boutique luxury hotel. Each of the Viceroy properties of the Kor Hotel Group are renowned for their legendary locations, distinct style, and unique design.

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REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS - Cambodia and Thailand sign single tourist visa deal

Reuters, 17 december 2007

Thailand and Cambodia agreed on Monday to allow foreign tourists to enter on a single visa.
"This means a tourist can get a visa either for Thailand or Cambodia and can visit the two nations," Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong said after signing the agreement with visiting Thai counterpart Nitya Pibulsonggram.
The deal was the first of a hoped for series also involving Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam, he said.
"We want to see the five countries become one tourist destination," Hor Namhong said.

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THAILAND - Forum to boost arrivals to Chiang Mai

Tourism Authority of Thailand, 17th December 2007

A recent forum in Thailand Chiang Mai was aimed at giving much-needed exposure to the vast range of high-quality products emerging in Northern Thailand and support the growing number of international airlines mounting flights to the city known as the “Rose of the North.”The Tourism Authority of Thailand together with the Chiang Mai Tourism Business Association organised the Chiang Mai Tourism Forum 2007 during 6-9 December, 2007, at the Holiday Inn Chiang Mai Hotel.TAT invited over 120 buyers from East and Southeast Asian countries, to meet with 50 local sellers representing golf courses, spas, boutique hotels, shopping plazas, hospitals, and restaurants in Chiang Mai and surrounding areas in the north of Thailand.

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PHILIPPINES - October tourist arrivals up by 8% despite blast

manilastandardtoday.com, Dec 13, 2007

Foreign tourists ignored the negative news and advisories about the Philippines in October, as they continued to arrive in record numbers in the country, which now has a $4-billion international tourism market.
The statistics division of the Department of Tourism said international visitor arrivals in the Philippines rose 8 percent to 241,745 in October from 223,818 a year ago, despite the Oct. 19 blast that hit a major shopping mall at the financial center of Makati.
This brought the total foreign arrivals in the first 10 months of the year to a record 2.508 million, up 8.6 percent from 2.31 million a year earlier.

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REGIONAL DEVELOPMENTS - Russia-Asean draft projects

sunstar.com.ph, December 17, 2007

THE Russian Government expressed last Friday strong interest in tapping the huge potential of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) bloc, particularly in relation to trade and tourism. Representatives of the Russian federation and Asean member countries converged for the sixth Asean-Russia Joint Cooperation Committee in Cebu last Dec. 13 to 14. The meeting reviewed the implementation of the Comprehensive Program of Action (CPA) to promote the Asean-Russia cooperation from 2005 to 2015. Discussions on priority areas for cooperation included culture, tourism, energy, disaster management, counter terrorism, and science and technology.

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