Hot Travel Trend in Asia: Golf tourism

Asian golf travel is on the upswing as global awareness about the unique golfing experiences, excellent value-for Sport-money, and world-class service quality continues to generate more and more interest in golf holidays throughout Asia.

The Eastern Seaboard is set get some new world-class golf courses. Construction progress at the new Siam Country Club Waterside Course is going well and once open in 2014 will mark the first 63 hole golf complex in Thailand. Moreover, two Pattaya golf courses have changed ownership this past month. The ever challenging Phoenix Golf & Country Club is now owned by Hemaraj, the large industrial estate company and the run down Rayong Century was bought by TCC Capital Land, a Thailand's land developer.

Khao Yai: Little known Mountain Creek Golf Resort is Thailand's only Seve Ballesteros designed track. Boasting 36 holes and an excellent clubhouse the course is some 20km past Khao Yai. If combined with some of the other areas course like Panorama Country Club, Rancho Charnvee Golf Club, and/or Toscana Valley Country Club, it could make for a great golf holiday away from the masses of tourists in the more established golf destinations.

Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur: At the super exclusive The Mines Resort & Golf Club (PGA Tour CIMB Classic and site of Tiger Woods' 1998 Asia Tour win) combined with golf at Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club (European Tour's Maybank Open), and Saujana Golf & Country Club (PGA, European Tour, and Asian Tour Malaysia Open) you just might have the highest quality championship golf trip of your life.

Langkawi: The Golf Club Datai Bay will re-open in December 2013. The old course is making way for a new Ernie Els designed course. When the new Datai Bay re-opens it could debut near the top of the Malaysian course rankings.

Vietnam
Nha Trang: After nearly 3 years in construction the full 18 at Diamond Bay Resort & Golf is open for play. Initial reports indicate some challenges ahead for Vietnam's newest 18, but nevertheless the second Nha Trang golf course is a most welcome addition to the golf scene. Nha Trang is now also a good alternative to Phan Thiet as accessibility, golf courses, and resorts are all superior.

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Codeshare Agreement By Air Astana and Turkish Airlines

Air Astana and Turkish Airlines have signed a codeshare agreement on routes between Kazakhstan and Turkey.

Air Astana and Turkish Airlines signed a Letter of Intent to expand the range of cooperation between the two carriers in March 2013.

 Codesharing on flights between Almaty - Istanbul and Astana - Istanbul additionally include special prorate agreements on sectors beyond respective hubs in Almaty, Astana and Istanbul.

Peter Foster, President of Air Astana, said, “Under the strong and visionary leadership of Temel Kotil, Turkish Airlines has become a globally recognized network carrier serving more countries globally than any other carrier and achieved the Skytrax rating as “Best Airline in Europe” for the past two years consecutively. This codeshare agreement is the latest step in the increasingly close link between the two airlines; both of which show equal ambition to continue to progress well above average world ratings and fully committed to delivering excellence in customer service.”

Dr Temel Kotil, President and CEO of Turkish Airlines, said, “We are extremely pleased to sign this codeshare agreement with Air Astana and aim to improve our partnership to maximize the travel opportunities offered to passengers through the extensive networks of both airlines. Air Astana continues expanding successfully, offering superior customer service, with a very young fleet. We believe the partnership with Air Astana will bring enormous benefit to both airlines, not only from a commercial perspective in rapidly growing Kazakhstan, but also in technical and training areas.”

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ICC Angkor Conference To Be Held In Cambodia, December 2013

Cambodia will host meetings of the International Coordinating Committee for the Safeguarding and Development of Historic Site of Angkor (ICC-Angkor) and the 3rd Inter-Governmental Conference in December this year in Siem Reap province with an aim to gather international support for the protection and preservation of Angkor archaeological site.

The information was made known here on June 7 at a meeting between Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister in charge of the Office of the Council of Ministers H.E. Sok An with Japanese Ambassador H.E. Yuji Kumamaru, French Ambassador H.E. Serge Mostura and UNESCO Representative to Cambodia H.E. Ms. Anne Lemaistre, according to Mr. Ek Tha, spokesman for the Press and Quick Reaction Unit at the Council of Ministers.

On the occasion, the Cambodian DPM expressed his profound appreciation to the Governments of France and Japan for their continuing support to safeguard Angkor, which also contributes to the socio-economic development of Cambodia.

H.E. Sok An has also expressed appreciation to the international community for injecting some $250 million of assistance for the temples’ restoration since 1993 and for working so successfully as to have ICC-Angkor seen as a model for such cooperation in the field of world heritage.

Angkor was first inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1992. A year later, the first Inter-Governmental Conference, the International Coordinating Committee for the Safeguarding and Development of the Historic Site of Angkor (ICC-Angkor), was set up to protect, preserve and develop this vast cultural heritage site.

In 2003, the 2nd Inter-Governmental Conference held in Paris Conference spelled out guidelines on heritage and sustainable development.

Since the establishment of the ICC-Angkor, more than 60 temple restoration projects have been or are being implemented in Siem Reap province, the home of Angkor, with support from 17 countries and 28 international organizations.

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New Incheon Service By Vietnam Airlines

Vietnam Airlines will launch a new service between South Korea’s Incheon and Danang, 1 July, to tap summer holiday travel.

Speaking at the official announcement ceremony at the Lotte Hotel in Seoul, South Korea late last week, Vietnam Airlines representative, Cao Anh Son said the airline will operate three flights weekly, using an Airbus A321 (16C and 168Y configuration) on Monday, Thursday and Saturday.

“Passengers can also book domestic connecting flights to Nha Trang, Phu Quoc, Da Lat, and Buon Me Thuot from Danang.”

South Korea is one of Vietnam’s main tourism markets. During January to May, this year, it welcomed 331,197 Koreans, an increase of 5.6% year-on-year.

The new service starts during Korea’s main summer holiday, 1 June to August 31, which is the peak season for overseas travel.

Vietnam Airlines will also increase domestic flights on the Hanoi – Phu Quoc route, Ho Chi Minh City– Nha Trang – Danang route, and from HCMC to Nha Trang, Danang, Thanh Hoa and Hai Phong.

On international routes, the airline will add flights from Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City to Bangkok.

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Free Shuttle Bus Transfers to/from Mandalay Airport By AirAsia

AirAsia has launched a free shuttle bus service for its passengers in Mandalay, offering daily transfers between Mandalay Airport and downtown Mandalay.

The 45-kilometer journey is free of charge for AirAsia passengers.

 To celebrate this value-added service, the airline is offering promotional fares on its daily flights from Bangkok to Mandalay, starting from THB 1,290 per way (inclusive of airport tax).

The promotion can be booked until 16 June 2013 for travel between 16 August and 15 December 2013. Terms and conditions apply.

Tassapon Bijleveld, CEO of Thai AirAsia said, “We are very pleased to add more value for passengers traveling on AirAsia with our free shuttle bus transfer services. Passengers can now conveniently reach downtown Mandalay from Mandalay Airport free of charge, simply by showing their AirAsia boarding pass or confirmed booking itinerary. Those who are traveling from Mandalay to Bangkok with AirAsia may also take advantage of this free shuttle bus service, which will depart from a central downtown location in Mandalay, twice a day. Apart from our low fares and daily flights, it is our great pleasure to continually improve the AirAsia travel experience and we are glad to do so with these free and convenient transfers.”

The shuttles busses are scheduled to depart twice a day from Mandalay Airport to Downtown, starting at 12:45, followed by another departure at 13:00. The 45-60 minute journey will drop off passengers at 79th street, (between 26 and 27).

From downtown Mandalay to the Mandalay Airport, passengers will be picked up at the same location (79th street, between 26 and 27) at 09:00. The second bus will depart for Mandalay Airport at 09:15.

In order to enjoy the free shuttle bus service, passengers must show their AirAsia boarding pass or a print-out of their confirmed booking.

Currently, AirAsia offers three daily flights between Bangkok and Yangon, and one daily flight between Bangkok and Mandalay.

 In addition to Thailand, the low-cost airline also connects Yangon to Kuala Lumpur via one daily flight.

 AirAsia also recently announced the launch of new direct daily flights between Bangkok and Nay Pyi Taw, scheduled to commence in October 2013.

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Amadeus confirms that Asia has the world’s highest number of top air routes

According to the latest Amadeus’ survey, Asia dominated again air transport last year. Although all regions in the world recorded a growth, air travel in Asia jumped significantly by 9% followed by Latin America up by 6% while the Pacific area and Europe came both at 4%. Last year, Asia recorded some 787 million of passengers, distancing Europe by over 100 million passengers (Europe recorded 680 million air travellers in 2012).  

Analysis from Amadeus Air Traffic Travel Intelligence reveals that Asia is the largest, fastest-growing and most competitive market for air travel. 75% of air routes in Asia are served by three or more airlines and just 25% of routes by one or two carriers.

However, the market share of Low Cost Carriers is still lower than in Europe or America. Europe has the highest concentration of LCC traffic, representing 38% of total air travel in 2012. But Europe is now closely tracked by “South West Pacific” (Australasia and the Pacific Rim) with a LCC penetration of 37% followed by North America with 30%. By comparison, LCC share in Asia remains at modest levels, at only 19% in 2012.

Among other key findings, the study reveals that 22% of all global air travel is concentrated on just 300 origin and destination ‘super routes ’, each of which carries over 1 million passengers annually. Furthermore, 69% of all global air travel is made on major routes with 100 thousand annual passengers.

Analysis of the busiest routes in the world by passenger volume shows that seven out of the top ten world’s busiest air travel routes are in Asia. Jeju-Seoul in South Korea remains the world’s busiest air route, and many of 2011’s top origin and destination (O&D) routes return to the league table for 2012, however, there has been some change: in particular, Beijing-Shanghai has risen from seventh-busiest route in the world in 2011, to fourth-busiest in 2012. Sapporo-Tokyo has overtaken Rio de Janeiro-Sao Paulo to second-busiest route ranking, and Okinawa-Tokyo has entered the top ten table, as ninth-busiest route in the world.

Looking at connections, the preeminence of the Middle East is confirmed by Amadeus analysis: the Middle East is turning into a strong performer, with the three key airports of Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai all showing high connecting traffic volumes. For instance, when taken as a group the three airports now serve roughly 15% of all air traffic volume that goes from Asia to Europe and from Europe to the South West Pacific. Furthermore, Europe-Asia traffic routed via the Middle East is growing at roughly 20% per annum.

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Vietnam’s sustainable tourism development supported by Spain

Funded by Spanish Government through the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and Development, a € 400,000 project was carried out in some Central Highlands and northern mountainous provinces from November 2011 to February 2013.

Addressing the ceremony hosted by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) to wrap up the project, Director of the Institute for Tourism Development Research Ha Van Sieu spoke highly of the connectivity between the project and other related ones, especially those implemented in the northern mountainous area.

As part of the project, a community-based tourism website connecting northwestern provinces was established, serving as a forum for localities to exchange experience and popularize their images in tourism development, he said.

It also provided handbooks guiding the management and development of tourism for managerial staff, and the development of a green tourism label for shops, restaurants and hotels, Sieu said, adding that these documents are essential for Vietnam’s sustainable tourism development.

Spanish Ambassador to Vietnam Alfonso Tena said Vietnam is on the right track to improve the quality and diversity of its tourism services to lure more foreign visitors, citing that the country expects to welcome 7 million international arrivals this year.

He added that the project, which focused on policies of social responsibility, aimed to help Vietnam meet international standards in providing tourism services to attract foreign tourists.

VNAT’s Director General Nguyen Van Tuan said that Vietnam will learn tourism development experience from Spain as it ranks second in tourism revenues and fourth in tourist attraction in the world.

Besides this project, Vietnam also received support from Spain through other projects, including those to popularize the Tourism Law, build Vietnam’s tourism marketing strategy and make tourism planning for Cat Ba Island and Hue city.

Tourism cooperation between Vietnam and Spain has seen positive developments over the past time, with over 31,300 Spanish tourists visiting Vietnam in 2012 and 7,200 in the first four months of this year.

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First Hotel of Best Western in Myanmar

Best Western has signed an agreement to take over the management of the Green Hill Hotel, a new property located in the heart of Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon.

The 189-room Green Hill Hotel, which is only six months old, will now be operated by Best Western International under its midscale Best Western brand.

The Green Hill Hotel is located in the Tamwe Township area of central Yangon, just 15 minutes’ drive from the stunning Shwedagon Pagoda.

 The hotel’s 189 air-conditioned rooms all feature 32-inch flat-screen televisions with international satellite channels, bathrooms with bathtubs and showers, and complimentary Wi-Fi.

A restaurant serves a selection of Chinese, Asian and international cuisine, while the property also offers meeting room facilities for business travelers.

“There is no doubt that Myanmar is one of the world’s hottest hotel markets at present, with a major increase in new hotel supply needed to cater for a huge influx of guests. So it is vital that hotel owners in the country choose the right partners to ensure optimum performance at their properties,” said Best Western’s Vice President of International Operations for Asia and the Middle East, Glenn de Souza. “We want to be here for the long-term, to help grow the country’s tourism industry. Our partnership with the Green Hill Hotel is just the start of our plans for Myanmar.”

The launch of Best Western International’s first hotel in Myanmar means the company now has a presence in nine of the ten countries that form the ASEAN region.

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