Tainted drinks kill tourists

JAKARTA, 20 May 2013: A British backpacker has died while trekking through the Indonesian jungle after she drank suspected tainted alcohol, police said Saturday.

Cheznye Emmons, 23, was travelling with fellow Briton Joseph Cook, 21, through lush rainforest on Sumatra Island, where many tourists go to see endangered orangutans, according to a police report into the incident.

The pair, accompanied by a third tourist, drank four bottles of local whisky called Mansion on 20 April, according to the document.

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Sex booked on internet

SINGAPORE, 9 May 2013: A Swiss ex-banker was  sentenced, Wednesday,  to more than four months in jail for having sex with an underaged Singaporean prostitute, in a sleaze scandal that sparked uproar in the city-state.

The banker booked sexual services through an escort website in Singapore.

Singapore Judge Eddy Tham denounced Juerg Buergin’s “reckless” act of having intercourse with the 17-year-old woman on two occasions at five star hotels in 2010 and 2011.

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Onyx adds Bali footprint

BANGKOK, 8 May 2013: ONYX Hospitality Group has will manage a 435-room property on the Indonesian island of Bali, its first Amari venture in Indonesia.

Amari Pecatu is a joint venture between STA Group Property Division and PR Bali Pecatu Graha, due to open in 2015.

Located on the southern peninsula of Bali, Pecatu is well-known for its surfing and secluded beaches.

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Changi honours its top airlines

SINGAPORE, 8 May 2013: Changi Airport Group presented its Changi Airline Awards 2013 to 34 airline partners, Tuesday evening, to recognise their contribution to the airport’s development.

The annual awards now in its eighth year were presented by Minister for Transport, Lui Tuck Yew at the Regent Hotel.

This year’s Partner of the Year award was presented to FedEx Express, in recognition of its strong partnership with CAG to strengthen the airport’s air hub status.

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Singapore arrests bomb hoaxer

SINGAPORE, 22 April 2013: A 34-year-old man has been arrested in Singapore over an online threat to bomb several locations in the city-state in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon attack, police said Saturday.

The man, whose name and nationality were not disclosed, was arrested on Thursday after posting the threat as a comment on a news article about the deadly bombings in Boston, police said in a statement.

“Preliminary investigations indicated that the suspect had no intention or means to carry out his threats,” said the statement.

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Abacus and Sedunia extend partnership

KUALA LUMPUR, 19 April 2013: Abacus announced, Thursday, it has signed a six-year partnership with Sedunia Travel Services, Malaysia’s largest non-affiliated corporate travel agency.

The Sedunia-Abacus partnership will see Sedunia’s continued adoption of Abacus PowerSuite, a front-to-back financial solution that integrates the company’s information and processes, while managing operations.

To reduce travel risks, Sedunia is using Abacus TravelIntelligence to support its customers and monitor policy compliance. In addition, Sedunia is in the early phases of introducing Abacus Consulting Services to optimise its internal processes to increase business efficiency.

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Lion faces tough scrutiny

JAKARTA, 18 April 2013: The dramatic crash of a Lion Air plane into the sea off Bali has raised fears Indonesia’s fastest-growing carrier may be putting passenger safety at risk with its huge expansion plans, analysts said earlier this week.

Experts also warned Saturday’s crash, in which all 108 on board survived but the Boeing jet split in two, highlighted a “ticking time bomb” under the country’s aviation sector with a lack of experienced crew to meet fast-growing demand.

A little-known carrier launched 13 years ago with just one plane, Lion Air has struck two of the world’s largest aircraft orders in a staggering US$46 billion bet on Indonesia’s air transport boom.

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Cambodia still troubled by war history

PHNOM PENH, 10 April 2013: Cambodia’s tourism minister, Thong Khon, admits the nation’s war history continues to reduce its  ability to compete with neighbouring countries in tourism and economic development.

The minister told the Phnom Penh Post Monday that Cambodia cannot yet compete in tourism  with the rest of the region because of its history. He was commenting on findings released by the latest World Economic Forum report on global tourism competitiveness. It  was ranked the  lowest of  eight ASEAN member countries monitored in the study. Laos and Myanmar were excluded.

“Our competitors have a lot of infrastructure and had fewer wars to contend with,” he said, adding that it is difficult to compare the country to the rest of Southeast Asia..

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Carnival to create Singapore hub

SINGAPORE, 10 April 2013: Carnival, the world’s largest cruise group, unveiled its Asian expansion plans on Tuesday, predicting the regional market for leisure voyages will grow dramatically within the decade.

Southeast Asia in particular will be a key focus, the company said as it announced that one of its brands, Princess Cruises, will operate from Singapore by next year to provide short-haul leisure trips.

“Carnival is really investing a lot in Asia, we are trying to stimulate the demand of the market. Today it’s a bit quiet as cruising is not well known,” Pier Luigi Foschi, chairman and chief executive of Carnival Asia, told AFP.

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WITx returns to Bangkok

SINGAPORE, 28 March 2013 – Possibly the only  female-focused travel conference in Asia, the one-day WITx conference will take place in Bangkok for the second year running at the Sofitel So Bangkok, 26 April .

Women in Travel will once again put the spotlight on (mostly) women executives in the travel industry who will discuss how women are redefining travel within Asia.

“Women in Asia are starting to come into their own within the previously male-dominated travel industry – both as customers as well as business owners and managers.

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