HONG KONG, 4 October 2023: Smart Travel Asia, a pioneering online travel magazine in Asia, has resumed its annual honours list following a four-year hiatus caused by the Covid pandemic.
It has a history dating back to January 2003, and its reader polls have run since 2005 (with a four-year hiatus 2019-2022) covering airlines, airports, destinations and hotels.
Marking its 20th anniversary, the poll of Asia’s best has been trimmed down from a top-25 to a top-10. The detailed results of the 20th Anniversary Best in Travel Poll 2023 by Smart Travel Asia can be viewed at https://www.smarttravelasia.com/travelpoll2023.htm.
Predictably, some of the old favourite destinations are back as leaders, such as Bangkok (top holiday destination), Bali (ranked second), Maldives and Hokkaido (joint third.
Singapore Changi Airport (top airport ranked worldwide) thrived, well positioned to catch both regional traffic and traffic from the UK/Europe and Australia as countries reopened. Hong Kong International Airport dropped to ninth place.
The top 10 resorts and hotels placed Kudadoo Maldives as the top luxury hotel in Asia); Aleenta Phuket Phang Nga Resort & Spa (No1 Boutique Hotel in Asia); Shangri-La Hotel Singapore (No1 Conference Hotel in Asia); Ayana Resort & Spa Bali (No1 Spa Hotel in Asia); Soneva Jani Maldives (No 1 Family Hotel in Asia); Amankila Bali (No1 Leisure Hotel in Asia).
HONG KONG, 4 October 2023: Cathay Pacific is back flying nonstop between Hong Kong and Chicago O-Hara International Airport in the US.
The airline is flying the direct route to Chicago, the third largest city in the US, three times weekly on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
Photo credit: Cathay Pacific
Flight CX806 departs HKG at 1230 and arrives at ORD (Chicago) at 1425. The return flight CX807 departs ORD at 1605 and arrives in HKG at 2045. The flight time is 14 hours and 55 minutes on the A350-1000.
The aircraft is configured with 324 seats: 32 in business, 32 in premium economy and 260 in economy.
According to popular booking sites, the average roundtrip fare on the route is USD1,440, which will increase slightly to around USD1,751 by December. Cathay Pacific is the only carrier flying a direct Hong Kong to Chicago service.
SINGAPORE, 4 October 2023: The top 50 ranking of the busiest airports by outbound international passenger traffic released by travel analytics firm ForwardKeys paints a dramatic picture compared to the pre-pandemic era.
What differs substantially from that of 2019 is the significant movement among European and MENA airports.
In Europe, substantial ranking gains for Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen (SAW) and Antalya (AYT) reflect continued demand for “sun and beach” destinations in Turkey as holidaymakers seek better value for money, as well as the rise of Istanbul’s Airport as a key global hub.
Berlin Brandenburg (BER) enters the top 50 airports by international departures for the first time, having replaced the city’s Schonefeld and Tegel airports – which closed in 2020.
Paris Orly (ORY) climbed 13 places compared with 2019, partly due to additional capacity added by the inauguration of the new Terminal 3 in April 2019.
Malaga-Costa del Sol (AGP) also enters the top 50, with international outbound seat capacity boosted by the opening of EasyJet’s new seasonal base at the airport in 2021 and new connections to the USA and Middle East.
In the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Cairo International (CAI) and Jeddah (JED) show significant ranking gains of 26 and 16 places, respectively, emphasising the growing importance of the region for business travel and long-haul transit, along with the continued promotion of tourism by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states looking to diversify their economies.
“These figures only demonstrate that what we are seeing in some destinations is not travel recovery but a shift in how people travel, with plenty of emerging new business opportunities for retailers and brands to consider in Europe and the Middle East. While APAC reactivation is taking longer with noticeable changes in traveller preferences and traveller profiles, which is greatly impacting the top global airports,” says ForwardKeys VP of brands, retail and media Marina Giuliano.
ForwardKeys team of travel intelligence analysts reveal additional gems in the just-released The Busiest Airports of the World report, just in time for the travel retail sectors’ much-anticipated industry event, the TFWA Conference in Cannes.
ForwardKeys team of travel intelligence analysts reveal additional gems in the just-released The Busiest Airports of the World report. Download the report by visiting the ForwardKeys website.
SINGAPORE, 3 October 2023: Conrad Singapore Orchard is now accepting guest stay reservations beginning 1 January 2024, following an extensive refurbishment.
Located on Singapore’s famed Orchard Road, Conrad Singapore Orchard’s 12-storey atrium is home to 445 rooms, including 46 suites with spacious double terraces. Rooms cover 36 square metres, while suite categories range from 81 to 210 square metres.
Additional amenities include a pet-friendly programme, a sanctuary-like executive lounge, a fully equipped fitness centre, and an outdoor pool sheltered amidst lush landscaping, complemented by over 1,500 square metres of event spaces and a collection of 10 culinary concepts including the Michelin-starred Summer Palace noted for its classic Cantonese cuisine and dim sum.
The hotel’s 14 versatile venues for weddings, events and meetings are being renovated in anticipation of bookings from Q4 2023 onwards.
Mike Williamson, cluster general manager Conrad Centennial Singapore and Conrad Singapore Orchard, heads the management team.
Opening stay offer
Conrad Singapore Orchard is part of Hilton Honors, the award-winning guest loyalty programme for Hilton’s 22 world-class brands. Hilton Honors members who book at least two nights’ stay at Conrad Singapore Orchard will receive complimentary breakfast for two and 5,000 additional Hilton Honors bonus points per night.
About Hilton
Hilton (NYSE: HLT) is a leading global hospitality company with a portfolio of 22 world-class brands comprising nearly 7,300 properties and more than 1.1 million rooms in 123 countries and territories.
Dubai, UAE, 28 September 2023: Emirates confirms that its highly sought-after Premium Economy offering will be introduced on flights to two more destinations in its network, São Paolo, from 19 November and Tokyo Narita from 20 December.
Sao Paolo will become the airline’s fifth point in its North and South American network, where flights will operate with the new cabin class. Tokyo Narita will become the second gateway in the Emirates’ Far East network, which offers its latest cabin product, featuring extra legroom, premium features and amenities.
As the airline’s retrofit programme picks up pace and the product extends to more routes on its network, São Paolo will become the 13th city where Emirates will operate its newly retrofitted flagship A380 aircraft. At the same time, the number of points offering Premium Economy will grow to 14 with the addition of Tokyo Narita. Besides featuring the new Premium Economy seats, the enhanced aircraft that will operate on the routes also boast refreshed interiors that provide an elevated experience throughout the other cabins with a new look and feel.
Seats can be booked immediately via emirates.com, Emirates sales offices and travel agencies.
From 19 November, travellers flying between Dubai and São Paolo can book Emirates’ Premium Economy seats on EK261/262, which will be available three times weekly, scaling up to daily flights in December. Premium Economy on flights EK318/319, to and from Tokyo Narita, will launch as a daily offering from 20 December.
The aircraft to be deployed on the routes in a four-class configuration feature 56 seats in Premium Economy, located at the front of the main deck and laid out in a 2-4-2 configuration, in addition to 338 seats in Economy Class, 76 in Business Class and 14 First Class suites.
São Paolo is one of the latest destinations operated by the enhanced A380 aircraft in a four-class configuration and marks the entry of Premium Economy in Emirates’ Latin American network. Tokyo Narita is the airline’s first gateway in Japan, where Premium Economy will be available and follows the product’s debut in Singapore in July.
The Premium Economy offering has proven to be immensely popular on the ten routes where the product has already been launched. With travel demand soaring across its expansive network, it is expected to appeal to those seeking a premium travel experience at an attractive price point. Since Premium Economy was introduced to Emirates’ offering one year ago, more than 160,000 customers have traded up from Economy Class, choosing to try the elevated experience it provides.
Emirates flies its A380s with Premium Economy seats to London Heathrow, Sydney, Melbourne, Auckland, Christchurch, Singapore, Los Angeles, New York JFK, Houston and San Francisco. Premium Economy will debut on Emirates flights to Mumbai and Bengaluru from 29 October.
Premium Economy is popular amongst leisure and business travellers, solo travellers, families and more opting to upgrade their travel experience. Passengers in Premium Economy can expect to enjoy many features, including luxurious seats, more legroom, premium dining and beverages, amongst other perks and thoughtful added-value features.
On the retrofitted aircraft, the refreshed interiors sport Emirates’ signature ghaf tree motif and other aesthetic enhancements, beautiful designs and new colour palettes, evident throughout the aircraft.
Emirates operates daily flights between São Paulo and Dubai, connecting passengers to more than 130 destinations worldwide. Emirates’ Brazilian operations also include a Boeing 777 service between Dubai and Rio de Janeiro, which connects travellers to Buenos Aires. Emirates also serves its customers in Japan through its three gateways, with daily flights to Tokyo Narita, Tokyo Haneda and Osaka Kansai.
For more information on Emirates’ current operations, network, and travel support, visit www.emirates.com.
BANGKOK, 3 October 2023: Centara West Bay Hotel & Residences Doha partnered with Red Crescent Qatar to extend vital assistance to the earthquake and flood-affected regions of Morocco and Libya. This charitable initiative aims to provide much-needed relief to the communities grappling with the aftermath of natural disasters.
To facilitate this initiative and engage its community, Centara West Bay Hotel placed donation boxes at the hotel. These boxes are accessible to in-house guests and dedicated employees, encouraging them to contribute essential items such as clothing, footwear, bags, children’s toys, and kitchen equipment. As part of this meaningful effort, the hotel has generously donated towels, bathrobes, bedsheets, and pillowcases.
Centara West Bay Hotel & Residences Doha, General Manager Sean Spinks expressed his pride in the hotel’s ongoing collaboration with Red Crescent Qatar and organisations to support the community and enhance corporate social responsibility. He remarked: “Centara West Bay has taken steps to support Morocco and Libya during their time of need. We are committed to our brand’s values and will continue to provide support as part of our ongoing commitment. Thank you to our guests and employees for their generous contributions.”
Centara Hotels & Resorts’s portfolio includes 93 properties spanning all major Thai destinations plus the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, China, Japan, Oman, Qatar, Cambodia, Turkey and the UAE. Centara’s portfolio comprises six brands – Centara Reserve, Centara Boutique Collection, Centara Grand, Centara, Centra by Centara and COSI Hotels.
BANGKOK, 3 October 2023: Thai AirAsia X (flight code XJ) is now operating some flights* at Suvarnabhumi Airport out of the recently opened SAT-1 (Satellite 1) Building.
Departing Thai AirAsia X passengers will continue to check in and clear immigration at the Main Terminal before connecting by the APM shuttle train (every 3 minutes) to SAT-1, where they will head for gates S101-S128 for their respective Thai AirAsia X flights.
Arriving Thai AirAsia X passengers at Suvarnabhumi Airport will also disembark at SAT-1 and connect by the APM shuttle train to the Main Terminal for immigration clearance, baggage collection and transfers.
This operational change applies to Thai AirAsia X (XJ) routes between Bangkok and South Korea (Seoul), Japan (Tokyo, Osaka, Sapporo) and China (Shanghai) only.*
Thai AirAsia X arriving and departing passengers between Suvarnabhumi and Sydney (Australia), Thai AirAsia (FD) flights, and all other AirAsia Group flights will continue to operate from the main terminal at the airport.
The new terminal comes with 28 contact gate aircraft parking stands capable of accommodating A380s and 64 passenger loading bridges.
Thai AirAsia X and Thai Vietjet are the first airlines to use SAT-1, with Thai AirAsia X operating 14 flights daily and Thai Vietjet four flights daily. Duty-free delivery counter services, duty-free shops, restaurants, and special passenger lounges are only partially open at present, but ultimately, it will have identical retail outlets as found elsewhere air side.
The APM shuttle train can handle up to 3,590 passengers per hour or 210 passengers per five-minute transfer to and from the remote satellite terminal. The SAT-1 building will benefit airlines that want to end bus transfers to remote boarding bays. International travellers not keen on the long treks in Suvarnabhumi Airport’s main terminal corridors will value the APM shuttle transfer.
However, baggage check-in and immigration will remain in the main terminal, a notorious bottleneck of passenger congestion when checking in for flights. The airside terminal zones and buildings, which include the domestic and main terminal gates and now the remote SAT-1 gates, rarely suffer the same degree of passenger congestion.
SINGAPORE, 3 October 2023: FCM Meetings & Events (FCM M&E), a specialist division of the Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG), has announced a global business expansion.
It will see industry expert Simone Seiler moving into the role of global general manager to oversee lofty ambitions and bring all the global M&E businesses into one.
Seiler is a seasoned travel industry executive with over two decades of experience. She is passionate about the business events sector, bringing her global perspective and local knowledge to dozens of countries and partner networks as the worldwide leader, supporting in-market business leaders.
Events, event travel and meetings are leading the business travel bounce back globally, with a recent white paper* by FCM M&E revealing that the MICE market size, in terms of revenue, is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 6.6% from 2022 to 2030 to reach USD1,563.3 billion by 2030.
According to FCM Asia’s managing director, Bertrand Saillet, the surge in bookings due to high demand in 2023 has continued to shape the sector.
“Meetings and Events are the core of business interactions, both in Asia and across the globe. FCM Meetings and Events is experiencing exponential growth, presenting many opportunities.”
“In Asia, we have witnessed a dynamic surge in demand for personalised, high-quality experiences, reaffirming the value of face-to-face engagements. This trend mirrors a global sentiment, showcasing the universal significance of in-person interactions.”
“By leveraging our global network, we’re confident to deliver exceptional meetings and events experiences that captivate audiences, shaping the future of business gatherings in Asia and worldwide.”
“We know we have an incredible opportunity to both grow and position ourselves as the travel management company of choice for meetings, events, and event travel and are experiencing and anticipating a steady annual growth rate of demand at 12 per cent year on year for in-person meetings, which means we have some exciting opportunities coming our way.”
FCM Meetings & Events is committed to growing its global footprint and presence in this sector. Priorities include the development of innovative technology solutions and investing in extra talent, with the company planning to focus on three core areas.
• Meetings: Provide various services, including venue sourcing, managed meetings, basic planning, and onsite support.
• Event Travel: Offer group travel, from flights and hotels to transfers and team building.
• Events: Provide full event management services, including planning, strategies, execution, and delivery.
GURUGRAM, 3 October 2023: Vistara, India’s joint venture between Tata Group and Singapore Airlines, will introduce six-weekly flights between Mumbai and Frankfurt starting 15 November 2023.
This new route is in addition to Vistara’s six-weekly service between Delhi and Frankfurt, launched in February 2021. To introduce the route, the airline is all-inclusive return fares starting at INR54,999 for economy, INR89,999 for premium economy, and INR174,999 in business class.
Photo credit: Vistara.
With the addition of this new long-haul route, Vistara improves connectivity between Europe and India as it continues to grow its international network.
The airline will operate its Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner featuring a three-class cabin configuration, offering the choice of travelling in Business, Premium Economy, and Economy cabins. Bookings for the flights are being progressively opened on all channels, including Vistara’s website, mobile app, and through travel agents.
Vistara’s operations in Mumbai have expanded, making it an important gateway with 12 international destinations, including Abu Dhabi, Bangkok, Colombo, Dammam, Dhaka, Dubai, Jeddah, London Heathrow, Male, Mauritius, Muscat and Singapore.
In the last 12 months, the airline has added many new domestic and international connections from Mumbai, leading to an increase of 42% in departures and nearly doubling its employee strength in the station.
Vistara chief executive officer Vinod Kannan said: “We are delighted to expand our international network by launching this new service between Mumbai and Frankfurt. Our long-haul routes, connecting Delhi with London Heathrow, Paris and Frankfurt, have been very popular amongst our customers, giving us the confidence to offer similar connections from Mumbai.
“This will be our second long-haul route from Mumbai, in addition to five weekly flights to London Heathrow…Over the past few years, we have launched several new international routes from Mumbai, especially to the Middle East. This aligns perfectly with our strategy to position Mumbai as a vital hub for international travel,” he concluded.
* All timings shown are in local time zones; exact timings may differ slightly for respective days of operations
BANGKOK, 3 September 2023: In response to increasing travel demand, Thai Vietjet confirms it will resume cross-country direct flights between the holiday island of Phuket and Chiang Rai, Thailand’s far north mountain destination starting 29 October
The airline will serve the route with four flights weekly, resuming a direct link suspended on 30 January 2023. The airline had attempted to revive the route during Q4 2022 as services returned following the Covid lockdown that kicked in during March 2020 and continued until 2022.
Flights will operate on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday with a flight time of two hours and 10 minutes using an A320. The roundtrip ECO fare starts at THB5,038 (USD136.98). The outbound sector fare from Phuket is THB1,930, and the return sector fare from Chiang Rai is THB2,829. Add fees and tax). Booking sites calculate the average roundtrip fare at USD112 during the start-up month and around USD132 in December.
“As domestic tourism in Thailand is rapidly recovering, the travel demand between the two destinations has started to pick up again,” Thai Vietjet chief executive officer Woranate Laprabang. “We believe that the resumption of the flight service between Phuket and Chiang Rai will significantly boost the tourist numbers in both cities, facilitating business & leisure travellers with a more convenient choice of travel”.
Currently, Thai Vietjet offers 11 Thailand domestic routes, including flights from Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi) to Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phuket, Krabi, Udon Thani, Hat Yai, Khon Kaen, Ubon Ratchathani, and Surat Thani, cross-country flights from Phuket to Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai. The airline is expanding its international flight network to many destinations across Asia-Pacific, connecting Thailand with Vietnam, Singapore, Cambodia, Japan, Taiwan and other top destinations.
