BANGKOK, 25 January 2023: Thai Vietjet launched the ‘Fly for Love Challenge’ earlier this week, inviting passengers to participate in the campaign and get a chance to win up to four roundtrips of complimentary air tickets.
Passengers can participate in the campaign by filming a video clip of themselves dancing to Thai Vietjet’s official song ‘Fly for Love’ and posting it on TikTok with hashtags as specified.
The top three video clips with the highest likes will receive up to four international roundtrip tickets on Thai Vietjet.
Thai Vietjet commercial head Pinyot Pibulsonggram said: “We have taken another step forward with the ‘Fly for Love Challenge’ campaign, allowing passengers to participate in fun and creative activities with Thai Vietjet and get a chance to win prizes as a gift for the New Year.”
The ‘Fly For Love Challenge’ campaign is open for participants until 31 January 2023.
SINGAPORE, 25 January 2023: Japan was the most sought-after destination for travellers across Asia during the week-long Lunar New Year holiday peak, Agoda reveals.
According to search data from the global digital travel platform, Japan was the most searched destination overall, followed by Malaysia and Thailand.
This year, Agoda insights also show that many travellers opted for short hops to neighbouring destinations during the holiday week. Notable exceptions included travellers from China and Japan who sought the tropical sun, with Thailand bookings taking the top spot. Meanwhile, Thai travellers headed for a winter experience in Japan.
Agoda’s search data also reveals the top choices within the three most popular markets by volume, Japan, Malaysia, and Thailand. Cosmopolitan cities remained a significant draw in Japan, with Tokyo, Osaka and Fukuoka being the three most searched destinations.
Reflective of its appealing cultural heritage and its bustling city vibes, Agoda’s search data showed Kuala Lumpur taking the top spot in Malaysia, followed by Malacca and Penang in second and third place, respectively. Bangkok took the number one slot in Thailand, followed by the coastal party town Pattaya and the northern city of Chiang Mai.
Top five ranked destinations by markets for the Lunar New Year 2023
YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia, 25 January 2023: Batik Air, a member of the Lion Air Group, will launch a direct flight from Yogyakarta Kulonprogo International Airport to Changi International Airport in Singapore, starting 30 January 2023.
The airline will schedule four weekly flights on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday using a Boeing 737-800NG configured with 12 business class and 150 economy class seats.
The new international route is timed to offer connections with flights to and from Surabaya, Bandung, Bali, Lombok, Pontianak, Balikpapan, Banjarmasin, Makassar and Pekanbaru.
The new service comes just days before the ATF TRAVEX trade show convenes at the Jogja Expo Centre from 2 to 5 February 2023. Yogyakarta to Singapore is airline’s fifth route after Jakarta, Medan Kualanamu, Surabaya and Makassar. The airline plans more international routes to Singapore from other cities in Indonesia based on the domestic and international passenger market demand.
DUBAI, UAE, 24 January 2023: Emirates has taken yet another significant step to reinstate its Australian capacity by increasing service to two major cities – Sydney and Melbourne.
The airline will also restart services to Christchurch, New Zealand, via Sydney, offering a new path for Australians across the trans-Tasman route.
From 26 March, Melbourne will increase from two to three daily services between Emirates’ Dubai hub via Singapore, with a third direct service beginning in Sydney from 1 May. The service increase follows the airline’s recent announcement around double daily flights to Brisbane, starting from 1 June. The huge boost comes amidst another busy period for air travel and as the airline continues to reaffirm its ongoing commitment to growing its services to and from Australia. The two services will operate on a three-class Boeing-777 300ER offering passengers economy, business and first-class seats.
By mid-year, Emirates will operate 63 weekly services to Australia with the capacity to transport more than 55,000 passengers per week to and from its major cities. Melbourne and Sydney flights will be restored to pre-pandemic levels, a significant milestone in the airline’s reinstatement of Australian services. The uplift in capacity supports the revival of tourism by providing travellers with even more access to and from Australia and bolstering trade and business opportunities with the large 22-tonne freight capacity offered by the Boeing 777-300ER.
The newly restored third Dubai-Melbourne service means Emirates is providing a new connectivity option between Singapore and Melbourne to serve strong demand between both cities and offer customers its signature, differentiated product and service experience. The Christchurch service via Sydney, beginning 26 March, will provide the only opportunity for passengers between the two cities to fly on an A380, Emirates’ flagship aircraft.
Emirates Airline chief commercial officer Adnan Kazim said: “Adding a third daily service to Sydney and Melbourne will offer over 500,000 additional seats to and from Australia in a year. To have the two cities operating back at pre-pandemic frequencies is a remarkable milestone and a testament to our longstanding commitment to flying down under.
“For over 25 years, we have provided services for Australia since our first flight to Melbourne in 1996. During this time, we have proudly transported over 40 million passengers and continued flying to Australia during the pandemic. We continue to record significant demand for our services, so we’re dedicated to offering Australians and travellers more options to travel, including our new Premium Economy cabin, with Australia being one of the first markets to be offered this class.”
Melbourne Airport CEO Lorie Argus added: “We’re thrilled that Emirates is enhancing its commitment to Melbourne. The resumption of the Melbourne to Singapore route means Emirates will operate three daily flights from Melbourne, returning to pre-Covid levels of capacity.
“It’s great news for customers as it provides extra capacity for the strong demand we see for travel from Melbourne to Europe and Asia. It’s also great news for Victorian exporters, with the Boeing 777-300 aircraft providing additional freight opportunities into Asia and the Middle East.”
Sydney Airport CEO Geoff Culbert noted: “We welcome this additional capacity on the Sydney to Dubai route, which will also give passengers access to Emirates’ extensive global network.
“These extra flights are another important step towards Australia’s international aviation recovery, providing much-needed additional capacity to meet the high demand for travel. It is great to see that both visitors and Australians will have more choices available in time for the start of the European summer and the NSW winter school holidays.
“We are also pleased to see the A380 return on the trans-Tasman after a three-year hiatus, adding extra seats to meet the strong appetite for travel between Sydney and New Zealand.”
Back in business
Sydney – Dubai: third daily nonstop service
From 1 May 2023, Emirates will add a third daily flight between Dubai and Sydney, served by a Boeing 777-300ER. Emirates flight EK416 will depart Dubai at 2130, arriving in Sydney at 1720 the next day. The return flight EK417 will depart Sydney at 2010, arriving in Dubai at 0430. The airline currently serves Sydney with double daily A380 flights, and both services offer the airline’s highly acclaimed Premium Economy experience for customers.
Melbourne – Dubai: third daily service via Singapore
Emirates continues to build on its long-term commitment to stimulating tourism and trade in Victoria with the addition of a third daily flight to Melbourne via Singapore, starting 26 March 2023. The third flight will operate as EK404 using a Boeing 777-300ER and depart Dubai at 2115, arriving in Singapore at 0850. The flight will continue to Melbourne, taking off at 1025 from Singapore, arriving at 2035 local time. The return service to Dubai EK405 takes off from Melbourne at 0325, arriving in Singapore at 0815. The flight will then take off for Dubai at 0940, arriving at 1300 local time.
A restart of Christchurch via Sydney
Emirates will restart services to Christchurch via Sydney from 26 March 2023, and the A380 flight will operate as EK412 and EK413. Emirates flight EK412 departs Dubai at 1015, arriving in Sydney at 0700. The flight will then continue, taking off from Sydney at 0845 and arriving in Christchurch at 1350. EK413 will then depart Christchurch at 1820, arriving in Sydney at 1940. The final leg of EK413 will depart to Dubai at 2145, arriving at 0515 local time. Customers in Christchurch will not only be able to enjoy the airline’s flagship aircraft. Still, they will also have double the opportunity to experience the debut of the highly sought-after Premium Economy cabin and the latest products across every class of travel.
Bookings can be made on emirates.com, the Emirates App, or via both online and offline travel agents.
BANGKOK, THAILAND: The Chinese government has announced tour groups can be organised to 19 destinations, including Thailand starting 6 February 2023.
It follows the withdrawal of Covid-19-related travel restrictions for individual Chinese travellers allowing them to travel freely to destinations worldwide as of 8 January 2023.
Centara Karon Resort Phuket
Thailand is on the list of 19 destinations that can now welcome back tour groups.
Thailand welcomed 11 million Chinese travellers in 2019, more than a quarter of its total arrivals. But what does the return of Chinese visitors mean for hotel operators in the “Land of Smiles”?
Centara Hotels & Resorts, corporate vice president of sales Jurairat Mongkolwongsiri noted that the Thai-owned hotel group has already started receiving inquiries for FIT and group bookings in major destinations such as Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Koh Samui and Chiang Mai.
Initially, the priority period was Chinese New Year and our Phuket properties, for example, are already full. We have started to receive inquiries for inspections of our Bangkok properties, and Chinese airline crews are confirmed to stay at our hotel in Chiang Mai.”
Airlift is a key issue. Before 2020, Chinese travellers could choose from 28 airlines operating on multiple routes between Thailand and China, covering 44 airports and offering 17 million seats. But airline services ended for two years during the pandemic and are only starting to resume. Earlier this month, Spring Airlines said it would resume flights from Shanghai to Phuket and from Guangzhou to Chiang Mai in January while increasing frequencies from Shanghai to Bangkok. Juneyao Air is also resuming its service between Shanghai and Chiang Mai.
Once flights are reinstated, Thailand will likely be one of the main beneficiaries of the great Chinese reopening that will get underway when tour groups return to Thailand next month.
Centara’s Jurairat urges a coordinated approach between all the relevant parties to ensure a smooth and stable recovery.
“The outlook for the tourism sector indeed remains uncertain, but we are optimistic about it. It requires global cooperation and evidence-based solutions to lift travel restrictions safely. With the opening of China’s borders, we can see that coordinated action across governments at all levels and the private sector is essential to help international tourism resume,” she concluded.
SEPANG, 24 January 2023: AirAsia X (AAX) returned to Osaka, Japan at the weekend, further expanding its network to and from the land of the rising sun.
The inaugural flight departed from Kuala Lumpur at 2345 last Saturday and arrived in Osaka at 0715 the following morning. The three weekly flights to Osaka are set to bring more than 116,000 travellers between Malaysia and Japan monthly and deliver a welcome boost to both countries’ tourism sectors.
Photo Caption: (Fourth from the left) Allenie Ccam, Head of Commercial, with AirAsia X cabin crew celebrating the inaugural AAX flight from Kuala Lumpur to Osaka, at klia2.
AirAsia X Malaysia CEO Benyamin Ismail said, “We are pleased to start the new year by announcing our 13th route from Kuala Lumpur to Osaka. Following the resumption of services from Kuala Lumpur to Tokyo (Haneda) and Sapporo late last year, we have carried close to 30,000 guests between Malaysia and Japan post-pandemic.
“We have seen a strong passenger load factor for our inaugural flight of more than 95%, and we are confident that this route will be very well received despite the competitive landscape. As travel demand rebounds, we will continue to expand our services to exciting destinations in Asia from our regional hubs in Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok.”
To celebrate the return to one of its most popular destinations AAX is offering all-in* fares between Kuala Lumpur and Osaka from MYR699/JPY29,990 all-in one-way for economy or MYR2,999/JPY106,640 one way for a Premium Flatbed.
As a Group, AAX flies to three destinations in Japan, namely Tokyo, Osaka and Sapporo, from Kuala Lumpur, operated by AirAsia X Malaysia (D7) and from Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi), operated by AirAsia X Thailand (XJ).
Flight schedule
*All-in fares inclusive of airport taxes, fuel surcharges and any other applicable charges. Terms and conditions apply. Booking period from now until 29 January 2023 for travel between 1 March 2023 and 30 September 2023.
HONG KONG 24 January 2023: Cathay Pacific reports a “marked improvement” in the second half of 2022, while December’s traffic figures showed the airline carried 801,088 passengers, an increase of 768.7% compared with December 2021.
Cathay Pacific released its traffic figures for December 2022 at the weekend and included an update on its performance in the year ended 31 December 2022. Looking ahead to 2023 and beyond, the aviation group said it would continue on the path to rebuilding its airlines and the Hong Kong international aviation hub.
December 2022 traffic figures
Despite the welcome improvement in December traffic figures, the result was still 73.3% off the pace of the pre-pandemic December 2019.
Revenue passenger kilometres (RPKs) increased 545.2% year-on-year during December 2022 compared with the same month in 2022. However, it was down 68.4% when compared with December 2019.
Passenger load factor increased by 46.7 percentage points to 83.3%, while capacity, measured in available seat kilometres (ASKs), increased by 183.5% year-on-year but decreased by 67.8% compared with December 2019 levels. In the full year of 2022, the number of passengers carried increased by 291% against a 51.6% increase in capacity and a 258.3% increase in RPKs, as compared with 2021.
Cathay Pacific chief executive officer Ronald Lam said: “December saw a drastic uptick in travel demand with Christmas being the first major holiday since travel restrictions in Hong Kong were lifted, although we were still only operating about 32% of pre-pandemic passenger flight capacity levels. We carried over 25,800 passengers per day on average.
“Demand was overwhelming for travel to short-haul leisure destinations as we continued to ramp up our frequencies. We also added more destinations in December, including Sapporo, Fukuoka, Penang and Dhaka, ending the year with nearly 60 destinations in our network – double the 29 we flew to in January 2022.”
Full-year 2022 financial performance
Based on a preliminary review of the unaudited consolidated management accounts of the Cathay Pacific Group for the year ended 31 December 2022 and the information currently available to the Board of Directors of Cathay Pacific, the group is expected to record a consolidated loss attributable to shareholders of approximately HKD6.4-7.0 billion. This compares to the attributable loss to shareholders of HKD5.5 billion for the year ended 31 December 2021.
The second-half 2022 results for the group’s airlines and subsidiaries were a marked improvement over the first-half 2022 results, although still a small loss overall for the full year of 2022. However, the results from associates include significant losses.
Lam said: “I am very encouraged to see a trend of continuous improvement in our operations and financial performance for our airlines and subsidiaries in the second half of 2022. Progressive relaxations to travel restrictions and quarantine requirements in Hong Kong enabled us to be operating cash generative overall in the second half of 2022.”
Cathay Pacific is still finalising the group’s annual results for the year ended 31 December 2022 and will publish its results in March 2023.
2023 business outlook
Looking ahead into 2023, Lam said the group is firmly on the path to rebuilding Cathay Pacific and the Hong Kong international aviation hub.
“We remain fully committed to restoring connectivity and capacity at our home hub. As a group, which includes passenger airlines Cathay Pacific and HK Express, we anticipate operating about 70% of pre-pandemic passenger flight capacity by the end of 2023, intending to return to pre-pandemic levels by the end of 2024.
“In terms of passenger travel, we expect demand will continue to be strong in January and the Chinese New Year period, driven by leisure traffic from Hong Kong. Following the return of quarantine-free travel between Hong Kong and the Chinese Mainland, we continue adding more flights and more destinations as quickly as possible. We aim to operate more than 100 return flights per week to and from 14 cities in the Chinese Mainland by the end of February.
SINGAPORE, 24 January 2023: China’s decision to ditch its zero-Covid policy has triggered a surge in flight bookings, according to the latest data from ForwardKeys. And it’s the intra-regional neighbours in Asia who will reap the benefits the most.
ForwardKeys China Market Analyst, Nan Dai, shared the latest figures in a joint webinar with Dragon Trail International and the consumer sentiment data aligned with the booking trends.
According to the Chinese Traveler Sentiment Report by Dragon Trail International, “more than 60% of survey respondents said they wanted to travel outside of mainland China in 2023. This group expressed high expectations about the freedom of cross-border travel this year. Survey respondents said they were excited to relax and experience the scenery, food, culture, and shopping overseas.”
Immediately upon China’s official announcement about the ease of Covid controls, there was a surge in bookings for domestic flights; Sanya is the hottest destination with the fastest recovery.
“Forward bookings for Chinese New Year are currently 47% behind pre-pandemic levels but already 30% ahead last year,” says Nan Dai optimistically.
The pent-up demand remains high, and in terms of outbound travel, Southeast Asian destinations are most likely to first benefit from the return of Chinese tourists.
“All these destinations have relaxed rules for Chinese travellers. Arrivals from China will not be required to provide test results for Covid-19. Visa waiver to Indonesia, visa-on-arrival to Thailand, Cambodia, and UAE – all make it even easier to travel,” adds Dai.
However, the lack of flight capacity and high fares could be the bottleneck for China’s outbound travel recovery in Q1.
“Current scheduled international flight capacity in Q1 is only at 21% of 2019’s level; and owing to approval requirements for traffic rights and airport slots, it will be difficult for airlines to gear back up very quickly. We can expect a more significant increase when airlines schedule for the next summer season starting from 26 March,” shares Nan Dai.
Dragon Trail Market Research Analyst Yelinuer Kadeerbieke adds: “Our survey results show that while recovery will start gradually in the first six months of 2023, it’s clear that outbound travel will start to pick up in the second half of the year. 42% said they would travel outbound in July and August, with 32% planning an autumn Golden Week getaway outside mainland China.”
The outbound China market is vital in the travel food chain. The return of the sleeping dragon in time for the Lunar New Year with promises for greater growth over the summer period, will be a game changer for the travel sector in 2023.
BANGKOK, 24 January 2023: Accor and Ennismore will expand their portfolio with new hotels and resorts opening across Southeast Asia in 2023.
With close to 30 confirmed new properties under 10 brands in nine countries, 2023 marks an important milestone in the two group’s regional development.
Thailand will see the arrival of new hotels and resorts. Ennismore’s TRIBE Bangkok Sukhumvit 39 opening Q2 2023 will mark the debut of the TRIBE brand in Thailand, while the 207-key Novotel Living Bangkok Sukhumvit Legacy (Q2) by Accor will introduce Novotel’s extended-stay concept to the Thai capital’s Sukhumvit district.
The 666-key Ibis Styles Bangkok Twin Towers, destined to be the world’s largest Ibis Style hotel, opens in Q3. Also, in Bangkok, the 178-key Mercure Bangkok Sukhumvit 60 opens in Q4.
Outside Bangkok, the 234-key Novotel Rayong Star Convention Centre opens Q1 on Thailand’s Eastern Seaboard. At the same time, the Mercure Rayong Lomtalay Villas & Resort will debut its garden wing, which will include an additional 133 rooms, suites and villas. The 200-room Grand Mercure Resort Ao Nang Krabi opens in Q4.
In Cambodia, the 232-key Novotel Sihanoukville Holiday Resort will open in Q2, while the 253-key Novotel Phnom Penh Boeng Keng Kong in the centre of the Cambodian capital will open in Q2. In Vietnam, the 373-key Pullman Hai Phong opens in Q4.
In Singapore, three new landmark hotels are due to open. The 326-key Pullman Orchard Singapore – Singapore’s first Pullman hotel – will officially launch in February on Orchard Road. Later in Q2, the 342-room Pullman Singapore Hill Street will open, while the 302-key Mondrian Singapore Duxton by Ennismore opens in Q1.
Accor’s growth in Indonesia will gather pace in 2023 with the launch of multiple new hotels, including the 224-key Ibis New Yogyakarta International Airport in Q1) and 189-key Novotel New Yogyakarta Airport Kulon Progo (Q3) in Yogyakarta, the 150-key Mercure Pangkalan Bun (Q3) in Central Kalimantan, the 158-key ibis Palembang Sanggar (Q4) in South Sumatra and the 335-key Grand Mercure Lampung (Q4). Two Swiss-inspired Mövenpick properties, the 413-key Mövenpick Bintan Lagoon Resort and 253-key Mövenpick Jakarta Pecenongan will open in Q4.
In Malaysia, the 161-key Ibis PJCC Petaling Jaya and the 172-key Mercure Miri City Centre are both due to open their doors by the middle of 2023. Finally, Japan will welcome the 363-key Mercure Hotel Tokyo Haneda Airport (Q4) at one of the world’s busiest aviation hubs.
In 2022, Accor and Ennismore signed a combined 30 hotels representing 8,700 keys across eight countries in Southeast Asia. These hotels will be operated under 15 brands within all segments, from economy to luxury.
BEIJING, 24 January 2023: China will revive the country’s outbound group travel services starting 6 February, according to a circular released Friday by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and reported by Xinhua news service.
The ministry statement posted on its website describes a pilot programme that allows travel agencies to open outbound group travel for Chinese citizens to 20 nations.
The 20 nations: Thailand; Indonesia; Cambodia; Maldives; Sri Lanka; the Philippines; Malaysia; Singapore; Laos; the United Arab Emirates, Egypt; Kenya; South Africa; Russia; Switzerland; Hungary; New Zealand; Fiji; Cuba and Argentina.
In Southeast Asia, Vietnam and Myanmar are not included, and in Asia, India is absent from the list.
According to Xinhua, relevant airline ticket and hotel booking services will also be resumed. Although outbound tour groups can resume on 6 February, the logistics involved in setting up the tours will need to be revisited. Tour operators handling Chinese tour groups say it could take up to three weeks to renegotiate hotel contracts and reinstate bus transfers and sightseeing tours with new prices. Chinese tour operators usually block and buy seats on scheduled charter flights and then build package quotes covering airfare, hotels, transfers and sightseeing. The charter flight operators will need to reapply for traffic rights and secure deals with Chinese tour operators to buy seat allotments. It all takes time.
China’s outbound group travel market was halted in early 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the China Daily report, data from Trip.com, a major tourism service supplier in China, showed that just half an hour after the ministry announcement, the search volume for outbound flight tickets and overseas hotels reached a three-year high on the company’s search engine. Singapore, the Republic of Korea, Japan and Thailand were among the most popular destinations.
Travel agencies and online travel companies are now preparing product launches, publicity and negotiating contracts for hotels, attractions and land content with local suppliers.
