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Emirates flies A380 to NZ cities

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TTR WEEKLY
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DUBAI, UAE, 29 March 2023: An Emirates A380 made a landmark touchdown at Christchurch Airport on Monday, marking the resumption of its daily service from Dubai to Christchurch via Sydney after more than three years.

The iconic aircraft taxied through a ceremonial water cannon salute before parking in view of trade, media, and VIP guests at the international terminal at Christchurch Airport.

Outbound EK412 left Dubai at 1015 local time, stopping briefly in Sydney before arriving in Christchurch at 1355 the next day, New Zealand time.

Emirates divisional vice president Australasia Barry Brown said: “Seeing the water cannon salute after we touched down in the first Emirates A380 flight in more than three years is a reminder of how special the aircraft is to Christchurch since its first arrival in 2016. The occasion’s significance was also clear on the faces of the other passengers on board, who understood what this service means for Christchurch and connecting it to the world.”

The resumption of the Dubai to Christchurch route ramps up seating capacity across Emirates’ global network after boosting operations 31% (total ASKMs) since the beginning of its financial year. This operational boost included re-introducing Emirates’ nonstop A380 route from Auckland to Dubai in December last year.

Both North and South Island customers will now have direct access to daily Emirates A380 services ( Auckland and Christchurch), providing greater levels of flexibility and choice when making travel plans and providing seamless connectivity and reduced transit time when travelling to other destinations across the airline’s global network, including destinations in Europe and the Middle East. Travellers looking to venture beyond the airline’s gateways will also have more connection opportunities to 55 cities across Australia and New Zealand through Emirates’ long-standing partnership with Qantas.

Restart of Christchurch via Sydney

The A380 flight operates as EK 412 and EK 413. Emirates flight EK 412 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 1355. EK 413 will depart Christchurch at 1820, arriving in Sydney at 1940. The final leg of EK 413 will depart for Dubai at 2145, arriving at 0515h local time.

Emirates has been flying to New Zealand for 20 years, a sign of its ongoing commitment to the market. Throughout the pandemic, Emirates continued to serve the country, connecting New Zealand and the world with daily flights, as well as its SkyCargo services bringing essential goods in and out of the nation.

Currently, Emirates’ A380 is deployed to almost 40 global destinations, with more routes to be announced in the near future.

Tickets can be booked on emirates.com, the Emirates App, or via both online and offline travel agents.

(Your Stories: Emirates)

Sarawak’s Santubong National Park reopens

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TTR WEEKLY
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KUCHING, 29 March 2023: Sarawak’s Santubong National Park (SNP) and Matang Wildlife Centre (MWC) will reopen on 1 April after being closed during the monsoon season, Sarawak Forestry Corporation announced earlier this week on its Facebook page.

SFC said it welcomed nature enthusiasts, wildlife lovers, and all those who appreciate the beauty of Sarawak’s natural habitats after a long closure due to heavy monsoon conditions.

Photo credit: SFC

However, it did warn that if weather conditions in the park deteriorated, making it unsafe for visitors, the authorities would close the park. But as April’s weather forecast looks good, forestry officials invited travellers to mark their calendars and plan a trip to explore the beauty of Santubong National Park and Matang Wildlife Centre starting 1 April.

Meanwhile, the SFC confirms it has streamlined the  Visitor Self-Registration Portal registration process for Semenggoh Wildlife Centre, Bako National Park, Fairy Cave Nature Reserve and Wind Cave Nature Reserve.

For more information, visit www.sarawakforestry.com.

(Your Stories: Sarawak Tourism Board)

MarketHub Europe welcomes tourism leaders

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TTR WEEKLY
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SINGAPORE, 29 March 2023: Europe’s leading names in travel and tourism gather in Amsterdam this week for the MarketHub Europe.

Organised by Hotelbeds, the event combines a conference and trade show at the nhow Amsterdam RAI, making it the first time that Hotelbeds has brought its flagship event to The Netherlands.

More than 400 local and international executives join the event from 28 to 31 March to hear some of the biggest names in tourism and tech speak. These include NH Hotels (part of Minor), easyJet holidays, Google, Telefonica and The World Travel and Tourism Council.

“We’re thrilled that the MarketHub is back for the first time since 2019 and in this vibrant city of Amsterdam, where we have been so warmly welcomed,” said Hotelbeds chief commercial officer Carlos Muñoz Capllonch. “Our theme for this year is ‘Where Next?’ and I’m sure we’re going to have some insightful and lively discussion focused on the traveller of tomorrow and what they expect the industry to deliver.”

The conference programme will cover a diverse range of topics, including; how travel can become a force for good; the power of personalised service; how innovation and tech can shape travel; and the generation of disruption.

Additional speakers include Morgan Stanley, Experience Kissimmee, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, Discover Puerto Rico, Rixos Hotels, the Clermont Hotel Group and Accor Hotels.

MarketHub Europe is an invitation-only event attended by the most important Hotelbeds partners from all the key source markets of Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

Hotelbeds hosts three annual MarketHub events in the Americas (9 to 12 May 2023), Europe and Asia. The dates and host country of the Asian event have not been announced for 2023. The Asian show was last held in 2019 in Bali, Indonesia.

For more information, visit http://www.themarkethub.com/europe/.

Klook teams up with TAT

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TTR WEEKLY
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SINGAPORE, 29 March 2023: Klook, a popular travel and experiences platform, forecasts a robust recovery in Thailand with significant growth that has more than doubled for three consecutive quarters.

The company also observed a 30% increase in average traveller spending for experiences in 2023 compared to pre-Covid times, signalling that travellers are willing to spend more for authentic and meaningful experiences in Thailand.

“Klook’s exceptional growth in Thailand reflects the importance of travel and the value it delivers to the Thai economy,” said Klook COO & co-founder Eric Gnock Fah.

Klook says a multi-market partnership with the Tourism Authority of Thailand aims to drive more visitors from seven markets comprising Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Taiwan.

Klook also promotes TAT’s ‘Let Your Journey Be Thai campaign’. The regional campaign focuses on outbound travel markets such as Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Taiwan.

About Klook

Founded in 2014, Klook curates quality experiences such as attractions, tours, local transport and accommodation worldwide.

Accor expands MGallery in the Philippines

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TTR WEEKLY
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BOHOL, Philippines, 29 March 2023: Accor continues its expansion in the Philippines by signing South Palms Resort Panglao Bohol – MGallery.

The resort joins a strong pipeline of 16 committed projects across the country and will become the first resort-style property for MGallery in the Philippines.

Scheduled to open in 2024, the 188-key South Palms Resort Panglao Bohol – MGallery stands on a 6.4-hectare site, surrounded by palm trees and overlooking Panglao’s south coast. The property is a 10-minute drive from Bohol-Panglao International Airport, which offers direct flights to and from Manila and other cities in the Philippines.

South Palms Resort Panglao Bohol – MGallery is being developed by Alturas Group of Companies (AGC) with support from Bill Barnett, managing director of Asian hospitality consultancy C9 Hotelworks.

Qantas starts Haneda flights

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TTR WEEKLY
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SINGAPORE, 29 March 2023: Qantas resumed direct flights between Melbourne and Tokyo earlier this week for the first time in more than three years.

The new service is the first nonstop flight between Melbourne and Tokyo’s Haneda International Airport by any airline, saving passengers nearly two hours of travel to downtown Tokyo compared with Narita Airport, which the flight operated to before the pandemic.

The year-round flights will operate four days per week with an Airbus A330 aircraft and add to Qantas’ existing flights from Sydney and Brisbane to Haneda Airport. These flights offer customers more than 420,000 seats between Australia and Japan annually and the choice of double daily flights to Tokyo.

Qantas has this week announced a multi-million dollar investment in new menus, larger meals and premium produce across all cabins in its regional, domestic and international network, including flights to Tokyo. The new menu changes will roll out on 29 March.

The Melbourne-Tokyo (Haneda) route launch will be soon followed by the national carrier’s new Melbourne-Jakarta service, which is set to commence in mid-April.

The Qantas Group operates up to 35 return flights per week from Australia to Japan. This includes Qantas’ flights from Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney to Haneda and Jetstar’s flights from Cairns to Narita and Osaka and Gold Coast to Narita.

T’way Air flies double daily to Bangkok

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TTR WEEKLY
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BANGKOK, 29 March 2023: T’way Air, a leading South Korean low-cost airline in South Korea, was one of the first to resume flights to Bangkok when Covid-19 rules eased last year and has introduced changes in its summer timetable effective 27 March 2023.

Flying from Seoul-Incheon and Daegu 168 km southeast of Seoul to the Thai capital, T’way Air offers double daily flights to Bangkok to tap strong two-way leisure traffic between South Korea and Thailand.    

Photo credit: T’way Air.

Double daily to Bangkok

TW101 ICN-BKK 1955/2355
TW102 BKK-ICN 0125/0855 (next day).
The flights use an Airbus A300 aircraft with 12 business class seats (flatbed) and 323 in economy class. Total: 335 seats on the route Incheon – Bangkok.

TW105 TAE-BKK 2130/0140 (next day)
TW106 BKK-TAE 0235/0935
The flight uses a single-class 189-seat B737-800 on the Daegu (TAE) – Bangkok route.

Commenting on expansion plans, the general sales agency, Buy Now Co Ltd, confirmed the airline intends to offer additional flights from Incheon (ICN) and Cheoungju (CJJ) to Bangkok’s Don Mueang Airport (DMK). Suvarnabhumi airport’s ground handling services are stretched due to workforce shortages post Covid-19 leading to a T’way Air decision to fly to both airports.

The airline intends to fly a B737-800 daily between ICN and DMK. There are also plans to add a second daily flight to DMK from Cheoungju (CJJ), the largest city of North Chungcheong Province in South Korea, possibly as early as 28 April. The exact launch dates and timetable details for the two DMK flights have still to be confirmed. For more information on the general sales agency Buynow, visit https://www.buynoww.com/.

Etihad Airways activates codeshares

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TTR WEEKLY
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ABU DHABI, UAE, 28 March 2023: Etihad Airways has launched reciprocal interline partnerships with three new airline partners – Philippine Airlines (PAL), Austrian Airlines (OS) and Airlink South Africa (4Z)

It has also re-launched interline links with Biman Bangladesh and codeshares with Air Seychelles (HM) and ITA Airways (AZ).

The deal means customers travelling with airline partners will enjoy enhanced connectivity to destinations across networks, can book on a single ticket and only have to check in once at the start of their flight, with their baggage checked through to their end destination.

The six interline/code agreements make life easier for guests of all the airlines involved. With Austrian Airlines, this tie-in gives guests access to up to 58 European destinations via Vienna, operated by Etihad daily during the summer, and joins the other four members of the Lufthansa Group with whom we already have interline or codeshare agreements.

Airlink South Africa gives connecting guests via the Johannesburg flight seamless access to 16 domestic destinations in South Africa and 25 regional African destinations.

Philippine Airlines provides easy access to 19 domestic destinations, including Cebu, Cagayan de Oro, Davao and Kalibo, to and from Etihad’s double daily Manila service.

A race around Borneo heritage

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TTR WEEKLY
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KOTA KINABALU: An exciting game race is set to take place in September and will highlight historical buildings or sites within Kota Kinabalu city.

Organised by KSRun Athletics Club, the running event dubbed North Borneo Race is limited to only 70 teams, each of which comprises four people.

The race will take participants on a nostalgic journey, during which they must decipher riddles to get to the next checkpoint in the run.

Last week, the event organiser Wendy John briefed the Sabah Tourism Board chairman Datuk Joniston Bangkuai about the race, for which 20 teams have already registered.

Joniston said that the race fits well with the new Sabah destination logo, ‘Feel Sabah, North Borneo,’ and he believed that an event of this nature could draw participants from other states and tourists.

“Kota Kinabalu city, which serves as the state capital and the main entry point into Sabah, is home to several historical landmarks that not everyone knows about.

“The North Borneo Race is something I consider to be educational and beneficial to anyone interested in joining because it is a great way to learn about the city’s past,” he added.

The Assistant Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Environment also said holding the race in September is an ideal time because it coincides with the celebration of Malaysia Day.

Meanwhile, Wendy stated that participants in the North Borneo Race would have to find their way into the city and interact with locals.

She said that the race was supposed to take place in June but moved to September in conjunction with Malaysia Day, adding they will announce the official date for the event on their social media.

“During the race, teams will face some physical and mental challenges that emphasise parts of the location’s culture and history,” she explained, adding that the teams will travel by car and on foot throughout the race.

The winning team will receive MYR3,000, the first-runner-up MYR2000, and the second-runner-up MYR1000. Those interested in participating can visit the KSRun Athletics Club Facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/KINABALUSABAHRUN

For more information on Sabah, visit www.sabahtourism.com.

(Your Stories: Sabah Tourism Board)

Emirates launches first A380 service to Bali

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TTR WEEKLY
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DUBAI, UAE, 28 March 2023: Emirates will deploy its signature A380 aircraft to Bali starting from 1 June 2023, marking a milestone in Indonesia’s aviation history as the first A380 service to the country.

The new two-class Emirates A380 service will replace one of the two daily services to Bali currently operated by a two-class Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.

The airline’s debut A380 flight EK368 will depart from Dubai International Airport (DXB) at 0325, arriving at Denpasar International Airport (DPS) at 1635. The return flight, EK369, will depart Bali at 1940, arriving in Dubai at 0045. All times are local.

Tickets can be purchased on emirates.com, the Emirates App, at Emirates sales offices, and via online and offline travel agents. Travellers should check the Emirates website for the latest travel requirements.

Emirates’ chief commercial officer Adnan Kazim said: “The Emirates A380 is synonymous with our fly better promise and world-class products and services. We’re excited to offer our travellers the opportunity to experience its uniqueness and unmatched beauty on flights to and from Bali. We’ve been working closely with our partners at Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport to ensure our A380 operations will be seamless and smooth.

“Bali continues to be one of the most popular tourist destinations in our network and strategic markets in Southeast Asia. The Emirates A380’s debut in Indonesia underscores our long-standing commitment to its travel and tourism sector.”

Emirates launched nonstop daily services from Dubai to Bali in 2015, adding to its scheduled flights to Jakarta which began in 1992. The airline has operated more than 49,000 flights, carrying over 9 million passengers between Indonesia and Dubai. Emirates currently serves Indonesia with 28 weekly flights to Bali and Jakarta and offers increased connectivity to 29 more domestic cities via the two gateways through its partnership agreements with Garuda Indonesia and Batik Air.

On a two-class Emirates A380 aircraft, passengers are offered 58 lie-flat seats in Business Class and 557 generously pitched seats in Economy Class. Customers travelling to and from Bali can look forward to enjoying Emirates’ spacious and comfortable cabins, signature products that offer travellers the best experiences in the sky, like the Onboard Lounge, as well as regional cuisine, including Indonesian dishes.

Emirates continues to expand its A380 network to meet increasing travel demand globally. The airline’s flagship aircraft is currently deployed to 41 destinations, including Dubai and is likely to expand to nearly 50 destinations by the end of the summer.

www.emirates.com

(Your Stories: Emirates)

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