SINGAPORE, 11 November 2022: British Airways adds its second daily flight from Singapore to London Heathrow.
With this additional flight, for the first time, British Airways returns to its pre-pandemic schedule to Singapore.
The second flight uses the latest Boeing 787-9 with special features such as bigger windows that help with motion sickness, lower cabin altitude and mood lighting, which helps fight jet lag.
BANGKOK, 11 November 2022: For the second time in two decades, I returned to Danang and Hoi An Ancient Town to see first-hand how these major tourist spots in central Vietnam had changed.
My first visit to Hoi An in Quang Nam Province of Vietnam was in 2002, when Bangkok Airways pioneered flights linking World Heritage sites in the Mekong region. In July 2002, my PG flight landed in Danang, the gateway to Vietnam’s central province, just three years after Hoi An was inscribed into the UNESCO World Heritage Site list. The ancient city, located 28 km south of Danang, was exotic and genuinely welcomed visitors.
It wasn’t difficult to fall in love with Hoi An. Memories of ancient yellow houses with brick or wooden walls decorated with colourful traditional lanterns where people lived and worked traditional lives have stayed with me to this day. For the past 20 years, I have wondered what tourism brought to this lovely small town.
I returned to the Quang Nam Province in October this year to attend the Mekong Tourism Forum 2022. I was excited to revisit the destination after two decades when Vietnam’s economy grew from a GDP of USD35.06 billion in 2002 to USD362.64 billion in 2021. In 2002, the country welcomed 2.62 million tourist arrivals, while the numbers hit 18 million in 2019, according to World Bank data.
The PG flight took me back to Danang International Airport for MTF 2022 to witness the changes. My first impressions focused on the airport’s spacious terminal, equipped with all modern facilities. It opened in May 2017 and today serves 6 million passengers annually. International flights resumed to Danang after the country re-opened to tourists in May. The airport offers flight connections to 10 international destinations comprising Bangkok, Singapore, Inchon, Muan (Korea), Busan, Deagu, Kuala Lumpur, Siam Reap, Mumbai, and New Delhi. It will welcome flights from Taipei and Haneda in December. On the route Bangkok – Danang alone, there are 38 to 40 flights per week.
Beyond the airport, Danang City itself has grown considerably. The tourist capital of central Vietnam is known for its beaches. There were only a few five-star resorts a decade ago. Danang Center for Tourism Promotion reported 326 hotel establishments in 2012, growing to 1,280 in September of this year.
Today, tourism generates 30% of Danang’s GDP, and the city has been attracting investments in the past decade. New developments include Da Nang Mikazuki Japanese Resorts & Spa, Lang Van resort and entertainment complex project, Asia Park, Sunworld Bana Hills, and Nam O Project.
The expansion of hotel projects can be seen along Quang Nam’s coastline. In Nui Thanh District, TUI BLUE Nam Hoi An opened its door in March 2020 with 318 rooms on Tam Tien Beach.
During MTF, I stayed at the New World Hoiana Hotel, located around 37 km south of Danang. The hotel offers 476 rooms and is part of the Hoiana integrated resort, managed by Rosewood Hotel Group. The resort opened its doors to visitors in 2020. It comprises entertainment and MICE facilities, a golf course and luxurious accommodations.
Besides hotel developments and main tourist attractions, the Quag Nam Province also promotes historical, cultural, and community-based tourism.
The MTF’s international media group fam trip introduced the tourist attractions around Hoi An, including the 200-year-old Loc Yen Village in Tien Phuoc – the midlands of Quang Nam, 67 km away. The village contains eight ancient houses – a living museum where visitors can learn about traditional Vietnamese architecture. The interiors are built from jackfruit wood carved into thick columns, decorative panels and doors. Houses are connected by stone pathways where visitors can observe rice paddies and gardens in the surrounding areas.
The group also visited the Statue of the Vietnamese Heroic Mother in Tam Ky city. The monument, inaugurated in 2015 to mark the 40th anniversary of the province’s liberation and depicts Mother Nguyen Thai Thu. She is a symbol of sacrifice during the national liberation (1945 to 1975), having lost nine sons, two nieces, and one son-in-law.
We headed 50 km north of Tam Ky to visit Hoi An ancient town. Although its original structures remained relatively the same, as I recall, the mood of the place is different. Most heritage houses have evolved into bars, cafés, galleries, restaurants, or souvenir shops competing with each other to sell almost the same products. I didn’t know what to expect, but I tried to recognise that change is inevitable, so I just accepted the new Hoi An ancient town experience.
The place was quite busy with domestic and international visitors. Although I felt that this lovely ancient town has become more like another walking street in Asia, at least these classic buildings decorated with traditional Hoi An lanterns made stylish cafés and chic backdrops for my Instagram photos.
Fortunately, some traditional houses remain undisturbed by progress and are open to tourists to appreciate the traditional interior designs. Visitors can still learn about Hoi An’s history as the ancient trading port at historical sites, including the iconic Japanese bridge and ancient shrines and temples located on the site. But the tourist area has expanded to engulf the opposite bank of the Thu Bon River, where visitors will find more shops and street food stalls.
The next day, we travelled 120 km from Hoi An’s coastline to visit Cotu Village in Nam Giang District, a remote mountainous region near the Laotian border. Cotu is one of 53 ethnic minority groups in Vietnam, known as the ‘People of the Forest.’ Currently, the Foundation for International Development/Relief (FIDR) in Vietnam is operating the Community Based Tourism program to promote Cotu culture and improve people’s livelihood. Visitors will get a chance to observe everyday Cotu life, learn about their traditional weaving, assembly house, Cotu traditional dance, and experience Cotu meals.
The group travelled northeast for another 75 km to visit Dong Giang Heaven’s Gate. The project is developed by a private company and is being promoted as an eco-tourism area. It offers 112 hotel rooms while tourists can explore waterfalls, caves, and artificial attractions.
Finally, we returned to Hanoi in the evening and wrapped up the trip with our last dinner and show at the Hoi An Impression Theme Park. The one-hour visual art performance, the so-called Hoi An Memories Show, starts at 2000 and takes place at a 3,300-seat outdoor theatre inside the theme park. With 500 dancers and actors, the show tells stories about Hoi An’s 400-year journey that began in the 16th century. Although I was surprised by the development of the theme park in Hoi An, I found that the show is surprisingly good in terms of narrative and production. At some point, the show reminded me of my memories of Ha Noi from 20 years ago.
Since my first trip to Hoi An, I could witness how tourism delivers pros and cons that impact a community. As much as I would love to see things remain the same as they were when I first discovered this beautiful town, I respect the Vietnamese people for their achievement in growing their economy in such a short time.
SINGAPORE, 10 November 2022: Emirates signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) last week with Southeast Asia’s lifestyle platform, Traveloka.
The deal will enhance the brands’ cooperation and establish the grounds for a strategic partnership. The MoU was signed by Emirates’ senior vice president of commercial operations – Far East, Orhan Abbas and Traveloka CEO of transport, Iko Putera, at the Traveloka Campus, Indonesia.
The partnership will enhance Emirates’ visibility in five Southeast Asian markets: Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.
“With international borders relaxing, we’ve witnessed the demand for air travel surge across our global markets, which reflects how eager people are to fly again,” said Orhan Abbas.
“The MoU we’ve signed opens up new channels for travellers to discover and book on Emirates and also reaffirms our solid commitment to Southeast Asia as we continue to identify partners and opportunities to contribute to the region’s travel and tourism recovery. We look forward to working closely with Traveloka in this new and exciting partnership.”
SINGAPORE, 10 November 2022: Conde Nest readers named their top island choices in Asia, with Boracay Philippines topping the list, followed by Bali, Indonesia, Samui Thailand and in fourth place Langkawi Malaysia.
According to Conde Nest editors, 2022 was the year we embraced travel again after two years of enforced abstinence. The travel magazine covers the world with its annual Readers’ Choice Awards identifying the top hotels, destinations, cities, friendliest countries and islands.
Aerial view of Puka beach in Boracay Island, Western Visayas, Philippines.
Under the islands category, readers voted the top destinations by region, and past favourites kept their top spots for Asia across the ranking. Southeast Asia’s islands dominated the list, with Thailand scoring three islands (Samui, Phi Phi and Phuket) and the Philippines two (Boracay and Palawan). Langkawi stands out as the premier island in Malaysia, with a fourth standing in the Asia islands ranks.
The best islands in Asia
1. Boracay, Philippines. Score 95.13
2. Bali, Indonesia. Score 93.90
3. Koh Samui, Thailand. Score 92.13
4. Langkawi, Malaysia. Score 90.97
5. Phuket, Thailand. Score 90.88
6. Phu Quoc, Vietnam. Score 89.777. Sri Lanka. Score 89.17
BANGKOK, 10 November 2022: Centara Hotels & Resorts offers travellers the chance to save on stays at participating Centara hotels and resorts during the Centara 11.11 Flash Sale, available for only five days from 10to 14 November 2022.
This limited-time offer is valid for stays until 31 March 2023 at 38 exquisite Centara Hotels & Resorts properties in Thailand, Vietnam, the Maldives and Sri Lanka.
Guests are provided with an exceptional selection of urban hotels, beachfront resorts, and mountain hideaways in Thailand, from tropical escapes to Phuket, Trat, Krabi, Hat Yai or Samui in the South to the culture of Bangkok or Udon Thani and the natural beauty of Chiang Mai and Mae Sot in the North.
With the Centara 11.11 Flash Sale, travellers can enjoy up to 40% off stays at participating hotels and resorts and rediscover the joys of experiencing exotic new destinations, including fun-filled family holidays in Vietnam and romantic island retreats in vibrant Sri Lanka or the pristine Maldives.
Travellers also enjoy peace of mind when staying with Centara Hotels & Resorts as the group continues to follow strict safety protocols and adhere to certified health and hygiene procedures with the comprehensive Centara Complete Care programme.
The Centara 11.11 Flash Sale is so good that it has to be limited to five days only, from midnight on Thursday, 10 November to midnight on Monday, 14 November 2021, for stays until 31 March 2023.
SINGAPORE, 9 November 2022: Regent Seven Seas Cruises is including a pre-or-post-European land programme to extend 57 Europe cruise vacations from April through November 2023
Regent’s Gift of Travel land programme marks the first time the line’s cruise offer includes European land programmes. The offer is valid for new bookings between now and 6 January 2023, giving travellers some of Europe’s most charming destinations on sailing next year.
Gift of Travel is available on sailings on board Seven Seas Splendor, Seven Seas Mariner, Seven Seas Navigator and Seven Seas Voyager. It features destinations such as Piraeus (Athens), Southampton (London), Copenhagen, Istanbul and Barcelona. Pre-or-post-cruise land programmes are available for passengers who book suite categories based on availability. Regent’s land programmes include hotel accommodation, transfers, select meals and specially curated tours.
London & Charming Cotswolds – London (Southampton), England (3-Nights).
Authentic Madrid & Beyond – Barcelona, Spain (4-Nights).
Guests who do not wish to participate in an included pre-or-post land programme can take a non-use credit of USD750 per guest, up to USD1,500 per suite.
KUALA LUMPUR, 10 November 2022: AirAsia will launch a new route connecting travellers from Penang to Phnom Penh, starting 10 December 2022.
The new route will boost AirAsia’s connectivity within ASEAN and allow for seamless travel between Cambodia and Penang, which is AirAsia’s third-largest hub in West Malaysia.
Following the inaugural flight in December, the airline will offer twice weekly flights initially. AirAsia’s Penang hub is expanding following the introduction of a Bali service on 20 October.
To celebrate the new flight to Cambodia, AirAsia rewards members can grab value fares for MYR179* one way or MYR428* return for the travel period 10 December 2022 to 25 March 2023 via AirAsia Super App or website. The sale period closes on 27 November 2022.
AirAsia Malaysia CEO Riad Asmat said: “We’re thrilled to launch this new route to Phnom Penh from another important hub of ours in Malaysia – Penang. Following our flight resumption to Phnom Penh and Siem Reap in Cambodia from Kuala Lumpur earlier this year, this new route further reinforces the popularity and demand for tourism to and from Cambodia.”
*Terms and conditions apply
*This promo price is only valid for AirAsia rewards members
HONG KONG, 10 November 2022: The Cathay Pacific Group announces senior leadership appointments over the next few months, including the top post of chief executive officer, effective 1 January 2023.
Incumbent chief executive officer Augustus Tang will retire end of December and will be replaced by Ronald Lam, who will take over the top post effective 1 January 2023.
Ronald Lam, Cathay Pacific Group chief executive officer-designate.
Tang will assume a new role at John Swire & Sons (HK) Ltd, effective 1 January 2023. Lam is currently the chief customer and commercial officer. He will continue to serve as chair of HK Express.
Senior management appointments
Lavinia Lau, director of customer travel, will be appointed chief customer and commercial officer, replacing Lam, and will also be appointed executive director on the board of Cathay Pacific effective 1 January 2023.
Greg Hughes, chief operations and service delivery officer since June 2017, will retire from the Swire Group after 36 years of service in 2023.
Alex McGowan, director service delivery, will be appointed chief operations and service delivery officer and an executive director on the board of Cathay Pacific effective 1 April 2023 upon Hughes’ retirement from the board. McGowan will also be appointed chair of Cathay Pacific’s wholly-owned all-cargo airline, Air Hong Kong, replacing Hughes.
Other changes
Erica Peng, currently general manager planning at Cathay Pacific, will succeed Lau as director customer travel effective 1 January 2023.
Mandy Ng, currently chief executive officer of the Cathay Pacific Group’s wholly owned low-cost carrier HK Express, will return to Cathay Pacific and succeed McGowan as director service delivery effective 1 April 2023.
Jeanette Mao, currently general manager inflight services at Cathay Pacific, will succeed Ng as HK Express chief executive officer effective 1 April 2023.
SINGAPORE, 10 November 2022: Life for Singapore’s ship spotters took a turn for the better during the year’s second half as cruises made a comeback in Southeast Asia.
Enthusiastic spotters shot snaps of Viking Orion earlier this week on an overnight stop at the Singapore Cruise Centre, while Facebook posts heralded the return of Viking Ocean Cruises Asia.
Photo credit Singapore Cruise Society
According to the Singapore Cruise Society, Viking Orion is now sailing north to Laem Chabang port in the Gulf of Thailand, bringing to a close its first intercontinental cruise featuring Asia in more than two years. It will dock at Thailand’s principal cruise port 100 km south of Bangkok.
Viking Orion marking its return to Asia this week, completed a 27-night cruise that started in Honolulu, Hawaii and featured five countries – the US, Australia, Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand. Fares for the cruise started around AUS6,799, with the cruise line saying the focus is on gaining more port days and fewer days at sea. The inaugural cruise post-Covid-19 sailing explored coastal cities in Australia, Cairns and Darwin before visiting Thursday Island, Singapore and Bangkok.
It was a busy week at the Singapore Cruise Terminal, according to the Singapore Cruise Society’s Facebook post that monitored Ocean Odyssey sailing’ under the Vantage Deluxe World Travel owners’ flag. The vessel concluded its “delivery voyage” when it docked in Singapore on Tuesday, arriving from Manila, Philippines, after leaving the shipyard in China.
The Ocean Odyssey and her Infinity-class sister ships share a distinctive Ulstein X-Bow, a design that gives smaller ships a smoother ride and better fuel economy.
Ocean Odyssey has a capacity for 134 passengers in 77 standard cabins and 15 cabins specifically designed for solo travellers. It will spend its inaugural season 2023 in Asia, sailing expedition cruises to Indonesia and Australia.
The Wild Landscapes of Indonesia & Australia – 2023 sailings are home-ported out of Singapore. The 22-night cruise features port of calls in Pulau Lengkuas/Belitung Islands, Kumai/Kalimantan, Karimun/Kura Kura, Semarang, Madura, Probolinggo, Celukan Bawang/Lovina Beach, Benoa, Gili Islands, Badas, Rinca/Komodo, Sumba, Sawu, Ende, Lembata, Kalabahi, Kisar and Darwin Australia. The cruise has a starting price tag of USD17,999 or USD666 a day and features 42 land tours in Indonesia and northern Australia.
Photo credit: Singapore Cruise Society.
The five-star Ocean Odyssey follows the launch of Ocean Explorer in 2020.
“We couldn’t be more excited to build on the success of the Ocean Explorer with the Ocean Odyssey,” said Vantage Deluxe World Travel chairman Henry Lewis. “Our travellers want an intimate, enriching experience where they can truly absorb history and culture with fewer guests and a better staff-to-guest ratio. The Ocean Odyssey will cater to those who appreciate relaxed refinement, unparalleled cultural enrichment, and unique adventures.”
The return of cruise ships to Singapore started earlier this year, with a steady rise in the daily port of calls since July.
A report by the US Department of Commerce International Trade Administration released at the end of September noted that many cruise operators had announced the resumption of port calls in Southeast Asia, and cruise bookings are steadily increasing. The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) expects Singapore’s cruise industry to return to pre-pandemic levels by 2024.
Between 2010 and 2019, Singapore’s cruise industry contributed USD530 million to Singapore’s economy, attracting more than 1.2 million people in 2016 alone. Singapore was one of the top destinations for port calls before the pandemic due to its strategic location as a gateway to tourist destinations in Southeast Asia. It is relatively close to more than 25,000 islands, including Bali, Langkawi, Phuket and 37 UNESCO World Heritage sites, the US Department of Commerce reported noted.
“The outlook for the cruise industry looks positive, with revenue from the cruise industry projected to reach US$239.1 million in 2022. That is a good sign compared to the previous two years during the global pandemic. With an expected annual growth rate of 13.86%, the market volume should grow to USD401.80 million by 2026,” the US Department of Commerce specialist Chan Yiu Kei concluded.
SINGAPORE, 9 November 2022: ForwardKeys, which has the world’s largest database of flight tickets, has revealed the performance of the top global destinations of 2022 in an extensive review of the year.
The country list is headed by the Dominican Republic, and the city list by Antalya in Turkey. Both destinations are set to welcome more guests than in 2019, the pre-Covid-19 era.
According to the latest available air ticketing data (combining arrivals up to 18 October with bookings to the end of the year), the Dominican Republic is set to welcome 5% more visitors than it did in 2019.
It is followed by Turkey, Costa Rica and Mexico, which will welcome the same number of visitors. They are followed by Jamaica and Pakistan, 5% down, then Bangladesh, 8% down, Greece, 12% down, Egypt, 15% down, Portugal, 16% down, and the UAE, 17% down.
The 20 best performers are shown in the table below. (An expanded list with additional regional and industry-wide insights can be downloaded in a detailed report from the ForwardKeys website here.
The strong representation of Central American and Caribbean destinations towards the top of the list reflects the relative strength of the US outbound market and the approach taken by many highly tourism-dependent countries in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. Throughout the pandemic, they imposed less severe Covid-19 travel restrictions than elsewhere and, in doing so, maintained their visitor economies. As the year has progressed, they have consolidated their leadership position and begun to exceed pre-pandemic volumes.
Alongside the ranking, ForwardKeys identified several major trends that have characterised travel in 2022. The strongest is recovery, as pandemic-related travel restrictions have been progressively relaxed and pent-up demand to travel has been released, helped by a recent revival in business travel and major global events such as the World Expo in Dubai and the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
However, recovery could have been smoother. Initially, the highly virulent Omicron variant caused great concern and the reimposition of travel restrictions at the start of the year. Another factor stalling recovery was staff shortages, which resulted in chaotic scenes in airports before the start of the summer season.
Although Russia’s invasion of Ukraine massively impacted travel to and from Russia, as numerous countries imposed bans on direct flights, it has not caused long-haul travel to Europe to decline as much as might have been expected before the pandemic. Travel to Southern Europe, especially to Greece, down 12%, Portugal, down 16%, and Turkey, flat, and to Iceland, down 14%, are set to hold up well. However,
ForwardKeys expects that second-order consequences of the war, such as rising fuel prices and inflation, will have a delaying effect on travel recovery.
The Asia Pacific region, which has been characterised by stiffer travel restrictions, most notably in China with its Zero Covid policy, has started to recover. There, people travelling to visit friends and relatives is the main driver, with Pakistan and Bangladesh just 5% and 8% down on 2019 levels. Leisure travel to the Maldives, down 7%, and Fiji, down 22%, both tropical island paradises, are set to hold up well.
Consumer demand for beach holidays has led the revival, with business travel and city tourism lagging until the start of the autumn. There has also been a trend towards travel in premium cabins, partly fuelled by so-called “revenge travel”, which has seen consumers spending more on value-added travel services. That syndrome, plus the increasing fuel cost, has driven a strong increase in fares.
Among top destination cities, the best performer is Antalya, the largest city on the Turkish riviera, which is set to welcome 66% more visitors than it did in the equivalent period in 2019. It is followed by San Jose Cabo (MX), up 21%, Puerto Vallarta (MX), up 13%, Punta Cana (DO), up 12%, San Salvador (SV), up 10%, Cancun (MX), up 9%, Lahore (PK), up 4%, Aruba (AW), up 3%, Montego Bay (JM), flat, and Islamabad (PK), down 1%.
The extraordinary performance of Antalya has been helped by a few factors, most notably the Turkish lira’s weakness and the Turkish government’s policy to remain relatively open to tourism during the pandemic and to continue welcoming Russian visitors.
ForwardKeys VP Insights Olivier Ponti said: “Looking at the world on a regional basis, one must admire Caribbean countries for their early efforts to sustain visitor arrivals in the face of the pandemic and their continued growth in an increasingly competitive travel landscape. The Middle East also stands out, as it has helped to accelerate its recovery by hosting major global events such as the Dubai World Expo, Formula One grand Prix in various Gulf locations and, above all, the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The Gulf has also seen a relatively robust comeback in business travel, a segment whose recent revival has come as a surprise to many.”
