HONG KONG, 20 September 2022: August passenger traffic continued to show promising signs of recovery according to the Airport Authority Hong Kong’s traffic figures for August 2022.
During the month, Hong Kong International Airport handled 479,000 passengers, representing year-on-year growth of 116.3%, although traffic remained significantly below the pre-pandemic levels of 2019. Flight movements decreased by 11.3% to 11,390 compared to the same month last year, while cargo throughput dropped 21.0% to 338,000 tonnes.
HKIA was named “China’s Leading Airport” at the 29th annual World Travel Awards.
After the further relaxation of restrictions on inbound travel in August, the growth in passenger throughput was driven by both returning residents and visitors to Hong Kong. Passenger traffic to and from Southeast Asia experienced the most significant increase.
Cargo volume was affected by global economic uncertainties, continuing geopolitical tensions and disruptions to global supply chains. Exports and imports decreased by 25% and 20%, respectively, compared to the same month last year. Cargo traffic to and from key trading regions in North America and Europe registered the most significant decreases.
Over the first eight months, the airport handled 1.7 million passengers, marking a year-on-year increase of 141.5%. Flight movements and cargo throughput dropped 2.8% and 11.1% to 85,020 and 2.8 million tonnes, respectively.
On a 12-month rolling basis, passenger volume and flight movements increased by 121.9% and 6.1% to 2.4 million and 142,330, respectively. Cargo throughput saw a decline of 2.9% to 4.7 million tonnes.
Meanwhile, HKIA was named “China’s Leading Airport” at the 29th annual World Travel Awards. Voted by travel professionals, media and high-end consumers worldwide, the prestigious awards recognise top companies and organisations across various sectors in the global travel industry.
AAHK executive director, airport operations Vivian Cheung said: “We are honoured that HKIA was named China’s Leading Airport at the World Travel Awards. As an international and regional aviation hub, HKIA is committed to providing a pleasant experience for passengers. We have been continuously upgrading terminal facilities and introducing measures to enhance our capacity and enrich the travel experience.”
MUSANDAM, Oman, 16 September 2022: Six Senses Zighy Bay takes to the seas for its latest out-of-the-ordinary escapade. The recently refurbished Dhahab – meaning gold in Arabic – now offers one- or two-night voyages for the ultimate sea-hotel adventure.
Guests can discover the dramatic coastline and fjords of the Musandam (also known as the Norway of the Middle East) aboard a traditional, hand-crafted Omani dhow.
Once used by traders on epic voyages across the high seas, today, the dhow sets sail to the less-discovered side of Oman. From mornings exploring quaint fishing villages unaffected by the passing of time to afternoons cruising waters boasting some of the world’s most famous diving sites. The 90-foot (27.5-meter) vessel features three bedrooms and ensuite bathrooms to accommodate up to six people.
Dining experience
In line with the Eat With Six Senses philosophy, meals are prepared from locally sourced organic produce, incorporating fresh catch of the day. Morning and afternoon snacks are always available, alongside breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
“Guests who prefer above-water activities can tour the fjords in kayaks (both single and twin), snorkel, hand-line fish, or perfect their tubing skills,” says general manager Andrew Spearman. “A selection of spa treatments by seasoned Six Senses Spa therapists, as well as fitness and morning yoga classes, can also be arranged on board the Dhahab.”
The voyage sails the waters around Haffa, Sanna’t, Lima, Charia, and Hamra, with tailor-made dive experiences to explore the colourful corals and sea creatures for novices and experts alike.
A Dhahab experience, including all meals and soft beverages, is priced from USD2,250 per person per night. Overnight Dhabab boat rental and crew without inclusions has a starting price of USD1,166 per person per night.
Six Senses Zighy Bay has also recently launched the “Stay and Cruise” offer, starting at USD7,250 per person. This includes four nights in the resort’s Pool Villa, daily breakfast at Spice Market, and one night on the Dhabab cruise. As part of the package, guests will enjoy a private chef on board, with breakfast, lunch, dinner, and soft drinks included, alongside non-motorized water sports at no extra charge. There are many other chargeable activities available on request, from spa treatments to water skiing.
To book one of these out-of-the-ordinary experiences, please e-mail [email protected] or call +968 2673 5555.
About Six Senses Zighy Bay
Six Senses Zighy Bay is located on the northern Musandam Peninsula in the Sultanate of Oman. The setting of 82 village-inspired pool villas is a spectacular bay guarded by the majestic Hajar Mountains and a private sandy beach. The adventure starts with an adrenaline-charged paraglide arrival into Zighy Bay, providing a stunning bird’s eye view of the resort.
SINGAPORE 19 September 2022: Princess Cruises has revealed a new ship platform that is the brand’s largest ship ever that will accommodate over 4,000 guests.
The new Sun Princess boasts stunning views, expansive venues, innovative entertainment venues, multi-story dining rooms and next-level stateroom accommodations while remaining true to the smooth, clean lines and design aesthetics inspired by the Seawitch icon and popularised in the original “Love Boat” TV series and returning the venerable “Sun Princess” name to the fleet.
Currently under construction at the Fincantieri shipyard and scheduled to debut in early 2024, the 175,500-ton vessel is the largest Princess ship ever constructed and embraces Italian heritage by featuring a next-level, brand-iconic Piazza and The Dome, a cutting-edge entertainment space inspired by the terraces of Santorini. Sun Princess will also feature the exclusive Princess Medallion that will extend Princess’s leadership position in delivering exceptional personalised experiences at an unmatched scale. Princess is unique in the ability to deliver incredible cruise ship amenities typical of the largest ships in the world while delivering personalised service found on the industry’s smallest ships.
“Sun Princess is a new and bespoke ship platform, designed to simultaneously embrace Princess heritage while boldly pressing into the future with iconic, elegant and pure lines unique to our brand,” said Princess Cruises’ president John Padgett. “A show-stopping, first-of-its-kind Dome on the top deck and suspended glass Piazza in the centre of Sun Princess offer innovative designs showcasing expansive ocean views for incredible opportunities to connect with the sea.”
The cruise line also announced that Sun Princess will sail an inaugural spring/summer season of Mediterranean cruises followed by Western and Eastern Caribbean voyages out of Port Everglades, Florida, in the fall of 2024.
Innovative Guest Experience
Infused with light, the ship connects guests with dynamic views of the world and innovative experiences, from service to food to entertainment. The line’s Piazza spans three stories, forming an iconic architectural feature offering guests an outward-looking suspended space with comfortable seating and areas to enjoy the ocean views in every direction. An impressive LED screen is also showcased in the centre of the Piazza that can be moved and configured to deliver live entertainment programming. Adjacent to the Piazza Atrium will be a new coffee shop, Coffee Currents, Bellini’s Cocktail Bar, along with Princess favourites like Crooners Bar and Alfredo’s Pizzeria.
The other stand-out structure onboard Sun Princess is The Dome. Inspired by the terraces of Santorini, it is a multi-level covered deck and first-of-its-kind true glass-enclosed dome ever constructed on a cruise ship. During the day, the Dome features an indoor/outdoor pool, and unique water feature, in a comfortable and relaxed space. At night, the pool becomes a stage, and the Dome completely transforms into an entertainment venue with a South Beach vibe, state-of-the-art lighting effects and the ability to deliver stunning aerial performances.
The ship’s overall interior design embraces the outside and celebrates the romance of the sea, offering outward views from morning until night. With brighter and lighter décor and finishes, Sun Princess delivers more memorable vantage points to take in the stunning destinations, and ocean vistas guests want to experience on Princess cruise vacations.
Newly Appointed Suites and Staterooms
With 2,157 total staterooms, including 50 suites and 100 connecting rooms, the 21-deck Sun Princess features more outdoor balcony space, and all-balcony accommodations feature an in-room sofa.
Also launching exclusively on Sun Princess will be a new level of suite accommodations, the Signature Collection. In addition to premium stateroom amenities, Signature Collection suites include access to the Signature Restaurant, Signature Lounge, and Signature Sun Deck, a private area of the Sanctuary.
With Sun Princess, Club Class accommodations onboard this ship, and all Princess ships will now be called ‘Reserve Collection’, which describes the best-located mini-suite staterooms. The collection features Reserve Collection Cabana rooms, resort-style staterooms that offer a balcony and private cabana, and extra-large outdoor lounge space. These premium accommodations also include access to the Reserve Collection restaurant.
There are also sustainable elements being engineered in the vessel. Sun Princess is part of Carnival Corporation’s green cruising focus and is one of 11 new ships in the corporate fleet powered by LNG fuel technology.
The inaugural season for Sun Princess begins in early 2024 with Mediterranean itineraries. The ship’s first three voyages opened for bookings at 1500 eastern on Friday, 16 September 2022.
This is the third ship to be honoured with the Sun Princess name, adding to the legacy of the first ship sailing from 1974 to 1988 and the second ship sailing from 1995 to 2020. At that time, she had the largest number of balcony cabins and the cruise line’s first 24-hour cafe.
More details about Sun Princess, including additional dining details, entertainment and onboard features, will be unveiled over the coming months. Ship information can be found at www.princess.com.
A second, next-generation Sphere class ship is also on order, slated to be delivered by Fincantieri in spring 2025.
HONG KONG 19 September 2022: Cathay Pacific says its traffic figures for August reflect the positive impact of adjustments to the Hong Kong government’s travel restrictions and quarantine requirements, notably the mandatory hotel quarantine arrangement for inbound travellers.
Cathay Pacific carried 253,907 passengers last month, an increase of 87.6% compared to August 2021 but a 91.3% decrease compared to the pre-pandemic level in August 2019.
The month’s revenue passenger kilometres (RPKs) increased 82.7% year-on-year but were down 86.1% versus August 2019. Passenger load factor increased by 22.2 percentage points to 68.6%, while capacity, measured in available seat kilometres (ASKs), increased by 23.5% year-on-year but decreased by 83.8% compared with August 2019 levels. In the first eight months of 2022, passengers carried increased by 133.5% against a 1.6% increase in capacity and a 141.9% increase in RPKs, compared to the same period for 2021.
Travel
The airline’s chief customer and commercial officer, Ronald Lam said: “We continued to see improved performance in our travel business in August. Average daily passenger numbers further increased month on month and exceeded 8,000. Passenger flight capacity increased 28% compared with July, although we still only operated about 16% of pre-pandemic levels. Meanwhile, the load factor remained high at close to 69%.
“Following the Hong Kong SAR Government’s adjustment to the hotel quarantine arrangement for travellers entering Hong Kong from 12 August, we observed an increase in inbound traffic to our home hub. This was particularly so for long-haul traffic from the US, Canada and Europe. Meanwhile, our passenger flight capacity to the Chinese Mainland remained restricted, although we were able to resume carrying passengers to Zhengzhou, Qingdao and Xiamen in August.
“Student traffic from the Chinese Mainland to the US represented a significant portion of our passenger traffic last month. On top of our existing services to New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, we resumed flights to Chicago and Boston in August for the first time this year to cater to the strong demand. As a result, our US-bound flights managed 80% of load factors. Besides student traffic, our US routes were also boosted in the other direction by transit traffic travelling to Southeast Asia, resulting in greater connectivity from increased flight frequency.
Looking forward
Looking ahead, Lam noted that the Hong Kong SAR Government’s adjustments to the mandatory quarantine arrangements for locally based aircrew arriving in Hong Kong earlier this month. While we will continue to add back more flights as quickly as is feasible to strengthen the network connectivity of the Hong Kong aviation hub, this will still take time as we build operational readiness and undertake a substantial amount of training and aircraft reactivation.
“This, combined with other operational complexities, means that capacity can only be increased gradually over several months. As such, we are now projecting by the end of the year to be able to operate about one-third of our pre-pandemic passenger flight capacity – about double the passenger flight capacity we operated in August – and about two-thirds of our pre-pandemic cargo flight capacity. As the market and operating conditions further improve moving forward, we will aim to add back more flights where feasible.
“We expect demand to remain solid going into the fourth quarter. Transit traffic between the Americas and Southeast Asia, and India is anticipated to be strong. In contrast, traffic between Australia, New Zealand and other parts of our network is also expected to increase.
“As more regional destinations such as Japan continue to adjust their inbound travel policies, we will continue to monitor demand and adjust our passenger flight capacity accordingly. We intend to add about 200 pairs of passenger flights in October, primarily to regional destinations such as Osaka, Seoul (Incheon), Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Manila, and also to long-haul destinations such as Vancouver, Sydney and Melbourne.
KUALA LUMPUR, 19 September 2022: On the back of positive recovery signs, Malaysia’s Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture (MOTAC) has revised its tourist arrivals target upwards to 9.2 million in 2022.
It’s almost the same target adopted by the Tourism Authority of Thailand which is pitching for 10 million visits this year, a figure the private sector says is overly ambitious.
Malaysia bases its optimism on tourist arrivals that reached 3.21 million representing an income of around MYR9.35 billion from January to July this year. The country’s borders reopened to visitors on 1 April.
According to a statement by YB Dato’ Sri Hajah Nancy Shukri, Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture, based on present achievements, MOTAC has revised the target for tourist arrivals and income to reach 9.2 million with a financial value of MYR26.8 billion.
MOTAC is confident that the country’s tourism sector can be restored immediately to ensure it is one of the main contributors to its income.
In 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic shut down tourism globally in early 2020, Malaysia recorded 26.1 million travellers who contributed an income of MYR86.1 billion.
BANGKOK, 19 September 2022: Nok Airlines confirms it is restructuring debt and adopting measures to resolve its financial crisis as the Stock Exchange of Thailand warns it could face delisting.
In its latest statement to the Stock Exchange of Thailand, the airline’s board outlined measures it is undertaking as part of its rehabilitation supervised by the Central Bankruptcy Court. The company confirmed it is increasing its capital as part of a rehabilitation plan that will enable it to resume business efficiently while cutting debt.
It presented the plan’s key points that call for the rationalisation of its fleet to allow it to resume some international routes while gaining more revenue and reducing operating costs.
It intends to renegotiate aircraft lease agreements to reduce aircraft rental maintenance contractors.
The restructuring of debt with creditors and repayment schedules in compliance with the court-approved rehabilitation plan are identified as priorities. But it confidently outlined plans to launch new promotions and services to improve revenue reaching out to passengers with special deals while increasing cargo revenue as international services reopen.
It hopes to increase revenue from cargo operations, which have improved due to international routes opening.
In the statement signed by the airline’s CEO, Wutthiphum Jurangkool said the present positive trend that continues to deliver travel recovery globally gives the airline confidence that it “can return to normal business operations with improved performance.”
SINGAPORE, 19 September 2022: KLM Royal Dutch Airlines will establish a direct air link between Amsterdam and Aarhus, the second largest city in Denmark.
It will become the fourth Danish city to be served by KLM directly from Amsterdam, the other three being Copenhagen, Aalborg and Billund.
“We can see a strong increase in demand for travel out of Denmark. Danes both search for and book trips far more than before the pandemic…Denmark is an important market for Northern Europe, and therefore, we are happy to be able to add Aarhus to our route network,” said Air France KLM Denmark sale director Anita Wagner Feddersen.
Aarhus, the second-largest city in Denmark, is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea. KLM will fly to Aarhus Airport, located 40 km northeast of the city
For the inhabitants of the Aarhus area, it will open up travel to popular destinations in Southern Europe and further afield.
“It is very promising for a future collaboration that KLM chooses to prioritise Aarhus, and it emphasises that KLM has seen the travel potential that is present around Aarhus”, said Aarhus Airport CEO Brian Worm.
KLM has recognised the interest in the Scandinavian and Finnish markets from elsewhere, opening several winter season routes to destinations such as Kittilä, Rovaniemi and Tromsö.
SINGAPORE, 16 September 2022: Travel Agent licences will be issued electronically via the Travel Agents and Tourist Guides Licensing System (TRUST) starting today, the Singapore Tourism Board announced Thursday.
It’s part of the STB’s digital transition to speed up the issue of travel agency licences. It will cut estimated waiting times for licence applications and renewals in half, STB claimed. Travel agents can also access their licences online via the TRUST portal. Once the electronic issuance has been completed, they can download and print the licence for display purposes.
The licence has also been redesigned to include features such as a QR code for the public to verify the authenticity of a licence immediately and display the licence validity period more prominently.
Travel agency licences issued before 15 September 2022 remain valid until the end of the licence period, 31 December 2023 or earlier. STB cautioned that the transition to the electronic licence only involves changes to licence design and its mode of delivery. Travel agents are still required to adhere to regulations on licence display.
For more information, please visit the TRUST portal.
KOTA KINABALU, 16 September 2022: Malaysia’s Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture Malaysia (MOTAC) and the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) will jointly organise the 6th World Tourism Conference (WTC) 2022 from 28 to 30 November 2022 in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.
Themed “Tourism Futures Reimagined”, the conference will deliver an interdisciplinary platform that champions thought leadership on tourism futures and strategies driving tourism’s recovery and resilience in a post-pandemic world.
WTC 2022 will feature a line-up of world-renowned speakers for the following four sessions:
Session 1: Decoding Tourism Futures – Foresight and Scenarios;
Session 2: Discovering Niche Opportunities for Growth;
Session 4: Rebuilding Tourism Resilience and Readiness.
WTC 2022 is an inspiring addition to Malaysia’s 2022 Calendar of Events with a full return to in-person participation, in line with Malaysia’s reopening of international borders on 1 April 2022.
The conference will be hosted at the Sabah International Convention Centre (SICC) in the state capital of Kota Kinabalu.
Conference Agenda
Day 1 – 28 November, 09:00–10:00
Opening Ceremony
Session 1: Decoding tourism futures – Foresight and Scenarios.
Session 2: Discovering niche opportunities for growth.
SINGAPORE, 16 September 2022: In a bid to revive travel bookings fast, Traveloka, Southeast Asia’s travel and lifestyle platform, launches a collection of travel bargains
Tagged visit GOverseas the travel deals bundle international flight and hotel deals to Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, USA, and the Maldives.
In addition to the fare and hotel bargains, bookers can tap an additional SGD150 in hotel and flight coupons available on the GOverseas page. Traveloka users can also grab deals for flights, hotels and tour experiences during the weekly GOverseas Travel Flash Sale from Monday to Wednesday. For example, a four-day, three-night Bali tropical getaway holiday has a starting price of SGD$287. A seven-day, six-night package to Sydney sells for SGD$1497.
“International travel has increased due to pent-up demand during the pandemic and in response to remote working and digital nomadism. As a travel and lifestyle platform, we understand travellers’ concerns and focus on providing the best value and reliability with our products and services. Traveloka will continue to work with our partners and other industry players to ensure we meet the evolving needs of consumers in a post-pandemic world for reliable flight and hotel booking services,” said Traveloka VP international accommodation Pascal Gekko.
