HUA HIN, Thailand, 12 May 2022: Golfers worldwide joined the seventh edition of the Centara World Masters Golf Championship this week, marking a welcome return for Asia’s biggest tournament for club golfers after a two-year hiatus.
Golfers teed off on Sunday 8 May, and the grand celebrations
for the victors take place Saturday 14 May, when the winners pick up prizes
totalling USD30,000.
Golfers back for the Centara World Masters.
The tournament has attracted golfers from over 20 countries,
including Australia, New Zealand, India, Germany, the US, the UK, Vietnam, and
Thailand.
The golf action is underway at the Banyan and Black Mountain
courses, with participants aged 35 and over competing across a range of age and
handicap divisions – a popular format that sees golfers pitted against peers of
a similar age and standard.
The Centara World Masters is a collaboration between
Australian-based Go Golfing, which has been hosting World Masters Golf events
around the world for 27 years, and Thailand-based Golfasian, which looks after
more golfers travelling to Asia than any other golf tour operator.
The official tournament hotel Centara Grand Beach Resort
& Villas Hua Hin hosted the opening night welcome dinner, with the Tourism
Authority of Thailand, Chang and Coke, also partnering with Golfasian and Go
Golfing to present the event.
Golfasian Managing Director and Tournament Co-Director Mark
Siegel highlighted the significance of the event’s return in 2022, noting:
“The event provides a substantial boost for Thailand tourism and comes
amid the country’s broader reopening for international travellers”.
PHUKET 12 May 2022: Phuket’s newest water theme park
Andamanda Phuket, opens on 21 May at a site between the main tourism hubs of
Phuket Town and Patong Beach
Owned by Proud Group, a real estate developer, the project represents an investment of THB4.5 billion (USD134 million), reflecting the developer’s long-term confidence in the island’s tourism industry.
Caption from left: Pasu Liptapanlop, Director of Proud Real Estate Public Company Limited; Bhummikitti Ruktaengam, President of Phuket Tourism Association; Narong Woonciew, Governor of Phuket; Suwat Liptapanlop, Former Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand; Thapanee Kiatphaibool, Deputy Governor for Tourism Products and Business, Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT); Proudputh Liptapanlop, Executive Director of Proud Group; and Brian Walker-Smith, Representative from Whitewater West at the opening press conference.
Covering 9.3 hectares, Andamanda is much more than a water
park. It features a wide range of recreational components, including a Thai
heritage-themed water park with five separate zones – Coral World, The Pearl
Palace, Emerald Forest, Great Andaman Bay and Naga Jungle – plus entertainment
spaces and retail outlets. A 300-room internationally-branded hotel is planned
for phase two.
More than 12 water slides and 36 activities are the core attractions of the water park. The 550-metre-long lazy river will be the longest in Asia, and the vast 10,000 square-metre wave pool will generate waves up to three metres high – the highest of any pool in Southeast Asia. The rides have been designed by WhiteWater West, a leading water park equipment supplier.
Andamanda claims it will adopt a circular approach to water
management, with a continuous loop of water being reused and recycled.
Single-use plastic will be banned, and more than 100,000 trees have been
planted. Solar power will be employed to reduce the power bill.
BANGKOK 12 May 2022: Following the phasing out of Thailand’s
Test & Go’ scheme and other travel restrictions, Thai Vietjet has increased
international flights from its Bangkok home base.
This week, the airline confirmed that it introduced daily flights between Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi) and Phnom Penh. It follows the introduction of three weekly flights from Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi) to Singapore service in late April.
The Singapore flights will increase to five per week from 2
June 2022 and up to daily flights starting 16 June. In addition, the airline
will launch three weekly flights on the Phuket-Singapore route in June.
“Many countries
have now lifted travel restrictions, reopening borders for international
tourists again. Thai Vietjet, as the leader in a market recovery, has
thoroughly prepared for the resumption of international air travel. In the
first quarter of 2022, we have launched and re-launched a variety of
international flight services and will continue to introduce our service to
many more new destinations in the region,” said Thai Vietjet’s chief
executive officer Woranate Laprabang.
In cooperation with its parent Vietjet Group, Thai Vietjet
has established stable flight schedules between Thailand and Vietnam.
Currently, the airline operates three daily flights on the Bangkok to Ho Chi
Minh City route. In addition, the airline resumed three weekly direct flights
from Bangkok and Danang last March. The services operate Wednesday, Friday, and
Sunday.
By July, the airline plans to operate direct flights from
Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi) to Fukuoka (Japan), starting with three weekly flights
on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Phnom Penh timetable
Flight No.
Origin
Destination
Departure
Arrival
Days of Operation
VZ720
Bangkok
Phnom Penh
08:30
09:40
Daily from May 2022
VZ721
Phnom Penh
Bangkok
10:40
11:55
VZ620
Bangkok
Singapore
09:45
13:10
Tue/Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun from 2 June, 2022 and Daily from 16 June, 2022
Singapore 12 May 2022: Carnival Corporation, the world’s
largest cruise company, has installed nearly 600 food waste biodigesters across
its fleet in support of ongoing food waste management and reduction efforts as
part of its overall commitment to environmental compliance.
The innovative technology has been added to ships from the
company’s nine cruise line brands – Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises,
Holland America Line, Seabourn, P&O Cruises (Australia), Costa Cruises,
AIDA Cruises, P&O Cruises (UK) and Cunard.
The biodigester technology uses a natural aerobic digestion
process inside each machine to efficiently break down food waste using a mix of
beneficial microorganisms, enabling the systems to process anything that can be
consumed by a human.
Able to perform automated digestion 24 hours per day, the
biodigesters are strategically placed in key areas of the ship where food is
processed, further improving onboard operations by making it easier and more
efficient for crew members to manage and control food waste. Additionally, the
machines capture non-food items or other materials accidentally mixed with food
waste, providing an additional layer of protection for environmental compliance
on each ship.
Since first piloting the technology in 2019, Carnival
Corporation and its nine global cruise line brands have continued to expand the
use of these systems across its fleets. Most recently, the company’s namesake
brand, Carnival Cruise Line, announced it is the first major cruise line to
employ biodigesters across its entire fleet as the brand returns its final of
23 total ships to guest operations this month.
As Carnival Corporation’s entire fleet returns to operations
this year, its full lineup of brands will continue to see benefits from improved
food waste management as additional biodigesters come online, further
strengthening environmental performance across the company’s global operations.
The fleetwide biodigester installation supports Carnival
Corporation’s aggressive food waste management objectives in its 2030
sustainability goals. These goals support the company’s circular economy focus
area by including a commitment to achieve a 30% reduction in unit food waste by
2022 and a 50% reduction in unit food waste by 2030, as outlined in the company’s
latest sustainability report. These new goals build on the company’s latest
achievement of reducing food waste per person by over 20% at the end of 2021,
which doubled its original goal of reaching a 10% reduction in food waste by
the end of last year, relative to a 2019 baseline.
In addition to food waste management objectives, the
circular economy focus area also includes an ongoing commitment to
significantly reduce non-essential single-use plastic items, along with
long-term 2030 sustainability goals and 2050 aspirations detailed in the latest
sustainability report, including the following:
Increase fleetwide coverage of Advanced Waste Water Treatment Systems to over 75% by 2030
Send a larger percentage of waste to waste-to-energy facilities where practical by 2030 and aspire to send 100% by 2050
Partner with primary vendors to reduce upstream packaging volumes and aspire to partner with primary vendors to ensure near 100% reuse of packaging materials by 2050
Aspire to build ships without the need to discharge to the ocean or air (zero-emission ships) by 2050
As
part of its longer-term sustainability plan and vision, Carnival Corporation
has committed to significant investments to achieve its 2030 sustainability
goals and 2050 aspirations, which incorporate six critical sustainability focus
areas overall, including climate action; circular economy; sustainable tourism;
good health and well-being; diversity, equity and inclusion; and biodiversity
and conservation. Among these priorities, the company and its brands have
committed to reducing carbon emission intensity by 40% by 2030 and have
aspirations to achieve net carbon-neutral ship operations, supporting its
efforts to establish a path to zero-emission cruising by 2050.
BANGKOK, 12 May 2022: AirAsia is adding value to its SUPER+
subscription, ranging from domestic and international flights to unlimited free
AirAsia food deliveries and even Covid-19 related cancellation cover for up to
one full year.
The SUPER+ subscription also delivers one-year unlimited
free seat redemption from an increased seat allocation and more available
dates. On offer until 15 May, the added value deal kicks in when you purchase a
THB5,555 fare.
“The SUPER+ promotion has been very well received, with this
latest round aimed at those who missed out during the previous registration
period. Promotional seats have been adjusted to be two to 30 per flight,
providing even more value,” commented Thai AirAsia CEO Santisuk Klongchaiya.
“SUPER+ subscribers can redeem unlimited free flights
immediately after the purchase (all flights require an advance redemption of 14
days). Existing SUPER+ users will gain added privileges automatically to
stimulate travel and tourism as many countries reopen and end quarantine
requirements, and as AirAsia increases its available routes and flight
frequencies.”
SUPER+ subscribers can redeem for domestic and ASEAN routes
served by Thai AirAsia (FD), AirAsia Malaysia (AK), AirAsia Indonesia (QZ) and
AirAsia Philippines (Z2), covering more than 100 routes, an average of 270 flights
daily, or over 3 million seats per year.
Meanwhile, earlier this week, the airline group issued a
travel advisory saying it has revised business cooperation plans between Thai
AirAsia X (flight code XJ) and the AirAsia rewards programme.
“Guests who reserve seats and spend with Thai AirAsia X
will no longer be able to accumulate flown sectors, AirAsia points or redeem
existing points for flights with Thai AirAsia X flights until further
notice.”
However, passengers can still enjoy accumulating AirAsia
points and redeem benefits with Thai AirAsia (flights code FD) and AirAsia
Group, including various lifestyle products and services via the AirAsia Super
App as usual.
SARAWAK, 12 May 2022: Sarawak Tourism Board
(STB) charted another milestone this week by launching its online data
management platform, STB InTel and an E-learning platform.
The platform is powered by Lotus Voyager
Group (LVG) as part of STB’s ongoing efforts to digitalise the tourism
industry.
Karim (3rd from left) launching STB InTel and E-Learning Platform with Lotus Voyager Group (LVG). Also in the picture is Sharzede (3rd from right) and MTCP Permanent Secretary Hii Chang Kee (2nd left)
These data-based initiatives will further
enhance Sarawak’s destination visibility globally through digital strategies
and also position STB as an organisation moving forward in “smart
tourism” together with Sarawak tourism stakeholders, in line with the
Sarawak Government’s digital transformation agenda.
The digital initiatives were launched by
the Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Dato Sri Abdul
Karim Rahman Hamzah. Also in attendance were the Permanent Secretary of
Ministry of Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Sarawak Hii Chang
Kee and Sarawak Tourism Board chief
executive officer Puan Sharzede Datu Haji Salleh Askor.
During his speech, Abdul Karim said STB
InTel would provide another component in Sarawak’s digital tourism strategies.
The government to business (G2B) data-sharing initiative will enable ministry
and tourism industry stakeholders to leverage the data compiled from government
agencies and tourism websites, in addition to Google Analytics, to monitor the
effectiveness of tourism strategies, identify new key opportunities and create
new initiatives and policy recommendations in the near future.
“A data sharing platform such as STB InTel
will help ensure a cohesiveness between the public and private sector as we
work together to create more informed strategies and develop more targeted
products,” he added.
The LVG partnership will create a learning
and networking platform for tourism professionals to promote destinations and
tourism products. Sarawak is the first state in Malaysia to use the learning
management system at the B2B level to connect and collaborate with tourism
professionals worldwide.
“Since the onboarding of these modules in
early April, there are currently 1,346 outbound tour operators in the region
who are ready to enrol in the course. We expect over 10,000 selective travel
agents to be trained under the course by year’s end on 31 December 22. The
programme will assign 1,000 new users for the course every month with
promotions lined up in India, the Nordic market, and the UK in the months to
come.” Abdul Karim said.
“I would like to praise Sarawak
Tourism Board for this effort, and I look forward to more digital
transformation initiatives that will increase the tourism sector’s efficiencies
and productivity,” Abdul Karim added.
On the partnership with LVG, STB chief
executive officer Puan Sharzede Datu Haji Salleh Askor was confident that the
e-learning platform would provide the relevant information on how to promote
Sarawak to international travel tour operators, especially LVG’s current
subscribers, which includes those from China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea,
the Philippines, Thailand and Malaysia.
Under this initiative, five modules on Sarawak’s
Culture, Adventure, Nature, Food and Festivals (CANFF) have been created to
highlight the wonders of Sarawak. The modules will take participants through a
detailed tour of Sarawak and make Sarawak a priority when it comes to promoting
preferred destinations.
ABU DHABI UAE, 12 May 2022: Etihad Airways unveiled its new
economy class soft furnishings and tableware, which will be launched during
this year’s fourth quarter.
The announcement was made on the opening day of the Arabian
Travel Market, a trade event for the travel and tourism industry taking place
this week in Dubai.
The economy class experience will be upgraded with new soft
furnishings, including a 35% larger pillow with a 200 thread-count cotton cover
made locally in the UAE. This is complemented by a soft blanket made from
recycled plastic for additional comfort on all flights.
Etihad’s new dining experience features reusable tableware
made from high-quality recycled plastic and eliminates the use of single-use
plastic. The tray, serving plates, and their lids are part of a closed-loop
recycling system. At the end of their lifecycle, they are collected, washed,
ground and reused to make new replacement products.
Etihad is also introducing quality stainless-steel cutlery
into the economy cabin, which upgrades the experience and reduces single-use
plastic.
In 2019, Etihad committed to removing 80% of single-use
plastic from its operation by the end of 2022. Introducing this new inflight
equipment ensures the airline meets this sustainability goal. Where possible,
Etihad is also moving towards locally produced items which will further improve
the overall environmental impact of the operation.
Economy seating features its signature fixed-wing headrest,
which provides optimal support for a relaxing travel experience. The airline
also offers seats with an additional 4″ of legroom as an upgrade option.
In addition, Etihad’s passengers may choose neighbour-free seating for an
additional fee, which offers extra privacy and comfort.
This new launch follows the unveiling of the new Airbus
A350-1000 aircraft, which entered into service in March and is the first of
five A350-1000’s to join the Etihad fleet this year.
SINGAPORE, 11 May 2022: Sabre Corporation announced Monday
its acquisition of Nuvola, a prominent provider of hotel service optimisation
and guest engagement software to hoteliers worldwide.
The transaction includes Nuvola technology and guest
enablement software and the integration of Nuvola employees to Sabre. The terms of the agreement were not released.
Sabre expects to advance its hospitality retailing and
merchandising strategy through the acquisition while also broadening its
property and operations abilities.
“Our vision for the future of hospitality retailing goes
beyond the industry’s current focus on selling the room along with a limited
set of ancillaries,” said Sabre Hospitality Solution president Scott Wilson. “
Leveraging Nuvola’s capabilities will help us deliver the ‘last mile’ in the
retailing process.”
Created by hoteliers who have a first-hand understanding of
select-service, full-service, and resort-style property processes, Nuvola
equips hotels with cloud-based solutions, including task management
capabilities, guest messaging and concierge services, and advanced housekeeping
management solutions.
DUBAI, 11 May 2022: The German National Tourist Board is
relaunching two local culture and nature campaigns during the Arabian Travel
Mart this week to reach out to GCC travellers*.
The highly successful campaigns ‘German.Local.Culture’ and ‘Embrace German Nature’ form a compelling tourism proposition that reflects authentic, local experiences in urban destinations while shining a light on rural areas and their sustainable tourism.
German National Tourist Office director of sales & marketing for the GCC, Yamina Sofo.
“We want to inspire GCC travellers. Germany is a
diverse destination and ideal for longer holidays for the culturally minded
families and those who enjoy outdoor pursuits and natural beauty,” said
German National Tourist Office director of sales & marketing for the GCC,
Yamina Sofo.
After more than two years of travel restrictions, Germany is
once again becoming a popular destination for GCC Nationals.GCC nationals
booked 518,516 overnight stays in Germany during 2021, an 82.3% increase over
2020.
In December 2021 alone, despite the outbreak of the Omicron
variant, Germany recorded over 54,493 overnight stays from the GCC region, an
increase of 335%, compared with the same period in 2020,
“These figures show that Germany is a preferred destination
for GCC Nationals. Visitor numbers in 2021 rebounded significantly, which is
even more impressive given COVID travel restrictions in Germany only eased end
of June 2021. The GCC is now the highest inbound performing region within Asia,
Australasia and South Africa,” added Sofo.
This has clearly been supported by the way in which the GCC
countries have responded to the pandemic, particularly the UAE and Saudi
Arabia, which are currently ranked second and sixth respectively in the world,
according to Bloomberg’s Covid Resilience Ranking on 31 March 2022, with a
combined 846 vaccinated travel routes.
‘Cities & Culture’ and ‘Nature & Outdoors
Activities’ that highlight sustainability and accessibility form the bedrock of
Germany’s tourism offering. According to research conducted by IPK
International on behalf of the GNTB, city breaks (59%), multi-destination tours
(34%) and holidays in nature (30%) are the most popular types of holidays with
travellers from around the world.
Arabian Travel Market 2022 takes place from 9-12 May, and the
Germany stand is located in the Europe Hall EU1235
*Gulf Cooperation
Council (GCC) is a political and economic alliance of six Middle Eastern
countries — Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and
Oman.
BANGKOK, 11 May 2022: If internet searches are a measure of travel intentions, then India and Thailand are high up the chart of destinations on the must-see list.
That’s according to the latest Visa Global Travel Intentions
Study released late last week and based on average monthly search data
collected in 2021.
Visa calls them the most desirable and attractive
destinations identifying the US in the number one spot, followed by the UK in
second place, India in third and Thailand fourth. Australia takes the fifth
spot, followed by Canada (6), Singapore (7), Germany (8), South Africa (9) and
Malaysia (10).
India and Thailand scored the highest search percentage of
all the Asian destinations on the top 10 list. India registered 10% of the
average monthly searches and Thailand 8% compared with 31% for the US and 30%
for the UK, the two top destinations. Singapore generated 3% and Malaysia 2%.
Australia generated 6% of the searches, followed by Canada at 4%, Germany and
South Africa both at 2%.
Based on average monthly search data and searches that signalled an intent to travel, the Visa study explores 7,000 keywords ranking low travel intent, essentially dreaming and gathering information and high intent when searches move up a notch to focus on how to get to the destination.
All of the top 10 destinations shared high scores for the
travel intention to escape and relax, identifying it as the top motivator.
Other strong motivators across the board included leisure pursuits, experiencing
local culture and outdoor adventures.
India’s escape and relax options motivated a 38% score, the category’s highest in all the 10 countries. The country’s local cultural experiences motivated 26% of the searches and leisure pursuits 13%.
Thailand’s escape and relax scored 25% of searches, but leisure pursuits scored a higher 30% and outdoor activities 18%. Local cultural experiences scored a lower 13%.
The bottom-line advice from Visa for travel companies in any
of the top 10 destinations is “to prepare for an influx of travellers as
borders reopen.”
Visa group country manager for regional Southeast Asia
Serene Gay commented: As borders reopen and international travel gradually
resumes, it’s important that travel-related businesses are ready to accommodate
tourists and their new post-pandemic preferences, including the ability to make
safe, contactless digital payments. This will be key in creating business
momentum and allowing businesses to thrive in the future.”
(Source: Visa Global Travel Intentions Study December 2021)
