HO CHI MINH CITY, 6 April 2023: Vietjet will be the first airline to operate the Hanoi–Phuket direct route starting this summer. For the first time, travellers can take daily direct flights between the two Southeast Asian destinations, making the trips more affordable and saving travel time.
To mark the inaugural flight, a group of travel agents from Hanoi will be hosted on a fam trip to Phuket arranged by the local Phuket travel firm handling Vietjet’s ground services.
The only direct service Hanoi – Phuket will operate a return flight from 19 May 2023, with around three hours per leg. The flight will take off from Hanoi at 1135 and land in Phuket at 1440. The return flights will depart Phuket at 1545 and arrive in Hanoi at 1835.
The airline also offers a 50% discount valid until 5 May 2023, with travel dates valid until 12 December 2023.
Vietjet operates the only direct route between Ho Chi Minh City and Phuket, with two-hour flights daily. Apart from Phuket, the airline offers busy weekly flight schedules from Vietnam’s major cities to Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi Airport) besides the Ho Chi Minh City – Chiang Mai route to meet the demand of efficient and time-saving travel to the famous tourist country of Thailand.
SINGAPORE, 6 April 2023: The Singapore Tourism Board and Klook, Asia’s leading travel and experiences platform, have scaled up their existing partnership by signing a groundbreaking two-year Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC).
The MOC focuses on four critical strategic thrusts: Branding and Marketing, Inbound Travel to Singapore, Experience Development, and Data Sharing and Collaboration.
Singapore’s tourism industry is seeing an encouraging recovery, welcoming an estimated 2.9 million international visitors in the first quarter of 2023.
Having collaborated successfully on numerous multi-faceted projects, such as a joint marketing partnership to showcase Singapore to visitors from Asia Pacific and SingapoRediscovers previously, Klook is at the forefront of this robust recovery with monthly inbound arrivals into Singapore exceeding that of 2019 since January 2023.
The continual drive for quality tourists and joint campaigns have seen a 60% increase in average traveller spending for Singapore-based activities on the platform in 2023 compared to pre-Covid times.
Klook chief executive officer and co-founder Ethan Lin said: “As we leverage our strengths in social content marketing and our deep understanding of the next generation of travellers, including Millennials and Gen-Zs, we look forward to inspiring more travellers to visit Singapore.”
STB chief executive Keith Tan said: “This MOC marks a key milestone in our joint efforts to grow tourism in Singapore. By leveraging our collective strengths to future-proof and entrench Singapore’s position as a leading travel destination, I’m confident we can strengthen our value proposition to international visitors and showcase what our city has to offer.”
Inbound Travel
STB and Klook will join forces to boost inbound travel to Singapore, capitalising on Klook’s vast global reach of over 40 million monthly visitors to extend their length of stay and spending to drive higher tourism yield. To achieve these goals, Klook will work closely with STB’s regional offices to launch integrated marketing campaigns in key markets.
Experience Development
Tapping on Klook’s track record of innovating their offerings, STB and Klook will develop, curate and market innovative experiences in the following areas.
● Cruise: Cementing Singapore’s standing as the Cruise Hub for South East Asia.
● Events & Entertainment: Increasing destination vibrancy and driving visitation through the ticketing and marketing of events.
● Wellness: Establishing Singapore as an Urban Wellness Haven.
● Tours: Increasing the appeal and reach of tours through digitalisation data sharing and collaboration.
BANGKOK 6 April 2023: Emirates is launching a new phase of children’s amenities that considers the varying needs and preferences of babies and infants, younger kids, and older children up to 12 years old.
The new amenity kits feature global exploration and diversity themes, designed from sustainable materials by a creative team of in-house designers and marketing and product specialists. They are available as separate kits for up to two years, three to six years and seven to 12 years. Each kit is certified for safety by Intertek, per EN71 and Gulf toy safety standards. New designs are launched every year for the benefit of frequent travellers and Emirates collectors.
Essentials for the tiniest travellers
Emirates baby and infant kits contain all the essential items a parent needs onboard for comfort and hygiene- a reusable changing mat, diaper cream and cleansing wipes, a keepsake wipe-clean bib, a soothing vibrating plush toy that can be attached to a seatback or a stroller, and collectable ‘blanket buddies’, where an Emirates character soft toy representing a pilot or cabin crew is offered alongside a soft blanket to ensure a sweet night’s sleep.
The high-quality and sustainable kit is designed to be reusable, and the colourful bags feature hand-drawn artwork to represent the people, places, and cultures that Emirates airline serves in its global route network of 140 destinations. Quickly becoming collectors’ items among Emirates’ global fanbase, the unique design features emblems of the iconic city of Dubai, daytime and night-time scenes, the flagship Emirates A380 aircraft, friendly members of the Emirates cabin crew and pilots holding hands with people from all cultures of the world – showcasing diversity through national dress and a range of ethnicities.
Emirates amenity kits for children aged three to six years are designed to build memories for the youngest travellers and create excitement about travelling the world. Children in this age group are given a trendy belt bag, larger backpack, or generous duffle bag designed to be fit for multiple events – from travelling to sports or simply transporting toys. Kids even get special headphones for inflight ice entertainment, a soft and comfortable fit on smaller ears. The amenity kit also contains the perfect distractions for an active young child, including an engaging ‘Fly with Me’ activity pack with its own pack of non-toxic colouring pencils featuring kid-friendly world maps, puzzles, drawing tutorials, colouring pages, educational activities about Dubai and protecting the environment.
The kits are manufactured from high-quality, responsibly sourced materials, including plastic bottles – up to 4 bottles per bag. Children between seven and 12 are given high-quality, reusable belt bags, larger backpacks, or generous duffle bags – designed with subtle and cool graphics that appeal to the age group. The unique design features emblems of Dubai, Emirates aircraft, cabin crew and pilots, and iconic landmarks worldwide – fostering a love of travel and exploration. The bags are also made from 100% sustainable materials and repurposed plastic – up to seven bottles are recycled to make each bag. Children aged seven to 12 also get special headphones for the award-winning ice inflight entertainment.
Children fly better
To build unforgettable travel memories, Emirates cabin crew capture special moments onboard with an instant Polaroid camera and present it in a limited-edition photo frame as a souvenir for children.
To allow babies to have their nap time safely and comfortably, there are bookable bassinets for infants under two years old onboard Emirates and baby changing tables in all bathrooms. Organic baby food, milk formula and baby bottles are available onboard for infants if parents or guardians require them during the flight.
For children older than two years, kid’s meals are served on almost all routes, excluding some short-haul flights in the GCC. The kids’ meals feature tasty and high-quality choices popular with kids, including favourites like nuggets, pasta, mini burgers, and pizzas, accompanied by both healthy snacks and sweet treats, juice and water – served on a specially designed colourful meal tray featuring the beloved Emirates crew and pilot Little Travellers.
Memorable travel experiences
On the ground, Emirates offers priority boarding for families across all international airports. In Dubai Airport, Emirates provides free baby strollers for infants and younger kids, as well as a dedicated family check-in area at Dubai airport, during peak travel periods. In the First and Business Class Lounges in Dubai airport- Concourse A & B, the kids play areas have arcade-quality games and Sony PlayStation terminals. The First and Business Class Lounges in Dubai Airport also have mother and baby care rooms, comfortable feeding areas and baby changing facilities.
Emirates offers a unique Unaccompanied Minors service to children aged five to 11 years who travel alone or if their parents are in a separate travel class. There is a dedicated Unaccompanied Minors Lounge with video games, free Wi‑Fi, comfy sofas, and children’s bathrooms, where kids can enjoy drinks and snacks while waiting for their flight. The Unaccompanied Minors service ensures that children are accompanied and supervised by Emirates ground staff and cabin crew for every step of their journey. A specialist member of the team meets the child at the Unaccompanied Minors check‑in desk and stays with them through the airport to help them with security and immigration before meeting the cabin crew at the aircraft door. When the child arrives, a specialist member of the team will be at the aircraft door to welcome them to their destination, helping them through the airport before taking them to their parent or guardian.
SINGAPORE, 5 April 2023: To inspire travel to Singapore through TV series and films, the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) and Singapore Tourism Board (STB) today announced the launch of SGD10 million Singapore On-screen Fund.
The joint fund will support international media and entertainment (M&E) partners in producing TV and film projects that reach global audiences and spotlight Singapore. These projects will also provide local media enterprises and talent opportunities to work alongside global M&E partners in creating content for international audiences.
Photo Credit: STB
International media conglomerates, major streamers and studios that have consistently delivered popular content for the global market will be invited to apply for the fund. Project proposals will be evaluated based on their distribution and market reach, content concept and creative merit, opportunities to feature Singapore’s offerings and experiences, and local talents in credited roles.
IMDA assistant chief executive, media, innovation, communications & marketing Justin Ang said: “The Singapore On-screen Fund provides more opportunities for our home-grown media enterprises and talent to collaborate with their international counterparts to hone their skills and gain valuable experience on projects that target the global audience. This exchange of capabilities through direct involvement in such projects will boost the credentials of our local media industry. We hope such collaborations will showcase Singapore’s capabilities to take on large-scale productions on the global stage.”
STB assistant chief executive marketing group Chang Chee Pey added: “The Singapore On-screen Fund allows us to tap the deep storytelling expertise of global media and entertainment players more purposefully, showcasing Singapore through a fresh lens as travel demand recovers.
The Singapore On-screen Fund will support selected projects by key M&E companies, which must be set in Singapore and launched before the first quarter of 2027. Successful projects will receive funding support of up to 30% of qualifying costs related to featuring Singapore, including production and marketing costs. Interested companies can find out more at bit.ly/singapore-on-screen-fund.
Past collaborations with global M&E companies to profile Singapore include the popular rom-com Crazy Rich Asians in 2018, produced by Singapore-based Infinite Frameworks in partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery.
Other notable projects shot here which showcased Singapore and employed local media talent include the popular K-drama “Little Women” (2022) and the sci-fi hit series “Westworld Season 3” (2020).
SINGAPORE, 6 April 2023: This year, Spain expects you to visit for several good reasons. In 2023, choose between several special events and celebrations to make your trip a unique experience. Write down the following destinations, a definite hit for your holidays.
Picasso Celebration 1973-2023
On 8 April 2023, we will be celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of the death of Pablo Picasso. The date is marked by an extensive programme of exhibitions, conferences and cultural activities, which will take place throughout the year in different Spanish cities with a special to the life and work of the great artist. During this “Picasso Year”, the museums and cultural centres of Malaga, Barcelona, Madrid and A Coruña offer the unique opportunity to learn more about the legacy of one of the essential names in art history. For the full programme, visit www.celebracionpicasso.es.
Sorolla Year
Joaquín Sorolla, the famous “painter of light”, is another protagonist of the 2023 cultural agenda, especially in Madrid and Valencia, to celebrate the centenary of his death. The Sorolla Museum and its temporary exhibition “Sorolla. Origins” are a must-see in Madrid. The Prado Museum is also paying homage to the painter with the exhibition “Portraits by Joaquín Sorolla”, while the Royal Palace shows his art in a surprising way with the immersive exhibition “Sorolla through light”.
At the end of March, “Sorolla. Origins” arrives in Valencia, at the Museum of Fine Arts, which in summer, will also exhibit “Masaveu Collection. Sorolla”. The schedule of celebrations in the artist’s hometown includes guided tours of the locations in the old town that marked his life and a special gastronomic menu inspired by his work devised by the renowned chef Jorge de Andrés. In addition, you will find more destinations, such as Barcelona and Alicante, which add to this “Sorolla Year” with the exhibitions “Sorolla. Hunting impressions” and “Sorolla and the Valencian Painting of his Time. Dialogue and Contrasts”, respectively.
Velázquez in Seville
On 6 October 1623, a young Diego Velázquez was appointed painter to King Felipe IV. Seville, the city where he was born and studied, is preparing a programme full of activities to celebrate the 4th centenary of this crucial moment in the life of the author of “Las Meninas”. Exhibitions, conference cycles, films, concerts and a great parade by the Tercio de Olivares will celebrate the great maestro of the Spanish Golden Age. And in October, coinciding with the commemoration, the Casa Natal de Velázquez will open its doors to the public after its renovation.
Cuenca: 2023 Spanish Gastronomy Capital
The city of the famous Casas Colgadas is going to be a must-see destination this year for lovers of good food. Known for the variety of its products and the innovation in its kitchen, Cuenca will celebrate its appointment as gastronomic capital with a multitude of activities: special menus, conferences, workshops, and tastings… This is a delicious opportunity to visit this World Heritage City and enjoy some of its best-known recipes such as “morteruelo”, “ajo arriero”, roasts, migas with egg or “alajú” (a delicious dessert of Arab origin made with almonds and honey).
Lebaniego Jubilee Year 2023/2024
Cantabria celebrates the Lebaniego Jubilee Year in style with a jam-packed programme of cultural and other activities related to the Lebaniego Way and the pilgrimage to the monastery of Santo Toribio de Liébana, famous for being home to the Lignum Crucis: the largest fragment of the True Cross of Christ.
On the occasion of the Holy Year, the Door of Forgiveness opens on 16 April and more than 400 activities are organised, including exhibitions, sporting events, stage art shows, food and drink events and concerts by well-known artists such as Andrea Bocelli, Muse and Ara Malikian.
It is a great time for taking part in this pilgrimage route and seeing some fascinating scenery of the Picos de Europa or staying in fairy-tale towns like Potes.
For more information on Spain as a tourism destination, please visit www.spain.info
BANGKOK, 6 April 2023: Splashing happiness on passengers during Thailand’s upcoming Songkran Festival is the promise from Thai Vietjet as it promotes ‘Songkran’s Splash Deals’ that peg domestic fares at THB 99 (excluding taxes and fees).
The deal is valid on the airline’s entire domestic network for bookings from 11 to 15 April 2023. A higher THB 1,890 (including taxes and fees) applies on international services, open for booking from 5 to 15 April 2023. Both deals have the same travel period from 16 May to 16 October 31, 2023 (excludes public holidays) at www.vietjetair.com.
The special promotional tickets apply on Thai Vietjet’s entire domestic flight network from Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi) to Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phuket, Krabi, Hat Yai, Surat Thani, Udon Thani, Khon Kaen, and Ubon Ratchathani and cross-country routes connecting Phuket to Chiang Mai, as well as Thai Vietjet’s international network from Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi) to Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore, Japan and Taipei.
Thai Vietjet flies nine direct domestic routes from Bangkok (Suvarnabhumi) to Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phuket, Krabi, Udon Thani, Hat Yai, Khon Kaen, Ubon Ratchathani, and Surat Thani. Plus, there are cross-country flights from Phuket to Chiang Mai. The airline is also actively expanding its international flight network to many destinations across Asia-pacific, connecting Thailand with Vietnam, Singapore, Phnom Penh, Japan, Taiwan and other top destinations in ASEAN. Vietjet announced earlier this week that it would introduce a new route from Hanoi to Phuket starting 19 May.
SINGAPORE, 6 April 2023: AVIAREPS, a global general sales agency for airlines and destinations, is heading Bangkok Airways’s passenger sales in Europe and Australia, according to the travel firm’s announcement last week.
The GSA is now handling the airline’s sales in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Australia.
AVIAREPS is a leading international representation, marketing and communications company for aviation, tourism, hospitality, and food & beverage brands, initially representing Bangkok Airways in two European markets; France and Spain. Under the latest agreement, the GSA’s Bangkok Airways account rises to 13 countries covering the airline’s sales, reservations, and ticketing services.
The airline offers connections from Bangkok to popular tourist destinations in Thailand and internationally has flights to Cambodia, Singapore and the Maldives. Currently, it has a fleet of 35 aircraft; 13 Airbus A319, 4 A320 and 13 ATR72-600.
Commenting on the recent appointment AVIAREPS Chief operator officer aviation Marcelo Kaiser said: “We are very proud about the expansion of our partnership with Bangkok Airways, and our local teams specialised in airlines sales will help Bangkok Airways to expand their presence and increase sales in Europe and Australia.”
SINGAPORE, 6 April 2023: The International Air Transport Association (IATA) monitors continued strong growth in air travel demand based on its February 2023 traffic results.
Total traffic in February 2023 (measured in revenue passenger kilometres or RPKs) rose 55.5% compared to February 2022. Globally, traffic is now at 84.9% of February 2019 levels.
Domestic traffic for February rose 25.2% compared to the year-ago period. Total February 2023 domestic traffic was at 97.2% of the February 2019 level.
International traffic climbed 89.7% versus February 2022, with all markets recording strong growth, led again by carriers in the Asia-Pacific region. International RPKs reached 77.5% of February 2019 levels.
“Despite the uncertain economic signals, demand for air travel continues to be strong globally, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region. The industry is now just about 15% below 2019 levels of demand, and that gap is narrowing each month,” said IATA’s director general Willie Walsh.
International passenger markets
Asia-Pacific airlines had a 378.7% increase in February 2023 traffic compared to February 2022, maintaining the very positive momentum of the past few months since the lifting of travel restrictions in the region. Capacity rose 176.4%, and the load factor increased 34.9 percentage points to 82.5%, the second highest among the regions.
European carriers posted a 47.9% traffic rise versus February 2022. Capacity climbed 29.7%, and the load factor rose 9.1 percentage points to 73.7%, the lowest of all regions.
Middle Eastern airlines saw a 75.0% traffic increase compared to February a year ago. Capacity climbed 40.5%, and the load factor pushed up 15.8 percentage points to 80.0%.
North American carriers’ traffic climbed 67.4% in February 2023 versus 2022. Capacity increased by 39.5%, and the load factor rose 12.8 percentage points to 76.6%.
Latin American airlines had a 44.1% traffic increase compared to the same month in 2022. February capacity climbed 34.0%, and the load factor rose 5.8 percentage points to 82.7%, the region’s highest.
African airlines’ traffic rose 90.7% in February 2023 versus a year ago. February capacity was up 61.7%, and the load factor climbed 11.4 percentage points to 75.0%.
The Bottom Line
“People are flying in ever greater numbers. With the Easter and Passover holidays, we expect large numbers of travellers to take to the skies in many parts of the world. They should do so with confidence that airlines have been rebuilding resiliency that suffered owing to the pandemic. Other participants in the air travel value chain, including airports, air navigation service providers, and airport security staff, need to have the same commitment to ensuring our customers can enjoy smooth holiday travel,” said Walsh.
KUALA LUMPUR, 6 April 2023: AirAsia X (AAX) continues to expand its China network with two weekly flights to Beijing restarting last week after almost a three-year pause.
The flight from Kuala Lumpur lands at Beijing Daxing International Airport at 0105, while the return flight from Beijing arrives in Kuala Lumpur International Airport (Terminal 2) at 0830.
AirAsia X Malaysia CEO Benyamin Ismail said: “Our service resumption to Beijing reflects our commitment to boosting our network in China, which has historically been one of our biggest and most popular markets and providing our guests with more options to travel affordably to and from Beijing from Kuala Lumpur.”
Flights will ramp up from twice weekly on Thursday and Saturday to four weekly flights starting 1 June 2023 to meet growing forecast demand, further boosting travel and tourism in the region.
“More expansion in China is on the horizon for AAX as we plan to relaunch more routes and introduce more unique, less travelled destinations in China in the near future,” he concluded.
Flight Schedule between Kuala Lumpur (KUL) and Beijing-Daxing (PKX):
SINGAPORE, 5 April 2023: Changi Airport Group, Singapore Airlines (SIA) and the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) re-launched the Free Singapore Tour on Monday after a three-year hiatus due to Covid-19.
Three existing tours available since pre-Covid-19 – the City Sights Tour, Heritage Tour and Jewel Tour – have been refreshed to include new points of interest.
Plus, a brand-new Changi Precinct Tour introduces travellers to the sights and sounds of the eastern region surrounding Singapore Changi Airport. Each tour lasts 2.5 hours and will be available daily, with plans to progressively increase to nine daily tours.
With transit and transfer passengers accounting for about 30% of passenger traffic at Changi airport pre-pandemic, the tour was first introduced in 1987 to enhance the airport’s attractiveness as a transfer hub and to entice transit and transfer passengers to visit Singapore as a holiday destination.
In 2019, over 80,000 passengers booked the free Singapore Tour. The top markets were India, Australia and Indonesia, with Indian and Australian travellers making up more than one-third of the participants.
New tour in Eastern Singapore
The Changi Precinct Tour is a new itinerary that will bring participants to the eastern part of Singapore to visit local community spaces, such as the Tampines heartland, and to admire the rustic charms of Changi Village and Changi Beach. It offers a glimpse into how local residents live. It tells the tale of Singapore’s history on this part of the island, away from the usual hustle and bustle of Singapore’s city centre.
Three refreshed itineraries
At the Jewel Tour and visiting popular attractions like the Shiseido Forest Valley and the HSBC Rain Vortex, participants can discover more about Singapore’s food heritage through local brands such as Bee Cheng Hiang and Tong Garden and sample local snacks at the same time. Another new component of the tour is a free guided walkthrough of a digital attraction – Changi Experience Studio – for participants to experience some of its airport-themed games and interactive exhibits.
New pit stops in the City Sights Tour include the Civic District, where travellers will be introduced to Singapore’s urban development through visits to various national monuments, including the National Gallery Singapore, Anderson Bridge and The Padang. The bus route will also pass through the new Marina Bay Financial District en route to Gardens by the Bay.
The Heritage Tour, available from June, will feature places of interest, such as the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple in Chinatown, Arab Street and Haji Lane, for participants to gain a more in-depth understanding of Singapore’s unique and diverse multi-cultural heritage.
The refreshed itineraries also highlight sustainability features at some of the locations featured in the tours to give participants an overview of Singapore’s sustainability efforts. These include the Eco Community Garden at the rooftop of Our Tampines Hub (as part of the Changi Precinct Tour), environmental sustainability initiatives implemented at Gardens by the Bay (as part of the City Sights Tour) and Jewel (as part of the Jewel Tour). CAG, SIA, and STB have appointed Monster Day Tours to run the Free Singapore Tour.
Transit and transfer passengers who wish to join the Free Singapore Tour must have a layover period of at least 5.5 hours but less than 24 hours. Participants must have a valid entry visa for Singapore to participate in the tours.
