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Vietnam ranked among top growth tourism markets in Asia

WTM2010: Increase In Flying Tax to Make Holidaymakers Think Twice

Top 5 smoke-free destinations

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Dear Travel Weekly readers!

Welcome to the 40 Issues of Travel Weekly!

First of all, on behalf of all the members at Travel Weekly Magazine I would like to say thank you very much for supporting and sharing with us your ideas since the early days of our magazine.

Born to bring our readers useful and up-to-date information about Travel Busi-ness in Vietnam and around the world to your desktop every Thursday, today, Travel Weekly becomes a part of your daily works for all travel executive as well as travel lovers those who cares about the tourism industry.

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http://www.atfcambodia.com/

12. Vietnam attracts more West European tourists

04. Ho Chi Minh City praises excellent tourist operators

VIETNAM NEWS

08 - 11. Qatar Airways adds two new routes to Asia

06. 2010 World Travel Awards winners announced

14. Hong Kong - Vietnam yacht race canceled

WTM2010: Increase In Flying Tax to Make

Holidaymakers Think Twice 50 - 51Almost half of UK holidaymakers will slash their 2011 overseas holiday plans due to next week’s increase in Air Passenger Duty (APD), reveals a survey by leading travel trade exhibition World Travel Market. A massive 45% of the 1,000 people polled, all of whom holidayed this summer, said next Monday’s (1 November) increase in flying tax APD will see them reduce their overseas flying. Please see more for detail.

Vietnam ranked among top growth tourism markets

in Asia

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Travellers looking for smoke-free holidays don’t have to be afraid – there are several countries fervently fight-ing against all tobacco products. In this issue, Travel Weekly brings the top 5 destinations ideal for all non-smoking tourists according to Skyscanner.


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17. New culture show to lure visitors to HCMC

19. TTG Awards Singles Out Vietnam Hotel

Tourism and hospitality experts have identified Vietnam as one of the key growth markets in Asia given its healthy expansion of the economy, population and the number of internet and mobile phone users.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

22. Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa Wins 2010 World Luxury Hotel Country Award

24. Ayana Won Asia’s Leading luxury Resort and Luxury Villa at World Travel Awards 2010

29. Hong Kong arrivals rise 21% in September

31. Sydney Convention Centre hosts huge gala dinner

32. Movenpick Hotels & Resorts to enter the Chinese market

34. Indulge your senses in ILTM’s new Healing Lounge

TRAVEL EXPO

42. Maximising brand reach at EIBTM - delivering targeted messages to the global meetings and events community

39. Arabian Travel Market creates more business opportunities

37. IMEX turns up the green heat with new carbon-free European rail tickets

40 - 41. EIBTM Hosted Buyer Programme - More Benefits for 2010

46. ITB Asia 2010: Bigger ITB Asia Closes With Diverse Events Strengthening Its B2B Role

DO YOU KNOW

Thursday 28.10.2010 www.travelweekly.com.vn

VIETNAM NEWS

The air route of Pakse-Ho Chi Minh City linking the Lao province of Champasak with Ho Chi Minh City, which was can-celed in 2003, was resumed on October 19.The air route, also connected to the Lao capital city of Vientiane, will help bolster transport of goods and tourists be-tween Vietnam and Laos, between Ho Chi Minh City and Champasak in particular. There have been three flights using ATR or MA planes on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, starting on October 19.

Mining Corporation and management of industrial parks Dang Huynh, a member of the Corporation Saigon Thuong Tin Real Estate (Sacomreal) has started construc-tion projects Tan Kim industrial park expansion and Tan Phuoc resettlement area (Long An). The project is located in key economic areas to the south, near the town Giuoc and Tan Kim Industrial Park, Long Hau (Long An), easily connect to the Hiep Phuoc Industrial Zone (Nha Be district) and district Phu My Hung new urban (District 7, HCMC). It is expected to be completed projects in infrastructure, technology on May 12/2012.

Nghe An province people’s commit-tee has approved the detailed plan for construction on Cua Lo PetroVietnam Tourism Zone to be sited in Nghi Thuy Ward, Cua Lo Town. PetroVietnam Nghe An Construction Joint Stock Co was the main investor for this project. The project has total investment capital of 1.236 trillion dong to be built in an area of 27 hectares with the main purposes of developing the tourism sites in Cua Lo Town and neigh-bouring area within the period of 2010-2020.The construction work was expected to start in Q1 of 2011.

Pakse-HCMC air route resumed

VND500 billion to build Tan Kim industrial park expansion

Cua Lo PetroVietnam Tourism Zone project gets approval

The Ho Chi Minh City’s Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism held a ceremony to honor individuals and or-ganisations that got high positions in the “National Skill Contest 2010-Cooking and Restaurant Service”.23 units and 90 persons received certifi-cates of merit from the city’s Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism.On the occasion, the HCM City People’s Committee gave certificates of merit to 26 best organizations and people that have outstanding contribution to tourism skill contests.The City People’s Committee also grant-ed certificate of merit to deputy director of the Department of Culture, Sport and Tourism La Quoc Khanh who was award-ed the “Best destination operator” by the Tourism Promotion Organization for Asian Pacific Cities (TPO).

A two-day international fireworks contest with the theme “Han River” will be held in the central city of Da Nang from April 29-30, 2011. Da Nang Authorities has an-nounced the participation of four foreign teams including the Republic of Korea (ROK), China , Italy and the United King-dom (UK) besides the host Da Nang team.

According to the schedule, the UK team (Jubilee Fireworks company), the RoK team (Hanwha Group) and the host Viet-nam ( Da Nang city’s team) will perform

in the first night. The second night will see fireworks set off by the Italian team (Parente Fireworks A&C SNC Group) and the Chinese team (Panda Fireworks Art Display company limited).

Along with this activity, Da Nang has also launched a contest of fireworks display on computer in 2011 with deadline for entries on December 31 this year.

The awarding ceremony is expected to take place in January 30, 2011.

Ho Chi Minh City praises excellent tourist operators

International fireworks contest debuts in Da Nang

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In Brief


VIETNAM NEWS

The Deck, the first and only river-side restaurant on the banks of the Saigon River, an atmospheric set-ting that never fails to inspire, has been voted “one of Asia’s finest restaurants” and will be featured in The Miele Guide 2010-2011.

One of Saigon’s best kept secrets, The Deck is located only 15 min-utes drive from the city centre yet is a haven of tranquility a million miles away from all urban frenzy and the humdrum of everyday life. This is fine dining at its best, com-bining a stunning location offering sweeping view that guarantees to charm the most discerning guests, with a creative menu that empha-sizes on the freshest seasonal, local ingredients.

Set against a soothing backdrop of shimmering water that turns to midnight blue as the sun goes down, The Deck has a brand new contemporary indoor dining room with glass windows revealing the gorgeous view to every table if you could resist the temptation to dine on the namesake deck, with beautifully laid tables spilling out onto the water under the starlit sky, reminiscent of an exotic beachfront

holiday. Those reluctant to dine alfresco because of the notorious sudden downpour during monsoon season would be relieved to know there is a new James Bond- styled electric retractable roof overhead that keeps any rain at bay.

One of Vietnam’s pioneers for a new wave of sophisticated pan-Asian cooking using the best of Vietnamese produce, seafood from Phu Quoc and Nha Trang, veg-etables from mild-climate Da Lat, along with an impressive drinks list with signature cocktails. World-renowned chef Gary Rhodes once said, ‘No matter how simple a dish is, they all hold a little element of details’, and it is what the culinary team lead by executive chef Cao Lam Gia at The Deck believes in.

‘We are delighted that The Deck has been recognized by this dis-tinguished guide. This really is a team effort and we are very proud and excited to have achieved such recognition’, says Jonathan Sourintha, The Deck’s General Manager. ‘From an intimate and ro-mantic candlelit dinner to special events or private parties for up to 250 people, our professional and

friendly team aims to achieve the ultimate dining experience for our guests’

The Miele Guide is Asia’s first and only independent restaurant guide, which features 450 of Asia’s finest restaurants and annually ranks the top restaurants in Asia as voted by the public and a distinguished panel of professional food writers and industry partners.

Dining against a backdrop of coconut trees and rice paddies with boats sailing up and down the Saigon River is a great way to while away an afternoon. You could also lounge on comfortable rat-tan chairs with soft padded seats watching the wonderful sunset while sipping a cocktail. Once you are here, you will understand why this magnificent yet low-key restaurant deserves such a presti-gious award.

The Deck Restaurant 38 Nguyen U Di, An Phu, District 2, HCMC+84 -8 -3 744 [email protected] www.thedecksaigon.com

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Elegant riverside dining venue The Deck voted “one of Asia’s finest restaurants”

The Deck, the first and only riverside restaurant on the banks of the Saigon River, an atmospheric setting that never fails to inspire, has been voted “one of Asia’s finest restau-rant” and will be featured in The Miele Guide 2010-2011.


VIETNAM NEWS6

Organisers of the World Travel Awards have named four hotel and spa properties in Vietnam in the list of Asian winners for the prestigious industry accolade in 2010 based on the votes cast by travel professionals and con-sumers worldwide.

Travel professionals have chosen InterContinental Asiana Saigon as Vietnam’s Leading Hotel, Sheraton Hanoi Hotel as Vietnam’s Leading Business Hotel and Evason Ana Mandara properties including the one in Nha Trang as Vietnam’s Leading Resort and Leading Spa Resort.

The properties were selected as the winners of the 2010 World Travel Award Winners for Asia based on different categories, including services and business performance. The survey attracted votes from 183,000 travel profes-sionals, including travel agencies, tour and transport companies and tourism organizations in over 160 countries and territories.

Jolyon Bulley, vice president of operations for South East & South West Asia of InterContinental Hotels & Resorts (IHG), said in a statement that the Leading Hotel accolade was great testament to a new property like InterCon-tinental Asiana Saigon, which was opened on September 9 last year.

Thomas Schmelter, IHG area general manager in Vietnam, said the InterContinental Asiana Saigon hotel and residences as well as IHG management had successfully dealt with the challenges of opening a new complex and have delivered good results.

Winners of the regional arena will be qualified to compete in World Travel Awards 2010 Grand Final in London before World Travel Market kicks off on November 7.

2010 World Travel Awards winners announced


7VIETNAM NEWS

Tourism and hospitality experts have identified Vietnam as one of the key growth markets in Asia given its healthy expansion of the econo-my, population and the number of internet and mobile phone users.

“It’s not all China and India… I would say Vietnam is another remark-able growth story,” Abacus International President and CEO Robert Bailey said in his opening speech in front of around 450 representa-tives of the industry at the opening of the 7th Abacus International Conference in HCMC.

At the international travel and hospitality event, Bailey placed Viet-nam after China and India, which he said were the powerhouses of Asia and the key drivers for the regional travel industry because of their economic growth and population.

“Vietnam is taking off,” Patrick Basset, Accor vice president of opera-tions for Vietnam, the Philippines, Japan and South Korea, told the Daily on the sidelines of the event before he joined a panel discus-sion on opportunities in Indochina on Thursday afternoon.

At the session, Basset and other panellists Hawkins Pham of Indo-china Land and Le Quang Nghia of PTG Co. and BCD Travel agreed Vietnam was emerging as a destination of choice for travellers thanks to its beautiful beaches, more standard hotels and resorts going up and simplified procedures for visitors.

Bailey said like the trend in China and India, Vietnam was experienc-ing a bourgeoning middle class with huge spending on travel and services, as well as a fast increase in the number of internet users.

“The internet is taking off here,” Bailey said, adding that the number of internet users in this country is forecast to reach 40 million by 2015. Vietnam also has a surprising number of mobile phone subscriptions and penetration.

The country is also investing heavily in airports in an effort to attract more international carriers and visitors.

Bailey said there would be 26 new airports by 2020 with combined investment capital of some US$13.2 billion. The pickup in passen-ger traffic and the growing economy will continue to create a strong source of travel expenditure for Vietnam.

“Tourism expenditure by 2014 is expected to be around US$8.2 bil-lion (in Vietnam),” Bailey said.

Basset of Accor said in support of Bailey that more new airports would attract more planes and that Vietnam started behind Thailand and Malaysia in terms of tourism but the country had more phenom-enal potential for future growth.

Basset said Vietnam would be able to attract around five million in-ternational visitors this year, from nearly 3.8 million last year. “The number of corporate travellers is increasing more and more as we see more global companies coming to open factories and find the opportunities for them.”

Basset said the increase in international travelers in Vietnam was based mostly on corporate and leisure segments, which account for about 80% of foreign visitors to Vietnam, and the rest are in this coun-try for personal reasons.


adds two newroutes to Asia

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VIETNAM NEWS

Qatar Airways detailed its commit-ment to expanding its presence and offering in the Asian Market at

ITB Asia, the region’s largest travel trade show taking place in Singapore between October 20 and 22.

The airline is promoting new routes to Phuket and Hanoi and increased ser-vices to Bangkok and Ho Chi Minh City, together with exciting stopover packages for international events in Doha to make a trip to Asia an even more attractive option for European travellers, the carrier an-nounced the plan on October 21st.

Qatar’s new route to Thailand’s premier resort island of Phuket offers flights six times a week, increasing to daily flights in November via Kuala Lumpur and con-necting to several of Qatar Airways’ key markets in Europe. Launched on October 12, this is Qatar’s second route to Thai-land and the 8th new international destina-tion it has launched this year. The Phuket services are part of an overall capacity

increase to Thailand, which is witnessing a rapid post-recession recovery in tourism with arrivals expected to top 14 million in 2010. Qatar Airways boost its Doha - Bang-kok frequencies from twice daily flights to triple daily effective from November 1. Qatar Airways will exercise fifth freedom traffic rights allowing it to sell tickets be-tween Phuket and Kuala Lumpur.

Qatar Airways Chief Executive Officer Akbar Al Baker said that the airline’s route to Thailand’s largest island reinforced the airline’s commitment to target under-served Asian markets. On November 1, Qatar will commence four flights a week to the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi, as well as increased frequency to Ho Chi Minh City from three flights a week to daily.“Visitor numbers to Asian destinations such as Phuket and Hanoi are on the rise and Qatar Airways will look to take advan-tage of our European connections from countries like Russia, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, the UK and other parts of Europe to expand the market. With only a handful

of airlines offering flights from Europe to these destinations, the opportunity is there for us to acquire market share,” said Al Baker.

In Asia-Pacific, Qatar Airways’ route net-work now extends to 17 destinations and makes up almost 20 per cent its global network.

Qatar Airways Stopover Packages

To sweeten the offer further, Qatar is tak-ing advantage of the many international events in home-base Doha offering VIP stopover packages through Qatar Airways Holidays.

Qatar is launching the VIP deal with the World Tennis Association Champion-ships- Doha 2010 and the 2nd Annual Doha Tribeca Film Festival from October 26 to 31. More event-linked offers will be rolled out during 2011 providing travelers with VIP tickets and select hotels to create exclusive stopover package.

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VIETNAM NEWS

Qatar Airways Awarded

Recognising its long-term partnership with Asia and growing services and products, Qatar was recently awarded two major industry accolades: Best Middle Eastern Airline By TTG Asia Magazine for the 5th consecutive year and Best Middle Eastern Airline Business Traveller Asia-Pacific for the 2nd year running.

Both awards are in recognition of Qatar Airways’ strong commitment towards travel excellence as voted by readers of TTG Asia – a prestigious weekly travel trade magazine published across Asia – and the monthly Business Traveller Asia Pacific, which also has sister titles world-wide aimed at frequent fliers.

Qatar Airways is the only Middle East carrier in an elite club of Five Star-ranked airlines recognising the best in service excellence by industry audit, Skytrax.

The airline’s Senior Vice President East

Asia and South West Pacific, Marwan Ko-leilat, who picked up the awards on behalf of the airline, said: “Qatar Airways con-tinues to set high benchmarks to remain competitive. Across Asia Pacific, we have made significant inroads with our flights and increased capacity that provide us with extensive reach in one of the world’s most important vibrant regions.”

“The awards are further evidence of Qatar Airways’ success in offering innovative products and services to our passengers,” he said adding, “We are proud that the exceptional standards we set have been recognised by our valuable customers, as well as the travel industry.”

Since February this year, Qatar Airways has launched flights from its Doha hub to Bangalore, Tokyo, Ankara, Copenhagen, Barcelona, Sao Paulo, Buenes Aires and Phuket.

Over the next five months Qatar Airways will introduce scheduled flights to Hanoi,

Nice, , Bucharest, Budapest, Brussels and Struttgart. With a growing international network, Qatar Airways is able to offer passengers from across Asia with excel-lent connections to destinations around the world via Doha.

Qatar Airways operates a modern fleet of 89 aircraft to 93 key business and leisure destinations across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and North and South America. The carrier has outstanding or-ders for more than 200 aircraft worth over US$40 billion.

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VIETNAM NEWS12

In Germany, a road-show presenting Vietnam’s tourism was organized in Berlin to celebrate the 35th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. This event attracted the attention of nearly 100 representatives of tourism compa-nies, media organizations of Germany and a large number of international tourists, Berlin residents and Vietnamese living in Germany.

Vietnamese travel companies and hotels have or-ganized many events to present their products and the image of Vietnam’s tourism to foreign tourists. Tourism companies of Vietnam and Germany have had meetings to exchange information and estab-lish partner relations. Some German travel compa-nies have signed contracts with Vietnamese travel companies and hotels to send tourists to Vietnam in the fourth quarter of 2010. The tours to Vietnam have left deep impressions in the minds of German tourists and visitors from other countries.

A road-show presenting Vietnam’s tourism was or-ganized in Brussels, Belgium, by VNAT in associa-tion with the Vietnamese Embassy in Belgium. This was the first Vietnamese tourism event of its kind to take place in Belgium, so it attracted special at-tention of many travel companies such as Thomas Cook and Tui Travel, and Belgian companies. The road-show presented information about Vietnam’s tourism and the products of Vietnamese tourism companies. Many principle contracts were signed to promote the exchange of tourists between travel companies of Vietnam and Belgium during the event.

In the Republic of France, on the occasion of the 80th founding anniversary of L’Humanite (Human-ity) Newspaper, an organ of the French Communist Party, Vietnam held a 150sq.mn exhibition to pres-ent the French with images of Vietnamese culture and tourism opportunities. With the assistance of the Vietnamese Association in France and other concerned organizations, the exhibition was a success. It not only provided visitors with diverse information about Vietnamese tourism products but also presented many of the literary and artistic works of Vietnamese authors and French people who love and take photos of Vietnam. At the exhibi-tion site, a nice, modern stage was arranged for Vietnamese artists to perform presentations of traditional Vietnamese dances and musical instru-ments. The performances of Vietnamese artists attracted a large audience, and performers were warmly welcomed by international friends. Within just three days, the exhibition attracted several hundred thousand visitors.

Events designed to attract tourists from West Euro-pean countries to Vietnam have left good impres-sions in the minds of international friends and have contributed to the expanding cooperation between Vietnamese tourism companies and foreign part-ners. The domestic tourism sector hopes that it will attract more visitors from West Europe and other parts of the world to Vietnam throughout the rest of 2010 and well into the future.

Western Europe has been considered as a major market of Vietnam’s tourism for a long time. Following numerous activities designed to popularize the image of Vietnam’s tourism in West European countries, the Vietnam National Administra-tion of Tourism (VNAT) recently organised a series of events aiming to attract more tourists from Germany, France and Belgium.

As a result, the number of international tourists to Vietnam increased greatly this September and the last months. After the 26 percent increase this autumn com-pared with last year, tourism is expected to continue to grow in the later months of 2010, especially from West European countries.

Vietnam attracts more West European tourists

Tourist in the Valentine boat

http://caravellhotel.com/


VIETNAM NEWS14

Twenty-two travel companies, mostly in central Vietnam, have formed a club to ensure better services for Thai travellers to the region, instead of unfairly competing with one another.

The mandate for the club is to cooperate to improve services, prevent price undercutting, boost tourism promotion, and set minimum tour prices for Thai visitors to the country.

Cao Tri Dung, chairman of the club, said the member companies mainly served Thai tourists who usually travel to the country via the border gates in the central region, such as Cau Treo, Cha Lo, Lao Bao and Nam Can.

They will contribute funds to promotion programs to polish the image of the region’s tourism so as to attract more tourists from Thailand.

“Unfair competition is happening here,” said Dung, who is also director of Vitours based in Danang. “It has marred the tourism image. Some companies are ready to sell tours at reduced prices, which also mean poor quality, so cooperation is a way out for such a situation.”

The current minimum prices for three popular overland tours designed for Thais in the central region range from US$105 to VND170 per person. They will come into force on January 1.

An increasing number of Thais have been travelling overland to central Vietnam in recent years.

The organiser of an international yacht race from Hong Kong to Vietnam has shelved the competition scheduled to take place on October 20.

The Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club said the VinaCapital Hong Kong to Vietnam Race had been cancelled due to the approaching super typhoon Megi, which has battered the Philippines on its course to the East Sea.

The organiser said it regarded safety as the first priority for all its events, particularly for its international Category 1 Offshore events.

It would be unthinkable to send the boats to stormy high seas, it said in a statement.

However, the organiser said that competitors and the club are fully supportive of running the race in the middle of next October. The

date is expected to be set soon to allow international competitors to plan their racing calendars.

Vu Duy Vu, deputy director of the race’s local partner Saigontourist Travel Service Co., has confirmed the cancellation.

“We completed all preparatory activities for the race but we had to cancel it for safety reasons,” he told the Daily on Tuesday.

Earlier, the central Government had allowed Saigontourist Holding Company, the parent company of Saigontourist Travel Service Co., to combine with the foreign partner to organise the 656km race from Wednesday to next Wednesday.

The event has been taking place every two years since 2004.

Travel firms club to better serve Thai tourists

Hong Kong - Vietnam yacht race canceled

Illustrated picture

mailto: [email protected]


VIETNAM NEWS

The Nam Hai, Vietnam’s premier seaside resort, is turning the lights on a series of special events over the festive period to engage and brighten the Christmas spirit in all members of the family.

In the typically friendly and family oriented Vietnamese style inherent at The Nam Hai, staff members at all levels will be involved in celebrating this Christmas in a style to remember.

From Dec. 1 until Jan. 6, the hotel’s ex-tensive children’s club program will also include the following activities, available free of charge to all guests:

• Christmas cookies cooking class in the pastry shop.• Weekly Christmas painting competi-tion to be judged by staff at The Nam Hai. (Winning entries will receive a Vietnamese family dinner for the entire family.)• Christmas treasure hunt where families compete to hunt the clues hidden on property.

• Family game night.

Over Christmas itself guests will be invited to join in the festivities with:

• Decoration of The Nam Hai Christmas Tree.• Christmas story reading by the general manager and senior management (in Eng-lish and German).• Christmas family movie night with cookies, stollen and mulled wine.• Santa Claus in the restaurant during din-ner Dec. 24 and 25.

Lavish menus have been developed for the holiday period, including a wine-centric bill of fare created specifically for Dec. 27 and 30. That’s when the resort will conduct Grand Wine Dinners with lauded winemak-er Sybille Kuntz, of Sybille Kuntz Estate in southwest Germany’s Riesling-rich Mosel region.

In addition to introducing the wine she’s selected for each dish, Ms. Kuntz will also

offer private wine tastings throughout the week leading up to New Year’s.

To further entertain guests, The Nam Hai Festive Choir will be performing for the second consecutive year. Headed by resident pianist Rain, the Choir consists of staff at all levels who have auditioned and trained to delight guests with their rendi-tions of favorite Christmas carols.

Seven nights’ accommodation for a family of four (two adults and two children) from Dec. 21-28 starts at US $890++ per villa per night, including airport breakfast and return airport transfers. A Grand Wine Din-ner costs US $150++ per person, includ-ing a five-course contemporary set menu with paired wines.

To book, contact The Nam Hai at (+84) 510 394 0000 or [email protected]. For more information about the resort, visit www.thenamhai.com.

Illustrated picture


VIETNAM NEWS14

http://www.la-residence-hue.com/


VIETNAM NEWS 17

Starting this December, locals and tourists will have a chance to experience a cultural show organized by the Xin Chao Art per-formance Co. Ltd, featuring cultural traits of Vietnam to attract tourists.

Entitled “Xin Chao” (Hello), the premier with 50 artists will kick off on December 3 and will continue every night at 6.30pm at the Ho Chi Minh City Circus Theater at September 23 Park in District 1. Sunday shows are meant for kids and family with discount fares.

There will be three parts featuring the tale of Lac Long Quan and his wife Au Co, who are believed to be the first ancestors of Vietnam, heroines Trung Sisters and the contemporary life in Vietnam.

“Xin Chao” is the same genre as Cirque du Soleil, a dramatic mix of circus arts and performances originated from Canada that has been widely spread to Japan and Macau.

The script is written by Laura Burke, an American producer and director who have been living, working and researching on Vietnamese culture and history over the last 8 years. She has also participated in different art activities such as her recent staging a traditional musical show called Ho Xuan Huong at HCMC’s Opera House.

For this new project, Laura expects to em-ploy Binh Dinh martial art and Vietnamese traditional and cultural habits into the show to attract international audience.

This is also a chance for young artists in different fields like circus, martial arts, aer-obat and dancing to show off their talents in a big stage for long term.

“There are many tourists coming to HCMC every year. However, they are only hanging around bar, cinema or restaurant because there is no entertainment place with Viet-namese culture,” said Augustus Greaves, representative of the show.

“Vietnam is a beautiful country with a rich culture. We need to exploit the cultural traits to attract tourists and they will spend more and have more reasons to stay in Vietnam.”

New culture show to lure visitors to HCMC


VIETNAM NEWS18

Vietnam wants to join efforts with Cuba in exploring new and effec-tive methods of cooperation to benefit their people, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has said.

While receiving Cuban Minister of Culture Abel Enrique Prieto Jime-nez in Hanoi on Oct. 20, PM Dung promised to support and create favourable conditions for Vietnam’s concerned agencies to expand and boost cultural cooperation with the island country.

Together with bilateral cooperation in politics, diplomacy and trade, the enhancement of cultural relations would make the two nations more close-knit, the leader said.

Jimenez said the Cuban delegation’s visit was aimed at accessing Vietnam’s experiences in developing and preserving cultural values, thereby contributing to the building of relevant policies in Cuba.

The two sides are to sign a cultural cooperation programme for the 2011-2013 period, which would help the Cuban and Vietnamese peo-ple better understand each other’s cultures, he said.

The same day, Politburo member Truong Tan Sang received Minister Prieto Jimenez, who was also a Politburo member of the Communist Party of Cuba Central Committee.

Sang, a permanent member of the Communist Party of Vietnam Cen-tral Committee’s Secretariat, said Vietnam always stood side by side with Cuba and would do its utmost to promote the bilateral relation-ship.

The Party official conveyed the best regards from Party General Sec-retary Nong Duc Manh and State President Nguyen Minh Triet to Cuban President Fidel Castro and President Raul Castro.

Jimenez said Vietnam’s renewal achievements have proved the Viet-namese revolution was advancing forward firmly and that its experi-ences were very useful to Cuba.

Having thanked the Party, State and people for their valuable support and assistance, the minister affirmed that Cuba would spare no ef-forts to strengthen and step up the traditional and loyal relationship between the two nations.

Later in the day, Jimenez held talks with Vietnamese Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Tuan Anh, during which they re-viewed the results of cultural cooperation over the recent past and signed a cultural cooperation programme for the next three years.

Under the terms of the agreement, the two sides pledged to increase cultural exchanges such as art performances, exhibitions of paint-ings, photos and books and film screenings.

The two sides will boost the sharing of experiences in cultural man-agement, heritage preservation and management and facilitate co-operation between labs, museums, film studios and training estab-lishments.

Cuba also vowed to participate in international cultural events which will be held regularly in Vietnam, including the Hue Festival, the 4th International Circus Festival, the 3rd International Puppetry Festival and the 2nd International Film Festival.

Vietnam, Cuba move to step up cultural cooperation


VIETNAM NEWS 19

Vietnam’s airlines, hotels, operators and agents scored but a single victory in TTG’s annual Travel Awards this year.

In the 21st annual awards presentation this month, the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi took home the top spot in the ‘Best City Hotel - Hanoi’ category. Only the capital cities of countries across the region were evaluated.

The criteria for the Best Hotel award included an appraisal of services, facilities, value-added benefits and most professional sales and marketing team. None of the other 77 awards went to an organization based in Vietnam.

More than 48,000 readers of TTG across the Asia-Pacific contributed assess-ments across four main categories. The awards are widely recognized as one of the most prestigious in Southeast Asia.

“There’s something immensely satisfying about this title – Best City Hotel,” said Kai Speth, general manager of the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi. “We have a reputation as a great heritage hotel, and we’ve worked hard to sharpen our credentials as a destination for business travelers and as a destination for so-phisticated night life. There’s a well-roundedness to Best City Hotel that we plan to savor.”

In the past year, the Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi has scooped a number of coveted awards from around the globe, including a spot on the Conde Nast Hot List and, most recently, PATA’s top award in the Heritage category.

In the 2010 TTG awards program, the trade publication conferred 53 awards to travel suppliers (airlines, hotels, MICE, travel service), 15 awards to travel agents, four awards for oustanding achievement, such as destination of the year, and seven awards in the Travel Hall of Fame.

The voting process spanned three months, from early June to early August, and was completed online or through printed forms.

TTG Awards Singles Out Vietnam Hotel

http://itcmchina.com/

http://www.travelweekly.com.vn/


INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa, Kota Kinabalu won the 2010 World Luxury Hotel Country Award under the “Luxury Beach Resort” category in Malaysia at the recent World Luxury Hotel Awards Gala Ceremony Dinner in Hua Hin, Thailand on 8 October 2010.

The World Luxury Travel Awards are the world’s most prestigious awards ex-clusive to the luxury hotel industry and recognises the best facilities and service excellence the industry has to offer. Es-tablished in 2006, the awards recognise a selection of the finest hotels situated in 54 countries and is committed to raising the bar of excellence within the luxury hotel industry.

“This comes as such a wonderful sur-prise. We are very excited to receive this prestigious award,” said Andrew Steele, general manager of Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa, Kota Kinabalu.

The criterion to be successfully nomi-nated and included in the official World Luxury Hotel Awards voting process is overall service excellence. Only hotels, lodges and resorts operating in a luxury niche market are able to participate in the World Luxury Hotel Awards. The World Luxury Hotel Award does not recognise any other areas of the travel industry.

Hong Kong-based Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts currently owns and/or manages 68 hotels under the Shangri-La and Trad-ers brands with a rooms inventory of over 30,000. Shangri-La hotels are five-star de-luxe properties featuring extensive luxury facilities and services. Shangri-La hotels are located in Australia, Canada, mainland China, Fiji, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Maldives, Philippines, Singapore, Sultanate of Oman, Taiwan, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. The group has substantial development pipeline with projects in Austria, Canada, mainland China, France, India, Macau, Malaysia, Philippines, Mongolia, Rus-sia, Qatar, Seychelles, Turkey and United Kingdom.

22

Shangri-La’s Tanjung Aru Resort and Spa Wins 2010 World Luxury Hotel Country Award

Six Senses Resorts & Spas announces a new name for its Destination Spa - Six Senses Sanctuary Phuket. This is the first part of a wider company rebranding for Six Senses, to be unveiled in full next year. The new name, Six Senses Sanctuary Phuket, captures the spa’s core purpose of delivering integrated wellness experi-ences along with peace, tranquillity, fitness and wellbeing. Not only a spa, Six Senses Sanctuary Phuket offers a stress-free, idyl-lic environment where guests can retreat from today’s frenetic world.

STA Travel is on top of the world for the second consecutive year, after being voted Australasia’s Leading Travel Agency at the World Travel Awards. STA Travel claimed the title for Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific in a gala event at the five-star Claridges Surajkund in Delhi. Described as the ‘Oscars’ of the global travel and tour-ism industry by the Wall Street Journal, the awards recognise excellence in all aspects of travel services including product range, customer service, company culture and technology. Over 5000 travel companies were nominated in more than 1000 differ-ent categories for the 2010 World Travel Awards.

InterContinental Hotels & Resorts has emerged the most celebrated hotel brand in Australasia in the 17th World Travel Awards, as voted by the international travel agent community.InterContinental Fiji Golf Resort & Spa was recognised as Fiji’s Leading Golf Resort. The only international resort on Viti Levu’s spectacular Natadola Beach, offers an 18-hole links course. Another inaugural World Travel Award winner was InterCon-tinental Melbourne The Rialto, which was named Australasia’s Leading Business Ho-tel and it is the only international high-end hotel in the city’s central financial district. This year marked the third time InterCon-tinental Wellington has been recognised as New Zealand’s Leading Business Hotel, making the hotel one of the most consistent winners of the Australasian World Travel Awards in recent years.

Six Senses renames Phuket destination spa

STA Travel Back On Top of the World

Intercontinental Australasia’s most celebrated hotel brand

In Brief


INTERNATIONAL NEWS 23

The Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra announced today that the 201-room, riverside property will open on

December 11, as the city’s first new 5-star debut in a decade.

Located in an upscale residential quarter just downstream of Phnom Penh’s Royal Palace, and close to both the Australian and Russian embassies, the hotel’s debut will introduce eight new restaurants and bars to the city, Southeast Asia’s first, Sofitel-brand-ed So SPA and So FIT, as well as the top floor executive lounge, Club Millésime, and an 1,800-square-meter grand ballroom anchor-ing one of the most ambitious new meetings venues in the region.

The December launch immediately rede-fines the city’s upscale appeal, positioning the Sofitel as the most sophisticated new hospitality opportunity not only in Phnom Penh but in the region at large. The hotel’s emergence here, in one of Asia’s most compelling new destinations, is evidence of rising enthusiasm for Phnom Penh.

More than 6,000 candidates applied for work at the new hotel, buoyed by the brand’s reputation and the bold strokes of a USD 50 million investment by a consortium of Cam-bodian, Thai and French investors.

The Sofitel Luxury Hotels brand offers a unique blend of local culture and the French “Art de Vivre”, and has been progressively moving to claim leading high-end market positioning in major destinations and capital cities. As a new generation Sofitel, the Sofitel

Phnom Penh Phokeethra aims to rapidly gain a leading position in the destination.

“For many people, Phnom Penh is one of Asia’s great new destinations, generating an enthusiasm that we’ve seen in the past for places like Vietnam and the Maldives,” said Didier Lamoot, General Manager of the hotel. “The Sofitel is opening as a grand manifestation of all that enthusiasm.”

Despite the recent economic slump world-wide, visitors to Cambodia have continued to increase, albeit by a small margin. In 2008, the country’s tourist authorities reported 2.12 million in-bound arrivals. In 2009, that num-ber inched up to 2.16 million. Last month, the country’s Ministry of Tourism reported that in-bound arrivals were up 14% over last year, a pace that’s likely to accelerate with the development of the nation’s infrastructure.

The 12-storey hotel occupies four hectares in a prime, riverside location, near the British International School and amidst a burgeon-ing neighborhood of upscale villas. The airport is 15 kilometers away. Within five years, the city’s evolving centre is expected to be fixed right around the Sofitel.

Its fitness complex, the Phokeethra Sports Club, features tennis courts and squash courts, as well an outdoor swimming pool, a kid’s club and fitness equipment. Sofitel So SPA enjoys expansive quarters on the hotel’s third floor, overlooking the pool and the river.

Its five state-of-the-art meeting rooms, the

magnificent grand ballroom and a 1,200-square-meter pre-function space are set to tap a growing interest in Phnom Penh as a land of entrepreneurial opportunity. The Sofitel will deploy its InspiredMeetings programme in the new facility, setting the stage for events that coordinate dedicated personnel and technology and that deliver one-of-a-kind affairs, from intimate parties to large scale conferences.

“As we look ahead to the next few years, Phnom Penh is likely to emerge as an attrac-tive new venue among meetings and confer-ence planners,” said Lamoot. “The destina-tion is fresh, and the ability to hop from here to Angkor is a major draw.”

Lamoot previously served as General Man-ager at the Sofitel Angkor Phokeethra Golf and Spa Resort from September 2004.

Sofitel, World Class Hotels & French Elegance

Sofitel is the only French luxury hotel brand with a presence on five continents with 120 addresses, in almost 40 countries (more than 30 000 rooms). Sofitel offers contemporary hotels and resorts adapted to today’s more demanding and more versatile consumers who expect and appreciate beauty, qual-ity and excellence. Whether situated in the heart of a major city like Paris, London, New York or Beijing, or nestled away in a country landscape in Morocco, Egypt, Fiji Islands or Thailand, each Sofitel property offers a genuine experience of the French “ art de vivre”.

Sofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra set for December DebutSofitel Phnom Penh Phokeethra set for December Debut


INTERNATIONAL NEWS24

Ayana Resort and Spa Bali has been awarded Asia’s Leading Luxury Resort for the second year running as well as Asia’s Leading Luxury Villa (AYANA Villa) in the World Travel Awards 2010.

The awards, announced at the Asia Final in India, automatically qualify AYANA for nomination as the World’s Leading Luxury Re-sort and World’s Leading Luxury Villa. The winners of the World Grand Final will be announced next month.

Tagged ‘the Oscars of the travel industry’ by the Wall Street Jour-nal, the World Travel Awards recognize leaders from all sectors of the tourism and travel industry who demonstrate excellence in service and product.

“The hotel industry is extremely competitive and it is a great honor to win one accolade at the World Travel Awards. We are overwhelmed to have won two,” said AYANA’s General Manager Charles de Foucault. “We are very humbled by the support of our guests, who continually inspire us to reach new heights in quality of service, facilities and overall experience. Today’s savvy

Ayana Won Asia’s Leading luxury Resort and Luxury Villa at World Travel Awards 2010

Ayana Won Asia’s Leading luxury Resort and Luxury Villa at World Travel Awards 2010



travellers do not accept anything but the best, and we are privi-leged to be ranked amongst the world’s most luxurious resorts.”

The award as Asia’s Leading Luxury Resort reaffirms AYANA’s position as a leader in the global hotel industry, after it won the same award in 2009 just months after rebranding to an indepen-dent property. The original owner has invested millions of dollars in upgrades including the Rock Bar, located on natural rocks abutting the ocean, and renovations of Padi restaurant, Damar Terrace restaurant and AYANA Ballroom.

Other awards to be bestowed upon AYANA this year include: • World’s #1 Spa in the Conde Nast Traveller Readers’ Survey• Conde Nast Traveller Gold List (Best Hotels in Asia)• Top 20 Hotels for Value Overall in TRAVEL + LEISURE Read-ers’ Awards• Indonesia’s Leading Independent Resort in the Indonesian Tourism Awards

Meanwhile, Rock Bar has won several awards as Bali’s Best New Bar and was recently named first in a list of the World’s Best

Hotel Bars by CNNGo, the travel portal of CNN.

The award as Asia’s Leading Luxury Villa – a new category in the World Travel Awards just introduced this year – recognizes AYANA’s three-bedroom presidential villa as the most lavish venue for an exclusive escape, honeymoon for two, wedding cel-ebration or other private event. Situated on 3000sqm (32,292sqf ) of landscaped tropical gardens, AYANA Villa includes an 11-meter-long infinity-edged pool, heated Jacuzzi, private spa treat-ment room, private gym, yoga and meditation classes, Wedding Gazebo on the cliff-edge, and of course 24-hour personalized, dedicated yet discreet service from butlers certified by the Guild of Professional Butlers’ in the UK.

AYANA Villa is one of 78 villas spread out across the resort, the other 77 being one-bedroom and two-bedroom dwellings. All villa guests enjoy exclusive privileges and maximum privacy, yet convenient access to hotel facilities including Thermes Marins Bali Spa, 13 restaurants and bars, five swimming pools, golf-putting course, tennis pavilion, fitness center, and white-sand beach.

Tailor-made Travel SpecialistinVIETNAM - CAMBODIA - LAOS

Add: 130 Pho Duc Chinh - Ba Dinh DistrictHanoi - VietnamTel: +84-4 37153538

Fax: +84-4 3715 3540Email: [email protected]

http://chenla-resort.com/en-us/

www.littleorienttravel.com



Singapore, Malaysia and Australia travellers continue to pick Indonesia as their top destination in the next two years, according to Visa and PATA Asia Pacific Travel Intentions Survey 2010.

Based on past and future travel plans for the next two years, the online survey conducted by Nielsen in-volved 6,714 respondents from 13 key Asia-Pacific markets. It indicated that among respondents most likely to head to Indonesia, 29 per cent were from Malaysia, 18 per cent from Aus-tralia and 15 per cent from Singapore.

Taiwan was next at nine per cent, followed by Japan and South Korea at eight per cent each. Both countries had been important markets for Indo-nesia, but showed declining figures due to the economic crisis.

Fifty-nine per cent of respondents who would go to Indonesia within the next two years were repeat travellers who were drawn by the destination’s dining and shopping options as well as the natural scenery.

First-time travellers who would consider visiting Indonesia cited new attractions, the natural scenery and affordability as deciding factors. They were likely to visit with spouses, stay in four- and three-star hotels for three to five nights and spend an average of US$1,538 per person per trip, includ-ing airfare.

Indonesia remains top destination for Singapore, Malaysia and Australia travellers


INTERNATIONAL NEWSLuxury hotel Harbour Grand Hongkong


The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) announced today (22 October) that a total of 2,728,107 visitor arrivals to Hong Kong were recorded in September 2010, 21.2% more than the previous September. Cumulatively, arrivals in the first three quarters of 2010 reached 26,175,950, which is a 23.7%-increase year-on-year.

The table below summarises visitor arrivals from different market regions in Septem-ber and the first three quarters in 2010:

In September 2010, Mainland arrivals increased by 22.7% to more than 1.62 million, driving further gain in overall visitor arrivals. Such momentum of growth, which sus-tained after the summer holidays, showed that since the implementation of measures under the Individual Visit Scheme in Shenzhen, Mainland visitors no longer travel to Hong Kong only during the peak travel seasons and festive holidays, but that they also come for consumption visits over the weekends.

For short-haul markets, expanded flight capacity between Hong Kong and South and Southeast Asia brought along remarkable growth in arrivals from these markets, which increased by 20.3% compared to September 2009. As for North Asia, apprecia-tion of the WON currency continued to stimulate travel among South Koreans, causing arrivals from the country to more than double (+106.9%) and overall arrivals from North Asia to rise by 20.4% year-on-year. Arrivals from Taiwan also grew by 14.8%, reflecting an increasing number of vacation travellers from the island. Further away, double-digit growth was registered in all three regional long-haul mar-kets, with a satisfactory increase of 18.5% in overall long-haul arrivals. In particular, North American arrivals went up by more than 20%, indicating a growing number of both business and vacation travellers as the economy stabilises.

For emerging markets, benefitting from such favourable factors as economic improve-ments and expanded flight capacity, continual growth was registered in arrivals from Russia (+107.2%) and the Middle East (+31.7%). In India, the country’s fast-growing economy has led to strong demand for outbound travel, especially among both family and business segments, causing overall arrivals to Hong Kong to increase by 27.7% in September 2010.

Overnight Visitors

In September 2010, overnight visitor arrivals to Hong Kong totalled 1.44 million, rep-resenting 53.0% of the total arrival figure and a 17.6%-increase from the 2009 figure. Most key market regions, especially Taiwan (+28.4%) and the Americas (+26.4), showed prominent growth in overnight visitor arrivals.

For the first three quarters of 2010, overnight visitor arrivals cumulated to 14.71 million. This number represents 56.2% of all visitor arrivals in the same period and is 21.8% more than the figure last year.

Hong Kong arrivals rise 21% in September



INTERNATIONAL NEWS30

Egypt plans to embark on a survey to study the trends and re-quirements of the Asian market as part of its plan to increase ar-rivals from the region. “We believe MICE and adventure travel has great potential to ap-peal to Asian visitors but we need to have an in-depth study of Asian travellers so we know the specific needs of Asian visitors,” said Mr Hisham Zaazou, First Assistant Minister of the Egypt Min-istry of Tourism, during a press conference at ITB Asia 2010 on 20 October.

“Egypt is no longer just a destination known for its cultural attrac-tions. It is now multifaceted destination. These days we have very good MICE facilities not only in Cairo, but also in Luxor and other destinations in the Red Sea area,” he added.

Mr Zaazou said that Egypt was considering increasing its pres-ence in the region by opening tourism offices in addition to exist-ing offices in Beijing, Tokyo and India. Although no decision had been made yet, Malaysia was a possibility as it had the advantage of direct flights on Egyptian Airlines.

Mr Zaazou expressed his happiness with Egypt’s partnership role as Official Partner Country for ITB Asia 2010. He said that he hoped to continue the partnership in Berlin in 2012 and possibly, ITB Asia 2012 as well.

Egypt to Survey Asian Travel TrendsEgypt to Survey Asian Travel Trends

Group picture at the stand of Egypt - ITB Asia 2010



The Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre staged one of its largest dinners on record

this month, with more than 3200 participants in the Air New Zealand Golden Oldies Rugby Festival filling the venue to celebrate the end of their week-long event.

Held in two of the Centre’s exhibition halls spanning 10,000 square metres, the dinner was serviced by six satel-lite kitchens, with 36 chefs and 220 waitstaff in attendance.

Using more than 460 kgs of beef, 578 kgs of lamb and 1310 kgs of veg-etables, the chefs created a gourmet three-course dinner featuring grilled beef tenderloin on caramelised red onion and olive hash, and braised lamb shanks with a smoked bacon and onion galette.

Themed with 80 giant illuminated inflatable stars and spheres, the din-ner venue featured one of the largest ever dance areas created at the Centre, with delegates filling the 750 square metre dance floor as they en-joyed the sounds of five great cover bands throughout the evening.

Festivities continued well into the

night at the Centre, which was also home to the event’s opening party a week earlier, attended by more than 3000 delegates.

Staged every two years, the Air New Zealand Golden Oldies Rugby Festival celebrates the global rugby fraternity, with 4500 rugby players aged 35 years and over from around the world playing in this year’s Festival’s games from September 26-October 3.

Festival Director Allan Forno said Sydney had been a big hit with at-tendees.

“Our delegates loved the city and its harbour and they also really appreci-ated the safety of the city, which is important,’ Mr Forno said.

Mr Forno said the Centre events had been very successful, from the cali-bre of the food through to the superb service and the management of the large number of guests.

Staging Dimensions Managing Di-rector Mark Keegan, who produced the festival’s welcome party and gala awards dinner, also complimented the venue.

“We really enjoyed working with ev-eryone at the Centre – from the event managers through to the food and beverage and security staff. Noth-ing was too much for them and they were incredibly professional.

“In the spirit of rugby, it was a big team effort and they were all sensa-tional.”

Centre Chief Executive Ton van Am-erongen said the Centre was proud to be selected as the venue for such a major event.

“Delivering a gourmet three-course dinner for 3200 people is not a simple task. It takes considerable planning, skill and style, so our team is to be congratulated,” Mr van Am-erongen said.

The Golden Oldies gala dinner is one of a string of major events be-ing held at the Centre in 2010-2011, including the 12,000-delegate Lions Convention in July 2010 and the 4000-delegate Asia Pacific Congress of Ophthalmology in March 2011.

Sydney Convention Centre hosts huge gala dinnerSydney Convention Centre hosts huge gala dinner

This is the largest dinners on record with more than 3200 partici-pants in the Air New Zea-land Golden Oldies Rugby Festival filling the venue to celebrate the end of their week-long event.


INTERNATIONAL NEWS

The Westin Sydney has again been recognized by Conde Nast Traveler as one of the Best Hotels in Australia and the Pacific in the 23rd annual Readers’ Choice Awards

Conde Nast Traveler is one of the most trusted sources for all aspects of luxury travel and their readers are the most frequent and affluent travelers in the world. They are discerning about travel as well as about culture, fashion and design, and are in the forefront of spending on luxury items from clothes to cars to holiday houses.

The Conde Nast Readers Choice Survey was available to read-ers on a secure website and the hotels were rated in food/dining, overall design and room service. A total of 25,915 readers partici-pated in 2010 which was tabulated by Global Market Insite, Inc. of Boston.

General Manager, Mark Burns commented, “we are absolutely thrilled to be included in this prestigious list. Our associates work tirelessly to deliver personal and instinctive service to guests, ensuring they depart feeling better than when they ar-rived”.

The Westin Sydney is located in the heart of Sydney at No. 1 Mar-tin Place, and its facilities include 416 luxurious accommodation rooms and suites, Mosaic Restaurant offers modern Australian cuisine with a Mediterranean influence and a stylish Lobby Bar, Lounge and Room.

New Zealand could lose its Middle Earth alias with reports the Lord of the Rings prequel The Hobbit may be filmed in the UK.In a statement, filmmaker Sir Peter Jackson and his wife Fran Walsh said Warner Bros would be flying to New Zealand later in the month to arrange the relocation of the USD500 million proj-ect, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.Tourism New Zealand General Manager Public Affairs Suzanne Carter said losing the films would be a disappointment consid-ering the positive impact the previous productions had on New Zealand tourism.“From a tourism perspective the flow on effects of these films reach communities across the country with visitors coming to enjoy our unique scenery and lifestyle and using our tourism services as they travel,” she said.“People are still travelling to New Zealand today because of the exposure gained through the Lord of the Rings trilogy.”The announcement to relocate production came after New Zealand Actors’ Equity union asked actors to boycott The Hobbit due to strict contract provisions.Despite retracting the strike within a few days, Mr Jackson said Warner Bros had lost confidence in New Zealand as a stable en-vironment for its multi-million dollar production and has started looking towards the UK for a possible replacement.“They have a huge studio there that Harry Potter have vacated, that they own, their ex Rolls Royce factor, that they say would be perfect for us,” Ms Walsh said.“It appears we now cannot make films in our country, even when substantial financing is available,” Mr Jackson said.

Movenpick Hotels & Resorts to enter the Chinese market

The Westin Sydney placed among the Top 5 Hotels in Australia and the Pacific

32

Movenpick Hotel & Resort, Phuket, Thailand

Movenpick Hotel & Resort, Hanoi, Vietnam

http://www.sofitel.com/gb/home/index.shtml


TRAVEL EXPO34

Indulge your senses in ILTM’s new Healing Lounge

‘Healing Body, Mind and Soul, Healing Beauty’ will be the theme of the new Healing Lounge sponsored by Healing Ho-tels of the World at this year’s International Luxury Travel Mar-ket (ILTM), 6-9 December in Cannes.

Debbie Joslin, Exhibition Director at ILTM comments:

“We are aware of the enormous popularity of spas as well as high end wellbeing and medical tourism within the luxury tourism industry. ILTM’s Healing Lounge represents the crème de la crème of the world’s spas and therefore a high-point for those luxury travel specialists seeking the ultimate in rejuvenation for their elite clients.”

Healing Hotels of the World is an exclusive partnership of some 50 superior hotels and resorts located across the world offering an exclusive holistic wellbeing service i.e. physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual care. The partnership is also best positioned to educate guests regarding caring for themselves in the future. Treatments in the ILTM Healing Lounge include mini facials onsite by Babor, a power nap corner hosted by Samina Insti-tute; holistic massages provided by Fonteverde Natural Spa Resort; shoulder, neck and head treatments from Haki by Har-ald Kitz and Lanserhof Austria who will provide 15 minute con-sultations on men’s health. Healing Hotels’ extensive catalogue of criteria has to be ful-filled by each partner hotel and focuses on the entire hotel, in-cluding the holistic treatments offered in the spa, responsible hotel and room design, appropriate food, sustainable commit-ment, overall philosophy and much more. Each programme is specifically tailored for each guest. The following member hotels and resorts will be represented at Healing Hotels of the World’s stand at ILTM: Villa Faros, Greece; La Clairière Bio & Spahotel, France; Hotel Vitznauer-hof Vitalresort, Switzerland; Alpen Karawanserei Time Design Hotel, Austria; Lanserhof, Austria; Engel Spa & Resort, Italy; Verdura Golf & Spa Resort, Italy; Chiva-Som, Thailand; Gaia Retreat & Spa, Australia; The Lyall Hotel & Spa, Australia and The Banjaran Hotsprings Retreat, Malaysia. Now in its ninth year, ILTM is an exclusive ‘by invitation only’ event where selected definitive international luxury travel ex-periences and prestigious luxury travel products are invited to meet with the top buyers of elite travel from across the globe. ILTM Asia is the leading annual business-to-business event for the Asia Pacific luxury travel community: 13-16 June 2011 in Shanghai. For further information on ILTM and ILTM Asia, visit www.iltm.net .


27

Countdown News WeekIMEX Group and Cvent

sign major marketing alliance

One year out from the inaugural show, the organizers behind new global meetings industry trade show IMEX America have signed a major marketing agreement with Cvent, the world’s largest meetings man-agement software company.

Through the alliance, Cvent and the IMEX Group will jointly market IMEX America, which will launch at the Sands Expo/Vene-tian Palazzo in Las Vegas on October 11, 2011, to an extensive, high-level audience of qualified buyers and suppliers from within the United States and other global markets. A series of joint promotions and marketing programs is set to start in Janu-ary 2011.

IMEX America will offer a unique model of trade show, new to the US market, that will enable exhibitors to meet and make business appointments at their booths with over 2,000 hosted buyers. 80 per cent of buyers will be from North America, 20 per cent from other world markets; a fac-tor which defines IMEX America as a truly international show on US soil. Thousands more US buyers are also expected to at-tend.

Working with Cvent to identify possible at-tendees and buyers, particularly from the US and Canada, will significantly increase IMEX’s brand awareness and visibility, al-though the company’s authority is already fully proven as a result of its award-win-ning trade show, IMEX in Frankfurt, which has been running for eight years.

Says Carina Bauer, IMEX Group CEO: “We are thrilled to be working with Cvent. This new alliance gives us extraordinary reach into the US meetings, incentive travel and events market and also partners IMEX America with a very strong, stable and respected brand name that shares similar values to our own. IMEX has always been dedicated to technological innovation and

we have invested heavily in this side of our business for the benefit of our buyers and exhibitors. Cvent shares our client focus and passion for excellence.”

Cvent already partners with Meeting Pro-fessionals International (MPI), the Society of Incentive and Travel Executives (Site) and the Professional Convention Manage-ment Association (PCMA), all of which are also in partnership with IMEX America. MPI is both strategic partner and major educational provider for the new show.

Cvent’s strong reputation among govern-ment, corporate, association and educa-tion organizations and more than 6,500 customers will give IMEX added reach to promote the launch of IMEX America, and the company’s client base complements the profile of other hosted buyer groups already coming to the show. For example, MPI’s 24,000 members worldwide com-prise decision-makers from 80 per cent of Fortune 100 companies and Carlson Marketing’s top corporate clients repre-sent some of the world’s biggest Fortune 1000 companies. Maritz Travel will also be running its annual senior-level Customer Event during the show, which is set to at-tract up to 100 Fortune 500 corporate cli-ents.

“Year after year, IMEX in Frankfurt has proven to be a tremendously valuable show for Cvent as well as our custom-ers, and we are excited to help bring one of the most powerful shows in the global meetings and events industry to the US,” said Chuck Ghoorah, Cvent’s Co-Founder and Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “We know IMEX America will deliver the top-notch business and educa-tional opportunities the industry has come to expect from the IMEX Group, and look forward to helping make the inaugural show a success.”


TRAVEL EXPO34

About IMEX America

The new trade show for the worldwide meetings, events and incentive travel industry; the inaugural IMEX America will take place October 11-13, 2011 at the Sands Expo at the Venetian/Palazzo Hotel. The show’s strategic partner and major educational provider is MPI. It is endorsed by DMAI and Site and has an Industry Partnership with PCMA. IMEX America also has major partnerships in place with all the other leading industry associations across the world.

IMEX America will offer a unique model of trade show, new to the US market. It will assure exhibitors of meeting and making business appoint-ments on their booths with in excess of 2,000 highly qualified hosted buyers. The majority (80 per cent) of these hosted buyers will come from North America, with the balance from the rest of the world. In addition thousands more US buyer attendees are expected to attend from across North America. Entrance to the show and its educational program is entirely free of charge.

About Cvent

Founded in 1999, Cvent is the world’s largest meetings management software company and has over 670 employees worldwide. Cvent offers web-based software with features including meeting site selection, online event registration, event management, e-mail marketing, and web surveys. Cvent helps over 80,000 users in 35 countries manage hundreds of thousands of events, surveys and e-mail campaigns. Cvent has processed over $1.5 billion in online payments and has managed over 30 million event registrations and survey responses for its clients. For more information, please visit www.cvent.com.

Exhibitors and buyers can register their interest in IMEX America and access great accommodation discounts at http://www.imex-america.com/users_prereg_interest.php


TRAVEL EXPO

IMEX turns up the green heat with new carbon-free European rail tickets

A new ticket initiative from German rail com-pany and IMEX in Frankfurt travel partner, Deutsche Bahn (DB), will allow the trade show to provide carbon free train travel to all of its European hosted buyers in 2011.

The tickets will be available to all hosted buyers travelling to the Frankfurt trade show from anywhere in continental Europe. The ticket, called “Umwelt-Plus”, guarantees that Deutsche Bahn will only use renewable energy for all hosted buyer rail tickets. Un-like compensatory measures, “Umwelt Plus” avoids carbon dioxide emissions altogether since the electricity used is produced exclu-sively from renewable energy sources in Ger-many. DB purchases the amount of renewable energy required for journeys in advance. This additional energy replaces the energy from other sources in the rail power grid.

Once the show is over, IMEX will receive a certificate showing the total carbon dioxide

saving made as a result of the new green tick-ets. Last year nearly 900 hosted buyers trav-elled to IMEX in Frankfurt by rail, coming in from Germany, Brussels, Amsterdam, Zurich and Paris.

Deutsche Bahn’s commitment to using green-er energy and investing in ecological and car-bon free power plants is behind the new tick-et option. IMEX will pay a small levy on top of its normal ticket price to support carbon free travel. The new ticket further reinforces the IMEX Group’s ongoing efforts to reduce the show’s environmental impact and, in particu-lar, to reduce waste wherever possible.

Two years ago IMEX introduced the first ever biodegradable visitor badges made from re-cycled and recyclable paper badges coated in corn-starch laminate. The company also runs the only Green Awards in the interna-tional meetings industry and last year offered the option of hydroelectric power to all of its

exhibitors.

Each year IMEX in Frankfurt sets new recy-cling targets for the show. In 2010, following a concerted campaign to educate stand-build-ers and exhibitors, 87 per cent of the show’s waste was recycled and total waste output was reduced by 30 tonnes compared to 2009. In all, 32 tonnes of paper and 29 tonnes of cardboard waste were recycled during IMEX in Frankfurt 2010.

A new initiative called The Green Team also encouraged exhibitors to follow two out of three ‘green’ steps in return for wearing a green lapel ribbon that demonstrated their environmental commitment.

The IMEX Group intends to extend its green track record next year when IMEX America opens on October 11 in Las Vegas. The com-pany recently appointed MeetGreen as Offi-cial Sustainability Partners for the new show.

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The AIBTM/PCMA Co-Location:

Here’s How It’s Going to Work

While the Americas Meetings and Events Exhibition, which debuts June 21-23, 2011, at the Baltimore Convention Center, an-nounced last spring that it will co-locate with the Professional Convention Manage-ment Association’s 2011 Education Confer-ence, the specifics of that arrangement are just emerging.According to Reed Travel Exhibition’s AI-BTM Project Manager Steve Knight, PC-MA’s meeting will begin on Monday, June 20, rather than its traditional Sunday. On Tuesday, while the PCMA meeting is in full swing, AIBTM will open with an education day, with sessions presented in conjunction with partner groups such as the Convention Industry Council and the International As-sociation of Exhibitions and Events. These sessions will not be connected with PCMA’s educational events. However, Knight says “we are looking at ways to intermingle.”Tuesday is also expected to be the day Meeting Professionals International pres-ents the findings of new AIBTM-sponsored research for its Value of Meetings Initiative. And on Tuesday evening, CIC holds its Hall of Leaders gala, a black-tie event honoring

innovators and leaders in the meetings and conventions industry.On Wednesday, AIBTM’s exposition opens. PCMA’s meeting continues all day, but its attendees will be served lunch on the show floor and given time to walk the aisles. Wednesday evening, the AIBTM welcome party will be a joint venture between AI-BTM, PCMA, and Visit Baltimore.PCMA’s conference wraps up on Thursday at 11 a.m., and buyers from that event will be welcome to attend the AIBTM expo’s final afternoon.Knight says AIBTM’s Baltimore location is likely to draw a strong showing from the as-sociation market. “Is our biggest audience sector going to be the association market? Yes,” said Knight, “but the hosted-buyer program will bring in corporate buyers as well.” Knight is expecting to draw 2,000 hosted buyers, about 35 percent of whom will be U.S. planners who do international meetings, 60 percent U.S. planners who do domestic meetings, and about 5 percent in-ternational planners who bring groups to the U.S. AIBTM registration opens in January.


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creates more business opportunities

Arabian Travel Market, the leading travel exhibition in the Middle East, has unveiled a new format to its four-day event, by introduc-ing an additional day of business, while still maintaining a dedicated session for consum-ers.

The 2011 show which takes place at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Cen-tre will open a day earlier running from Mon-day to Thursday (May 2-5), with new opening times creating an extra day of business on Thursday followed by a dedicated consumer session later the same day between 3pm and 9pm.

“We have decided to change the format of the show after a survey revealed that the majority of participants wanted more time to explore business opportunities, while also retaining a consumer element. The new format ac-commodates that request,” said Mark Walsh, Group Exhibition Director, Reed Travel Exhi-bitions.

“Although business will always be the key driver of the event consumers still provide valuable end-user feedback and key insight for industry professionals,” added Walsh.

Held under the patronage of His Highness

Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, Ruler of Dubai and approaching its eigh-teenth year, the show has grown to become the largest showcase of its kind in the region and one of the biggest in the world. This year 2,236 exhibitors covering over 20,000 square metres, attracted more than 22,000 visitors.

“This is a logical move for Arabian Travel Market as the Middle East region is one of the fastest growing inbound and outbound markets in the world,” said Saleh Mohammed Al Geziry, Director, Overseas Promotions and Inward Mission.

“Dubai will continue to provide a platform to support key industry events like Arabian Travel Market, which help to shape the future of the region’s tourism landscape, not only in terms of infrastructure, but also in terms of social, environmental and cultural develop-ment, ” added Al Geziry.

According to the World Travel Organisation (WTO), the travel industry has witnessed seven consecutive months of growth to the end of April this year. Indeed the number of international tourist arrivals worldwide from January to April 2010 grew to over 258 mil-lion, which is a 7% year-on-year increase and

during the same period the International Air Transport Association (IATA) reported a 6% growth in air transport.

The WTO’s 2020 tourism vision forecasts that the Middle East region which currently receives 36 million visitors, will attract 69 mil-lion tourists by 2020, an average growth rate of 6.7%.

As such, the GCC region and in particular Dubai, has continued to invest heavily in tour-ism infrastructure. According to Dubai-based research company, Proleads, there are cur-rently over 470 active hotel projects (those not completed, on-hold or cancelled) in the GCC countries, 258 of which are in the UAE. In fact $1.7 billion will be spent on hospitality projects throughout the Gulf this year.

“Through strategic investment, Dubai’s tour-ism industry has grown exponentially over the past decade and will continue to be a key economic driver in the future,” said Al Geziry.

For more information on Arabian Travel Mar-ket 2011, please log on to www.arabiantrav-elmarket.com

New structure to accommodate extended business sessions, as largest travel event in Middle East announces 2011 dates

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EIBTM Hosted Buyer Programme – More Benefits for

2010 FINAL OPPORTUNITY TO APPLY

Places are still available for EIBTM’s 2010 Hosted Buyer programme running from 30 November - 2 December in Barcelona (www.eibtm.com), which has already attracted an increased number of Buyers from Hungary, Poland, Switzerland, Argentina, Brazil, South Africa, US and Russia. With time, cost and resource foremost in the minds of buyers, interested parties are urged to make their Hosted Buyer applications, with only a few weeks left until EIBTM 2010. June Clark, Manager for the Hosted Buyer Programme, comments: “We know that our Hosted Buyers believe EIBTM is a key indus-try event but they also know that our quali-fication process is tough. The quality is our prime concern, but once accepted onto the programme, the flexible buyer-driven ap-pointment system and all of the additional benefits truly delivers a return on business. We urge anyone still considering attending to apply now, to ensure they receive maximum benefit from the pre-scheduled appointments system with exhibitors, that is due to open im-minently.”For those accepted on to the programme, they can expect to receive; complimentary flights to Barcelona, 4/5* accommodation,

and a personal diary of pre-scheduled ap-pointments chosen by the Hosted Buyer from over 3,300 exhibiting companies. The EIBTM professional education programme offers over 50 sessions, with three specific streams dedicated to Hosted Buyers who represent the Association, Corporate and Agency sec-tors and there is also the opportunity to take part in all of the networking events.A further benefit is the option to participate in a post event fam trip this year hosted by destinations including; Bilbao, Costa Doura-da, Costa del Sol/Malaga, Florence/Tuscany, Madrid, Valencia, Huelva and Rotterdam.Jeffrey Adam, Director of Global Accounts at HelmsBriscoe, said: “The benefits of attend-ing EIBTM are immense. I have found count-less new properties to work with, learned about destinations, developed new contacts and solidified existing relationships. The sum total of the experience has made me a more valuable asset to my clients. Knowledge equals effectiveness.”Graeme Barnett, Exhibition Director for EIBTM comments: “Our Hosted Buyer Pro-gramme is considered the ‘gold standard’ for the meetings industry. In order to maintain the quality of the selection process we con-

tinually research both buyers and suppliers post show to monitor the value to both stake-holders.“For example, last year 3,827 Hosted Buyers attended, and 99% of them confirmed that they were “satisfied that EIBTM met their commercial objectives. Equally, 96% of ex-hibitors said that they were “satisfied with the quality of the pre-scheduled appointments with Hosted Buyers. Last year also saw one of the largest numbers of business appoint-ments – 54,255 and up 4% on the previous year.”Those wishing to apply for Hosted Buyer status should submit their applications as soon as possible, to maximise their chances of qualifying for a place. The programme is open to all those who organise, influence or make budgetary decisions for meetings, incentive travel, international conventions, product launches, staff training or events.

For further information about becoming a Hosted Buyer and the criteria of qualification, please visit www.eibtm.com/hostedbuyer. Al-ternatively, you can contact the EIBTM Host-ed Buyer team directly on +44 (0)20 8271 2127 or at [email protected]


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Maximising brand reach at EIBTM – delivering targeted messages to the

global meetings and events communityWith over 14,000 industry professionals expected to attend this year’s EIBTM event (30th November to 2nd December), the or-ganiser, Reed Travel Exhibitions has signed a record number of sponsors, underlining the events ability to maximise brand reach amongst the global meetings and events community.

Recognising the importance of highly targeted marketing achievable through sponsorship and brand association, EIBTM has developed a range of packages that include online, offline and live marketing elements that enable exhibitors to direct highly focussed messages to specified target groups.

Targeting the Association Market, Qatar National Convention Centre, Vienna Convention Bureau and Madrid Convention & Visitor Bureau have sponsored EIBTM’s Association Pro-gramme, providing promotional opportunities and access to this highly sought after group. Expoforum has signed to spon-sor EIBTM’s Annual Industry Trends and Market Survey report to be published on Day 1 of the show.

Sponsorship of EIBTM’s website has proved particularly at-tractive as exhibitors look to generate additional interest and stand traffic during the pre-show phase. Sponsors include Hong Kong, Cyprus tourism, Iceland and port Aventura who have sponsored the Industry Poll.

Montse Garcia, sales coordinator at PortAventura Business & Events comments: “This year we are proud to sponsor the In-dustry Poll on the EIBTM website, in addition to sponsoring the Show Daily, for the second year running. As the leading global event for the meetings and events industry, EIBTM provides us with the opportunities to raise the profile of PortAventura Busi-ness & Events among our target audience. We are confident that the increased visibility that we gain as both exhibitor at and sponsors of EIBTM will help drive our future success.”

High profile on site branding opportunities have also attracted strong interest from those exhibitors looking to ensure their brands stand out. Madrid Convention and Visitor Bureau, Can-ada Tourism, I&MI, Korea Tourism Organisation, Busan Con-vention Bureau, Hong Kong Tourism Board, Ecuador, Qatar Tourism Authority, Oman Ministry of Tourism and Porto Con-vention Bureau will utilise pre-designed and bespoke packag-es to achieve specific objectives, including increasing market awareness or launching new products.

EIBTM Event Director, Graeme Barnett comments: “As the lead-ing global event for the Meetings and Events industry, sponsors at EIBTM are guaranteed to reach their key audience. They are able to raise their company profiles and enhance their brands in a unique and creative way. Furthermore, EIBTM’s sponsor-ship packages help businesses stand out from the competition and add value to their event strategy in a highly targeted and cost effective way.”

There are a number of sponsorship opportunities, as well as branding and advertising options still available at EIBTM.

For further information, please visit www.eibtm.com or contact Mercedes Alonso, Sponsorship Sales Manager at +44 20 8 910 7183or [email protected].


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GIBTM 2011: The Five Star Event for the Meetings & Events Industry

in the Middle East

The fifth edition of GIBTM will once again take place at AD-NEC in Abu Dhabi from 28 – 30 March 2011 (www.gibtm.com).Since the inaugural event, GIBTM has seen attendance grow exponentially, as the show becomes the region’s an-nual event for the meetings industry. A record 260 Hosted Buyers from 40 countries attended GIBTM 2010, up 10% on 2009, according to an independent audit, and contributed to an overall attendance of 1,916 at the 2010 event. A total of some 7,500 meetings took place with the 220 exhibitors, again an increase on the 2009 show.The event is now established as an important business plat-form for international and regional suppliers from national tourist organisations, destinations, convention bureaux, destination management companies, independent hotels and hotel groups as well as specialist service providers rep-resenting the Gulf and Middle East region, South and South East Asia, Europe, North Africa and beyond.The 2011 Hosted Buyer programme aims to bring high qual-ity pre-qualified buyers from regions such as Europe, Africa, Asia, the United Arab Emirates and the Middle East and it is projected that some 2000 trade visitors will attend. The three day education programme, that includes the an-nual presentation of the Middle East Meetings Research Report, also attracted a record audience and in 2011 the content will once again help to give delegates a global and regional update on the industry from those who are the in-dustry’s thought leaders.Visitors and Buyers to GIBTM are professionals involved in the planning or organisation of incentive travel programmes, congresses or events including: Conventions, Conferences & Meetings, Corporate Hospitality, Incentive Travel, Interna-tional Congresses, Product Launches, Special Events, Staff Motivation, Training Programmes and Business Travel.Full information on GIBTM is available on www.gibtm.com


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Thursday 28.10.2010

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ITB Asia 2010: Bigger ITB Asia Closes With Diverse Events

Strengthening Its B2B RoleThe third ITB Asia closed today in Singapore with 6,605 attendees, a 7.4% increase on last year. Organizers, Messe Berlin (Singapore), attributed growth to three forces: the diversity of specialist travel forums within ITB Asia, resurgent Asian outbound demand, and enhanced buyer quality.

“The feedback on Association Day, Web in Travel, the Luxury Meetings Forum and the Responsible Tourism Forum at ITB Asia shows that ITB Asia has created unstoppable momentum through diversity,” said Dr Martin Buck, Director of Messe Berlin (Singapore).

Some 580 buyers attended the three-day event, many of them joining the inaugural Association Day interactive forum which aimed to expand the quality and quantity of large association events in Asia.

“ITB Asia and Association Day provided excellent networking to make new contacts and to clarify issues -- all in a very friendly atmosphere,” said Mr Manojit Das Gupta, Secretary General, the Indian Tea Associa-tion.

Ms Sharyati, Datuk Shuaib, Director Destination Management, World Gas Conference 2012, said: “Association Day was an eye opener on how as-sociations manage their membership and run events – a fascinating ex-hibition with many networking opportunities.”

Association Day, a first of its kind in Asia, attracted over 100 attendees. “We created a new platform based on the exchange of high quality in-formation that never existed before,” said Buck.

Innovative formatting characterised Web in Travel (WIT) which attracted nearly 400 attendees. Two WIT Clinics were created to let travel industry ‘doctors’ consult with IT Asia attendees on how to make money from their website and how they should better use social media.

Successful formats geared to the exchange of rich content characterised specialist sectors such as luxury meetings. The ITB Asia Luxury Meet-ings Forum attracted leaders from brands such as Ritz-Carlton, Hilton, the Event Company, and Small Luxury Hotels of the World.

Egypt was the official partner country of ITB Asia 2010. It held a travel agent workshop just prior to ITB Asia and organized an exotic Egypt Night extravaganza on the opening day of the show.

“Our activities in and around ITB Asia were excellent,” said Mr Hisham Zaazou, First Assistant Minister in the Ministry of Tourism in Egypt. “We want to build on the success of this year with increased space next year. I will report to the industry in Egypt to ensure even greater participation in 2011.”

Other exhibitors had similar sentiments: Peter Blumengstel, Director of the German National Tourist Office Japan, said: “Our schedule has been very busy from day one and there’s hardly time in between meetings with buyers from all over Asia.”

Momentum and specialist forums have induced a high number of early bookings for ITB Asia 2011. “We have received a higher than usual num-ber of super-early bird bookings for ITB Asia next year,” said Mr Nino Gruettke, Executive Director, ITB Asia.

“With exciting new branding for ITB Asia 2011 about to be announced, we are looking forward to building on the momentum, quality and spe-cialist success of this year in 2011,” he said.

About ITB Asia 2010ITB Asia took place at the Suntec Singapore Exhibition & Conven-tion Centre, 20-22 October, 2010. It was organised by Messe Berlin (Singapore) Pte Ltd and supported by the Singapore Exhibition & Convention Bureau. Egypt was the official partner country of ITB Asia 2010. The event featured hundreds of exhibiting companies from the Asia-Pacific region, Europe, the Americas, Africa and the Middle East, covering not only the leisure market, but also corpo-rate and MICE travel. ITB Asia 2010 included exhibition pavilions and tabletop presence for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) providing travel services. Exhibitors from every sector of the industry, including destinations, airlines and airports, hotels and resorts, theme parks and attractions, inbound tour operators, inbound DMCs, cruise lines, spas, venues, other meeting facilities and travel technology companies attended. www.itb-asia.com.


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ITB Berlin 2011: Germans keen to travel once again more than 70 per cent are planning a lengthy holiday trip in 2011

Germany’s resurgent economy sees its citizens keen to travel again – the latest ADAC Reisemonitor survey is upbeat about travel prospects in 2011

According to the latest representative survey by ADAC, 71.2 per cent of the population are firmly intent on booking a lengthy holiday trip next year, nearly six per cent more than in 2009. Parallel with an improving German economy, the nation’s citizens are once more eager to go on trips for several weeks at a time. Dr. Martin Buck, Director of the Compe-tence Centre Travel & Logistics of Messe Berlin: “Backed by a resurgent economy the tourism industry is picking up speed once again. The worst of the recession is now over and German citizens are again living up to their reputation as the world’s most travelled nation. In this context two categories are emerging: in the first category the principal focus is on the choice of destination, and in the other it is the travel budget that mainly decides where holidays will take place.“

Almost 60 per cent of the members polled are planning to take a trip even before the year is out. According to the survey, holiday decisions continue to be strongly influenced by individual economics. Nevertheless, holiday travel has become a priority again, regardless of social class. Thus, 41.1 of those polled who said their economic situation was “bad to very bad” are planning to go on a holiday trip before the end of the year, over six per cent more than in 2009.

According to the ADAC survey holidaymakers are anticipating a number of price rises. More than 50 per cent of the members polled believe that package tours, hotels and cruises will become more expensive. In partic-ular, the introduction of an air fare surcharge is expected to raise the cost of chartered flights (63.2 per cent) and scheduled flights (72 per cent). 79.1 per cent expect train fairs to rise in the future.

For Germans, their home country is by far the most popular holiday des-tination. More than 28 per cent of those polled are planning to take next year’s holidays somewhere between Flensburg and Garmisch-Parten-kirchen. Italy as a destination ranks second (at marginally over 11 per cent), followed by Spain (at close to 10 per cent).

In July 2010 the ADAC polled approximately 4,000 of its members to find out their holiday plans for the coming months and for 2011.

About ITB Berlin and the ITB Berlin ConventionITB Berlin 2011 will take place from Wednesday to Sunday, 9 to 13 March. From the Wednesday to the Friday ITB Berlin is open to trade visitors only. The ITB Berlin Convention is held parallel with the trade fair, from Wednesday to Friday, 9 to 11 March 2011. It is the world’s largest special-ist convention for the industry. Check out www.itb-convention.com for a wealth of information about the convention. ITB Berlin is the leading trade fair for the worldwide travel industry. In 2010 a total of 11,127 companies and organisations from 187 countries exhibited their products and ser-vices to 179,351 visitors, who included 110,953 trade visitors.


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World’s Largest Global LGBT Research Study Uncovers Large and Untapped Gay Markets in Latin America

The Latin American region represents a very large - and untapped – lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) marketing oppor-tunity for the travel and tourism industry, reveals research released today.Findings from the 2010 Out Now Global LGBT Study, which will be released in full at World Travel Market on November 10, reveals Latin America is home to more than 25 million LGBT people. This group of people represent a valuable multi-billion value market opportunity for a broad range of companies, including tourism brands, destina-tions and a diverse range of industries.Undertaken by Out Now Global - the leading LGBT marketing strat-egy and research agency - the new research surveys LGBT people living across the Latin American region on a wide range of topics, including spending habits, education, parenting, relationships, age, income, travel, lifestyle, workplace discrimination and harassment issues.The study has uncovered vast untapped market opportunities rele-vant to a large number of companies. In tourism, the research reveals significant tourism spends made by millions of LGBT consumers liv-ing in countries in the region.The Out Now study shows that in 2010, LGBT consumers living in Ar-gentina spent a total of USD$4 billion on leisure travel expenditures. In Mexico, 5 million LGBT customers spent USD$8 billion on tourism spending, while in Brazil local LGBT consumers spend more than USD$20 billion on leisure travel annually.


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Founder and CEO of Out Now Global, Ian Johnson, said the new study reveals a wealth of data about Latin America, as well as 16 other major markets across the world.

“Out Now is really pleased to be bring-ing the first global LGBT research project to so many countries around the world,” said Johnson. “We are especially pleased to be revealing the results of the first large scale study of the Latin American region - one of the world’s growth hotspots and until now a region where LGBT customers were largely ignored by the tourism industry and other companies. This new Out Now research is set to change all that.”

“One country in the research that particularly stands out is Brazil,” Johnson added. “Not only is Brazil the clear number one destination in the Latin American region for inbound LGBT travellers from countries including the US, UK, Germany, France and the Netherlands - it is also the largest LGBT outbound tourism market in the region, with Brazil-ian LGBT people spending more than USD$20 billion every year on travel and tourism expenditures.”

The study’s wealth of new research data is being released at next month’s World Travel Market, the premier global event for the travel industry.WTM Chairman Fiona Jeffery said: “This new Out Now Global research is a truly groundbreaking study. Never before has there been a study of such reach and depth of gay and lesbian consumers, and we are

delighted Out Now has chosen to pre-miere such a significant new body of research study at WTM.”

Johnson added:

“LGBT consumers around the world are increasingly the focus of attention from global marketers. After years of being ignored, this is a largely welcome

development, however the response of consumers to any corporate overtures will depend very much on how companies conduct them-selves in their marketing efforts. Those companies that seek only to exploit a profit opportunity, without taking the trouble to understand LGBT consumers as people, are unlikely to succeed.”

In 2011 Brazil will become the focus of increasing LGBT marketing ac-tivities. Out Now is commencing work with leading brands to bring its industry-leading LGBT marketing expertise to the country. The Inter-national Gay and Lesbian Travel Association (IGLTA) will convene its Annual Convention in Florianopolis, Brazil in mid-2011.

A business conference on LGBT marketing and tourism is to take place mid-2011 in São Paulo ‘Expo Business LGBT Mercosul’ http://www.expobusinesslgbt.com.br/o_que_e.html

Brazilian organisation for promoting LGBT tourism - has just begun an arrangement with the Brazilian Tourism Ministry to promote tourism to the country.

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Increase In Flying Tax to Make Holiday makers Think Twice

Almost half of Holidaymakers to reduce overseas holidays due to next week’s increase in Air Passenger DutyAlmost half of UK holidaymakers will slash their 2011 overseas holi-day plans due to next week’s increase in Air Passenger Duty (APD), reveals a survey by leading travel trade exhibition World Travel Mar-ket.A massive 45% of the 1,000 people polled, all of whom holidayed this summer, said next Monday’s (1 November) increase in flying tax APD will see them reduce their overseas flying.Of those, more than one in three people (37%) said they would re-duce their flying due to the APD increase, which follows hot on the heels of a previous increase in November 2009.Furthermore, almost one in ten (8%) said the increase would price them out of overseas holidays all together.Last year’s hike in APD, which saw the Treasury rake in £1.9 billion in 2009/10, has already had a negative impact on overseas tourism to some long haul destinations with some Caribbean islands seeing a reduction in UK visitors of up to 25%.The UK government has also proposed replacing APD with a poten-tially more expensive Per Plane Tax (PPT), to help it reduce the UK’s record debt – government figures predict the tax will rake in £3.8 bil-lion in 2015/16, double the current £1.9 billion.More than half of holidaymakers would reduce their overseas holi-days under this plan, with 41% cutting back on overseas breaks and 10% stopping foreign holidays all together.Furthermore, a separate poll reveals the travel and tourism industry is concerned about the impacts of tax increases, such as APD and PPT proposals.More than 40% of the 1,200 industry senior executives polled said increased taxation – particularly APD - is a major negative issue for the industry over the next five years.More than one in ten (11%) highlighted it as the single biggest issue which will have a negative impact on their business until 2016.World Travel Market Chairman Fiona Jeffery said: “A further increase in APD could be a real concern to the travel and tourism industry. APD was doubled in 2007 and is now double the 2007 figure leading to the cost of flying abroad increasing.“The World Travel Market surveys shows both holidaymakers and the industry are significantly concerned by both next week’s increase in APD and the proposed switch to a Per Plane Tax.”World Travel Market, the premier global event for the travel industry, takes place between Monday 8 – Thursday 11 November at ExCeL, London. World Travel Market is the event where the travel industry conducts its deals. WTM 2009 led to more than £1,139 million in travel industry deals.

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DO YOU KNOW52

TOP 5 SMOKE-FREE DESTINATIONSTravellers looking for smoke-free holidays don’t have to be afraid - there are several countries fervently fighting against all tobacco products. In this issue, Travel Weekly brings the top 5 desti-nations ideal for all non-smoking tourists accord-ing to Skyscanner.


DO YOU KNOW 35

IcelandIcelandic bars, restaurants, and pubs are a perfect choice for travelers seeking smoke-free environ-ment since smoking and other use of tobacco is banned in all enclosed public spaces. The local law also includes all public land that is to be used by kids, so families on holiday there can look for-ward to clear air (if only the smoking ban applied to volcanoes as well).

IrelandIreland has been one of the leaders in campaign-ing against tobacco. It was the first country in the world that enacted an absolute ban on smoking in enclosed workplaces. The ban naturally ap-plies to all clubs, bars, restaurants and pubs.

Australia Smoking in enclosed public spaces is banned throughout the whole country so Australia is an-other perfect destination for anti-smoking tour-ists. Destructive bushfires are often caused by lit cigarettes and thus it is no surprise that the au-thorities fight against smoking quite zealously.

Thursday 28.10.2010

VIETNAM NEWS

Canada Canada has been a smoke-free zone for several years now. Visitors seeking some clear air thus don’t have to be afraid to explore the local bars and restaurants. Moreover, in some provinces the shop owners even have to keep tobacco out of sight of customers.

Norway Smoking ban applying to all cafes, restaurants and bars was enforced in Norway back in 2004. Perhaps as a re-sult of the policy the number of smokers has steadily declined over the last years. What remains popular es-pecially among young men here however is a type of oral tobacco called ‘snus’.


VIETNAM NEWS

http://definitejourney.com/