5column (236mm) x 90mm5column (236mm) x 90mm

Issue

ITB Berlin, GermanyMarch 5, 2015

Ueberroth: clarity

Riyaz: discounts will help

By Raini HamdiPREFERRED Hotel Group (PHG) has restructured its entire portfolio, a move which sees its established brands Summit Ho-tels and Resorts and Sterling Ho-tels being retired effective today (Thursday).

In the biggest change since the Ueberroth family acquired the company 10 years ago, all 650 member hotels have been moved to one mas-ter brand, Preferred Ho-tels & Resorts, under five collections: Legend, LVX (luxury), Lifestyle, Con-nect and Preferred Resi-dences.

President and CEO Lindsey Ueberroth, told the Daily yesterday that chang-ing consumer trends, and hotel chains moving into the space by launching collections that cater to independent hotels, triggered the restructuring.

“We thought it was the perfect time for us to clarify our brand, take a legacy brand, Preferred Hotels & Resorts, which is the most well-known, and elevate it with a strong consumer aware-ness,” said Ueberroth.

“By taking one master brand and creating five collections un-der it, it would be more intuitive for consumers, who look for dif-ferent styles of luxury when trav-elling. When you’re travelling with your family, it is different from when you travel with your spouse, for example.”

Ueberroth also believes travel

Preferred retires Summit, Sterling in a restructure

consultants will find the new portfolio to be “much simpler, streamlined and intuitive”.

“In addition, we are layering on new experiences like art and culture, wellness, food and wine, adventure, which will enable consultants to better cater to cli-ents. Today, travellers don’t just say ‘I want to go to Hawaii’. They say ‘I enjoy wellness or food and

wine, and I’m open (to ideas)’. We have 650 hotels that cater to those experiences.”

Asked if Summit and Sterling are up for sale since they have brand equity, she said: “Right now we have no plans to sell them,

but who knows what might hap-pen down the road.”

She admitted there was “a bit of sadness” among Summit and Sterling partners to part with a brand they have had for 25 years “but once we communicated it to them, all our partners thought this was really a good move”.

The challenge now is to com-municate it as well to consumers and the travel trade, she said.

Aloysius Lee, CEO of South Beach hotel in Singapore, a new Preferred member, said the de-velopment will be under the LVX collection. “We perceive this (move) would allow PHG to fo-cus on different market segments for the respective properties. We expect PHG to drive better re-sults as a result of the rebranding exercise,” said Lee.

hotels have been discounting 20-30 per cent since January and are planning more discounts for sum-mer. He said this would help bring back the vol-ume, particularly trav-ellers who have stayed away because of prices.

Holidays in paradise have never been cheap. Said Kevan: “We are up-front and tell clients the Maldives is an expen-sive destination and they need to budget US$300 daily if the book-ing includes breakfast only.”

Andrew Drummond, general manager of Maalifushi by COMO, believes a real luxury market will remain for the Maldives. “There is no question the Maldives has experienced a slowdown. Having said that, Maldives has positioned itself as a luxury destination and because of this, there will be a size-able section of the market which is going to be relatively impervious to some of the currency varia-tions,” he said. “Many of the visi-tors who holiday at the deluxe end of the market will themselves be operating in different parts of the world and will have spread their currency risk, if not their wealth, globally to minimise the impact of exchange rates.”

But he noted that resorts heav-ily dependent on markets such as China have already started to put out strong offers in the market, “diluting the value of potential business prospecting for a bar-gain”. “China is the single larg-

est market to the Maldives and it seems that 2015 will be the first year when the year-on-year strong

growth of visitors so en-joyed over the last dec-ade will have been dras-tically reduced and some say may even contract,” he said.

Industry officials said the decline in tour-ist numbers was caused by an anti-corruption

drive in China triggering cautious spending, newer rival destinations, and Maldives becoming a less af-fordable holiday spot. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, an airline executive said: “People are careful about spending while companies are cautious on spon-soring overseas tours (due to the anti-corruption drive). There is downward pressure on all out-bound traffic from China.”

The head of a travel company said hotels impose a seven-night minimum stay rule during peak European travel seasons, Novem-ber-December and March-April, a disincentive to Chinese visitors who average four nights. The question also is whether the Mal-dives has a real hold on Chinese holidaymakers. The ministry’s vis-itor survey 2014 suggests not. Less than 10 per cent of Chinese tour-ists are repeat visitors. In contrast, more than 25 per cent of British, Italians and Germans have visited the Maldives two to 10 times. – Additional reporting by Feizal Samath

Offers from paradiseBy Raini HamdiTOUR operators are seeing “very attractive offers” and dis-counts of 20-30 per cent com-ing through from the Maldives, which recorded a 7.8 per cent de-cline in arrivals in the month of January – the fourth consecutive month a decrease was recorded.

China, which in recent years edged out Europe to become the Maldives’ top source, has been in the doldrums since September, declining by 1.7 per cent in Sep-tember, 3.5 per cent in October, 4.9 per cent in November, 12.2 per cent in December and a whopping 33.1 per cent in January. Adding to the woe, Russia unsurprisingly was the worst performing market in January, dipping 38 per cent, latest figures from the Maldives Ministry of Tourism shows.

All this saw Europe back as the number one market to the Mal-dives, its market share rising from 43.9 per cent in December to 54.1 per cent in January. Italy rose 16.9 per cent in January, the UK 6.6 per cent and Germany 8.7 per cent. With Lufthansa looking to oper-ate twice-weekly Frankfurt-Malé flights, Europe is likely to hold on to its regained position.

David Kevan of Chic Locations UK, said the offers, in the form of extra free nights, room or meal upgrades, etc, help as the British pound has fallen against the US dollar, the hotel currency in the Maldives.

Mohamed Riyaz, managing director of Lets Go Maldives, said

Resorts in Maldives turn competitive amid arrivals slide

5.3.2015 TTG Show Daily ITB Berlin 2

News/Snapshots

EDITORIALKaren Yue Group Editor

Xinyi Liang-Pholsena Assistant Editor, TTG Asia

Hannah Koh Assistant Editor, TTG Asia Online

Paige Lee Pei Qi Assistant Editor, Singapore

Kathy Neo Copy Editor

S Puvaneswary Editor, Malaysia/Brunei

Mimi Hudoyo Editor, Indonesia

Caroline Boey Senior Correspondent,

China & Special Projects

Eugene Tang Photographer

Redmond Sia, Goh Meng Yong Creative Designers

Lina Tan Editorial Assistant

Amos Low Editorial Intern

CONTRIBUTORSGreg Lowe, Rosa Ocampo,

Feizal Samath, Sim Kok Chwee, Li Xu, Oliver Slow, Murray Bailey,

Prudence Lui, Rohit Kaul

SALES & MARKETING Michael Chow Group Publisher

Karen Cheung Senior Business Manager

Shirley Tan Senior Business Manager

Jonathan Yap Senior Business Manager

Cheryl Lim Advertisement

Administration Manager

Cheryl Tan Corporate Marketing Manager

Stephanie Toh Marketing Executive

PUBLISHING SERVICESTony Yeo Division Manager

Haze Loh Senior Creative Designer

Lynn Lim Web Executive

Carol Wong Senior Circulation Executive

TTG ASIA MEDIADarren Ng Managing Director

Raini Hamdi Senior Editor

Show-stopping sellersEugene Tang catches up with sellers as business on the ITB Berlin show floor gets into full swing

Preferred Hotels & Resorts takes a new direction (see page 1). From left: Lindsey Ueberroth, John Ueberroth and Gail Ueberroth

Furama Chiang Mai’s Wirachart Watthaphanich, Furama Hotels International Man-agement’s Shirlena Tan, and Furama RiverFront Singapore’s Gerard Lim

One Farrer Hotel & Spa Singapore’s Jessie Khoo-Gan

Panorama Langkawi’s Mohd Ali Makkit, Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board’s Ishak Ismail, Langkawi Development Authority’s Suhaimi Baharun and Rosnina Yaacob, Travelport Hong Kong’s Anna Au-Yeung, and Langkawi Develop-ment Authority’s Khalid Ramli and Lina Azlina Zali

Putrajaya International Convention Cen-tre (PICC) is making its debut at ITB Ber-lin this year with the aim of promoting Putrajaya as a one-stop centre for business events and leisure.

The venue aims to secure “a few” meet-ings and incentive groups from Europe, each below 2,000 delegates.

Badlishah Ahmad, CEO of PICC, said: “Our main intention is to attract more meetings and conferences from Europe. At this show, we are targeting European PCOs and outbound MICE players with our offerings of being a one-stop centre for travel.”

“Our strength is in our location and our value-for-money proposition. We are less than an hour’s drive from Kuala Lumpur. There are fewer distractions and less traf-fic in Putrajaya. Holding a conference in Putrajaya is also comparatively more af-fordable than having it in a convention venue in the capital city of Kuala Lumpur.”

He added that PICC can meet clients’ needs by customising conference pack-ages and assisting in the coordination of pre- and post-tours in Putrajaya and Kua-la Lumpur.

Also participating at ITB Berlin for the first time is PICC owner Putrajaya Corpo-ration, which also has subsidiary compa-nies that operate private transportation, tours and attractions in Malaysia’s federal administrative capital. – S Puvaneswary

PICC peddles new MICE area

Show-stopping sellers catches up with sellers as business

By Mimi HudoyoTHE Indonesian government will not abandon Europe in its marketing and promotional efforts in favour of other vol-ume-generating markets closer to home, said tourism minister Arief Yahya.

Speaking to the Daily, the minister sought to address concerns among the Indonesian trade and hotel industries, especially those handling European markets, that the government was not giving up on this longhaul sector.

Having looked at tourism statistics, Arief acknowledged that the European traveller’s average spend is twice that of other tourists.

He observed: “While the number of arrivals from Russia declined, arrivals from the rest of Europe increased with Germany growing 7.7 per cent last year.”

More flight access was also on the way, in a likely boost to inbound traffic from the continent.

“There is good news that Emirates is going to begin flying from Dubai to Bali in June, and that will open up connec-tivity not only with the Middle East but also to many European destinations,” he said. “(This adds to) Qatar Airways’ ex-isting services linking Doha to Bali and Jakarta.”

“I believe that this will stimulate busi-ness into Indonesia and, with the market growing, Garuda Indonesia will also im-prove its network in Europe.”

He reassured the trade: “We will con-tinue to participate at big events in Eu-rope such as ITB Berlin, WTM London, and will also do sales missions.”

Participation at ITB Berlin last year was estimated to have materialised Rp3.9 trillion (US$300 million) worth of busi-ness for Indonesia, and Arief expects an increase of 10 per cent for this year.

At the ASEAN Tourism Forum in Jan-uary this year, the minister had told TTG Asia that the ministry would allocate its promotionate budget proportionately to its new goals.

Of the targeted 20 million arrivals by 2019, 50 per cent should come from South-east Asia, 30 per cent from Other Asia and Australia, and longhaul mar-kets including Europe, the US and the Middle East contribute 20 per cent.

The five main focus markets were Sin-gapore, Malaysia, China, Australia and Japan, said the minister.

That left promotions in Europe with less than 20 per cent of Indonesia’s total Rp1.2 trillion budget for tourism.

This had created concern among the

Indonesian trade and hotel industries, especially those handling European market.

Ratih Ning, president director of Pacto, said: “In terms of numbers, the European market may be smaller than Indonesia’s neighbouring countries, but Europeans stay longer and spend more.”

Magnus Bauch, owner of Matahari Beach Resort & Spa Bali, said: “We should not only think about volume but how much they bring in to the economy.

“One European traveller’s spend can be equal to 10 Chinese tourists’.”

Rocky Praputranto, operations direc-tor of Panorama Destination, pointed out: “Other Asian countries’ promo-tions at ITB Berlin is growing, proving that confidence in the European markets continues to be high.

“Indonesia, more than ever before, needs to proactively provide informa-tion about new developments such as new destinations opening up and new airport development plans.”

But Arief clarified: “The allotment of budget has not been fixed yet. We are working on an index, considering the number of arrivals, the spending and potential growth of the market in order to arrive at a decision.”

Too good to give upIndonesia is not giving up on Europe; ‘We’ll be here next year’, says minister

5.3.2015 TTG Show Daily ITB Berlin 4

Snapshots

For these sellers, their dream must be to sell big. Eugene Tang catches the action on the first day of ITB

I dreamed a dream...

The Accor Asia-Pacific team, flanked by Graham Wilson (left) and Michael Parsons (right), is all smiles from the sweet memory of a beautiful evening last night, when it treated partners to a five-star dinner with a spectacular Les Misérables performance in which it flew in 18 former cast members from around the world. Encore, encore!

Indonesia’s tourism minister Arief Yahya (centre) dispels misconceptions that there will be less pro-motion in Europe – the archipelago is keen for a bigger share of the European market (see page 2)

Putrajaya International Convention Centre’s ST Lau is all eager to show buyers a whole new area to meet in Malaysia – what are you waiting for?

Asian Trails’ Laurent Kuenzle (right) catches up with Silverjet Holland’s Sjoerd Smit

Judging from the smile, Bhutan Norter Adven-tures’ Sonam Phuntsho must have clinched a deal

Mabuhay! It’s more fun in the Philippines this year, which is Visit Philippines, say Philippine players at this ITB, led by tourism undersecretary Benito C Bengzon Jr (standing, fourth from left)

Bangkok Airways is out in full force at ITB, with president Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth (centre) full of energy as the airline expands (full story in tomorrow’s daily)

Nomadic Journeys’ Delgermaa O (left) and Tog-tokhbaatar N bid you to come to exotic Mongolia

Did you know, this year is Visit Selangor, so come, says Tourism Selangor’s Noorul Ashikin Mohd Din

Half Page (Horizonal)5column (236mm) x 180mm

5.3.2015 TTG Show Daily ITB Berlin 5

Low-cost carriers

LCCs have changed the game for the aviation sector in the last decade as they capture the growing appetite for air travel but their full-service counterparts are also gaining altitude in the battle for ASEAN’s skies, writes Sim Kok Chwee

The pursuit of wider skiesThere is never a dull moment in ASEAN’s dynamic LCC landscape. Today, LCCs are based in seven ASEAN countries – only Brunei, Cambodia and Laos do not have any home-based LCC.

LCCs have proven in the last decade to be nimble and exceptionally adaptable to changing market conditions. Ahead of the ASEAN Open Skies, Indonesia and Singapore have, in fact, proceeded to sign a more liberal air services agreement. With some member countries less willing than others to add signatures to the ASE-AN Open Skies though, the arrangement is more likely to be a gradual process of liberalistion than à la Europe.

Hazem Hussein, Amadeus Asia-Pa-cific’s executive vice president of com-mercial airlines, said: “The introduction of the Open Skies policy in 2015 will see competition among airlines in ASEAN increasing. LCCs in particular will see the need to evolve to drive competitive advantages and compete with full-service carriers.”

In June 2014, Tigerair Mandala ceased

operations – clearly a casualty of the strong competition posed by Lion Air and Indonesia AirAsia. But even with the fail-ure of its Indonesian and Filipino outfits, Tigerair continues to grow its brand out-side of the region, albeit with only a to-ken 10 per cent stake in Tigerair Taiwan. With its less than sterling performance, Tigerair had to park several aircraft in Al-ice Springs, Australia and leased a dozen A320s to India’s IndiGo. In an effort to rein in Tigerair and perhaps exercise greater control over the airline, Singapore Airlines has increased its stake in Tigerair to 56 per cent with the potential to up this to 70 per cent later.

Valuair, which only continues to exist for the purpose of operating Jetstar Asia’s flights to Indonesia, has begun to disap-pear after Indonesia agreed to let Jetstar Asia operate its own flights.

Amid the roller-coaster ride, LCCs’ market share in ASEAN has grown to nearly 50 per cent in Malaysia and Indo-nesia, and only a shade lesser in Singa-pore.

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5.3.2015 TTG Show Daily ITB Berlin 6

Airline Main operational base Fleet

Indonesia

Citilink Express Jakarta – Soekarno-Hatta AirportJakarta – Halim Perdanakusuma Airport

Current: 31 x A320, 5 x B737-300On order: 10 x A320, 35 x A320neo

Indonesia AirAsia Jakarta – Soekarno-Hatta AirportDenpasar – Ngurah Rai Airport

Current: 30 x A320

Indonesia AirAsia X

Denpasar – Ngurah Rai Airport Current: 1 x A330-300

Lion Air Jakarta – Soekarno-Hatta AirportBatam – Hang Nadim Airport

Current: 2 x B747-400 (leased out), 2 x B737-300, 4 x B737-400 (inactive), 30 x B737-800, 71 x B737-900ER

On order: 15 x B737-800, 56 x B737-900ER, 201 x B737MAX-9,

46 x Airbus A320, 109 x Airbus A320neo, 65 x Airbus A321neo

Wings Abadi Air Jakarta – Soekarno-Hatta Airport Current: 20 x ATR72-500, 10 x ATR72-600, 5 x MD-80 (inactive)

3 x Dash 3 Series 300 (inactive)On order: 56 x ATR72-600

Malaysia

AirAsia Kuala Lumpur International Airport Current: 68 x Airbus A320On order: 78 x Airbus A320,

264 x Airbus A320neo

AirAsia X Kuala Lumpur International Airport Current: 18 x Airbus A330-300On order: 41 x Airbus A330-300,

10 x Airbus A350-900, 50 x Airbus A330-900neo

Firefly Kuala Lumpur – Subang Skypark Current: 12 x ATR72-500, 4 x ATR72-600On order: 19 x ATR72-600

Malindo Airways Kuala Lumpur International AirportKuala Lumpur – Subang Skypark

Current: 2 x B737-800, 6 x B737-900ER, 11 x ATR72-600

On order: 3 x ATR72-600

MASWings Kuching International AirportKota Kinabalu International Airport

Current: 10 x ATR72-500, 4 x ATR72-600

Planned: 12 x ATR72-600, B737-800

Myanmar

Golden Myanmar Airlines

Yangon – Mingaladon Airport Current: 1 x Airbus A320,1 x A320 (damaged and inactive)

2 x ATR72-600

Vietnam

Jetstar Pacific Ho Chi Minh City – Tan Son Nhat Airport

Current: 8 x Airbus A320

VietJetAir Hanoi – Noi Bai Airport Current: 17 x Airbus A320On order: 13 x Airbus A320

7 x A320 (to be leased), 42 Airbus A320neo

7 x Airbus A321

Airline Main operational base Fleet

Singapore

Jetstar Asia Singapore – Changi Airport Current: 16 x Airbus A320

Scoot Singapore – Changi Airport Current: 6 x Boeing 777-200EROn order: 10 x B787-9 Dreamliner

10 x B787-8 Dreamliner

Tigerair Singapore – Changi Airport Current: 2 x A319 (inactive)24 x Airbus A320, 3 x A320

(leased out)6 x A320 (inactive)

On order: 6 x Airbus A320, 37 x A320neo

Thailand

Nok Air Bangkok – Don Mueang Airport Current: 18 x Boeing 737-8002 x ATR72-500, 4 x Dash-400On order: 2 x Dash 8-400,

7 x B737-8008 x B737-MAX8

NokScoot Bangkok – Don Mueang Airport Current:1 x B777-200ER

Orient Thai Bangkok – Suvarnabhumi AirportBangkok – Don Mueang Airport

Current: 2 x Boeing 747-400 (leased out),

1 x B767-300ER (leased out), 1 x B737-300 (leased out)

3 x B767-300, 6 x B737-300, 2 x B737-400

Thai AirAsia Bangkok – Don Mueang Airport Current: 40 x Airbus A320On order: 2 x Airbus A320

Thai Lion Air Bangkok – Don Mueang AirportHat Yai Airport

Current: 8 x B737-900ER, 1 x ATR72-600

Thai AirAsia X Bangkok – Don Mueang Airport Current: 2 x A330-300

Thai VietJetAir Bangkok – Suvarnabhumi Airport Current: 1 x Airbus A320

The Philippines

Cebu Pacific Air Manila – Ninoy Aquino International Airport

Current: 10 x Airbus A319, 25 x Airbus A320,

5 x A330-300, 8 x ATR72-500On order: 9 x Airbus A320,

30 x Airbus A321neo, 2 x Airbus A330-300,

1 x ATR72-500

PAL Express Manila – Ninoy Aquino International Airport

Current: 1 x A330-300, 14 x Airbus A320,

4 x Dash 8-300, 5 x Dash 8-400

AirAsia-Zest (Merger of AirAsia Philippines and Zest Air)

Manila – Ninoy Aquino International AirportMactan-Cebu International Airport

Current: 4 x Airbus A320

New entrantsIn an already crowded arena, new en-trants – all of which offshoots of existing LCCs – have entered the fray. Thailand and Indonesia are the most sought-after markets, given the entrance of Thai Ai-rAsia X, Thai Lion Air, Thai VietJet and Indonesia AirAsia X.

NokScoot, a joint venture between Scoot and Nok Air, has also been estab-lished in Thailand. Although it will only begin operations in North Asia sometime in 2015, it has supplemented Nok Air’s services in December 2014 and January 2015 on the popular Don Mueang-Chi-ang Mai route. VietJet is also mulling a subsidiary based in Myanmar.

Malaysia Airlines, which currently op-erates Subang-based Firefly as its LCC subsidiary, is rumoured to be transform-ing its Kuching- and Kota Kinabalu-based full-service subsidiary MASWings into an LCC that will also operate international flights of up to four hours’ flying time from both airports using B737-800s.

Infrastructure Kuala Lumpur opened klia2 in May 2014, a mega LCC terminal now uti-lised by carriers such as AirAsia, Ai-

rAsia X, Lion Air, Malindo Air, Tige-rair and Cebu Pacific. The 257,000m2

klia2 has 68 departure gates with an addi-tional eight remote stands. With the abil-ity to handle up to 45 million passengers annually, it is the largest dedicated LCC terminal in the world.

In Singapore, the Budget Terminal will be replaced by a new Terminal 4 and LCCs previously calling at the Budget Terminal have moved into Changi Airport’s Termi-nal 2. Ironically, the first and hitherto only airline to confirm moving to Terminal 4 is Cathay Pacific Airways.

ConnectivityWith LCCs establishing operations in various short- and medium-haul mar-kets, the potential for connectivity has grown significantly. AirAsia X’s passen-gers originating in Australia could book travel beyond Malaysia to other destina-tions in South-east Asia, North Asia and India. Lion Air Group carriers similarly offer connecting flights across much of Asia. Jetstar Asia is able to extend its reach to more destinations in Japan via gateways in Bangkok, Manila and Taipei.

Scoot and Tigerair have a partnership to facilitate connection between their

flights and with Singapore Airlines own-ing Scoot and potentially as much as 70 per cent of Tigerair, both LCCs will fur-ther deepen their partnership and boost connectivity between them. The same connectivity is likely to be facilitated be-tween Scoot, NokScoot and Nok Air at Bangkok’s Don Mueang Airport. VietJet, meanwhile, has expanded its network to Russia’s Vladivostok.

However, Campbell Wilson, Scoot’s CEO, noted that third- and fourth-freedom point-to-point traffic still pro-duce higher yield than fifth- and sixth-freedom connections. This February, Scoot will introduce its first B787-9 Dreamliner and in late-2015 will also take delivery of the smaller B787-8 for the Singapore-Melbourne route, due to launch in November.

ChallengesWith massive aircraft orders in the last few years, LCCs in ASEAN are now faced with inevitable oversupply of capacity. At the same time, desirable slots at pop-ular airports are becoming increasingly difficult to secure, while full-service car-riers are also increasingly mimicking LCCs, selling unsold seats in last-minute

promotions and unbundling specific services to grow ancillary revenue.

Meanwhile, the growing strength of the US dollar will also be of significant concern to LCCs based in Malaysia and Indonesia. While a significant portion of revenue is ringgit- or rupiah-denom-inated, much of its expenditure and new aircraft cost are denominated in the US dollars, further inflating operational costs and new fleet investment.

It has become increasingly necessary for LCCs to move from a pure-LCC to a hybrid model in which travellers pay more to change bookings, secure seats with better access and legroom, enjoy inflight meals, and bring more hand-carried and checked luggage. In essence, some of these are exactly what their full-service counterparts are doing and the lines between LCCs and full service carriers are now more blurred than ever before.

The establishment of subsidiaries in various ASEAN countries is one way for LCCs to take advantage of traffic rights available in those foreign markets. Along with the liberalisation of flights under the ASEAN Open Skies, this will have the cumulative effect of expanding the market size.

Low-cost carriers

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5.3.2015 TTG Show Daily ITB Berlin 8

Destination PhilippinesDestination Philippines

Inbound arrivals from Germany is projected to grow at a double-digit rate this year, a renaissance from the small base and slow growth that has

characterised this underdeveloped market over the years.

The Tourism Promotions Board (TPB) anticipates 11 per cent more German visi-tors in 2015, on the heels of its Visit Philip-pines 2015 and It’s More Fun in the Philip-pines campaigns.

For the January-October 2014 period, German arrivals reached 57,847, 2.8 per cent more than the 56,295 recorded over a year ago, but representing only a measly 1.5 per cent share of total Philippine arriv-als in that period.

Other German-speaking source mar-kets saw little growth: Switzerland grew 3.2 per cent to 19,864 or 0.5 per cent of total arrivals; and Austria by 2.4 per cent to 9,749, making up 0.3 per cent of overall tourist numbers.

The situation could experience a change in 2015.

A TPB source pointed to the signifi-cance of the Philippines’ marketing pact with youth tour operator STA Travel, which should bring up to 8,000 youth travellers from the UK, Spain, Australia and the three German-speaking countries over a 12-month period ending Septem-ber this year.

The tourism body’s European blitzes are geared towards giving what German-speaking travellers what they want: natu-

The Philippines has established itself with vigorous marketing, but will German visitors bite? Rosa Ocampo reports

Each year, Bacolod’s residents take to the streets donning masks for the Masskara Festival

High hopes for the new year

ral and eco-tourism attractions like ma-rine parks, volcanoes and forest; beaches and island hopping; culture and heritage; and social tourism.

Capitalising on the destination’s ongo-ing promotions, Discovery Group of Ho-tels and Resorts has launched new leisure packages targeting segmented markets such as divers and multigenerational trav-ellers.

“We are continuing to work hand-in-hand with our tour operator partners to tap traditional and niche markets, while focusing on digital marketing this year to reach out to our growing markets,” said Odette Huang, group director of sales & marketing.

Bullish about German-speaking source markets, Huang predicts robust 35-40 per cent growth. “Boracay and Palawan re-main the preferred island destinations,” she added.

The company saw a 40 per cent year-on-year increase in business from Ger-man-speaking markets in 2014, making them Discovery’s top European market.

Also coming up with special rates for the European market to “sustain and increase arrivals” is Astoria Hotels and Resorts, said its corporate branding, creatives and public relations head, John Tanjangco.

Europeans contributed about 15 per cent of guest arrivals to Astoria’s Bohol property, 20 per cent in Boracay and 10 per cent in Palawan, said Tanjangco.

kodakero123/123RF.com

3.8 millionThe number of tourist arrivals in January-October 2014, up 2.4 per cent year-on-year from 3.7 million in 2013

15%The expected percentage growth in tourism revenue for 2014, up from US$4.6 billion in 2013

67.3%The occupancy of Philippine hotels in 2014, a growth of 4.3 per cent from a year ago, according to STR Global

5,467 pesosThe ADR of Philippine hotels in 2014, equivalent to US$123, a 2.1 per cent increase from the year before, according to STR Global

6.6%The percentage increase in Philippine hotels’ RevPAR to 3,678 pesos in 2014 from the year before, according to STR Global

Destination in numbersBlue Horizons Travel and Tours, which

counts inbound from Europe as its bread and butter, is sanguine about prospects this year.

Marjorie Aquino, the company’s senior sales and marketing manager, said that the European market, especially the UK, had shown a significant increase in volume last year following Philippine Airlines’ (PAL) launch of Manila-London direct flights in 2013.

Aquino said Blue Horizon is intensify-ing its sales efforts in the UK and nearby countries, including German-speaking markets, as it has been getting a lot of en-quiries from the high-end market.

Felise Cruz, marketing manager of Trips Travel, agrees that Europe, including the German-speaking markets, is grow-ing as the Philippines continues to make a name for itself through attendance at tradeshows.

But Cruz also underscores the need for more initiatives by the private sector and the government to boost the destination.

While the Philippines maintains an aggressive global marketing campaign, accessibility remains a foremost issue – PAL’s London sector is the only direct flight from Europe to the country but the carrier has scrapped immediate plans to mount more flights to the continent.

As well, there remains a need for a world-class airport in Manila and better airports in island destinations like Bora-cay, Palawan and Bohol.

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Macau - What a Thrill!

Macau Government Tourist Head Office Alameda Dr. Carlos d’Assumpcao, nºs 335-341, Edificio “Hot Line”, 12º andar, Macau Tel: +853 2831 5566 Hotline: +853 2833 3000 E-mail: mgto@macautourism.gov.mo www.macautourism.gov.mo

2015 looks set to be another exciting year for Macau with a strong line-up of activities and openings of new hotels and attractions.

More hotelsThere are now more choices than ever. Government figures indicated a supply of 28,892 rooms with an average occupancy rate of 86% in 2014. 46 projects are on the drawing board, which will supply an estimated 25,600 rooms. Soon to be completed include Harbourview Hotel (444 rooms), Crowne Plaza Macau (208 rooms), The Ritz-Carlton (251 rooms), JW Marriott (1,015 rooms), Broadway Hotel (320 rooms), St Regis Hotel (400 rooms), Legend Palace Hotel (229 rooms), Hollywood Roosevelt Macau (373 rooms), Studio City (1,600 rooms), and The Parisian Macao (3,000 rooms).

Leisure and entertainmentMacau’s determined diversification plan has paid off. Its success in developing sub-sectors such as business events, family entertainment, shopping and culture and heritage means that everyone from vacationing families to the convention participants now have plenty of excellent-value options.

• Macau Arts Festival May-June 2015• Macau Lotus Flower Festival June 2015• Dragon Boat Festival June 2015• Macau International Fireworks Display Contest September 5-October 1, 2015 • Macau International Music Festival October-November 2015• Macau Food Festival November 2015 • Macau Grand Prix November 19-22, 2015

Buzzing with glamorous new hotels, thrilling entertainment and shopping and dining delights, Macau is reinventing itself as a multifaceted destination with all-round appeal. 2015 will see the arrival of some of the world’s most prestigious hotels and attractions.

The Hollywood-inspired next-generation destination resort Studio City will open in mid-2015, promising visitors movie-star treatment at its glamorous hotels and all shopping, dining and entertainment venues. Studio City will be home to a new Macau icon and Asia’s highest ferris wheel – Golden Eye – as well as DC Comics’ Batman Dark Flight, the world’s first Batman film franchise ride. Its shopping mall The Boulevard is designed like a movie-studio.

Also set to open in 2015 are Galaxy Entertainment Groups’ two major projects – Phase II of its flagship integrated resort Galaxy Macau and its new entertainment district called The Broadway.

All these new attractions will complement “The Historic Centre of Macau”, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and evergreen visitors’ favourite. Walking tours from the Macau Govenrment Tourist Office lead visitors to lesser-known quarters to discover Macau’s rich East-meets-West history, nature, arts and culture.

Popular entertainment in Macau now include Vegas-style live performances, sports, concerts, exhibitions and the DreamWorks Experience at Sands Cotai Central.

Business meetingsMacau’s world-class MICE facilities and venues are now capable of accommodating even very large groups. The Cotai Arena at The Venetian Macao successfully hosted the 8,700-delegate Tupperware convention in 2014. Galaxy Macau’s 2015 expansion will boost its own capacity to 3,000 for meetings, incentives and banquets.

Better accessAccess is now easier than ever, via land, sea and air. Macau International Airport is connected to 35 destinations in Mainland China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea and Vietnam. Passenger numbers rose 11 per cent year-on-year in 2014. Visitors also have the option of flying into Hong Kong, which has connections to the world’s major cities, then hop right on to a ferry at the airport’s Sky Pier and be in Macau in an hour.

There are also frequent ferry services from Hong Kong, such as the high-speed TurboJet service which operates 24-hours a day.

Macau itself is very compact – nowhere is more than half an hour away! Sightseeing spots abound and travel is a breeze.

Citizens from 75 countries now enjoy visa-free travel to Macau.

T H E R E ’ s s O M E T H I N G F O R E V E R YO N E - a lwaY s !

Major upcoming events Opening soon: studio City

Macau — compact and accessible

senado square, part of “The Historic Center of Macau”, a UNEsCO world Heritage site.

The Galaxy Macau

Advertorial

ITB Berlin 2015

Hall 26.a Booth 108

Hang out with shrek

and the Dreamworks

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5.3.2015 TTG Show Daily ITB Berlin 10

1 Danjugan Island Danjugan Island in Negros Occidental, known for its seven ecosystems and bio-diversity of land and sea life, is now open to a limited number of visitors.

In 2015, the Society for Sustainable Tourism and Development hosted ma-rine and wildlife camps in January for adults and will hold youth camps in April and May. The camps tackle con-servation efforts and have eco-friendly elements like cabanas, solar-powered electricity and communal meals based on native cuisine.

2 Ascott Bonifacio Global CityAscott recently soft-opened 220 serviced apartment units at Bonifacio Global City and will this year launch Citadines Mil-lennium Ortigas Manila for the growing market of expatriates and business trav-ellers. In 2014, it also opened the 215-unit Citadines Salcedo Makati.

3 Sky Tower leisure complexSolaire Resort and Casino has unveiled its lavish Sky Tower leisure complex, which boasts a 312-key hotel with suites ranging from 124m2 to 936m2. Guests can also catch performances at The The-atre, a 1,760-pax venue with top-notch acoustics and lighting.

4 Visit Bohol 2015Visit Bohol 2015 has relaunched the province as a major tourist destination after it was hobbled by a strong earth-quake more than a year ago.

The campaign, which includes attrac-tive discounts in accommodation, tours and lowest possible airfares to Bohol via AirAsia, also launches new products and

attractions such as the powdery white sand beaches of Anda; Lamanok Mysti-cal Island’s burial caves; Banacon, Asia’s largest mangrove forest; geo-science tours; two international music festivals; a dive festival; and an international tri-athlon.

5 City of Dreams ManilaLocated within the Manila Bay area, Melco Crown Entertainment’s integrat-ed resort is now fully operational.

The integrated resort offers mass gaming areas, Nobu restaurant, F&B and retail areas, as well as a 365-room Hyatt hotel, the 321-key Nobu Hotel and the 260-key six-star Crown Towers.

Also open now is an educational in-door theme park DreamPlay by Dream-Works. Touted as an industry first, Dre-amPlay combines real-life and digital features, starring characters from mov-ies including Kung Fu Panda, Madagas-car and Shrek.

WHAT’S NEW

Clockwise from top right: powdery white-sand beaches of Anda, Bohol; the exterior of the City of Dreams Manila; and Ascott Bonifacio Global City suite

Lucas Nunag, chairman, Bo-hol Tourism CouncilWe are confident that

tourism will pick up. All stake-

holders especially the private sector are collaborating in a big way for Visit Bohol 2015. Foreign arrivals are recovering faster than domestic arrivals. In-frastructure is largely intact after the 2013 earthquake. Construction of the airport that can accommodate chartered flights will also begin in 2015.

Gordon Aeria, general manag-er, Hotel Jen ManilaWe are cautiously optimistic. First, Pope Francis’ visit in January was a great booster, with some tourists coming from Europe and South America. The series of APEC meetings throughout the year will also give additional boost to the destination.

VIEWPOINTS

What are your business prospects for 2015?

HOW TO SELL

DOEmbark on a Bacolod city tour tracing the city’s past grandeur as the bastion of

wealth and high society: heritage houses of Silay; muscovado mill operations at a sugar mill; artisanal shop of mask maker Jojo Vito; a rich collection of textiles from various countries at Museo Negrense; and the Ruins of a mansion whose history is intertwined with that of Negros.

SEE Held every October, Masskara is easily the best executed and most

entertaining street festival in the Philippines.

It can be traced back to 1980 when Negros reeled from the double tragedy of declining world prices of sugar – its main crop – and the collision of an inter-island ship and a tanker that claimed the lives of 700 Negrenses. Since then, locals don smiling masks each year to symbolise the lifting of human spirit when confronted with life’s challenges.

EAT To indulge in Bacolod’s best snacks or bring some home, go no farther than

the ubiquitous stores at BongBong. Their easy-to-carry boxes can pack piaya, round

From left: Masskara masks; the Ruins near Bacolod, Negros Occidental, Visayas

Destination Philippines

unleavened bread with molasses filling; toasted muffins called biscocho; tarts and stuffed empanadas; biscuit rolls of barquillos; sesame cookies; plus a lot more pastries.

STAY L’Fisher Hotel, the biggest and oldest hotel in Bacolod,

recently introduced its little brother, the 49-key L’Fisher Chalet, which is more budget-friendly and has rooms for families. L’Fisher Chalet is connected to Tower 1 of L’Fisher Hotel by the ballroom and foyer area.

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Destination Hong Kong

The eurozone crisis might have af-fected the performance of Ger-man-speaking markets in the last couple of years, but arrivals

from this segment nevertheless amounted to about 300,000 in 2014.

The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) has been directing ongoing mar-keting efforts in the longhaul markets, according to executive director, Anthony Lau. “In 2015, an array of exciting tourist offerings and world-class events provide new fuel for the tourism industry. Ad-ditionally, we will focus on showcasing the city’s diverse and unique experiences through the My Time For campaign, and maintaining Hong Kong’s presence in longhaul markets,” he said.

Notable events this year include the In-ternational Chinese New Year Parade’s 20th anniversary celebration and a brand-new international cycling event that HKTB will stage in November.

Lau added: “We have been working with the Hong Kong trade to develop new and creative tour products. These tours, such as the Sham Shui Po Foodie Tour and the Wing Chun Kung Fu Experience Tour, guide visitors to explore the city’s hidden treasures and experience the authentic lo-cal culture in different districts. We will actively promote them in longhaul and German-speaking markets.

“Additionally, we will cooperate with airlines and key travel consultants to drive

Hong Kong has to raise its allure for German visitors, who are now enticed by Chinese destinations too. By Prudence Lui

While having China in its vicinity enhances multi-city tour packages, the presence of such a big neighbour also intensifies Hong Kong’s battle for longhaul travellers

Competition closes in

multi-destination travel to Hong Kong and the Pan-Pearl River Delta.”

Increasingly, the proximity of China is becoming a double-edged sword in Hong Kong’s attempt to attract German-speak-ing visitors.

Commenting on the new tour products created by wholesalers to woo high-end groups under a supporting scheme run by HKTB, PC Tours & Travel general man-ager, Cary Chiu, said: “It’s just old wine in a new bottle. There is hardly any brand-new concept and attraction to appeal to travellers.

“Therefore, I recently visited various second-tier Chinese cities for possible inclusions to our multi-destination trips for the German market. I hope to gener-ate more interesting stops in China other than big cities like Shanghai and Beijing. I don’t expect dramatic growth or a drop this year; this segment will remain more or less the same as last year.”

For InterContinental Grand Stanford, where German-speaking markets con-stitute only about five per cent of overall traffic, general manager Alexander Was-sermann pointed out that the hotel’s peak seasons for these markets usually fall in March, April and October, especially dur-ing the Canton Fair period.

“We have observed the reduction in length of stay (from this market) in recent years. They used to stay for two weeks on average, but as China becomes more de-

60.8 millionThe total number of visitors to Hong Kong in 2014, a 12 per cent year- on-year increase

296,316The total number of German-speaking arrivals in 2014, a drop of 0.9 per cent

HK$1,469 The average room rate, equivalent to US$189, in January-November 2014, up 2.4 per cent year-on-year

72,671The total number of hotel rooms as of November 2014, compared with a total of 70,017 rooms in 2013

HK$7,979The average spend of all visitors in 1H2014, versus HK$8,123 for the whole of 2013

Destination in numbersveloped in transportation, infrastructure and economy, they are making Hong Kong a stop over, before heading to cities like Shenzhen and Guangzhou. We obvi-ously need to revitalise our relationship with corporate clients.”

This June, the hotel will bring back a German networking event, which is ex-pected to draw 400 guests, including rep-resentatives from the German Chamber of Commerce and the new consul in Hong Kong, to “meet new contacts and build re-lationships” in the German market.

Meanwhile, The Peninsula Hong Kong continues to enjoy the long booking lead time of its German-speaking markets. Said director of marketing for South Chi-na, Hong Kong and Taiwan, Sherona Lau: “The segment constitutes approximately four per cent of our businesss. We saw steady growth from the German-speaking markets in 2014 compared with 2013, and expect mild growth for 2015. The weak-ening euro may prevent travellers from visiting and spending in longhaul destina-tions.

“We plan to offer more attractive long-haul packages and promotions, such as dining or spa credits for early-bird and long-stay bookings. Furthermore, with our new interactive digital bedside and desk tablets with display settings in the German language, we are confident that our German-speaking guests will feel right at home.”

manganganath/123RF.com

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1 Liang Yi MuseumOpened last year on Hollywood Road, the four-storey Liang Yi Museum is home to one of the world’s largest collections of Chinese antique furniture, made of treas-ured huanghuali and zitan wood, from the Ming and Qing dynasties.

To celebrate its first anniversary, the museum is collaborating with Kraemer Gallery in Paris to run the Great Minds Think Alike: 18th Century French and Chinese Furniture Design exhibition, showcasing the juxtaposition and similar-ities between French and Chinese furni-ture from the 17th and 18th centuries. The exhibition runs until May 2015.

The museum is open for visits by ap-pointment only from Tuesdays to Satur-days. The HK$200 (US$26) admission fee includes a guided tour.

2 Trick Eye Museum Hong KongLaunched in The Peak Galleria in Decem-ber 2014, the Trick Eye Museum features 70 brand-new 3D artworks like The Yel-low House by Van Gogh, with five different themed zones – World of Masterpieces, Secret Garden, Great Adventure, Never-land and Hong Kong Discovery.

The museum also goes beyond tradi-tional 3D paintings with a new form of artwork combining digital screen technol-ogy.

3 Fashion Walk Following extensive renovations, the Fashion Walk in Causeway Bay finally unveiled its revamped Main Block indoor shopping mall in December 2014.

Located on Great George Street at the site of the former Daimaru Department Store, the two-storey Main Block sports a fresh design that complements Fashion Walk’s revamped image with a new light-

ing trail. On offer are an array of high-quality brands and concept stores, includ-ing Vivienne Tam, Michael Kors and Max Mara.

4 Grand Hyatt Hong KongThe 539-room Grand Hyatt Hong Kong has completed refurbishing its 14 regular guest floors, with a new design that blends traditional and modern elements in an el-egant style.

Within each room, a large solid timber table is positioned near the windows to al-low guests to take in the views, and which can be turned into an in-room dining ta-ble or a spacious work zone with custom lighting.

5 Train line extension to Western

DistrictThe MTR Island Line extension to West-ern District was officially launched last

WHAT’S NEW

Clockwise from above: Liang Yi Museum; Trick Eye Museum; and the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong

Alexander Wassermann, general manager,

InterContinental Grand Stanford Hong KongDespite global economic and political challenges, we

are expecting good growth of our MICE and corporate

business by leveraging our current positioning as Hong Kong’s leading business hotel. Generally, business prospects for Hong Kong are con-sidered to be positive, especially from new or emerging shorthaul markets. We will continue our focus and investments in these markets and are optimistic to grow our RevPAR further in 2015.

Ken Chang, vice president, Associated ToursThe German-speaking markets were quite flat in the last couple of years for us. I anticipate they will

not change in 2015. The financial market and the euro

are quite unstable currently and buying power has weakened. As (German) travellers continue to lose interest in China, Hong Kong will see fewer extensions as well. Our German partners are try-ing to ride on the promotion of Hong Kong’s new cruise terminal to push for more cruise passengers, but have yet to see real results.

VIEWPOINTS

What are your business prospects for 2015?

HOW TO SELL

DOHong Kong Tourism Board has rolled out themed self-guided walks for visitors to explore the city on foot. Choose from eight available routes

covering subjects like architecture (Garden Road Leisure Walk), culture (Evolvement of a Fishing Village), heritage (Walled Village in Fanling) and markets (Yau Ma Tei and Mong Kok).

SEESpend a full day on Hong Kong’s biggest outlying island, Lantau. Much more than sun, sea and sand, find unspoiled nature, cultural

heritage and world-class attractions such as Hong Kong Dis-neyland, Ngong Ping 360, Tai O fishing village and international brand outlets in Tung Chung.

From left: Ngong Ping Plateau, on Lantau Island; Holiday Inn Golden Mile

Destination Hong Kong

December and the 3km journey compris-es three stations, namely Kennedy Town, HKU and Sai Ying Pun. The Sai Ying Pun station will open by March 2015 due to a construction delay.

The West Island Line enables shorter journeys to and from the Western District,

just seven minutes from Kennedy Town to Sheung Wan and 13 minutes to Causeway Bay.

Built as a community railway, the new line enlivens the old Western District that was previously only served by buses, trams and minibuses.

EATSituated next to Russell Street in Causeway Bay, the three-storey Midtown Soundwill Plaza II officially opened in December and has become an

F&B hotspot. It offers an assortment of top-tier restaurants such as Jamie’s Italian, The Penthouse by Harlan Goldstein, Sushi To by Harlan Goldstein, Wooloomooloo Prime and The Chop House.

STAYCheck out how some hotels have changed following their makeovers. The 621-room Holiday Inn Golden Mile recently launched

the redesigned Executive Club rooms and a new Executive Club Lounge, while Langham Hong Kong now offers 230 renovated rooms and suites as well as lobby lounge Palm Court.

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www.itcmchina.com

14-16 April 2015 | 2015年4月14-16日Shanghai Convention & Exhibition Center of International Sourcing

The Leading International MICE Event in China

中国首屈一指的专业会议、奖励旅游、会议和展览的商业和交流平台

Network with over 3,000 Chinese and International Exhibitors, Buyers and Media From MICE, Associations and Corporate Travel Sectors

Access to the IT&CM China 2015 Exhibition on 15 – 16 April

Access to an expanded 2-day Association Days @ IT&CM China

Topics Include:

Contact联络方式:

For International Delegates国际展商Email: itcmchina@ttgasia.comTel: (65) 6395 7575

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• Destined for Success: Choosing a Meeting Destination 成功的活动从会议选址开始

• Changing Times Call For Changing Membership Models 时代转变需要会员模式的改变

• International Cooperation for International Association Meetings in China 国际协会会议在中国的全球化合作

• Driving Greater Revenue from Association Meetings 协会会议驱动更大收益

“There was a good mix of buyers attending the show, so that definitely helped us in achieving our business objectives.”

Achini Dandunnage Sri Lanka Convention Bureau, Sri Lanka

“通过在IT&CM China与参展商们的交流，我对在东南亚目的地举办会议有了更加深入的了解。这些信息对于我们来说非常有用，因为我们希望在这区域举办一些会议。其次教育主

题论坛也非常专业。”Li Jianmin

China Conference Business Alliance (CCBA), 中国

“IT&CM China will enable us to be more competitive in the Polish incentive market.”

Agata Goscinska Viventum, Poland

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To Learn More About Visiting Hours, Fees and Entitlements 获取观展时间，费用及权利的更多信息Registration For Exhibitors, Buyers and Media Have Closed. Thank You For Your Support! 参展商，买家及媒体登记已截止。

与3000多位来自中国及国际MICE行业的专业展商，买家和媒体交流涵盖MICE、协会管理及企业商旅领域

IT&CM China 2015展会通行证 4月15-16日

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IT&CM China 2015 is proud to be part of the Shanghai Business Events Week.2015中国(上海)国际奖励旅游及大会博览会很荣幸的能作为上海商务活动周的一部分举行Where The MICE Industry Comes Together In Shanghai. An Exciting Week of Business, Education And Networking Events. 国际奖励旅游和大会博览会行业的各个成员企业齐聚上海，在令人兴奋的一周时间里，共同参与这次教育以及商业交流的活动。

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Destination Vietnam

Vietnam must boost its charm and keep competition at bay, finds Xinyi Liang-Pholsena

A need to retain allure

Vietnam is a destination replete with culture and history, a strong drawcard for foreign visitors

istration of Tourism (VNAT) as well as trade sentiments.

In particular, arrivals from Germany surged 45.7 per cent in 2014 to account for 142,345 visitors to Vietnam, although the strong growth figure is likely a pick-up from the bad performance the year before – 2013 saw 97,673 visitors from Germany, a year-on-year dip of 8.4 per cent.

Switzerland, meanwhile, accounted for 29,738 visitors to Vietnam in 2014, up 4.6 per cent year-on-year from 28,423 the year before. No figures on Austria, how-ever, were available from VNAT.

On the ground, industry players gener-ally share a positive outlook for the Ger-man-speaking markets.

Tran Nam Trung, German manager of Buffalo Tours Vietnam, said: “We did well last year, with (the German inbound market) increasing by 20 per cent from the previous year. We expect a 35 per cent in-crease in sales this year.

“Germany’s continuing economic strength and increasing tourism inter-est in Vietnam as well as its affluent older population make it a rich source of customers for Buffalo Tours. We are seeing an increase in returning German tourists who have already toured the highlights of Vietnam and are looking for greater insights into Vietnamese culture and off-the-beaten-track experiences.”

Also casting a rosy forecast of the Ger-man market, Patrick Fernandez, general manager, Best Western Premier Indochine Palace, said: “Germany is an important market for (our hotel), and we are pleased with its performance. Currently the Ger-man market contributes approximately 10 per cent of our business, but we are seeing steady year-on-year growth and we expect this to rise to between 15 and 18 per cent this year.”

While Germany remains one of the top four markets for The Nam Hai, Hoi An, guest numbers fell by 2.4 per cent from 2013, revealed the resort’s director of sales/

Thang Luong, CEO & co-founder, Handspan Travel Indochina It seems Vietnam

has overcome its most difficult period.

The GDP has slightly increased and inflation is well controlled. The overall economic picture seems brighter. We are really looking forward to better business in 2015. Latin America is a new market that we are targeting, and we are also putting in more effort using new online marketing tools for traditional countries like Germany, America and Australia.

Alexander Leven, product manager, HG Travel We saw very good results for the Western markets in 2014 and are planning for steady growth.

For our Chinese visitors, our aim is to regain their trust in Vietnam. The forecast doesn’t look as bad as mid-2014 when the whole market collapsed. We are re-ceiving surprisingly high booking numbers for 2015 and hope to get back to 2013’s level in the next six months. Our market share has also increased significantly.

To predict the Russian market is like playing lottery. The incentive and upmarket (segments) seem to be on the rise though.

VIEWPOINTS

What are your business prospects for 2015?

7.9 million The number of international visitors to Vietnam in 2014, a year-on-year increase of four per cent

45.7% The year-on-year growth of visitor arrivals from Germany in 2014, contributing to 142,345 arrivals

29,738 The number of visitors from Switzerland in 2014, up 4.6 per cent from 28,423 the year before

13,200 The number of rooms from 99 three- to five-star hotels in Ho Chi Minh City in 4Q2014, up four per cent quarter-on-quarter and five per cent year-on-year, according to Savills World Research

Destination in numbers

HOW TO SELL

DO Joining a cooking class is one of the best ways to get acquainted with Vietnamese cuisine. Hanoi Cooking Centre, located on 44 Chau Long Street at the edge of

the city’s famous Old Quarter, offers hands-on cooking classes and market tours designed by chef Tracey Lister, co-author of KOTO – A Culinary Journey Through Vietnam. Courses are available for corpo-rates as well as for kids.

SEE Hanoi’s Old Quarter, which dates back some 2,000 years, is a warren of 36 streets organised accord-ing to produce, where shops of the same kind can

be found on the same lane. Notable streets include Hang Bac, which specialises in gold and silver jewellery; Hang Ma, famed for its paper products; and Luong Ngoc Quyen, an avenue lined with food stalls. A walk through this historic district will give visitors a chance to pick up local souvenirs at the same time.

EAT A Vietnamese institution popular among locals and tourists alike, Nha Hang Ngon continues to draw crowds with its meld of street food-meets-colonial

chic ambience, serving up a diverse array of Vietnamese specialties from around the country. Diners can opt to sit indoors in the beautiful-ly restored French villa or outdoors in the frangipani-lined courtyard.

Lotte Hotel Hanoi

xuanhuongho/123RF.com

Despite trailing behind the UK, France and Russia in terms of visitor arrivals, Germany is an important market in Europe

for Vietnam, as borne out by the official statistics from Vietnam National Admin-

marketing, Debbie Chee. She said: “The weakening of the euro probably played a part. However, we also believe some ma-jor world events – plane crashes, Russia-Ukraine friction, Ebola, etc – caused some apprehension among travellers.

“The German market is still traveling despite the euro weakening against the US dollar. However, I think they’re more concerned about spending, and therefore opting for more economical accommoda-tions,” added Chee.

Whether impacted by a sliding euro, German visitors remain a force to reckon with as their lengths of stay tend to be long. At the same time, this market also exhibits a deeper appreciation for culture and history, plus a preference for superior hospitality standards like quality cuisine and high levels of hygiene, according to the trade.

Pham Ha, founder and CEO, Luxury Travel, commented: “We notice a tenden-cy (among German travellers) to choose classic tours with relaxing days on a beau-tiful beach. In general, the length of their tours are quite long from 14-21 days, and Germans maximise their time by travel-ling through Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.”

As much as Vietnam has to offer visi-tors, the emergence of Myanmar as a tour-ist destination is sure to intensify the com-petition for Germanic visitors.

Buffalo Tours’ Tran said: “Vietnam is still a very hot destination for Germans but in the mean time, Myanmar has also picked up very fast in the last two years.”

In order for Vietnam to stay an attrac-tive destination, the trade also opined that waiving visa requirements will pave for higher inbound numbers.

Added Tran: “The visa arrangement for Germans visiting Vietnam is still very complicated. We hope that the Germans will not need a visa for Vietnam in 2015; that could be a good advantage to boost German (arrivals) into Vietnam.”

STAY Opened in September 2014, the five-star Lotte Hotel Hanoi is now the tallest hotel in Vietnam, occupying the upper floors of a new skyscraper

located between the city’s Old Town and New Business District. The 318-room hotel is home to F&B options such as Top of Hanoi, an open-air rooftop brasserie; Tim Ho Wan, Vietnam’s first Michelin-starred dim sum house; and Pharaoh’s Bar & Upper, which offers cocktails and views of the city on floors 63 and 64.

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1 Dusit Thani Cam RanhThailand’s Dusit International will launch its first Dusit Thani hotel in Vietnam, which will be developed as part of the Cam Ranh Flowers Resort.

Scheduled for debut in late-2016, Dusit Thani Cam Ranh comprises 266 deluxe, suite and bungalow categories, with a fur-ther 56 residential villas and 117 apart-ments available for purchase or rental. Guests will be able to enjoy the signature Devarana Spa as well as a sports centre with swimming pools.

2 Vietnam Airlines links Phu Quoc with Singapore, Siem ReapAs Phu Quoc emerges as a regional beach destination with the recent addition of four-and five-star properties, Vietnam Airlines has launched new internation-

al direct flights linking the island with Singapore and Siem Reap.

The twice-weekly Phu Quoc-Singapore service started on November 2, 2014 on an Airbus A321, while the thrice-weekly Phu Quoc-Siem Reap route began operations from December 18, 2014 using ATR-72.

3 Emperor Cruises in Nha TrangDMC Luxury Travel Vietnam and cruise company Huong Hai Ha Long have come together to launch Emperor Cruises in Nha Trang Bay. Emperor Cruises’ fleet includes a junk cruise boat that will start operations in March 2015, accommodat-ing 32 passengers for day cruises, sunset cocktails and dinner cruises.

Debuting in August 2015 is also an overnight luxury cruise ship that can house 36 guests in 18 en-suite cabins with

private balconies. The newly built, coloni-al-style ship will feature three decks that house a smart restaurant, two lounge bars, a small library, two saunas, four massage rooms, a kids’ play room and a gym.

4 The Reverie SaigonThe Reverie Saigon is set to debut in Ho Chi Minh City in 2Q2015, adding another luxury property to the city’s expanding hospitality sector.

Situated within a 39-storey, mixed-use development, the 286-key hotel will boast room interiors that feature furnishings and craftsmanship by Italian design houses such as Provasi, Colombo Stile, Visionnaire and Giorgetti.

Facilities include an outdoor pool with views of the Saigon River and city skyline, a spa and fitness centre, a Chinese restau-

WHAT’S NEW

From left: Dusit Thani Cam Ranh; Emperor Cruises; The Reverie Saigon

rant, and a fleet of Bentleys and Rolls-Royces.

5 Scenic Spirit on the Mekong Scenic Tours’ latest luxury river cruise ship, Scenic Spirit, will launch on the Me-kong River in January 2016.

The ship will boast 34 suites ranging in size from the 32m2 Deluxe Suite, com-plete with a sun lounge, to the 80m2 Royal Panorama Suite with four separate zones. Amenities include four dining venues, a resort-style pool deck and bar, a full spa, a sun deck with an open-air cinema, com-plimentary beverages, butler service, plus an elevator between decks.

Travelling over eight days between Ho Chi Minh City and Siem Reap, the five-star boat caters to 68 guests and boasts an almost 1:1 guest-to-staff ratio.

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Destination Myanmar

Germans are visting Myanmar in bigger numbers than ever before, and many are now venturing further into the country’s lesser-explored destinations, writes Oliver Slow

Higher arrivals, deeper immersions

The number of German-speak-ing tourists visiting Myanmar has been consistently high in recent years when compared

with other countries in Europe. According to the latest figures from

the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism, 32,265 tourists from Germany visited Myanmar in 2014, up from 27,712 the previous year, making it the third biggest European source market after France and the UK.

“German tourists are very interested in Myanmar and we do a lot of work in advertising this area. Many German visitors are interested in cultural tourism and visit such places as Bagan, Mandalay and Mrauk U,” said Zeyar, deputy direc-tor of Myanmar Tourism Promotion and International Relations under the Minis-try of Hotels and Tourism.

Inbound travel agencies in Myanmar have generally witnessed substantial growth in the German-speaking market

U Bein Bridge, a teak structure in Amarapura, Mandalay has become a popular tourist attraction

and believe the rise will continue. Journeys Adventure Travel general

manager Lee Sheridan, who has been seeing good performance from the Ger-man market in the last few years, com-mented: “We are seeing a lot of interest in adventure activities such as trekking and biking and will be looking to de-velop more of these activities rather than focusing on new destinations.”

While Sheridan is expecting an in-crease in all-inclusive tours, he antici-pates an even larger boost in the sale of individual plane tickets and hotel rooms as FIT visitors, including those from Germany, become increasingly interest-ed in Myanmar.

“Seasoned German-speaking travel-lers like to organise things on their own and book hotels or travel services on an individual basis, not so much as a full package,” he added.

Having recorded an 80 per cent surge in the German market over the past year,

Edwin Briels, Myanmar general manager of Khiri Travel, is confident that the mar-ket will increase 20 per cent this year.

Said Briels: “New experiences that are becoming very popular for German speakers include tours such as cooking classes, home-cooked lunches, meeting local people, village walks and Yangon heritage tours.”

Much of the growth in the German market has been fuelled by word of mouth, according to Josep Niubo, direc-tor of Lotus Bonita Travel and Tours. He said that Bagan, Inle Lake and Manda-lay remain the top destinations for first-time travellers from Germany, but also observed an increase of visitors to des-tinations such as Hpa An, Bhamo and Chin State.

“Usually, German-speaking tourists are among the most daring travellers and with the recent opening of Kayah State to tourists, we expect a growing demand to this area,” said Niubo.

3.1 millionThe number of tourists that Myanmar attracted in 2014, two-thirds of which were border-entry visitors

505,351Ticket sales at the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon in 2014, a 26 per cent increase from the previous year

870,000The number of people employed in Myanmar’s tourism industry, a growth of 50,000 from 2013, according to the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism

US$1.1 billionMyanmar’s tourism earning in 2014

70%The percentage of foreign visitors from ASEAN countries in 2014

Destination in numbers

HOW TO SELL

DO The ancient temples of Bagan are among Myanmar’s most popular tourist destinations, but

visitors can witness the majestic site from a different viewpoint – the air. Hot air balloon trips over Bagan cost upwards of US$250 per person and offer a unique experience for any visitor.

SEELittle-known Chin State is emerging as a tourist destination in Myanmar with

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Belmond Governor’s Residence

As the country opens up, other new destinations that industry insiders fore-see an increase for German-speaking tourists include Mawlamyine in Mon State, Hsipaw in Northern Shan State and the hills around Chin State.

its most popular site being Mount Victoria. Located in Nat Ma Taung National Park, the 3,053m mountain is the third highest in Myanmar and the trek takes about five hours to the summit and back. The area is home to stunning and untouched scenery.

EATNo Myanmar visit can be complete without a sample of the national dish, mohinga,

which is most popular as a breakfast snack. A rice noodle and fish soup, the dish typically

comprises the main ingredients of fish paste, ginger, onions, garlic and lemongrass.

STAYNestled in a leafy corner of Yangon, the Belmond Governor’s

Residence was once the home of an Indian teak trader, then the governor of Kayah State. Today, it is one of Myanmar’s most popular hotels, offering visitors glimpses of its colonial past with its Kipling Bar and vast collection of gin-based cocktails.

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www.ttgasia.com | TTG Asia e-Daily

TTG Asia App | TTG Asia DIGITAL

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Tel: (65) 6395 7575 • Fax: (65) 6536 0896 • www.ttgasiamedia.com

PUTTING THE HOUSE IN ORDERSingapore has imposed stricter rules on the conversion of shophouses to boutique hotels in the city’s historic districts

SHANGHAI FOR FAMILIES The opening of Shanghai Disney Resort and other attractions will help increase the city’s appeal among younger visitors

RAISING THE STANDARDSIndonesia wants its tourism professionals and businesses to be certified in the run-up to the ASEAN Economic Community

STATE OF THE ARTSingapore has seen high-quality art venues coming on stream and a flurry of events making an appearance. But is this attractive enough for tourists?

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VIEW FROM THE TOPJames Reed, CEO and managing director of Destination Asia, on why online is a must for the DMC, which is continuing to expand in the region

APP, APP AND AWAYMore travel agencies and tour operators are building their own apps in order to target mobile-savvy customers

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VIEW FROM THE TOPJames Reed, CEO and managing director of Destination Asia, on why

VIEW FROM THE TOPJames Reed, CEO and managing director of Destination Asia, on why online is a must for the DMC, which is continuing to expand in the region

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Josep Niubo, director, Lotus BonitaWe expect to see an increase in customers from

Europe, mainly the UK, Spain and Ger-

many. Expats in Asia are also likely to increase and these visitors are often FIT travellers. We expect an increase in services providing adventure experiences to places such as Mogok, Mount Victoria and Kayah State.

Marek Lenarcik,general man-ager, ThaharaThahara is launching its second property in Pindaya, and we expect to have at least one more by the end of the year. We are very optimistic about 2015 as our business model is proving increasingly successful month after month.

VIEWPOINTS

What are your business prospects for 2015?

1 Myanmar National Airlines Flag carrier Myanma Airways has re-branded to Myanmar National Airlines (MNA) as it plans to begin operating in-ternational flights in 2015.

As part of the repositioning, MNA has also introduced a modern computerised management system, a new website that allows online booking and is also launch-ing a modern check-in system in Yangon, with plans to extend to Nay Pyi Taw, Man-dalay and Nyaung U.

Than Tun, managing director, MNA, said that the airline plans to extend its operations this year to cover new destina-tions across Asia, including Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia and China. MNA currently flies to 26 domestic destinations in Myanmar.

The airline will also increase its fleet by adding an additional 10 Boeing 737 air-craft and six ATR72-600 aircraft this year.

2 E-visas more widely availableThe Ministry of Immigration and Popu-lation has rolled out the electronic visa system at six additional locations after the scheme was successfully launched on Sep-tember 1, 2014 at Yangon’s International Airport.

The system has been extended to the in-ternational airports at Mandalay and Nay Pyi Taw, as well as Thailand-Myanmar border crossings at Myawaddy, Tachileik,

WHAT’S NEW

Kawthaung and Htee Khee. For the process, applicants must com-

plete an online visa form and make pay-ment via a credit card. The e-visa costs US$50 and is valid for 28 days’ travel in the country.

3 Sanctuary Ananda sets sail along the Irrawaddy RiverSanctuary Retreats has launched a luxury sailing boat, Sanctuary Ananda, along the Irrawaddy River in November 2014. Cus-tom built for Myanmar’s rivers, includ-ing the Chindwin River, a tributary of the Irrawaddy, the boat offers 20 luxurious suites across three decks.

The boat offers a range of options, starting with a three-night trip between Bagan and Mandalay, a seven-night

Mandalay-Bagan-Mandalay trip and an 11-night trip sailing between Mandalay, Bhamo and Bagan.

4 DusitD2 Residence YangonDusit International will make its debut in Myanmar when it opens the 300-key DusitD2 Residence Yangon in 2017.

Situated between the city centre and Yangon’s international airport, facilities at the hotel include a specialty dining outlet, bar, business lounge, gym and swimming pool.

DusitD2 Residence Yangon was de-signed based on the concept of “feeling calm Asian winds and enjoying heartfelt hospitality”, reflected in its multi-storey vertical sky gardens and large windows on the ground floor.

Sanctuary Ananda

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pool looks pretty inviting, alas, there sim-ply isn’t time for it, not if I want to go snorkelling.

The house reef teems with colourful fish and corals although visibility is a bit poor. The dive centre has a good pro-gramme comprising snorkelling expedi-tions, sunset cruises, fishing trips, etc, and the team there is fun and friendly.

SERVICE Down-to-earth

VERDICT An authentic and natural tropical island experience, sealing a true Maldivian luxury holiday.

Beach resorts Maldives

The heart of Cheval BlancRaini Hamdi vis-

its Cheval Blanc Randheli Mal-dives and – surprise, sur-prise – finds a real heart be-hind the hard-

ware that scales new levels of luxury

A Cheval Blanc resort carries the weight of pedigree.

For wine connoisseurs, Chateau Cheval Blanc is in the league of the Grand Crus, with Robert Parker giving the 2010 Che-val Blanc 100 points. For fashionistas, it’s in the same breath as Louis Vuitton or De Beers, since it’s part of LVMH.

Such association and novelty – there are only three Cheval Blanc resorts in op-eration currently, two in France and one in the Maldives – is a dream for any re-sort marketeer. But for a general manager, what a nightmare it must be to meet sky-high expectations or, worse, to debunk snobbish perceptions such a lineage could carry.

With all the trumpeting that hailed the opening of the first international Cheval Blanc resort, Cheval Blanc Randheli, Mal-dives, it’s easy to forget the human aspect. I was guilty of this myself, excited over how the resort would look, how Jean-

FIRST PERSON

From left: a beautiful beach overlooking the longest jetty in the Maldives; the water villa is the entry-level accommodation at Constance Halaveli

Michel Gathy would top his own architec-ture at One & Only Reethi Rah Maldives with this project. I did not think about the service at all; in fact, I feared that the re-sort would be a little proud and haughty.

Like the desirable It bag, I expected the property to be exquisite, handmade, flaw-less. And it was. I gasped when the door swung open to reveal my villa, which had gorgeous views of the ocean on the left and a garden on the right. It would not be the first time at the resort that my jaw dropped at the new levels of luxury Che-val Blanc Randheli had scaled: a string of three paradise islands joined together, so guests could have the real freedom and space to cycle, walk or simply laze around in complete privacy.

Another whole island just for the spa. A Kids Club that looked as if the main

pool area had been shrunk to fit rich little people.

Designer restaurants that served crazy-good food and there were five of these and three bars for a resort with just 45 villas.

An unheard-of room to staff ratio of one to seven (excluding 100 casual staff) – I could go on and on.

Money clearly was no object in devel-oping this resort and I shuddered to think how, and if, it could be recouped.

Yet, the most wondrous aspect of Che-val Blanc Randheli was that it had a big heart: general manager Renato Chizzola

and his whole team. It was not just the hardware that

reached new luxury levels; under their care, you could not be spoiled enough, you could not be pampered enough and, most importantly, it was all done with real pleasure and genuine care – and this spirit was everywhere throughout the resort.

One reason could be that the brand is new and the resort is beautiful, so staff are extra-motivated to give their best.

But I believe that is not the main fac-tor, rather it starts at the top, with a gen-eral manager whom anyone can warm to instantly – because he is the antidote to standoffishness – while his philoso-phy, “be kind and generous to staff and guests”, is not mere talk.

TRIED & TESTED

Name Constance HalaveliNo. of villas 86Rate Depending on seasonContact detailsTel: (960) 666-7000Email: sm@halaveli.comWebsite: www.halaveli.com

Constance HalaveliRaini Hamdi checks in at Constance Ha-laveli and finds the secret to its constant following

LOCATION North Ari Atoll, a 25-minute seaplane transfer from Malé airport

ROOMS Most of the resort’s 86 villas are over-water, as the property boasts the longest jetty – 850m2 – in the Maldives. Water villas are therefore its entry-level accommodation, and I’ll let you in on a secret that mine (water villa number 35, shush) surely is the best. From my plunge pool in my outdoor terrace, I have a dreamy view of an inviting sandbank with luscious palm trees, not just a vast empty

ocean. In the evenings, my eyes are trained on the waters instead, as invariably, four or five baby sharks will swim past my villa. Staying at Constance Hala-veli is such fun because of the abundance of nature – trees, birds, small island residents and marine life.

My luxurious villa has a warm, tropical island character and is laden with modern trappings including Apple TV, Nespresso machine and speedy Wi-Fi. F&B The Beach Grill and the main buffet restaurant Jahaz are casual – in fact part of

the fun is dining without shoes and feeling soft sand on my feet. The signature restau-rant and bar Jing is a surprising contrast: over-water, it exudes the style and sophis-tication of a Michelin-star restaurant and serves interesting East-meets-West cui-sine.

A wine-tasting session at Jing Wine Cellar is a must, because sommelier Arun Kumar’s passion for wines is intoxicating!

FACILITIES My massage bed

looks down to the ocean and I go ooh and ahh at the sight of small colourful reef fish while my masseur gives me a 45-minute jetlag treatment at the U Spa by Constance.

Then, it’s off to the hotel’s gym, which is large and extremely

well-equipped – there are even spin-ning bikes. I am also able to run around the island and even on the long jetty, which is just great. The main swimming

Clockwise from above: a water villa at Cheval Blanc Randheli, Maldives; the Alchemists Lounge

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Junior Page 4 column (173mm) x 280mm

5.3.2015 TTG Show Daily ITB Berlin 21

Junior Page 4 column (173mm) x 280mm

It’s seen in simple ways. For example, I had just exercised at the gym and went to the over-water Deelani restaurant, hoping to catch sight of stingrays in the ocean. F&B director Denise Matthijsse happened to there and, noticing I had just finished exercising, offered me fresh juice or mineral water. Executive pastry chef Samy Loison, knowing my partner loved desserts, rushed over when we were having lunch before our departure and offered to make him any dessert he felt

A new discovery

Just opened in January, Loama Resort Maldives’ location is not the only thing novel about it, the resort also boasts an over-water art gallery that is the first-ever gallery outside Malé certified by the Na-tional Art Gallery.

Loama is located on Maammigili Is-land on Raa Atoll in the north, which the resort describes as “a new frontier”.

Loama Art Gallery will showcase Mal-divian contemporary art in regular exhi-bitions curated by the resort’s heritage and culture manager, Umair Badeeu.

The discovery of 11th century sunken baths on the island and 15th century Chi-nese porcelain drives an on-going process of excavation where other ancient arte-facts have also been found and put into the museum that forms the lobby.

The resort is also assembling an origi-nal Maldivian dwelling containing origi-nal doors and furniture dating back over a century to further tell the story of Mal-divian heritage culture.

like then. If the managers themselves were always around and led the way in showing kindness and generosity, any wonder the rest of the staff would follow?

I also believe the resort picked the right staff not just at the top but at every level. Whether it was my majordome (personal butler) Yoshimi or Lele, who waited at White restaurant, they had a certain grace, sense of fun and love for people.

I also learnt there’s a dedicated eti-quette trainer who showed staff the ropes

of genteelness. So staff would always greet each other respectfully when they passed each other. No one would dream of walk-ing around with a piece of paper without it being placed in a folder. Things like that. Yet, it’s all so natural, not stiff or orches-trated – just a lot of kindness, generosity and elegance around.

This then is a Cheval Blanc. It hit me like a ton of rock that it would take a brand I associate with cold materialism to show me a thing or two about heartware.

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5.3.2015 TTG Show Daily ITB Berlin 22

News/Snapshots

Putting the best foot forwardReady to welcome the rest of the world to Asia with a dose of Asian hospitality, exhibitors are all smiles for the camera. TTG’s Eugene Tang checks out the buzz on Day 1 of the show

By S PuvaneswaryLANGKAWI is in talks with op-erators to launch new charter flights, hoping its new attrac-tions and an intensified promo-tions drive will help at-tract more Europeans this year.

Langkawi Devel-opment Authority (LADA) CEO, Khalid Ramli, said LADA is talking to European flight charter opera-tors as there are no direct scheduled airlines con-necting the destination and Europe.

Khalid said: “We are meet-ing with two charterers from Sweden and Finland (yester-day) to discuss with them the possibility of flying to Langka-wi during summer, winter or even throughout the year. We offer charter companies a spe-cial cash incentive of US$10 per (passenger) head.”

British Airways, in the meantime, is scheduled to re-turn to Kuala Lumpur from May this year, a development Khalid welcomed because

“historically, major-ity of British tourists to Malaysia will visit Langkawi”.

The push for more European tourists is also due to new attrac-tions that are expected to be of interest to Europeans. The Lang-

kawi Sky Bridge reopened last month after two years of upgrading works. A new 3D art museum, hailed as the sec-ond-largest in the world, and teambuilding venue Langkawi Skytrex, suitable for both cor-porate and leisure tourists who enjoy extreme sports, are also now available.

LADA is also strengthening its position in ecotourism and nature tourism, banking on

the destination’s rich variety of animal and plant life. The archipelago welcomed the 5th Asian Bird Fair in Langkawi last year and, in 2015, will host a bird and butterfly fair in Oc-tober.

LADA will also introduce mangrove walk packages in the 3Q2015.

As well, it aims to market directly to European travellers through its website www.natu-rallylangkawi.my.

On the importance of the Eu-ropean market, Rosnina Yaacob, manager, tourism division at LADA, said: “Europeans love nature and they will support our efforts to ensure Langkawi develops sustainably. All of Langkawi with its 100 islands have been designated UNE-SCO Geopark status.”

Currently, the UK, Rus-sia, Germany and Sweden are among Langkawi’s top 10 source markets.

Langkawi eyes chartersNew attractions and improved accessibility to draw Europeans

THE Singapore Tourism Board, in partnership with TTG Asia, has released a whitepaper outlin-ing the dominant trends in Asian travel as gathered during Travel-Rave 2014.

According to Expansion and Evolution in Asia’s Travel and Tourism Industry: Discussions and Discourse at TravelRave 2014, four specific tides will mould the future of Asian tour-ism.

In the first, a new wave of middle-class tourists from Chi-na’s secondary cities will emerge to bolster outbound traffic.

Millennials are the main ac-tors in the second megatrend. The prioritisation of work-life balance and use of technology for this group are expected to bring a disruptive influence to the industry.

4 megatrends defining the landscape of Asian travel

Working hand-in-hand with Millennials, advancements in technology will reshape tour-ism and give rise to new forms of marketing, branding and concepts.

Finally, LCCs are going to continue carving out new de-mand and new destinations across the region as these air-lines expand their route net-works.

The Expansion and Evolu-tion in Asia’s Travel and Tourism Industry: Discussions and Dis-course at TravelRave 2014 report was compiled based on insights discovered during TravelRave 2014 events including the Asia Travel Leaders Forum, Hotel Management Summit and ITB Asia.

It can be read in full at ttgasia.com/travelrave2014.

NUMBERS THAT MATTER

2.7%Increase in for-ward bookings to

Asia-Pacific from February to April 2015, against -0.5 per cent for total longhaul bookings

22.2% Growth in for-ward bookings

for Hanoi from February to April 2015, over final arrivals for the same period in 2014

German longhaul travel is back and Asia-Pacific is a key beneficiary, according to Forwardkeys

7.6% Growth in is-sued bookings for

Bangkok from February to April 2015, compared to final arrivals for the same period in 2014

Putting the best foot forwardReady to welcome the rest of the world to Asia with a dose of Asian hospitality, exhibitors are

checks out the buzz on Day 1 of the show

Penang Global Tourism’s Ooi Chok Yan and Yoon Pauline

Diethelm Travel Group’s Tony Champion, Diethelm Travel Vietnam’s Torsten Edens and Diethelm Travel Group’s Maarten Groeneveld

Centara Hotels & Resorts’ Chris Bailey, Supatra Chirathivat, Jurairat Mongkolwongsiri and Philip Hall

Minor Hotel Group’s Manfred Thievessen, Meg Evans and Marcos Cadena

Ramada and Days Hotels Singapore at Zhong-shan Park’s Macy Cheng

Khalid: charter incentives

itsmorefuninthephilippines.com facebook.com/itsmorefuninthephilippinesBanaue Rice Terraces

Marvel at this place of manmade wonders. Pick up beautiful patterned textiles woven by the indigenous people. And explore a 2,000-year-old UNESCO World Heritage Site created by their ancestors.

Getting There:Accessible via landfrom Manila

More Things to Do:• Visit the historical Banaue Museum.• Cruise down rolling streets on a wooden scooter.• Listen to the Hudhud chant, a Philippine harvest epic.• Relax under the cascading waters of the Tappiya Waterfalls.• Sip baya (Ifugao rice wine) with locals at any of the friendly bars.

VISIT THE PHILIPPINES STAND AT HALL 26A

ITB Berlin, GermanyMarch 5, 2015

MAJoR EVENTS IN THE PHILIPPINES iN 2015

For the list of events and details, log on to visitph2015.com

POPE FRANCIS PAPAL VISITMETRO MANILA | LEYTE

JANUARY 15-19, 2015

PANAGBENGA FLOWER FESTIVALSESSION ROAD, BAGUIO CITY

FEBRUARY 28-MARCH 1, 2015

MALASIMBO:MUSIC AND ARTS FESTIVALPUERTO GALERA, OCCIDENTAL MINDORO

MARCH 6-8 | 13-15 (Lights & Dance Festival)

JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH

SINULOG FESTIVALFUENTE OSMEÑA, CEBU CITY

JANUARY 8-14, 2015

ATI-ATIHAN FESTIVALKALIBO, AKLAN

JANUARY 9-18, 2015

DISNEY’S BEAUTY AND THE BEASTMUSICAL MANILACULTURAL CENTER OF THE PHILIPPINES,

PASAY CITY

JANUARY 10-25, 2015

LIFE DANCE 2015SOUTH ROAD PROPERTIES, CEBU CITY

JANUARY 16, 2015

DINAGYANG FESTIVALILOILO CITY

JANUARY 23-25, 2015

FUSION THE FIRST PHILIPPINE MUSIC FESTIVALMALL OF ASIA CONCERT GROUNDS, PASAY CITY

JANUARY 30, 2015

MICHAEL BUBLÉ LIVE IN MANILAMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

JAN 31, 2015

THE 6TH PHILIPPINEINTERNATIONAL PYROMUSICALCOMPETITIONSM MALL OF ASIA, PASAY CITY

ALL SATURDAYS FROM FEBRUARY 7-MARCH 14, 2015

GREGORIAN CHOIR OF PARISPHILIPPINE TOUR 2015MANILA | CEBU | TAGBILARAN

CAGAYAN DE ORO | DAVAO CITY

FEBRUARY 18-27, 2015

CHALLENGE PHILIPPINES “TOUGH”SUBIC | BATAAN

FEBRUARY 21, 2015

ASEAN LAW ASSOCIATION(ALA CONFERENCE)MAKATI SHANGRI-LA HOTEL MANILA

FEBRUARY 25-28, 2015

ENCOUNTERS: BAROQUE CHURCHES PHOTOEXHIBIT BY FERRANTE FERRANTINATIONAL MUSEUM, MANILA

FEBRUARY 26, 2015

SHELL ECO-MARATHON ASIARIZAL PARK, MANILA

FEBRUARY 26-MARCH 1, 2015

CENTURY TUNA 70.3 IRONMANSUBIC BAY, ZAMBALES

MARCH 8, 2015

ED SHEERAN LIVE IN MANILAMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

MARCH 12, 2015

MANILA FAMESMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

MARCH 13-16, 2015

15TH PHILIPPINE HOBIE CHALLENGELAIYA TO NASUGBU, BATANGAS

MARCH 14-22, 2015

ONE DIRECTION LIVE IN MANILAON THE ROAD AGAIN TOURMALL OF ASIA CONCERT GROUNDS, PASAY CITY

MARCH 21-22, 2015

LENNY KRAVITZ LIVE IN MANILAGLOBE CIRCUIT EVENT GROUNDS, MAKATI CITY

MARCH 24, 2015

ASEAN CORPORATE SUSTAINABILITYSUMMIT AND AWARDS 2015INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL, MAKATI CITY

MARCH 26-27, 2015

MALASIMBO:

SANDUGO FESTIVALTAGBILARAN CITY, BOHOL

JULY 25-26, 2015

26TH PHILIPPINE TRAVEL MARTSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

SEPTEMBER 4-6, 2015

JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER

PHILIPPINES INTERNATIONAL BEAUTY SHOWSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

JULY 8-10, 2015

T’NALAK FESTIVALKORONADAL CITY, SOUTH COTABATO

JULY 18, 2015

EID’L FITRNATIONWIDE

JULY 19, 2015

ANDREA O. VENERACIONINTERNATIONAL CHORAL FESTIVALCULTURAL CENTER OF THE PHILIPPINES,

PASAY CITY

JULY 22-25, 2015

CEBU INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL EXPOWATERFRONT HOTEL, CEBU CITY

JULY 23-25, 2015

CEBU FOOD EXPOWATERFRONT HOTEL, CEBU CITY

JULY 23-25, 2015

SMART KIDS ASIASMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

AUGUST 1-2, 2015

MT. MAYON TRIATHLON 2015LEGAZPI CITY, ALBAY

AUGUST 8-9, 2015

30TH KADAYAWAN FESTIVAL 2015DAVAO DEL SUR

AUGUST 16-23, 2015

ASIAN KARTING OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS 2ND ROUNDCARMONA, CAVITE

AUGUST 23-24, 2015

GLOBAL FORUM ON RESEARCH AND INNOVATION FOR HEALTH 2015PHILIPPINE INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION

CENTER, PASAY CITY

AUGUST 24-27, 2015

KAGAY-AN FESTIVAL 2015CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY

AUGUST 28, 2015

DAVAO INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL EXPOSMX CONVENTION CENTER, DAVAO

SEPTEMBER 4-6, 2015

TUNA FESTIVALGENERAL SANTOS CITY

SEPTEMBER 5, 2015

DIVING AND RESORT TRAVEL EXPOSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

SEPTEMBER 11-13, 2015

T’BOLI TRIBAL FESTIVAL - LEMLUNAY LAKE SEBU, SOUTH COTABATO

SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

MAROON 5 LIVE IN MANILAMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

SEPTEMBER 17, 2015

FEAST OF NUESTRA SEÑORA PEÑAFRANCIANAGA CITY, CAMARINES SUR

SEPTEMBER 19-20, 2015

5TH PHILIPPINE INTERNATIONAL GREENMOVEMENT EXHIBITION AND CONFERENCESMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

SEPTEMBER 24-26, 2015

26TH PHILIPPINE TRAVEL MARTCOBRA IRONMAN 70.3 PHILIPPINESLAPU-LAPU, CEBU CITY

AUGUST 2, 2015(Photo courtesy of www.malasimbofestival.com)(Photo from www.w2.vatican.va)

MADRID FUSIÓN MANILASMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

APRIL 24-26, 2015

PHILIPPINEINDEPENDENCE DAYNATIONWIDE

JUNE 12, 2015

APRIL MAY JUNE

FLAVORS OF THE PHILIPPINESAYALA & SM MALLS NATIONWIDE

APRIL 1-30, 2015

VISIT DAVAO FUN SALEDAVAO CITY

APRIL 3-MAY 17, 2015

THE SCRIPT LIVE IN MANILAMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

APRIL 17, 2015

9TH BORACAY INTERNATIONAL DRAGON BOAT FESTIVALBORACAY, AKLAN

APRIL 23-25, 2015

MT. APO BOULDER FACE CHALLENGESTA. CRUZ, DAVAO DEL SUR

APRIL 25-26, 2015

46TH WORLD TRADE CENTERSASSOCIATION GENERAL ASSEMBLYWORLD TRADE CENTER, PASAY CITY

APRIL 26-29, 2015

REGENT 5150 TRIATHLONSUBIC BAY, ZAMBALES

JUNE 7, 2015

FRANCHISE ASIA PHILIPPINESSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

JUNE 10-14, 2015

CHALLENGE PHILIPPINESCAMSUR “FAST”CAMARINES SUR

JUNE 14, 2015

PINYAHAN FESTIVALDAET, CAMARINES NORTE

JUNE 15-24, 2015

PARADA NG LECHONBALAYAN, BATANGAS

JUNE 24, 2015

ASEAN FOOD CONFERENCESMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

JUNE 24-26, 2015

MADRID FUSIÓN MANILAMTV MUSIC EVOLUTION MANILAHIP-HOP 2015QUIRINO GRAND STAND, MANILA

MAY 17, 2015

BACKSTREET BOYSIN A WORLD LIKE THIS WORLD TOURMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

MAY 5, 2015

KATY PERRY THE PRISMATIC WORLD TOURPHILIPPINE ARENA, BULACAN

MAY 7, 2015

SAM SMITH IN THE LONELY HOUR TOUR 2015MALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

MAY 10, 2015

PALAWAN DRAGON BOAT RACE 2015PUERTO PRINCESA BAY, PALAWAN

MAY 16-17, 2015

COLOR MANILA RUNCEBU LEGIL CORSO, CEBU CITY

MAY 17, 2015

INTERNATIONAL FOOD EXHIBITIONPHILIPPINES (IFEX)SMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

MAY 21-24, 2015

(Photo from www.worldstage.mtvasia.com)(Photo courtesy of Madrid Fusión Manila Secretariat)

17TH ASIA PACIFIC RETAILERS CONVENTION & EXHIBITIONSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

OCTOBER 28-30, 2015

GIANT LANTERN FESTIVALSAN FERNANDO CITY, PAMPANGA

DECEMBER 2015

OCTOBER DECEMBER

MAJESTIC PURARAN SURFING CUPPURARAN, BARAS, CATANDUANES

OCTOBER 2015

INASAL/HALAD FESTIVALTALISAY, CEBU CITY

OCTOBER 14, 2015

MASSKARA FESTIVALBACOLOD CITY, NEGROS OCCIDENTAL

OCTOBER 19, 2015

CATANDUGAN FESTIVALCATANDUANES

October 22-24, 2015

MANILA FAMEMETRO MANILA

OCTOBER 22-25, 2015

LANZONES FESTIVALCAMIGUIN, MINDANAO

OCTOBER 24-25, 2015

BICOL PASTORESLEGAZPI CITY, ALBAY

DECEMBER 2015

METRO MANILA FILM FESTIVALNATIONWIDE

DECEMBER 2015

BELENISMO IN TARLACSAN MIGUEL, TARLAC

DECEMBER 1-31, 2015

GRAND FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS PARADEMALL OF ASIA GROUNDS, PASAY CITY

ALL SATURDAYS FROM DECEMBER 5-19

FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS AND MUSICLA CARLOTA CITY, NEGROS OCCIDENTAL

DECEMBER 16-31, 2015

SIMBANG GABI (DAWN MASS)CATHOLIC CHURCHES NATIONWIDE

DECEMBER 16-24, 2015

17TH ASIA PACIFIC RETAILERS APEC ECONOMICLEADERS’ MEETINGMANILA

NOVEMBER 2015

NOVEMBER

MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY WORLD SERIESSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

NOV 5-7, 2015

TRANSPORT AND LOGISTICS PHILIPPINES SMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

NOVEMBER 5-7, 2015

SAFEGUARD 5150 TRIATHLONBELLEVUE RESORT, BOHOL

NOVEMBER 8, 2015

SANDUROT FESTIVAL DUMAGUETE CITY, NEGROS ORIENTAL

NOVEMBER 21-25, 2015

HIGANTES FESTIVALANGONO, RIZAL

NOVEMBER 22-23, 2015

(Photo from www.apec.org)(Photo from www.philretailers.com)

MAJoR EVENTS IN THE PHILIPPINES iN 2015

For the list of events and details, log on to visitph2015.com

POPE FRANCIS PAPAL VISITMETRO MANILA | LEYTE

JANUARY 15-19, 2015

PANAGBENGA FLOWER FESTIVALSESSION ROAD, BAGUIO CITY

FEBRUARY 28-MARCH 1, 2015

MALASIMBO:MUSIC AND ARTS FESTIVALPUERTO GALERA, OCCIDENTAL MINDORO

MARCH 6-8 | 13-15 (Lights & Dance Festival)

JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH

SINULOG FESTIVALFUENTE OSMEÑA, CEBU CITY

JANUARY 8-14, 2015

ATI-ATIHAN FESTIVALKALIBO, AKLAN

JANUARY 9-18, 2015

DISNEY’S BEAUTY AND THE BEASTMUSICAL MANILACULTURAL CENTER OF THE PHILIPPINES,

PASAY CITY

JANUARY 10-25, 2015

LIFE DANCE 2015SOUTH ROAD PROPERTIES, CEBU CITY

JANUARY 16, 2015

DINAGYANG FESTIVALILOILO CITY

JANUARY 23-25, 2015

FUSION THE FIRST PHILIPPINE MUSIC FESTIVALMALL OF ASIA CONCERT GROUNDS, PASAY CITY

JANUARY 30, 2015

MICHAEL BUBLÉ LIVE IN MANILAMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

JAN 31, 2015

THE 6TH PHILIPPINEINTERNATIONAL PYROMUSICALCOMPETITIONSM MALL OF ASIA, PASAY CITY

ALL SATURDAYS FROM FEBRUARY 7-MARCH 14, 2015

GREGORIAN CHOIR OF PARISPHILIPPINE TOUR 2015MANILA | CEBU | TAGBILARAN

CAGAYAN DE ORO | DAVAO CITY

FEBRUARY 18-27, 2015

CHALLENGE PHILIPPINES “TOUGH”SUBIC | BATAAN

FEBRUARY 21, 2015

ASEAN LAW ASSOCIATION(ALA CONFERENCE)MAKATI SHANGRI-LA HOTEL MANILA

FEBRUARY 25-28, 2015

ENCOUNTERS: BAROQUE CHURCHES PHOTOEXHIBIT BY FERRANTE FERRANTINATIONAL MUSEUM, MANILA

FEBRUARY 26, 2015

SHELL ECO-MARATHON ASIARIZAL PARK, MANILA

FEBRUARY 26-MARCH 1, 2015

CENTURY TUNA 70.3 IRONMANSUBIC BAY, ZAMBALES

MARCH 8, 2015

ED SHEERAN LIVE IN MANILAMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

MARCH 12, 2015

MANILA FAMESMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

MARCH 13-16, 2015

15TH PHILIPPINE HOBIE CHALLENGELAIYA TO NASUGBU, BATANGAS

MARCH 14-22, 2015

ONE DIRECTION LIVE IN MANILAON THE ROAD AGAIN TOURMALL OF ASIA CONCERT GROUNDS, PASAY CITY

MARCH 21-22, 2015

LENNY KRAVITZ LIVE IN MANILAGLOBE CIRCUIT EVENT GROUNDS, MAKATI CITY

MARCH 24, 2015

ASEAN CORPORATE SUSTAINABILITYSUMMIT AND AWARDS 2015INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL, MAKATI CITY

MARCH 26-27, 2015

MALASIMBO:

SANDUGO FESTIVALTAGBILARAN CITY, BOHOL

JULY 25-26, 2015

26TH PHILIPPINE TRAVEL MARTSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

SEPTEMBER 4-6, 2015

JULY AUGUST SEPTEMBER

PHILIPPINES INTERNATIONAL BEAUTY SHOWSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

JULY 8-10, 2015

T’NALAK FESTIVALKORONADAL CITY, SOUTH COTABATO

JULY 18, 2015

EID’L FITRNATIONWIDE

JULY 19, 2015

ANDREA O. VENERACIONINTERNATIONAL CHORAL FESTIVALCULTURAL CENTER OF THE PHILIPPINES,

PASAY CITY

JULY 22-25, 2015

CEBU INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL EXPOWATERFRONT HOTEL, CEBU CITY

JULY 23-25, 2015

CEBU FOOD EXPOWATERFRONT HOTEL, CEBU CITY

JULY 23-25, 2015

SMART KIDS ASIASMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

AUGUST 1-2, 2015

MT. MAYON TRIATHLON 2015LEGAZPI CITY, ALBAY

AUGUST 8-9, 2015

30TH KADAYAWAN FESTIVAL 2015DAVAO DEL SUR

AUGUST 16-23, 2015

ASIAN KARTING OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS 2ND ROUNDCARMONA, CAVITE

AUGUST 23-24, 2015

GLOBAL FORUM ON RESEARCH AND INNOVATION FOR HEALTH 2015PHILIPPINE INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION

CENTER, PASAY CITY

AUGUST 24-27, 2015

KAGAY-AN FESTIVAL 2015CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY

AUGUST 28, 2015

DAVAO INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL EXPOSMX CONVENTION CENTER, DAVAO

SEPTEMBER 4-6, 2015

TUNA FESTIVALGENERAL SANTOS CITY

SEPTEMBER 5, 2015

DIVING AND RESORT TRAVEL EXPOSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

SEPTEMBER 11-13, 2015

T’BOLI TRIBAL FESTIVAL - LEMLUNAY LAKE SEBU, SOUTH COTABATO

SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

MAROON 5 LIVE IN MANILAMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

SEPTEMBER 17, 2015

FEAST OF NUESTRA SEÑORA PEÑAFRANCIANAGA CITY, CAMARINES SUR

SEPTEMBER 19-20, 2015

5TH PHILIPPINE INTERNATIONAL GREENMOVEMENT EXHIBITION AND CONFERENCESMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

SEPTEMBER 24-26, 2015

26TH PHILIPPINE TRAVEL MARTCOBRA IRONMAN 70.3 PHILIPPINESLAPU-LAPU, CEBU CITY

AUGUST 2, 2015(Photo courtesy of www.malasimbofestival.com)(Photo from www.w2.vatican.va)

MADRID FUSIÓN MANILASMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

APRIL 24-26, 2015

PHILIPPINEINDEPENDENCE DAYNATIONWIDE

JUNE 12, 2015

APRIL MAY JUNE

FLAVORS OF THE PHILIPPINESAYALA & SM MALLS NATIONWIDE

APRIL 1-30, 2015

VISIT DAVAO FUN SALEDAVAO CITY

APRIL 3-MAY 17, 2015

THE SCRIPT LIVE IN MANILAMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

APRIL 17, 2015

9TH BORACAY INTERNATIONAL DRAGON BOAT FESTIVALBORACAY, AKLAN

APRIL 23-25, 2015

MT. APO BOULDER FACE CHALLENGESTA. CRUZ, DAVAO DEL SUR

APRIL 25-26, 2015

46TH WORLD TRADE CENTERSASSOCIATION GENERAL ASSEMBLYWORLD TRADE CENTER, PASAY CITY

APRIL 26-29, 2015

REGENT 5150 TRIATHLONSUBIC BAY, ZAMBALES

JUNE 7, 2015

FRANCHISE ASIA PHILIPPINESSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

JUNE 10-14, 2015

CHALLENGE PHILIPPINESCAMSUR “FAST”CAMARINES SUR

JUNE 14, 2015

PINYAHAN FESTIVALDAET, CAMARINES NORTE

JUNE 15-24, 2015

PARADA NG LECHONBALAYAN, BATANGAS

JUNE 24, 2015

ASEAN FOOD CONFERENCESMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

JUNE 24-26, 2015

MADRID FUSIÓN MANILAMTV MUSIC EVOLUTION MANILAHIP-HOP 2015QUIRINO GRAND STAND, MANILA

MAY 17, 2015

BACKSTREET BOYSIN A WORLD LIKE THIS WORLD TOURMALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

MAY 5, 2015

KATY PERRY THE PRISMATIC WORLD TOURPHILIPPINE ARENA, BULACAN

MAY 7, 2015

SAM SMITH IN THE LONELY HOUR TOUR 2015MALL OF ASIA ARENA, PASAY CITY

MAY 10, 2015

PALAWAN DRAGON BOAT RACE 2015PUERTO PRINCESA BAY, PALAWAN

MAY 16-17, 2015

COLOR MANILA RUNCEBU LEGIL CORSO, CEBU CITY

MAY 17, 2015

INTERNATIONAL FOOD EXHIBITIONPHILIPPINES (IFEX)SMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

MAY 21-24, 2015

(Photo from www.worldstage.mtvasia.com)(Photo courtesy of Madrid Fusión Manila Secretariat)

17TH ASIA PACIFIC RETAILERS CONVENTION & EXHIBITIONSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

OCTOBER 28-30, 2015

GIANT LANTERN FESTIVALSAN FERNANDO CITY, PAMPANGA

DECEMBER 2015

OCTOBER DECEMBER

MAJESTIC PURARAN SURFING CUPPURARAN, BARAS, CATANDUANES

OCTOBER 2015

INASAL/HALAD FESTIVALTALISAY, CEBU CITY

OCTOBER 14, 2015

MASSKARA FESTIVALBACOLOD CITY, NEGROS OCCIDENTAL

OCTOBER 19, 2015

CATANDUGAN FESTIVALCATANDUANES

October 22-24, 2015

MANILA FAMEMETRO MANILA

OCTOBER 22-25, 2015

LANZONES FESTIVALCAMIGUIN, MINDANAO

OCTOBER 24-25, 2015

BICOL PASTORESLEGAZPI CITY, ALBAY

DECEMBER 2015

METRO MANILA FILM FESTIVALNATIONWIDE

DECEMBER 2015

BELENISMO IN TARLACSAN MIGUEL, TARLAC

DECEMBER 1-31, 2015

GRAND FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS PARADEMALL OF ASIA GROUNDS, PASAY CITY

ALL SATURDAYS FROM DECEMBER 5-19

FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS AND MUSICLA CARLOTA CITY, NEGROS OCCIDENTAL

DECEMBER 16-31, 2015

SIMBANG GABI (DAWN MASS)CATHOLIC CHURCHES NATIONWIDE

DECEMBER 16-24, 2015

17TH ASIA PACIFIC RETAILERS APEC ECONOMICLEADERS’ MEETINGMANILA

NOVEMBER 2015

NOVEMBER

MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY WORLD SERIESSMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

NOV 5-7, 2015

TRANSPORT AND LOGISTICS PHILIPPINES SMX CONVENTION CENTER, PASAY CITY

NOVEMBER 5-7, 2015

SAFEGUARD 5150 TRIATHLONBELLEVUE RESORT, BOHOL

NOVEMBER 8, 2015

SANDUROT FESTIVAL DUMAGUETE CITY, NEGROS ORIENTAL

NOVEMBER 21-25, 2015

HIGANTES FESTIVALANGONO, RIZAL

NOVEMBER 22-23, 2015

(Photo from www.apec.org)(Photo from www.philretailers.com)