Staff and partners were top of mind as Accor adjusted its hotel operations across Asia to deal with the various challenges that came with the travel and tourism crisis over the past two years, and these remain critical as the company ramps up operations to welcome travellers again, says Garth Simmons, CEO of Accor South-east Asia, Japan and South Korea.
In this episode of TTG Conversations: Five Questions, Simmons recalls the different impacts faced by Accor properties in the region throughout the pandemic, how the ALL Heartist Fund was a critical source of assistance to affected Accor staff, where operations are returning, and the challenges his team is facing in resuming operations.
Buyers listening intently at the Thailand Briefing & Business Exchange during the 2022 Thailand MICE Familiarization Trip
Thailand’s removal of pre-travel testing requirements for international arrivals – one of the first few countries to do so – has set the business events industry abuzz with excitement, with many overseas planners looking to resume activities in the Kingdom.
The eased arrival requirement came into effect on April 1, 2022.
Buyers listen intently at the Thailand Briefing & Business Exchange during the 2022 Thailand MICE Familiarization Trip. Photo: Rachel AJ Lee
Planners that TTGmice spoke at the 2022 Thailand MICE Familiarisation Trip last week said the destination offers many advantages – from affordability to delicious cuisine – for business events.
Suryanti Sukini, account director at Jakarta-based Orange Incentive House, said Indonesians are interested in Bangkok because of how “affordable” the capital city is. Companies are looking to spend around US$500 per pax for a 3D2N incentive trip (at press time this includes the Test and Go scheme).
Bangkok also offers a host of other leisure pursuits, such as shopping, eating, and cheap massages, which Suryanti said are “popular” among her clients.
Thailand is just as attractive to European business event attendees, remarked Waiwan Lee, managing director of Pepler Lee Events. “Thailand is a big draw for the Western market, as she is rich in culture and gastronomic adventures. The country gives corporate groups bang for their buck. Thailand is also perceived as Covid-safe,” said Lee.
According to Lisa Painter, senior event manager of Sydney-based The Event Authority, Australians love Thailand for its “party beach vibe”, a “very good mix of work and play”, local cuisine, and accessibility.
For first-time buyer Olivia Harvey, event manager of Melbourne-based Conference Works, Thailand has “exceeded all of her expectations”, and she is excited to sell Bangkok after experiencing the city inspection.
Buyers told TTGmice that Thailand Convention & Exhibition Bureau’s (TCEB) sustained efforts to engage and support them have been valuable too.
Elaine Foo, senior manager – account management, business events & destination management with Singapore’s Global Travel, said the authorities have been “forthcoming about rules” and TCEB has constantly provided information that “reassures planners that the bureau will be able to sort out any potential hiccups”.
Agreeing, Painter added that available subventions for inbound business events, including rebates, room incentives and F&B discounts, boost Thailand’s attractiveness.
While Thailand is more accessible now, some clients are still worried about resuming travel in the presence of Covid-19. Furthermore, the retention of any testing requirements can shake travel confidence, observed buyers.
Suryanti said preferred destinations today are those with fewer restrictions.
Agreeing, Foo said destinations that “do away with tests, and have a clear plan forward will win”. For this, Thailand is on the right track, she opined, as the country has plans to transition to an endemic state by July 1, 2022.
At press time, Global Travel has a group bound for Thailand in May, while The Event Authority is looking at confirming a group for August.
Sarawak’s minister of tourism, creative industry and performing arts, Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzahlaunches Beimpactful campaign in Kuala Lumpur on March 30. With him on stage are high ranking government officers from Sarawak.
Sarawak state convention bureau, BESarawak, in partnership with the Malaysia Convention & Exhibition Bureau (MyCEB), jointly launched the BEimpactful package on March 30, a timely move as Malaysia’s borders reopen.
BEimpactful will offer targeted support for physical, hybrid and homegrown national and international conventions, exhibitions and corporate meetings held in Sarawak. For incentives however, the event must be physical in order to qualify for support.
Sarawak’s minister of tourism, creative industry and performing arts, Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah (in the centre), at the launch of the BEimpactful campaign in Kuala Lumpur on March 30, 2022. With him on stage are other high ranking government officers from Sarawak.
BESarawak offers funding support up to a maximum of RM20,000 (US$4,750) for business events with 30 to 149 national and international delegates, and funding from RM20,000 onwards for more than 150 national and international delegates. It will help cover bidding costs, website development, marketing, committee travelling expenses, site inspections, delegate boosting, technical visits and speaker expenses.
Speaking at BESarawak’s Tribal Gathering held in Kuala Lumpur, Sarawak’s minister of tourism, creative industry and performing arts, Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah, said: “BESarawak and MyCEB are working closer than ever at higher levels of collaboration to drive Malaysia’s economic
Situated on Wellington's waterfront, Te Papa has multiple conference, convention, and meeting spaces
Te Papa Venues and Takina, two event venues in Wellington, New Zealand, have combined forces to form Takina Events.
The partnership enables business events planners to access and book the spaces and services of both conference venues together. The two venues are situated across the road from each other, and one dedicated team will run the operation.
Situated on Wellington’s waterfront, Te Papa (pictured) has multiple conference, convention, and meeting spaces
Te Papa is a conference and events venue that hosts more than 900 events each year, while soon-to-open Takina will offer over 10,000m2 of flexible meeting and events space over two floors that can cater for up to 1,600 in its main plenary space, when it opens in mid-2023.
“What is already an exciting new asset for Wellington, combined with the venue spaces at Te Papa under one operation, now gives us an opportunity to deliver unique events on a scale the capital hasn’t seen before,” indicated Tākina Events’ general manager Andrew Dorrington.
“And joining forces will help to support the promotion of the capital as a vibrant destination for hosting local and international events,” he said.
Adopting a hybrid approach to events presents a win-win solution as it allows both organisations and attendees to zoom in on what matters most - the experience
Once considered an alternative to face-to-face events when the physical was simply not possible, virtual events have since taken on a life of their own.
Technology, experience, and to some extent, experimentation have expanded the possibilities of what and how virtual events can look like. In fact, the Asia-Pacific region is set to become the fastest-growing regional market for virtual events. With virtual events today no longer just an option but an expectation, the next stage of their evolution has arrived: hybrid events.
Adopting a hybrid approach to events can be a win-win solution for both organisations and attendees
Over the course of the pandemic, event organisers have sought to break away from the traditional, pre-pandemic notion of virtual events. Think multi-day and multi-track support, ticketing options and even post-event data tracking – virtual events platforms have evolved to be fit-for-purpose, allowing organisers to scale and tweak on demand.
Some are even able to replicate live networking among attendees, speakers, and sponsors with virtual expo floors and topic-based booths that allow both one-on-one chats and the ability to interact freely with other participants – as if in person.
Yet, going virtual is only the first step of the equation.
As vaccination rates increase and countries in the region start to reopen, virtual events now need to evolve to meet a different set of demands. For one, there remains a preference for face-to-face communications, especially when it comes to physical networking.
However, organisations are not ready to give up the convenience, time and cost savings of hosting virtual events. Similarly, the potential of reaching wider audiences from around the world at a scale that has not been possible before is hard to reject. For attendees, flexibility is key, where they can better manage their work schedules and personal commitments around these events. The safe virtual medium also takes away any complexities around pre-event testing and quarantine.
Adopting a hybrid approach to events presents a win-win solution as it allows both organisations and attendees to zoom in on what matters most – the experience. It’s not uncommon to see advanced technologies like AI and AR/ VR come into play on the virtual platform, bringing features like live translation and transcription into the event experience. This helps to create a unique, inclusive and interactive experience for all, regardless of language preferences or needs. This in itself is hard to achieve in a purely physical setting.
Where inclusivity is concerned, the virtual medium has also allowed individuals with physical limitations to participate meaningfully at events from where they are. The physical aspect completes the experience, allowing attendees to continue enjoying the engagement and intimacy from live segments – but better, coupled with the increased interactivity, flexibility and scale that the virtual platform offers.
For organisers, ease of use shapes the experience of hosting and organising events. In fact, the tools that are required to enable such effective and engaging hybrid events are readily available. Employee town halls, for example, can easily leverage video communications platforms that are already being utilised on the day-to-day.
The integration of technology with events has been a gamechanger in the pandemic era, but the blend of physical and virtual channels is set to elevate the potential of events even further. From conferences and tradeshows to internal town halls and even mass religious celebrations, the hybrid approach brings together the best of both digital and physical channels to facilitate more engaging, inclusive and seamless experiences.
We saw how quickly employees around the world took to hybrid work. With hybrid events beginning to take centrestage, it might only be a matter of time until this approach becomes the default.
Ricky Kapur is head of APAC for Zoom, bringing over 25 years of experience to his role. Prior to joining Zoom, Kapur was vice president of sales and marketing operations at Microsoft APAC. Before joining Microsoft, Kapur served as managing director at Google where he was responsible for overseeing the growth of the Google Cloud Platform across APJ. He also worked at Oracle, Siebel Systems, Unica Corporation, and Chordiant Software.
Matthew Donegan-Ryan has joined EventsAIR as CEO as of April 1, 2022
Global private equity firm The Riverside Company has invested in EventsAIR, an Australian events management software solutions provider.
This substantial investment in EventsAIR is one of the largest ever in a private events technology company.
Matthew Donegan-Ryan has joined EventsAIR as CEO as of April 1, 2022
Riverside will support EventsAIR with its international expansion plans around the globe and will drive the continued evolution of the product to maintain its market-leading features and functionality. Riverside will also selectively consider accretive M&A by targeting complementary event tech players or expanding into attractive adjacencies.
“Riverside views this investment as a highly compelling opportunity to build upon EventsAIR’s already impressive international footprint by targeting large and growing customer segments globally where the company has a clear competitive advantage,” said Riverside’s managing partner Simon Feiglin. “In addition, we will further enhance the management team.”
Additional investors taking part include EventsAIR’s founder, Trevor Gardiner, several other members of the management team, and incoming CEO Matthew Donegan-Ryan. Taking over from Gardiner, Donegan-Ryan brings deep event technology domain expertise and experience working with event planners, having worked in the industry for his entire career, including most recently at Hopin, Swapcard and Cvent.
Brisbane-headquartered EventsAIR develops software used before, during and after events to manage registration, attendee engagement, operations, housing, travel, marketing and communications. It has delivered more than 350,000 events across Asia-Pacific, EMEA and North America, for customers such as Reed Exhibitions, the British Medical Association, Telstra, and the Australian Department of Defence.
JW Marriott Bangkok in Thailand has pulled back the curtain on its latest unique venue, created to support event organisers in creating virtual and hybrid events.
Manhattan Studio
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Manhattan Studio is a real-time live stream platform, offering ultra-fast connectivity to link events from all over the world, and features a 7×6-metre green screen with full visual and audio system equipment.
Rates start at 25,000++ baht (US$746++) per hour, with a minimum booking of four hours. This includes live broadcasting, and a support team to handle all the technical aspects of the hybrid meeting with complimentary meeting facilities.
Banyan Tree Bangkok’s new Saffron Cruise takes business events and corporate groups onto the iconic Chao Phraya River for a cruise and dinner treat.
The lower dining deck can comfortably seat 100 people, while another 50 guests can occupy the Moon deck, where the open-air lounge and bar are also situated.
Saffon Cruise
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A three-hour dinner cruise costs 2,900 baht nett (US$87) per person, and includes one cocktail or mocktail, a five-course Thai dinner, and background music.
A complete buyout for 100 people costs 250,000 baht nett, and includes soft drinks, a Thai or international buffet dinner, and background music.
There is also the option of a 75 minute-long private sunset cocktail cruise inclusive of a one-hour limited open bar, and Thai canapes. This costs 75,000 baht nett and is good for groups of 50 people. Guests can embark at the Asiatique Pier or ICON Siam Pier 2. Every additional guest will be charged 1,500 baht nett.
Live entertainment and performance shows are available upon request and are subject to an additional charge.
Contact events-bangkok@banyantree.com for more information.
Blessed Yacht Charters has put a new Meridien 391 Power Boat Cabin Cruiser into the waters, ready to take holidaymakers and corporate groups around Singapore waters.
The 13m-long vessel, currently berthed at Marina At Keppel Bay, offers two air-conditioned cabins, a fully-equipped galley with refrigerator and microwave oven, a karaoke room with good sound system, and a flybridge at the upper deck that offers panoramic views and a spacious lounge.
It is good for small groups of 18 guests.
Floating mats, kayak, paddle boards, floats, fishing rods with artificial baits come part of the recreation package. Guests can charter the vessel for sailings to Lazarus Island or along Marina Bay to take in the city skyline.
Charter packages are priced at S$850 (US$625.40) for a four-hour block on a weekday, between 08.00 to 22.00, and at S$1,200 for weekends.
Guests can bring their own food and drinks at no extra charge.
Blessed Yacht Charters also provides BBQ pit rental and photography services at additional charges.
Contact info@blessedyacht.com for more information.
As the world begins to meet again after the disruption of the pandemic, Sydney’s offering is bigger and more diverse than ever, making the city an exciting proposition for future events. Here are just a few of Sydney’s new business event offerings.
Crown Towers Sydney
Home to Sydney’s highest hotel room, Crown Towers is a superbly luxurious hotel in Sydney’s newest waterside precinct Barangaroo. It has 349 rooms, suites and villas, with room sizes starting at a generous 47m2 and getting larger from there, right up to a 250m2 three-bedroom villa. The 20 villas come with check-in at a private lobby and a 24-hour butler service at guests’ disposal. The skyline-shaping Crown Towers complex also hosts several fine dining restaurants, including Nobu and Oncore by Clare Smyth.
A Harbour Bridge Suite at the new luxurious Crown Towers
Experience wildlife up close
The recently opened Wildlife Retreat at Taronga is an unmissable opportunity to experience an Australian wildlife oasis. Stay overnight in sustainable luxury at the boutique retreat built around a native wildlife habitat filled with koalas, wallabies, echidnas, and other Australian animals inside the conservation-driven Taronga Zoo. A short boat ride from Sydney’s city centre, incentive delegates might just wake up in the morning with a koala outside their window.
New Harbour Bridge Climb
See Sydney Harbour and the city’s landmarks from a new perspective with BridgeClimb Sydney. A knowledgeable guide will lead you to the peak of “the coat hanger” which forms the top of Sydney Harbour Bridge, 134m/440ft above sea level. The BridgeClimb team has recently introduced two new climbs: the Ultimate Climb, which takes groups to the north side of the bridge for the first time, and Burrawa, which is led by an Indigenous guide and tells stories of Sydney’s First Nations history.
The Burrawa is a new Harbour Bridge climb which tells stories of Sydney’s First Nations history.
Australian Museum
This cultural institution reopened in December 2020 after a 14-month $57.5 million renovation, debuting its most flexible event space to date right in the centre of the Australian Museum, partially surrounded by sandstone walls. The striking Hintze Hall can host up to 450 people for a cocktail event or up to 270 delegates seated and leads off into the museum’s exhibition spaces around and above it. Dramatic exhibition spaces can also host a night at the museum – drinks and dinners can be hosted in the shadow of a dinosaur or amongst a tribute to the extraordinary past and present animals of Australia.
The Australian Museum’s exhibits provide a unique event backdrop
Watersedge at Campbell’s Stores
After a multi-million-dollar restoration, Watersedge at Campbell’s Stores launched in The Rocks in mid-2021 between the Overseas Passenger Terminal and the Park Hyatt, with stunning views of both the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. The venue features a series of interconnected dedicated event spaces on its top floor which can each be hired individually for long table dining for up to 120 people or be used as a “blank canvas” event setting. The entire venue, including restaurant spaces on the bottom two floors and the ground floor outdoor terrace which extends onto Campbell’s Cove public thoroughfare can be hired for up to 5,000 attendees.
Watersedge at Campbell’s Stores features fine dining and event spaces, located on Sydney Harbour
The WINX Stand at Royal Randwick
At the end of 2021, a new large-scale event venue opened at Sydney’s inner-city racecourse, Royal Randwick. The WINX Stand, named after the record-breaking Australian racehorse, comprises three flexible spaces over two floors overlooking the turf. On the first floor, two gallery spaces can host up to 500 people each, with an interconnecting outdoor terrace. On the ground floor, there’s capacity for up to 3,000 people standing, or 1,800 for a seated meal, in an expansive space with ceilings of over 6m/19ft, which can open onto more outdoor space.
The Jackson
A new super yacht has just launched exclusively for incentive and corporate groups to cruise Sydney Harbour. With high-end finishes throughout all three indoor levels and outdoor decks, plus digital media walls on every floor, The Jackson can host up to 500 delegates standing across the entire vessel, 280 on a single level for formal dining or 420 people across two levels. The bespoke creative catering focuses on local seafood and beef and Australian wines, while the moving views of Sydney from the water are second to none.
The newly-opened Ritz-Carlton, Bangkok anchors the One Bangkok development with cosmopolitan elegance. Featuring the city's largest ballroom and a spectacular new penthouse suite, it delivers exceptional hardware and deeply authentic, soulful service for business and leisure travellers alike
Behind the imposing, Brutalist concrete that defines Zurich’s Oerlikon district lies a surprising secret. While its exterior honours the neighbourhood’s industrial roots, stepping inside Mama Shelter reveals a vibrant, neon-soaked world that is a far cry from its rigid shell
A polished urban retreat designed for business travellers, Hyatt Regency Kuala Lumpur at KL Midtown combines thoughtful design, seamless service, and exceptional facilities.
The 13m-long vessel, currently berthed at Marina At Keppel Bay, offers two air-conditioned cabins, a fully-equipped galley with refrigerator and microwave oven, a karaoke room with good sound system, and a flybridge at the upper deck that offers panoramic views and a spacious lounge.
