Thailand-headquartered Royal Cliff Hotels Group has rolled out a new meeting package for groups of at least 100 pax heading to Pattaya, Thailand.
Named Success Meeting Package, minimum room rates start at 4,100 baht (US$132). The group rate is offered to all delegates for two days, for pre- or post-stays to the meeting.
Royal Summit Chamber
Benefits include upgrades to suites, complimentary rooms, discounts on F&B and spa, as well as a fitness class on the house. Terms and conditions apply. This offer is available until September 1, 2019.
Completed in 1999 and expanded in 2007, Royal Cliff’s Pattaya Exhibition and Convention Hall provides a giant stage to host large-scale special events, with 23,500m2 of usable space suitable for more than 10,000 delegates.
Beverley Williamson, general manager of business development and bids at Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB), has been appointed to the role of chairperson for the BestCities Global Alliance Strategic Business Development group (SBD).
She will take over from Karina Lance of Dubai Tourism, who has been the chair since May 2017.
Beverley Williamson
Williamson brings a wealth of experience to the table, with more than 25 years in the business tourism and events industries. In her role at MCB, she oversees the international bidding, international and national business development, government relations, convention services and corporate meetings and incentives teams as well as MCB’s international offices in London, Washington DC, Shanghai and Kuala Lumpur.
Paul Vallee, managing director of BestCities Global Alliance, said: “Williamson will have a vital part to play in developing strategic plans and partnerships and strengthening the relationship and engagement between the SBD and clients and alliance cities.”
This appointment comes as the alliance prepares for its fourth annual BestCities Global Forum, taking place this December in Copenhagen, as well as running the Incredible Impacts Grant programme, in partnership with ICCA, for the third year running.
The Island Gold Coast boutique hotel in Surfers Paradise, Australia, is opening its latest event space for bookings now.
Scheduled for launch in November the ground-floor Glasshouse will span over 600m2, allowing it to cater to 700 guests cocktail-style or 350 guests banquet-style.
The Glasshouse
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Boasting glass-panel walls and extra-high ceilings, the Glasshouse was designed to “bring the very best of the outdoors in”, the hotel said in a statement. The marquee-style function space also attempts to connect guests with the outdoors as it overlooks Bruce Bishop Park.
Besides boasting a state-of-the-art banqueting kitchen, the Glasshouse will also be decked out in advanced audio and visual capabilities and fitted out with a deck and a 12m-long alfresco bar.
With the Glasshouse, The Island Gold Coast now offers five event spaces. Planners are also supported by 98 recently renovated rooms and suites.
The Westin Desaru Coast Resort has appointed Vikram Mujumdar as general manager.
Prior to his latest role, Mujumdar was most recently task force general manager at The St Regis Vommuli Resort on Dhaalu Atoll in the Maldives, and was earlier general manager at W Seoul Walkerhill in South Korea.
He joined Marriott International in 1999 as revenue analysis manager at the cluster revenue office in Boston, and has since been with the company. Over the years he has held various key management roles with Marriott across the world, including Marriott hotels in the UK and Singapore; the Sheraton Grande Laguna in Phuket; The Naka Island, a Luxury Collection hotel in Phuket, as well as the Royal Orchid Sheraton Hotel & Towers in Bangkok.
Mujumdar first began began his hospitality career as a management trainee with Oberoi Hotels and Resorts in India, before working his way up through the ranks to hold management roles at the company.
Business event planners in Asia are observing an air of caution surrounding clients’ event plans as concerns mount over an impending global recession, with even shorter lead times, a preference for cheaper destinations and more free-and-easy elements a common occurrence now.
While CWT Meetings and Events, which started 2019 on a strong footing, has yet to see “any significant dip in the volume of meetings, events and incentives so far”, its Singapore director, Petrina Goh, told TTGmice that “companies have become more cautious with their (events) spend”.
Nearby Vietnam is an affordable incentive destination; Halong Bay in Vietnam pictured
According to Goh, notable changes to their buying behaviour include offering more free-and-easy time – which relieves the burden of cost – into their incentive programmes, especially when reward trips are bound for pricey longhaul destinations such as Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean.
As well, the trend of short lead time that has plagued the industry for years now, has worsened, observed Goh. As companies struggle to have their budgets confirmed, clients are now giving notice only two months or a few weeks ahead of the event.
Clients on a tighter budget are also favouring nearby destinations. CWT Meetings and Events has recorded “a steady increase” in programmes to Thailand and Vietnam, while Dynasty Travel Singapore’s MICE division is seeing South-east Asian destinations gaining in popularity.
Dynasty Travel Singapore’s spokesperson Alicia Seah revealed that budgets for incentive events going forward are down from an average of S$1,000 (US$734) to S$2,000 per person, to S$800 to $1,500.
While buying behaviours for business events will change in the face of poor economic outlook, events specialists agree that incentive trips are unlikely to be frozen should a recession set in.
“Many companies know that incentives are a powerful performance motivator,” remarked Goh.
Seah: companies now give a mix of incentives and non-cash rewards
Seah said: “Most organisations rank the importance of incentive travel (highly) in building relationships with employees.” However, she acknowledged that many companies are now also employing other non-cash rewards, such as gift cards, merchandise and points programmes, as part of their human capital or marketing strategy.
Meanwhile, G2 Travel is maintaining a rosy outlook for its business events segment, with Al Mulenga, director of the Hong Kong office, predicting “comparable” business in 2020 to this year’s.
Mulenga said corporate business has not changed since the start of this year, and the company is seeing emerging interest from Vietnam and Malaysia.
G2’s corporate clients in Malaysia, Indonesia and Taiwan are still set on longhaul incentive destinations, specifically the UK, Scandinavia, Italy and also Eastern Europe. Budgets are also being maintained.
Sydney’s top business events leaders have embarked on a roadshow of its key markets in Asia in a bid to win new clients and build on existing relationships, with a keen eye on the evolving Indian market.
Business Events Sydney’s (BESydney) CEO Lyn Lewis-Smith arrived in Beijing on Tuesday to meet with agents and corporate clients, and she will head to Guangzhou next week. Meanwhile, bidding general manager Kristian Nicholls is in Tokyo, with trips to Mumbai and New Delhi marked for September.
BESdyney event in Beijing
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Nicholls told TTGmice that significant developments are underway in Sydney, such as an A$20 billion (US$13.9 billion) infrastructure project that includes a new airport and potentially 7,000 new hotel rooms.
“The broader picture of Sydney needs to be established in-market,” said Nicholls. “The ultimate for us is to have people get on a plane and come to experience Sydney. We’re very comfortable that once they come in advance of their decision-making process (of booking a destination) that they’ll be sold on Sydney.”
The trips are part of BESydney’s 50th anniversary activities this year, following an anniversary version of a Sydney fam programme in May where groups from China, Japan and India participated.
Nicholls said Sydney has also been experiencing strong growth from India, which is being responded to with a team of specialists that will develop relationships with agents.
“From a relatively low base in the last four or five years in India, we have seen some significant events that have come to Sydney so it’s definitely an interesting factor here.”
“And given the the size of the outbound market and the share that Australia is receiving, there is significant potential for growth in that market and Sydney will lead that growth,” he opined.
Finnair will soon begin flights to Busan; Gwangalli Beach, part of Busan, pictured
The South Korean coastal city of Busan will gain its first direct link to Europe come March 2020 when Finnair commences a thrice-weekly direct service between Gimhae International Airport and Helsinki Airport.
The service, part of an MoU between South Korea and Finland to facilitate multi-sector bilateral exchange, is expected to further improve Busan’s standing as a business events destination for Europeans.
Finnair will soon begin flights to Busan; Gwangalli Beach, part of Busan, pictured
The South Korean city has been gaining the favour of meeting planners, with its calendars marked for major gatherings such as the 2019 International Diabetes Federation Congress (15,000 participants), 2020 World Table Tennis Championships (2,000 pax), and the 2021 International Astronomical Union General Assembly (3,000 pax).
Currently, business travellers flying to Busan direct from Europe are required to transfer to the city via Incheon International Airport using either domestic air or ground services.
This development joins recent new air links to the city – SilkAir’s four-times-weekly flights between Busan and Singapore launched May 1 and Jeju Airlines’ four-times-weekly flights on the same route on July 4.
The Plaza Premium Lounge at Hyderabad Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, one of the lounges Priority Pass holders can use in India
Global loyalty and benefits firm Collinson has announced a multimillion-dollar investment in India to fuel the growth of its Priority Pass airport experiences programme, as well as to boost its technology capability with the help of local partners.
Priority Pass will see a doubling of its lounge portfolio in India over the next three years, building on its current portfolio of 45 airport lounges in 20 Indian cities. Globally, Priority Pass has a network of more than 1,200 lounges and airport experiences.
The Plaza Premium Lounge at Hyderabad Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, one of the lounges Priority Pass holders can use in India
Collinson’s wholly-owned and operated airport infrastructure business, Airport Lounge Development (ALD), is also working with airports across India to identify opportunities to open its own exclusive lounges and airport amenities. Already established in the airport lounge space in US and Europe, ALD will be bringing its business model to the Indian market.
The company’s investment in Indian airport experiences is part of a global vision to enhance its offering to more than 30 financial services clients in India and more than 1,400 banks globally.
David Evans, joint CEO of Collinson, said in a statement: “India is a vital market and one we see on a par with China in terms of growth potential. With 1.7 billion domestic passengers having flown in 2017 and outbound travellers expected to reach 50 million by 2020, the influence of the Indian traveller is only going to increase.
“We look forward to building out our lounge inventory and our own airport infrastructure, creating more locally relevant propositions and further strengthening our team on the ground with additional skilled local resource, and partnering with Indian businesses to redefine the airport experience for the benefit of domestic and international travellers,” he added.
Meet Taiwan has announced the sixth annual running of Asia Super Team, a business competition targeted at promoting Taiwan as a top-of-mind destination for incentive travel.
Taking on the theme, Enterprise Stars, this year’s event invites teams of four to compete for the opportunity to be chosen to travel to Taiwan for the 5D/4N competition from October 14-18, 2019. The team that wins the championship will bag an incentive travel package to Taiwan valued at US$50,000.
The competition is open to companies from Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines. One team from each country will be invited to participate.
A total of eight teams will get to immerse themselves in Taiwan’s business events environment by travelling through the country, visit key attractions and locations, and experience its festivals and major events.
Online registrations are open now, and will close on August 15. Results will be announced on September 16, 2019.
Asia Oceania Otorhinolaryngological Head and Neck Surgery Congress (AO ORL-HNS) 2023, the major ear, nose and throat scientific event in Asia-Oceania, is returning to Australia for the first time in 40 years.
The five-day conference will take place at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre (BCEC) in March 2023 and is expected to attract some 1,500 clinicians and specialist surgeons working with the ear, nose, throat, head and neck.
Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre
The 15th AO ORL-HNS Congress is expected to deliver A$4.5 million (US$3.1 million) directly into the Brisbane and Queensland economies while fostering collaboration and knowledge sharing, and optimising healthcare across the region.
The main driver of the successful bid for the event is ear, nose and throat surgeon, Bernard Lyons, past secretary-general of The Asia-Oceania Association of Otorhinolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery Societies, and now president-elect.
Lyons worked with Ben Panizza and Phil Fisher, president of The Australian Society of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, and the team at the Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre, in collaboration with Tourism & Events Queensland and Brisbane Marketing to secure the conference for the city.
“This meeting is potentially the largest meeting to be held in the field of otolaryngology head and neck surgery in Australia. It is a unique opportunity for Australia to interact on a scientific basis with our neighbouring countries in the Asia Oceania region. We are very excited to have been successful in our bid to hold the meeting, beating spirited challenges from (South) Korea and Vietnam,” Lyons said in a statement.
A polished urban retreat designed for business travellers, Hyatt Regency Kuala Lumpur at KL Midtown combines thoughtful design, seamless service, and exceptional facilities.
The five-star property excels in backing its expansive facilities with seamless service and personalised attention, setting the benchmark for luxury in Bangkok.
