Qatar Airways will begin operating the A350-1000, equipped with its luxurious Qsuite, on flights to and from Singapore’s Changi Airport from November 1, 2018. The aircraft will also be introduced daily to Tokyo’s Haneda Airport from January 1, 2019.
QSuite, the airline’s newest Business Class experience
The two cities will be the first destinations on Qatar Airways’ Far East network to receive the A350-1000.
On November 1, 2018, QR944 will depart Doha at 08.15 and arrive in Singapore at 21.15, with the return leg QR945 taking off from Singapore at 02.00 and arriving in Doha at 05.35 the following day.
From December 1, 2018, QR946 will take off from Doha at 01.55 and land in Singapore at 14.55, while the return flight QR947 will depart Singapore at 20.45 and arrive in Doha at 00.2. the following day.
Two of Singapore’s triple-daily A350-900 services will gradually transition to the A350-1000 from November 1, 2018, with the route expected to be served entirely with the A350-1000 by April 2019.
Beginning January 1, 2019 for the Tokyo route, QR812 will depart Doha at 07.05 to arrive in Haneda at 22.30. The Haneda-Doha route, QR813, will take off at 23.50 and land at 06.30 (+1).
The A350-1000 is the latest addition to the Airbus family of twin-aisle, widebody jetliners. It will have 327 seats across two cabins – 46 Qsuite Business Class seats and 281 extra-wide 18-inch seats in Economy Class.
Sporting a fully renovated meeting and event space, Hilton Singapore is incentivising meeting planners to hold their events at the hotel.
Hilton Singapore’s Philippines Room
Every new booking made between now and December 31, 2018, with event materialisation by March 31, 2019, entitles meeting planners to at least two perks.
The list includes welcome breakfast on arrival; complimentary free flow of soft drinks for all delegates; complimentary whole fruits in a bowl throughout the meeting; or 15 per cent off audiovisual equipment.
The bonus perks are applicable for full-day meeting packages, inclusive of two coffee breaks and one lunch at a discounted price of S$85 (US$62; usual price at $95) per delegate. Price per guestroom starts from S$260.
For residential meetings, meeting planners can enjoy even more benefits such as one complimentary room night for every 25 paid room nights (maximum of five complimentary nights); two complimentary upgrades to Executive room with lounge benefits for up to two guestrooms; and 20 per cent discount off total bill at all F&B outlets operated by Hilton Singapore, excluding Room Service.
In addition, new meeting or group bookings can enjoy double Event Planner Points, where they can get benefits faster through the Hilton Honors loyalty programme.
Mandarin Oriental makes Caribbean debut
Located in St. Vincent and The Grenadines, Mandarin Oriental, Canouan, is Mandarin Oriental’s first resort in the region. Rebranded from the Pink Sands Club, Canouan, the property sits on a stretch of Godahl Beach, and offers 26 colonial-style suites and six four-bedroom Lagoon Villas. F&B options include two fine-dining restaurants, a spa with nine treatment rooms, an infinity pool, fully-equipped fitness centre, tennis courts, and Kids’ Club. There is also a watersports centre for more adventurous pursuits.
GWCC begins its expansion
The Georgia World Congress Center (GWCC) in Atlanta, Georgia, is undergoing its first major expansion since 2002, where construction is expected to be completed by the end of 2019. The US$55 million expansion project will feature a new 9,290m2 exhibit hall between the convention centre’s Buildings B and C that, once complete, will create over 92,900m2 of contiguous exhibition space.
Opened in 1976 as a single building, the GWCC has undergone four previous major expansion phases, with the last being in 2002 with the completion of Building C, which features four exhibit halls, 23 meeting rooms, two auditoriums, and the Georgia Ballroom and Galleria.
ICCA delegates to support Dubai eyesight charity
Delegates at the 57th ICCA Congress, taking place in Dubai later this year, will have the opportunity to support a local charity that prevents blindness and visual impairment globally, with organisers partnering with Noor Dubai Foundation on a number of initiatives.
Meetings industry professionals from around the world are set to descend on Dubai when the annual flagship event comes to the Middle East for the first time, from November 11-14.
On the morning of November 12, the ICCA Charity Run’N’Walk will take place along the Arabian Gulf coastline at La Mer. With the choice of a three kilometre run or a 1.5 km walk, participants will be encouraged to make a donation to Noor Dubai Foundation.
In addition, delegates will have the opportunity to donate old pairs of glasses, including prescription glasses and sunglasses to Noor Dubai Foundation who will re-lens and distribute these to those in need through its mobile eye clinic campaigns.
Concept
This is the fourth and currently largest outlet in Greenwood’s repertoire, and dining in this homely restaurant was akin to dining in a rich friend’s home. The blue-painted space is tastefully decorated with ocean-inspired memorabilia, accentuating the wooden furniture and furnishings.
The interior dining space welcomes 80 guests
The spacious and light-filled restaurant allows for 80 indoor dining, 52 lounge seating and 40 al fresco dining – that faced a wall of greenery, a rarity in the city state.
Aside from the dining space, there’s also a retail area for customers to stock up their basket with wholesale seafood and meats, wines, and various imported ingredients.
Food
As Alan Lee, the proprietor and chef, wanted me to taste as many dishes as possible, he decided to create a seven-course lunch off the bat.
My palate was treated to a veritable meal, where the stars of the dishes were of course, the seafood. Overall, I was impressed with the elegantly-plated dishes, as well as how fresh the seafood was. Never once did I think anything tasted “fishy”.
Diners can expect the freshest catch from the sea
Years of honing his knife skills showed in the thick sashimi cuts of chutoro and otoro, while his impressive culinary skills came in the form of a salty and tangy shio foam. When I mentioned I didn’t eat raw oysters, chef Lee cooked a freshly-shucked oyster and placed it on a bed of mushroom risotto instead. The result was an umami explosion in my mouth that left me wanting another.
Another favourite dish of mine was the two pan-fried scallops and shiitake mushroom placed on top of thin strands of soba. The scallops, sourced from Japan, were delightfully juicy and sweet.
Chef Lee also treated us to an Applewood-smoked mackerel, where the fatty fish absorbed the smoky flavours well. All this was done in the restaurant’s homemade brick oven that utilised applewood and charcoal. There was also a portion of XO snapper, one of chef Lee’s specialities. The snapper was expertly-deboned, topped with garnish, and served swimming in the XO sauce.
This particular outlet is also the brand’s first multi-concept restaurant featuring Western, Japanese and Chinese selections, and I was surprised with a stick of pork belly yakitori. The grilled meat was melt-in-the-mouth tender.
The delicious meal ended off with a Pandan-kaya cake, which was done in-house by Greenwood’s talented pastry chef. The bread rolls served at the start were also baked freshly before each service.
MICE application
I feel that the possibilities are endless for this 790m2 flexible space, from a cocktail party to a barbecue cookout after a teambuilding session.
When asked if there was a minimum spend, Greenwood was unable to give any answer as the team is currently open to host any type of event or function. Menus are also customisable.
Part of the retail space is taken up by Fleurs & Buds, the in-house florist. The Greenwood team is looking at organising flower arrangement or cooking classes in the future, which can form part of teambuilding events.
Aside from the Dempsey outpost, Greenwood Fish Market has another restaurant in Quayside Isle Sentosa Cove that is suitable for events. The 380m2 space has a seating capacity of 150.
Service
Service was welcoming, friendly, and efficient – evident from my water glass which was never once left empty.
What new initiatives are in place to move SITE forward?
There are two this year. The first is CITP (Certified Incentive Travel Professional), a new certification programme that was launched in March, and officially introduced at IMEX Frankfurt where 11 people went through the programme.
CITP is aimed at middle management, from project mangers to directors, and is part of a suite of certifications (that SITE offers). The entry-level certification, CIS (Certified Incentive Specialist), is for people with five years of experience in the industry, while CITE (Certified Incentive Travel Executive) is the third-tier master level, for vice presidents and above. CITE will be redeveloped and relaunched (in due time) as well.
Didier Scaillet
The second initiative is the Index. As you know, SITE conducts a regular SITE Index survey. This year we received 600 responses.
The IRF (Incentive research foundation) has its own survey. At one point, FICP (Financial and Insurance Conference Professionals) also conducted a poll, pinging its community to see how and where business is going.
I realised (the surveys) had very similar questions. That is why we – Melissa Van Dyke (IRF), Steve Bova (FICP) and myself – decided to work together and consolidate all three questionnaires. The resulting questionnaire was launched at IMEX Frankfurt and closed at the end of June with the results expected in mid-July. A full launch will be conducted in September.
This launch date is also a change. We used to publish the SITE Index in October, but this was way too late as marketing plans and budgets were out by then. With the earlier publication, organisations, third parties and corporate end users can look at the study and plan around it.
What are your plans for membership growth?
I am planning to grow the society, but I don’t necessarily look at the metric numbers of membership as being the most relevant.
That was how SITE used to measure success because for many years, the association was the place where professionals would go to find knowledge and information, networking and job opportunities, and potential employees. Nowadays, LinkedIn is doing 50 per cent of that, while Facebook is doing the other 50 per cent.
The role of the association has changed fundamentally. However, the membership value proposition is always going to be there for people who want to belong to a society. For them, belonging is important.
But next to that, there is an entire industry that is very willing to engage with SITE and our products and services without necessarily becoming a member.
CIS is a prime example. There are over 1,400 CIS-certified professionals now around the world, but only 10 to 15 per cent are SITE members. And that’s okay! There are people who just want the certification and we’ll see more of them. They might also want to attend our events or buy a piece of research. They want to engage with us without becoming a member.
My idea of growing the society is in terms of the impact it has on the incentive travel industry. (I would like to see greater) impact on professionals – their education, professionalism and recognition. That’s how I measure success.
Will SITE’s Asian chapters get more active?
We’ll be in Bangkok for a conference from January 11 to 14, 2019.
Asia-Pacific is our area of growth, where Thailand itself is a prime incentive destination.
This will be the first step in revitalising the SITE Thailand Chapter. We had a chapter up until a few years ago, but because we didn’t have any activity in the region, the chapter lapsed. We still have 15 members there, but the threshold is 20. We are looking at the conference as a means to re-energise the chapter.
What would be the single biggest change to SITE you seek to implement during your leadership?
Digital transformation is high on my agenda. We are fairly traditional in delivering our products and services. It’s mainly through events, but there’s a world out there that would be happy to engage with us digitally.
We will be revamping our digital strategy as well as our website. We’ve created a website called Motivate (motivate.siteglobal.com) which looks outwards. Our current website siteglobal.com focuses inwards, towards our community. Motivate is where we’ll put case studies on the power of incentive travel as well as incentive travel research produced by SITE and others. This will help transform SITE into a digital organisation that can reach and be reached 24/7, 365 days a year.
We are also looking at online videos. People now consume online content with the help of videos, so we’re looking into how we can build a SITE TV for example, and add more videos to our Youtube channel.
Local thespians who were part of the Crazy Rich Asians movie. Photo credit: STB
The premiere of the movie Crazy Rich Asians, adapted from the satirical novel by Singaporean–American author Kevin Kwan about the upper echelons of Singapore, has sparked a boost in unique tours and destination promotions for the country.
The movie features an all-Asian cast and portrays scenes in Singapore’s luxurious spaces, as well as down-to-earth neighbourhoods.
Local thespians who were part of the Crazy Rich Asians movie. Photo credit: STB
It serves “to get the conversation going about the real Singapore and pique interest in visiting the country”, said Lynette Pang, assistant chief executive, marketing group, Singapore Tourism Board (STB).
She continued: “(It) is not just about the opulence and luxury showcased in the film, but Singapore’s actual richness in terms of our diversity, as well as the depth and breadth of experiences for both locals and visitors.”
To capitalise on this, trade players have also stepped in to craft unique tours that bring Crazy Rich Asian experiences to reality.
Indus Travels now offers a 12-day Crazy Rich Singapore Culture & Thailand Beaches itinerary that spends four days touring the city’s historic sights, traditional cuisine and natural wonders.
Meanwhile, Wok ‘n’ Stroll has launched the Crazy Rich Asians – Behind the Scenes Food Tour that treats participants to food mentioned in the novel and movie, such as carrot cake, roti prata and Malay cakes at venues like Newton Hawker Centre and Joo Chiat. The three-hour night tour, which provides a shuttle bus for its participants, will also visit more upscale venues like Michelin Bib Gourmand restaurant New Ubin Seafood at CHIJMES and a bar on Keong Saik Road.
“When I first read the book, I knew that must have a food tour about Crazy Rich Asians. Now it’s a 3D experience – there’s the book, the movie and the tour,” said Wok ‘n’ Stroll founder and CEO Karni Tomer.
The tour, which begins its first run this weekend, has already garnered October bookings, revealed Tomer. She added that the tour – which can accommodate up to 13 pax – is “very suitable for corporate groups”. The agency will market the tour through STB.
“When business travellers come to Singapore, they have about three hours (of free time) before their conferences for the whole day. We wanted to give the audience an experience of being a crazy-rich Asian for one evening,” she said.
Sarawak Convention Bureau’s (SCB) use of technology to further enhance delegate experience at business events was evident at the recent Business Events Tribal Meet (TriBE 2018), a homegrown conference to further develop the local meetings, incentives, conference and exhibition industry.
For instance, the delegate registration and check-in process deployed a facial recognition software technology by SCB’s official Event Technology and Solutions Provider Partner, Evenesis.
SCB brings technology into the business of business events
The use of facial scans slashed waiting time drastically, as much of the process was done ahead of the event. Prior to the conference, delegates were asked to upload photographs of themselves as part of the online registration process and these images were used as identification on the day of the event.
Evenesis’ CEO and founder, Yusno Yunos, said this was the first time the facial recognition technology was used in Malaysia. The software was earlier launched at AIME in Melbourne, Australia.
SCB also launched its first 360 Degree Interactive Virtual Reality (VR) Video at the event. This 2.5-minute-long VR video showed locations in Sarawak such as Kuching, Bintulu, Miri and Sibu, as well as the meeting facilities at Borneo Convention Centre Kuching, the only international convention centre in Kuching. This software was developed by the bid team, and it can be customised for event bids, revealed Jamie Wang, head of bids at SCB.
Amelia Roziman, chief operating officer at SCB, added that the VR use was not limited to event bids, as it will also be used at trade events the SCB participates in, at roadshows, or during marketing campaigns.
Also at TriBE 2018, the BESarawak Alliance (BESA) – a platform dedicated to strengthen ties between the bureau, ministries and their agencies, and the private sector – was launched. This platform will help to strengthen Sarawak’s position when bidding for regional and international business events, as well as help to develop Sarawak’s core industries.
Chief minister of Sarawak, Abang Johari Tun Openg has also appointed three Sarawak ministries and two agencies as BESA ambassadors. They are the Ministry of Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development; Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Youth & Sports; Ministry of Modernisation of Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development; Sarawak Multimedia Authority and Sarawak Centre for Performance Excellence.
Chew Chang Guan, general manager, government & industry relations at SCB said the immediate task of the bureau was to set up meetings with the three ministries and two agencies to discuss areas for further collaboration.
To date, the bureau has attracted a total of 30 business events, which are slated to be held in Sarawak over the next three years.
An increasing amount of robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) is being pumped into HRS’ solutions for the hotel value chain, as the company responds to increasing demand for these technologies in the marketplace.
Tobias Ragge, CEO of HRS, told TTGmice: “We’re using a lot of AI in terms of the procurement of hotels, sourcing appropriate alternatives for programmes, and the display logic of booking tools for a corporate traveller based on personal and corporate preferences.
Ragge: trying to create a better solution with the help of technology
“We’re even able now to filter out fraudulent rates, so any time a hotel sends back wrong negotiated rates, we can filter these out of the shopping channels used by travellers.”
Kimi Jiang, vice president Asia Pacific, HRS, added that the solutions are “localised and fine-tuned” for every market in Asia-Pacific in order “to provide for the differing needs of local demand”.
Different target markets in this region include Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, China, Japan and South Korea, and these countries are offered solutions with “an Asian flavour” from the R&D facility in Shanghai, explained Jiang.
Data is also currently helping HRS formulate even better solutions for the corporate travel management space, shared Ragge.
He said: “We’re trying to figure out, with all this data, why the (business) traveller sometimes is not choosing what is proposed by the company. We’re trying to create a better solution, and this is where data comes into play.”
Although reception to new technologies has been welcoming, certain countries are still slow to adopt certain payment formats such as virtual credit cards, said Jiang.
To ensure companies in these areas don’t lose out on data collection, HRS has stepped in to help build up specialised solutions. For example, in China where payment through WeChat and Alipay is the norm, HRS has developed “localised payment solutions” to help hospitality players cater to both global and domestic travellers, and gain insight from traveller data.
Ragge observed: “In general, as long as technology serves a purpose and makes things better, everybody enjoys it. The corporate (planner) doesn’t need to understand the complexities of AI behind the solution, but he can be amazed by the results of the data crunching. The beauty of the sourcing exercise is we identify corporate needs and try to find the right properties with AI.”
For example, a hotel booking tool may be able to shorten a half-day’s search for suitable accommodation to “a minute”, explained Ragge.
JTB Corporation’s Asia Pacific Headquarters (JTB APHQ) will make their exhibition debut at IT&CMA 2018, and is set to engage with buyers and media through a hosted luncheon and Association Day destination presentation.
JTB Thailand and Kobe Convention Bureau will also exhibit alongside JTB APHQ, in a bid to showcase the country’s business events capabilities and PCO services.
A JTB travel agency office in Kyoto, Japan
By hosting a targeted networking luncheon and destination presentation for associations at IT&CMA 2018, JTB is eager to display these competencies.
Mizuho Hara, manager for events & promotions at JTB APHQ, shared: “We already have a well-established MICE programme and network in Japan and wish to raise the awareness of our MICE and DMC solutions to the Asia-Pacific market. Leveraging on the luncheon and presentation will allow us to connect with our target audience within exclusive settings.”
JTB serves Japan’s tourism industry with offices in all 47 prefectures in Japan and from over 1,100 offices in 38 countries, with the group’s global corporate business faction functioning as a leading DMC and PCO for MICE and Business Travel Management in Asia.
IT&CMA 2018 will be held from September 18-20, 2018 at the Bangkok Convention Centre at CentralWorld. It is co-located with the CTW Asia-Pacific – The Leading Corporate Travel Management Conference for the Asia-Pacific.
A rendering of the upcoming lounge at Brisbane International Airport
Australia’s flagship carrier Qantas has announced that it’ll be extending its global lounge improvement programme.
The multi-million dollar programme will see the national carrier upgrade six lounges in Auckland, Brisbane, Hobart, Sydney, Tamworth and Tokyo.
A rendering of the upcoming lounge at Brisbane Airport
Qantas Group CEO Alan Joyce shared that the extended lounge programme would be across international, domestic and regional airports.
He added: “Over the past few years we’ve been steadily renewing lounges right across our network… As the demand for premium travel increases, we’re responding with more space in our lounges, more dining options and designs that reflect the destination.”
The lounge locations are:
Sydney – The flagship Sydney International First lounge will be refreshed and expanded by 15 per cent.
Auckland – The First and Business Lounges in Auckland will be redesigned into a single lounge based on the format of Qantas’ international lounges in London and Hong Kong. Regional inspiration from New Zealand will be incorporated throughout.
Tokyo – The Narita lounge will be refreshed with a new design and improved dining options.
Brisbane – The Brisbane International Lounge will be expanded to cater for an additional 100 guests and completed in early 2019.
Hobart and Tamworth – Both lounges will be completely redesigned with more space and seating.
These announcements are in addition to lounge upgrades currently underway in Melbourne and Sydney. The first phase of the redesigned Melbourne Domestic Business Lounge opened last week, and once complete will feature a Spice Bar serving freshly made Asian street food. Both lounges will be completed by November this year. Qantas is also building a new Sydney International Business Lounge with 35 per cent more seating.
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