Despite the Abu Sayyaf incident in Bohol in April, and the recent kidnapping threat in Palawan, Philippine MICE specialists say most business events and incentive groups from South-east Asia are still choosing to proceed with their travel plans to the destination.

John Emsermann, director of Select Travel Services, told TTGmice: “We’ve got so many other destinations (in the Philippines) to choose from. If I have a client that is afraid of Palawan, I’ll send them to Cebu or one of the other destinations. For me, there has been no drop in my MICE business at all as groups merely tend to avoid the problem areas.”

Boracay

“We are an archipelago, it is not possible to terrorise the whole country at one go,” agreed Marjorie Aquino, senior sales & marketing manager, Blue Horizons Travel & Tours.

But for Aquino, she indicated that her company does receive cancellations because of travel advisories and warnings.

She said: “For example, we were supposed to have an educational group trip to Bohol in April, which was the same time as the Abu Sayyaf incident, but because of a travel warning, they decided to pull out. There were a few other Bohol-bound groups that cancelled as well.”

However, Aquino stressed that there was a difference between travel advisories and travel warnings.

“If you say warning, it means clients shouldn’t visit. If it is an advisory, clients still have options to push through with their tour. On our part as a DMC, we will update our partner agents on what’s happening in the Philippines as soon as we get the news,” Aquino pointed out.

Similar to Emsermann, Antonio Ang, general manager of Ang’s Tour, said that for his company, his clients are still choosing the Philippines, but they “just avoid the problem areas”.

When asked where they were going instead, Ang said: “We have Malaysian, Thai and Vietnamese incentive groups that are heading to Cebu, Boracay and Manila.”

On the ground in Palawan, Jennifer Resurreccion, sales manager – corporate of Sheridan Beach Resort & Spa in Puerto Princesa, said: “Business in Palawan is still the same, the kidnapping is just a rumour. We haven’t had any cancellations for our MICE groups. As well, the department of tourism has released a memo stating that it is safe to visit Palawan.”

In fact, business has been growing for the 95-room resort, where it expects 75 additional rooms to come online in August. Event spaces on the property include a convention hall good for 500 pax theatre-style, two meeting rooms for 25 pax each, as well as a beach front, garden, gazebo and poolside area.

Aquino concluded: “Security issues and numerous threats happen everywhere. It’s just a matter of people being vigilant, but the destination can also help (alleviate fears by) heightening their security.”

The Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre’s (the Centre) director of sales & marketing, Angeline van den Broecke, has been appointed to the Professional Convention Management Association’s (PCMA) Asia-Pacific Advisory Board.

Van den Broecke commented: “The formation of the regional board provides the perfect platform for us to generate greater exposure and awareness of Asia-Pacific’s advancement as an important player in the global meetings industry and with this growth comes the need for access to education and professional development programmes that can strengthen the capacity of associations, bureaux, venues and more broadly, the business events industry supply chain. We see this advancement as an important part of conveying the value of the business events and this will in turn also benefit Malaysia and the Centre.”

Angeline van den Broecke

According to PCMA’s chief operating officer, Sherrif Karamat: “The establishment of our new European, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and the Asia-Pacific, Regional Advisory Boards is a signal of our intent to become the predominant global association for the business events industry.”

He added: “We believe our advisory boards will help us refine our regional strategies and are very confident that the chosen members will guide us in our rollout of educational products and services that will benefit the business events industry.”

The Incentive, Conference & Event Society Asia Pacific (ICESAP) and AccorHotels have jointly launched the first ICESAP Agency Accreditation Scheme and the Certification in Incentive, Conference and Event Management, a distance-learning programme for the business events industry.

As the principal partner, AccorHotels will work with ICESAP on improving training standards, supporting education and advancing best practices throughout the sector.

Nigel Gaunt

“The partnership will help strengthen our commitment to professionalising the MICE industry in Asia-Pacific, giving our staff access to the best training in the market in addition to our own accredited Academie Accor,” said Kerry Healey, vice president of sales Asia-Pacific, AccorHotels.

Nigel Gaunt, president of ICESAP, said: “The accreditation from ICESAP provides the industry with a consistent set of standards to follow and a strong foundation for raising the quality and professionalism of organisations in the industry. It also enables end-users to more confidently navigate through the process of researching, appointing and managing event agencies.”

The ICESAP Agency Accreditation Scheme will allow corporate end-users the ability to confidently identify and contract event agencies that meet the stringent accreditation standards. The scheme will assess an agency’s policies, processes, management and staff competencies, as well as conduct a third-party probity and due diligence check on company directors.

Poland, Slovakia, Czech Republic and Hungary have identified business events from first-tier cities in China as their next target.

Daiqi Xing, marketing manager at the Polish National Tourist Office in Beijing, told TTGmice that since Chinese president Xi Jinping’s visit to Poland last year, there had been more interest in investment opportunities in Poland especially in the manufacturing and textile sectors, which would give rise to business travel and meetings from China.

Prague’s Old Town Square

At ITB China, Xing had also noted keen interest from Chinese buyers in organising exhibitions, meetings and incentives in Poland.

Zsuzsa Vincze, senior foreign affairs advisor for Hungarian Tourism Agency, said Central Europe is promoted as one destination with Vienna as the international hub, as it makes the whole region more attractive for the Chinese longhaul visitor.

Vincze opined that Central Europe’s appeal lies in the UNESCO World Heritage sites, chateaus, castles, clean air, beautiful scenery and abundance of health spas surrounded by nature.

For small and medium-sized groups, access to historical sites as unique venues add to the destination appeal.

Easy border crossings for the four destinations via well connected roads and rails and the convenience of the Schengen visa are further advantages, according to Lucia Kasanicka, state counsellor, marketing and promotion section, directorate general of tourism, ministry of transport and construction of the Slovak Republic.

Kasanicka said Central Europe appeals to Chinese delegates who have already been to Western Europe and are looking for a fresh option.

Central Europe’s affordability compared with Western Europe also helps draw interest. According to Kasanicka, a room in a five-star hotel in any Central European capital cost half the price of a similar property in Western Europe.

She said: “You can get a five-star hotel for 120 to 150 euros in Central Europe, while the same in Vienna would cost around 300 euros.”

Kasanicka observed that spring and summer are the most popular seasons for Chinese incentive groups, due to the pleasant weather which is perfect for wine tours. Furthermore, festivals are in abundance during spring and summer, such as the Folk Festival in Slovakia (June/July) and the Sausage & Wine Festival in Budapest (July).

Vincze said Central Europe is ready to welcome groups of under 1,000 delegates and the region is targeting first-tier Chinese cities through its own B2B roadshows, the most recent one being held in October 2016. A fam trip for Chinese media and tour operators from Shanghai will be organised this July.

Central Europe’s destination promotion efforts are currently supported by a sales and marketing representative in Beijing.

Adelaide-based All Occasions Group (AOG) has been named the event manager for the World Fisheries Congress 2020 (WFC2020).

The congress will be led by Primary Industries and Regions SA, in partnership with AOG, on behalf of the Australian Society for Fish Biology and the broader Australian and New Zealand seafood industry.

Anne-Marie Quinn

As the conference organiser, AOG’s responsibilities include budget management, marketing and communications, venue management, event management, exhibition management, sponsorships, and travel requirements for delegates.

Anne-Marie Quinn, AOG’s CEO, said: “We will be working alongside the WFC2020 Steering Committee to bring an expected 1,500 national and international delegates to Adelaide to learn about and foster cooperation in fisheries science, conservation and management. We anticipate that similar to the 2014 World Aquaculture Conference, delegates will also visit South Australia’s regional fisheries and aquaculture sites.”

“Delegates will enjoy insightful presentations, information on the latest technological advances in fisheries and an inspiring forum for debate and discussion on critical developments needed to ensure the future sustainable development of the world’s oceans and rivers,” added Quinn.

The three Marco Polo Hotels in Hong Kong’s Tsim Sha Tsui district are offering event organisers who book with either of the properties a complimentary MacBook Air, iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 plus.

To qualify, event organisers have to confirm a minimum of 20 rooms on any one day that is held on or before September 30, 2017, as well as a function room booking, totalling to a minimum of HK$250,000 (US$32,105). For accommodation with function room with a total minimum spending of HK$130,000 a complimentary iPad or smartwatch will be offered instead.

The three Marco Polo hotels’ full-day and half-day meeting packages include complimentary use of an LCD projector and high-speed Wi-Fi.

Marco Polo Hongkong Hotel is equipped with 14 function rooms which includes the Centenary Room on the lobby level, and meeting venues Fung Shui, Jade and Lotus Rooms on Level 6. The fourth level of the hotel features two multipurpose function rooms – Bauhinia and Orchid – which can be divided into smaller spaces for intimate gatherings or private corporate events.

Meanwhile, Gateway Hotel offers four function rooms with colour-themed names – Noire, Ocher, Fuchsia and Turquoise, while Prince Hotel features two event spaces.

This promotion runs from now until June 30, 2017.

For further information, please contact mice.hkh@marcopolohotels.com or (852) 2113 3231.

The Hong Kong Exhibition & Convention Industry Association (HKECIA) will hold its HKECIA Conference and 27th Annual Dinner on June 2, 2017 at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Centre.

Themed Success, Sustainability and the Future, the conference will look at some of Hong Kong’s most successful organisers, how they made it happen and how their events are likely to evolve in the future.

Top speakers secured for the programme include Craig Pepples, CEO, Global Sources; Stanley Chu, chairman, Adsale Exhibition Services; Robbie McRobbie, deputy CEO, Hong Kong Rugby Union; Daben Mao, executive deputy general manager, Exhibition Operation Center, China Merchants Real Estate (Shenzhen); and Monica Lee-Müller, managing director, Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre (Management).

The conference will take place at meeting rooms S426-S427 and be followed by the annual dinner at the Chancellor Room. Tickets go at HK$250 (US$32.19, member) and HK$300 (non-member) for the conference segment; HK$650 and HK$800 for the dinner segment; and for both, HK$700 and HK$900.

Serko, an integrated online travel and expense management solution provider for businesses, has announced a new strategic partnership with HRS Global Hotel Solutions.

The partnership gives Serko customers the ability to book their own negotiated rates and HRS’ exclusive corporate discounted rates through both Serko Online and serko.travel platforms. As well, Serko clients can utilise HRS’ array of end-to-end service offerings to optimise their hotel programmes. HRS’ digital payment and integrated meetings management solutions are also available to Serko’s clients via this partnership.

Furthermore, the agreement enables Serko to further extend its offering of global hotel content, making it one of the single largest hotel metasearch platforms for corporate programmes. Currently, HRS’ global inventory includes 350,000 corporate-relevant hotels – 210,000 of which are independent properties.

Darrin Grafton, Serko’s CEO, said: “Working with HRS lays another major foundation for Serko to expand outside of Australasia. We see this as more than just a hotel content partnership but a strategic initiative that will bring measurable direct and indirect benefits to our clients through additional value-added services. It enables us to continue to execute on our vision of a single platform that can book and change any travel source required by a business traveller.”

For HRS, the Serko relationship allows the company to grow its presence in the region. Joint customers will have access to global corporate hotel content through a single source, incorporating the exclusive HRS discounts as well as Australian and New Zealand hotel content from The Lido Group, which partnered HRS in 2016.