Pan Pacific Hotels Group has appointed Chan as area general manager, China and general manager, Pan Pacific Suzhou. He has over 30 years of industry experience spanning China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Philippines and the US. He is no stranger to the Group, having helmed Pan Pacific Ningbo from 2014 to 2016.
O’Keefe is now Carlson Wagonlit Travel’s chief technology officer of hotel distribution. He brings 20 years of technology and software experience, as well as rich expertise and deep knowledge of the travel industry, to his new role. He was most recently chief technology officer for Hyatt Hotels & Resorts.
Caravelle Saigon in Ho Chi Minh City is now helmed by Robinson, who has been promoted from his former position as director of rooms.
Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur had recently completed major refurbishments and renovations carried out in phases over the course of four years and to the tune of RM100 million. The result is a better guest experience for in-house meetings and stays.
Rooms All 420 rooms are now better prepared for the modern traveller. More universal power sockets, two USB socket charges and speedier in-room Wi-Fi (8mbps) are available, along with a 48-inch smart HD LED TV.
My room on the top-most floor, level 35, and on the Club Floor, offered me panoramic views of the city and boasts a convenient layout. For instance, the safe sits under the work table and shelves are built into the tiled wall by the sink for toiletries. And speaking of toiletries, I love that Cinq Mondes, a luxurious line of botanical spa products from Paris, are provided for guests.
MICE facilities I’ve attended several press conferences and meetings at Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur, and have always been impressed by the thoughtfulness that went into the design of the property’s event facilities.
Meeting spaces are clustered for convenience on level six, on a floor called Metropolis. They sit right above Latest Recipe all-day dining restaurant and is serviced by a set of escalators from the fifth floor.
The collection comprises six meeting rooms and a pillarless ballroom. The latter can accommodate up to 600 delegates in a theatre setting, or be divided into two for smaller gatherings.
The refurbishments have given the Metropolis foyer a brighter and more contemporary look. Two interactive kitchens strategically located at the foyer, provide a permanent pantry station where delegates can enjoy limitless variety of snacks, coffee and tea throughout their meetings.
Other facilities In-house facilities include six F&B outlets, a freeform swimming pool, a well-equipped gym and spa facilities.
The Club Lounge on level 33 features an open kitchen with live cooking, a private meeting room for a dozen people and a lounge.
There are also shower rooms for guests who need to freshen up after an early morning arrival, before the usual check-in time, or have a late flight to catch after checking out.
For groups, a dedicated check-in counter can be arranged.
The hotel also provides off-site catering and teambuilding programmes within the Klang Valley.
Carlson Wagonlit Travel has named Brennan its vice president of hotel operations. He most recently served as vice president of field partner management of QSI Facilities.
Pittion is now executive assistant manager of F&B for Sheraton Grand Macao Hotel, Cotai Central and The St. Regis Macao, Cotai Central, having moved from Mandarin Oriental, Hong Kong where he was director of F&B.
Oakwood Asia Pacific has appointed McKie as the new general manager of Oakwood Premier Cozmo Jakarta. He was most recently general manager of Nine Dragons HNA Hotels in Zhejiang, China and was responsible for the Nine Dragons Resort Complex. His extensive career spans 20 years.
Tan now leads Pan Pacific Hotel and Serviced Suites, Ningbo as general manager, having moved from Copthorne Tara Hotel London Kensington where he was also general manager.
Conrad Seoul has named Moore its director of business development. He joins from Hilton Beijing where he held the same title.
From left: An event in Helsinki; a Finnish sauna
While Finland is no stranger to MICE groups, it has been dealing mainly with a European clientele. This, however, is set to change with a recent heightening of efforts to court Asian markets. Rachel AJ Lee reports
Finland wants more Asian MICE groups to visit, a message that inbound players are broadcasting through their recent efforts.
This is evident in the 90 per cent increase in exhibition space taken by Finland at ITB Asia in October 2016, where various local destination bureaus, hotels and DMCs were in attendance.
Heli Mende, head of global sales promotion, Visit Finland, said: “We also organised our own roadshows in China in May, and in South Korea, Japan and Taiwan in September, bringing Finnish companies along with us.
“(While these roadshows are leisure focused) we’re seeing more MICE (buyers) in attendance and showing interest in Finland as a destination. (As such), in 2017 we will invite both leisure and MICE buyers.”
When asked if there was a specific campaign to court MICE groups, Mende said there was none at the moment as the bureau was “monitoring the situation and talking to individual incentive companies”, seeing that there were already “some MICE groups from Asia”.
While Finland is no stranger to MICE groups, the clientele has mostly been European. It was not until recently that companies began courting and handling Asian MICE groups.
Alexei Petrov, managing director of Levi-based Scandinavian Travel Group, told TTGmice: “We have been concentrating on the European markets, and only just started marketing to Asia. I was in Beijing in October 2015, and this is the second time I am meeting a lot of Asian buyers. But we’ve handled a lot of MICE groups from Europe, and we can offer the same experience, where the only difference is the addition of a Chinese-speaking guide. The Asian MICE market is one with a huge growth potential for us.”
Said Aurelie Martin, sales executive of Safartica, a full service safari house and DMC in Rovaniemi: “We’ve had one group of 100 pax from Citibank in Hong Kong. It was our first experience with Asian MICE.”
Seija Vesala, sales team manger, Rukan Salonki, added: “We are very strong in the domestic market but had only four Asian MICE groups. We are looking forward to more Asian groups in the future.”
Leisure travel, on the other hand, has been growing rapidly over the past few years.
Antti Karjalainen, director of sales, Scandi Hotels, added: “We have Asian groups, but these are mainly leisure. There are some incentives, and we see the MICE potential especially from China and Hong Kong. Overall, the Asian market is the fastest-growing market for Finland, with double-digit growth for 2016.”
Karjalainen believes that for Finland to succeed in its MICE quest, it must “tell clients what the opportunities and options are for MICE in Finland”.
One way is by highlighting unique and fresh itineraries, according to Martin. “We need to give clients proper information on what activities can be done in Finland. For example, we transferred the Hong Kong group to their hotel by reindeer, and they had dinner in a snow igloo. These are unusual and exotic activities for (Asian clients).”
While Martin reckons the Asian market “will be huge for Finland and Lapland”, she cautioned about the downsides of mass tourism.
She added: “While we want to welcome everybody, we need to handle them well and maintain quality, and not kill the reputation of the destination.”
Meanwhile, Helsinki attracted 275 international association meetings in 2015, which were attended by more than 35,200 people and generated 66.5 million euros (US$70.4 million) in tourism income for the capital city.
“Congress organisers are clearly interested in Helsinki, and there is a lot of demand for the coming years. We are already working on projects for congresses to be held in 2023,” commented Ines Antti-Poika, convention director, Helsinki Convention & Events Bureau.
Antti-Poika pointed to Helsinki’s reputation for security, high standards of education and technology, and unique tour offerings as other key selling points.
Upcoming international events include the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology in June 2017, and the annual congress of International Federation of Surveyors, FIG Working Week, in May/June 2017.
In 2015, Helsinki’s registered accommodation inventory was 17,074 rooms, 362 more than the previous year, according to statistics published by Visit Helsinki.
In October 2016, the Clarion Hotel Helsinki and the Clarion Hotel Helsinki Airport opened and added 425 and 258 rooms respectively to the capital region.
While no new conference centres are coming up at the moment, Clarion Hotel Helsinki offers 15 meeting rooms, while an old warehouse building adjacent to the hotel has been transformed into an event venue for 1,000 guests.
The Northern Lights is a big draw for incentive
groups arriving in Finland
4
The number of congress and exhibition venues in Helsinki. The largest is the Messukeskus Expo and Convention Centre (for 10,000 pax), while the smallest is the Scandic Marina Congress Center (700 pax)
80
The number of direct weekly flights to Finland from 17 Asian destinations
100
Finland will celebrate its centennial of the country’s declaration of independence on December 6, 2017
1,887
The average expenditure in euros, equivalent to US$2,094, of a single congress visitor to Helsinki
30,000
The number of people who attended international association meetings in Helsinki between May and August 2016
