Asia/Singapore Wednesday, 8th April 2026
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Alba Spa Hotel beckons guests with spa pleasures

By TTGmice
0

The Vietnamese imperial capital of Hue welcomed a new water-themed boutique hotel in March.

The 58-room Alba Spa Hotel features treatments and a mineral water Jacuzzi as a unique selling point. Besides spa treatments designed in collaboration with spa guru Florence Jaffe, the hotel’s 16.5m2 Jacuzzi is partitioned into hot- and cold-water regions and filled with mineral water procured from a natural spring located 30km north of Hue.

Hijaaz Latheef, the hotel’s general manager, noted that “it is rare to find a hot water Jacuzzi and cold plunge pool set up like this”.

“It wasn’t built to make people say, ‘Wow, that’s interesting’. It was built for the same reason people have been going to hot springs for centuries – for the health benefits. Heat helps to our relax muscles and rid our bodies of toxins, while cold stimulates and invigorates,” he said.

Water is also a key element in the hotel’s interior: the bubble-like décor in each room is inspired by water and Alba mineral water is used to water the plants used in the exotic spa treatments.

An attractive option for small-scale corporate incentive groups, the hotel also features a spacious meeting room and will eventually offer a rooftop bar with panoramic views of Hue.

Qantas resumes Perth-Singapore route

By TTGmice
0

Qantas will recommence flights between Perth and Singapore on June 26 following a 13-month hiatus from the route.

The airline will operate five return services weekly on a 168-seat Boeing 737, halving capacity from the former 297-seat A330 aircraft service.

A Qantas spokesperson said the route had ceased operations in May 2014 as part of the company’s A$2 billion (US$1.5 billion) cost reduction programme.

“Since then we’ve turned our international business around, market conditions have changed, and customer demand has increased on the route,” said the spokesperson.

Flight timings were not confirmed at press time, although the spokesperson said the service would arrive in Singapore at 17.20, subject to regulatory approval.

Singapore Marriott Hotel gets a new name and logo

By TTGmice
0

Marking its 20th anniversary, Singapore Marriott Hotel has taken on a new name. The newly christened Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel comes with a new logo too.

Located at the junction of Scotts Road and Orchard Road and within the same building as the iconic Tangs department store, the luxury hotel is a familiar landmark thanks to its columnar body and green pagoda roof.

It completed a S$35 million (US$26.3 million) refurbishment in February 2013, which gave it a refreshed lobby and modernised guestrooms.

ANA offers a premium way to fly

By TTGmice
0

Japanese airline ANA has introduced new travel classes from Singapore, Bangkok and Jakarta to Tokyo in a bid to attract business travellers and in response to rising demand from international passengers.

The airline’s First Class and Premium Economy service via NH802/801 – the latter already popular on flights to Europe and North America and introduced in Asia for the first time – were both launched on the Singapore-Tokyo (Narita) route on March 29.

A fresh face for The Vines Resort

By TTGmice
0

The Vines Resort in Perth, Australia has completed its A$4 million (US$3.1 million) refurbishment, giving all 91 rooms and 12 suites a total makeover.

All guestrooms in the Novotel property now sports modern bathrooms, new furniture, lush soft furnishings, and new beds and manchester. They also feature pod coffee machines, free in-room Wi-Fi, and free in-house movies on demand and selected Foxtel channels.

Views of either the golf course or the courtyard of grape vines are available.

The new design features green, blue and neutral shades, inspired by the surrounding golf courses and bush lands.

Each queen/queen Resort room can sleep four adults comfortably, making the property suitable for corporate groups with a shared room policy.

Conference facilities, lobby, and public and breakout spaces have also been upgraded, while the Keishi Day Spa was launched in January 2014.

Making room for many

By TTGmice
0


Director of sales & marketing, Dennis Kam, shows how
Le Méridien Angkor pulls out all the stops to play host to
the massive 1,000-pax strong UNWTO/UNESCO conference

Event brief

The inaugural UNWTO/UNESCO World Conference on Tourism and Culture was due to take place in early February, which meant that Le Méridien Angkor had about seven months to make preparations when it signed on to host the event back in August 2014. One thousand delegates attended, including ministers and vice ministers of tourism, speakers and guests from 100 countries.

Challenges

We had to postpone other meetings that were booked earlier because priority had to be given to the conference, which was the largest and most high profile ever hosted in Siem Reap.

Space also posed an issue. There was also no readily available venue huge enough that could play host to such a large group of people. Moreover, our kitchen was not large enough to cook all the food required, particularly because there was a lunch hosted by the Korea National Tourism Organisation (KNTO) and they had flown in a culinary team of eight chefs to prepare the banquet. The China National Tourism Administration also hosted a dinner and brought their own chefs.

In addition, our banquet team did not have enough manpower for an event of such a scale.

Solutions

In order not to lose any goodwill among our customers as a result of the inconvenience, we offered value adds to those who chose to postpone their events or agreed to shift to a different venue. We also worked with local tour operators to help the latter group locate alternative venue to make the process as seamless as possible for them.

We tackled the space issue by cooperating with the local tourism authority and relevant ministries to construct an air-conditioned marquee on our grounds to comfortably accommodate the delegates. We also set up a mobile kitchen where the guest chefs could work.

The manpower shortage was solved by getting every member of our staff, including our finance and housekeeping teams, to double up as banquet staff. We also hired 50 to 60 casual staff from the local hospitality school to bolster our numbers. We have an ongoing relationship with the school, where we would employ the students on a casual basis whenever we needed more manpower. Hence, they were familiar with the service standards that were expected of them and all we needed was a ‘dry run’ about a week before the event.

Key takeaways

The success of the event gave us the confidence to bid for bigger and more high profile events because we now know that we can pull it off.

We also realised more than ever that we have to work closely together with industry stakeholders to raise Siem Reap’s reputation as a choice MICE destination.

Cross-cultural exchanges happened all around – our kitchen teams learnt how to prepare Korean dishes from the guest chefs, who in turn acquired a few tips on Cambodian cuisine.

Creative distractions

By TTGmice
0


Two restaurants – Greenhouse and Summer Pavilion – in the east wing of The Ritz-Carlton, Millenia Singapore are undergoing renovations from now until late August, but unless you are a regular at the hotel, you would barely notice it.

The luxury property has put up a wall to shield guests from works being done to the east wing, and in front of that now sits a pop-up French-styled café and an area where five featured artists will paint ‘live’. Four distinct themes have been commissioned to allude to each transformation phase of the restaurants.

The project reflects the hotel’s love for the arts. Did you know it houses more than 4,000 art pieces and offers free self-guided podcast art tours? Well, now you do!

Deconstruction, which ran from March 30 to April 11, featured a 3D painting of Greenhouse being prepped for renovations. It was followed by Curiosity, led by Ernest Zacharevic who hand-painted the famous murals around Penang’s George Town.

Local Chinese brush painting extraordinaire, Monica Chua Ah-Huwa, kicked off The Metamorphic Journey in May, and from June 15-21 you can catch Milica Bravacic-Milla work on a Peranakan themed art installation. The Metamorphic Journey will end with a Colonial themed art piece undertaken by Nanyang Girls’ High School students and Ly Yeow.

The finale in August, The Reveal, will see Karl Kerridge sketch ‘live’ a realistic representation of the interior of the transformed restaurant.

Celebrating local flavours

By Karen Yue
0


ICEM Regional overcomes work culture and language differences
in Japan to deliver a unique incentive event in familiar Tokyo.
By Karen Yue

Event brief

It was in mid-September 2014 when Malaysian telecommunication giant, DiGi, contracted Kuala Lumpur-based event specialist, ICEM Regional, as the planner for its incentive campaign. The campaign was aimed at rewarding top dealers with an exciting and memorable trip to Tokyo in end-November.

Challenges

According to Lim Pei Pei, head of sales at ICEM Regional, the client had ordered a “money can’t buy experience” for its top achievers.

“However, Japan, and Tokyo for this matter, is not a new destination for any traveller. To plan something out of the ordinary in Tokyo is pretty challenging,” Lim said.

Adding to the challenge was the Japanese culture of conformity. “The Japanese culture holds rules in high regard and its people do things by the book, so it was difficult to execute out-of-the-box ideas. It took some getting used to, as in this part of Asia we are able to get things done and done quicker by perhaps paying a premium,” she shared.

Solutions 

To overcome language differences, and more importantly work culture differences, ICEM Regional engaged a Japanese agency which was managed by a Malaysian.

Lim explained: “He understood both the Malaysian and Japanese cultures, and acted as our go-between. He knew what Malaysian travellers wanted – as well as what we wanted for our client – and balanced that with what is achievable in Tokyo. He was also our solution to language issues when communicating with local suppliers.”

In the end, ICEM Regional was able to deliver a memorable programme that met with DiGi’s expectations. The main draw of the incentive trip was the food experience. Activities highlighted local experiences and they included a sushi-making class, a treasure hunt for Japanese tidbits and knickknacks around the retail and dining space within the sprawling Shinjuku Station, and a DIY barbeque dinner in the middle of the city, set under marquees in an open space.

Lim described the outdoor barbeque dinner as a “wonderful experience especially during cooler seasons”.

Delegates also visited the office of fellow telecommunication company, NTT Docomo, and went on an outlet shopping spree.

Key takeaways

Looking back, Lim said “lots of patience were needed” during the planning process.

“We learnt that we need to trust the Japanese to deliver high quality services even if it was a little difficult to get required information or confirmation for our requests earlier on. A give-and-take attitude will go a long way. Also, working closely with the client is always necessary to ensure requirements are delivered smoothly,” she shared.

She added that when the itinerary offered unique experiences, the client would be more willing to “pay a little more”.

Daniella Tonetto

By TTGmice
0

Daniella Tonetto is now general manager of sales and marketing with The St. Regis Macao, Cotai Central and Sheraton Macao Hotel, Cotai Central. Tonetto has been with Starwood Hotels & Resorts for more than 20 years.

Michael Lee & Yip Lai Pheng

By TTGmice
0

Frasers Hospitality has appointed Michael Lee its new general manager for Fraser Residence Kuala Lumpur and Yip Lai Pheng its new group director of sales and marketing. Prior to joining Fraser Residence Kuala Lumpur, Lee was general manager of Asta Hotel in Shenzhen and Zhuhai, China. Yip will lead the sales and marketing team of both Fraser Place Kuala Lumpur and Fraser Residence Kuala Lumpur.

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TTG Asia TTGmice TTG India TTGssociations TTG Asia Luxury
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