Asia Vacations - Travel, Tourism - Info & Review

Photo: Tim Wang When Marriott's acquisition of Starwood is completed this summer, the combined group will significantly increase its luxury footprint in Asia, said executives speaking at two separate press events during ILTM Asia, being held now in Shanghai.  Ritz-Carlton currently has 25 properties open across the region, including two Reserves and one Bulgari, while St. Regis has 15 properties online, and another 14 in the pipeline. Jim Petrus, global brand leader for the latter, noted a Maldives property will open later this year, Shanghai at the end of this year or Q1 2017, and Changsha in the same period. As a result of the deal, there will be hotels from both brands in Langkawi, where St. Regis just opened and a Ritz-Carlton is in the works. Based on current properties and projects the brands list as under development on their websites, there could be 50 properties in Asia by 2022. One unanswered question is how the combined luxury and lifestyle brands of the two be

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AMADEUS Asia Pacific President Albert Pozo said that, even with the region susceptible to health, economic and political issues, they continued to see strong growth in its travel and tourism industry. Pozo, who took over the reins of Amadeus Asia-Pacific operations only last year, regularly shuffles himself in the 35 markets they are present in the region, as they maintain their position as the leading provider of advanced technology solutions to the travel industry. "The travel industry is sensitive to unrest.  Critical situations affect travel but they also normalizes" Pozo said, while citing the Asian financial crisis of 1997 and the severe acute respiratory-syndrome outbreak in 2003. Currently, tension is rising with several countries in the region embroiled in conflicting claims over the West Philippine Sea. However, the Spanish-born Pozo, who has been with Amadeus for 23 years, still sees an upward trend in travel to the region. "We see Asian countri

⌂Home Mail Search News Sports Finance Celebrity Weather Answers Flickr Mobile More⋁ Politics Movies Music TV Groups Style Beauty Tech Shopping Try Yahoo Finance on Firefox » Skip to Navigation Skip to Main content Skip to Right rail 👤 Sign in ✉ Mail ⚙ Help Account Info Help Suggestions Source: NetSuite Accelerates Business Growth In Asia

Lending Bank Rakyat Indonesia ( BRI ) is tapping into the potential of more Indonesians traveling around Southeast Asia with a recent partnership with the region's largest budget carrier, AirAsia. Passengers of Indonesia AirAsia will be able to pay for their flights using the many payment options provided by BRI, from physical branch offices to ATM machines, as well as mobile and internet banking. AirAsia's website will also have its own BRI channel for payment. Indonesia AirAsia CEO Sunu Widyatmoko expects the ASEAN Economic Community ( AEC ) to further increase passengers from smaller cities traveling abroad for employment and business. The AEC, which recently came into being although implementation is ongoing, will allow for freer movement of people, goods and services in the near future. "We fully support the implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community and we see a large potential for transportation in the future with the free movement of people," he said

AMADEUS Asia Pacific President Albert Pozo said that, even with the region susceptible to health, economic and political issues, they continued to see strong growth in its travel and tourism industry. Pozo, who took over the reins of Amadeus Asia-Pacific operations only last year, regularly shuffles himself in the 35 markets they are present in the region, as they maintain their position as the leading provider of advanced technology solutions to the travel industry. "The travel industry is sensitive to unrest.  Critical situations affect travel but they also normalizes" Pozo said, while citing the Asian financial crisis of 1997 and the severe acute respiratory-syndrome outbreak in 2003. Currently, tension is rising with several countries in the region embroiled in conflicting claims over the West Philippine Sea. However, the Spanish-born Pozo, who has been with Amadeus for 23 years, still sees an upward trend in travel to the region. "We see Asian countri

WASHINGTON: The National Mall, the iconic lawn stretching from the U.S. Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial, has become so crowded with commemorative monuments that even the most ambitious tourists find it hard to visit them all in one day. The backdrop for countless political protests and visits by world leaders, the park is packed with imposing memorials ranging from the tall white spire commemorating George Washington to the imposing black wall honoring Vietnam War dead. As these memorials cluster ever-closer together and draw additional millions of visitors each year, the Mall's custodians have launched a search for new ways to pay tribute to historical figures and events in the U.S. capital. "The Mall is now considered by Congress to be a completed work of civic art," Marcel Acosta, executive director of the National Capital Planning Commission, said in an interview. That raises a problem, he said: "How are we going to accommodate all of the other events,

Dubai/Pakistan Travel Report - April 2016 In line with our process of being on the ground in the countries we invest in, Thomas Hugger and Ruchir Desai traveled to Dubai to attend a Pakistan Investor Conference. Though we usually write travel reports when we visit one of the countries we invest in, this time we traveled to Dubai to meet Pakistani companies. Not that we would not like to visit Pakistan (which we have done in the past) as the investor conference was a good way to meet a number of companies in a span of two days. Before writing more about Pakistani companies or about the country, Dubai is quite a well-organised place (think Singapore) and the Dubai International Financial Centre "DIFC" where the conference was held is very conveniently located which is about a twenty minute drive from the airport. The DIFC has attracted a fair number of businesses to set up shop there and one can see a pretty big expat population at the DIFC. Dubai gets a large number

Ahead of the Rio Olympics this summer, Pernod Ricard Travel Retail Asia launched spirit drink Ballantine's Brasil in the region. Pernod Ricard has extended the distribution of Ballantine's Brasil into Asia travel retail Made from Scotch whisky selectively cask-steeped in Brazilian lime peel, Ballantine's Basil was first launched in Europe in 2013 as a 35% abv "spirit drink". The product is now also available from selected travel retailers in Asia at an RRP of US$22. Pernod Ricard Asia Travel Retail describes Ballantine's Brasil as "an innovative fusion of the traditions of Scotland mixed with the passions of Brazil". Its signature serve, Highland Samba, is a mix of Ballantine's Brasil and lemonade, served over ice and topped with two freshly-cut slices of lime. "There is a huge opportunity for spirit drinks that are made with whisky, as it's an exceptionally dynamic new category that is already demonstrating a strong rate

LOL! OMG! BEST DATE E-V-E-R B. Barry Bamz, the Baron of Badass and King of Cool, is currently having one of the most radical vacays ever! He's been all over Asia this week getting his drank and swerve on with all the Chineses, and Japaneses, and Vietnameses, proving that you don't have to be LAME even if you are a lame duck or the popular but incorrect usage of lame duck, which is what our man here is. It only took seven years, but our Party Commander in Chief is FINALLY working on his pivot to Asia. Remember a long time ago when he was talking about rebootin' all the computin' systems, making our enemies our friends, and our friends our BESTEST friends? He had a bit of a rough start with all that healthcare business, and Syria business, and schalacking business, and Bin Laden business, but we KNEW he'd get around to it eventually! Those other lamestream media jerks were just trying to bring the man down before he even had the chance to strut his stuff. ¡NO ES BU

In search of ways that could make even the preparation of a holiday feel like a vacation, FMT discovers an easier way to get our money changed to foreign currency. VIDEO INSIDE PETALING JAYA: For avid travellers, one is always looking around for the right place to get the best foreign currency rates for our ringgit. Finding it is one thing, but getting there is an altogether different proposition with the traffic jam and parking issues. So, imagine the simplicity of being able to buy any currency via an app on your smartphone, getting the best possible rate for it, and then collect it at your own convenience. FMT, in search of ways that could make even the preparation of a holiday feel like a vacation, had stumbled upon Merchantrade Asia's eForex app. In our attempt to find out more about this service, we went straight to the source. "eForex is an online money exchange solution. It is a flexible solution for our customers where they can exchange money at

By Lakshman Ratnapala - Emeritus President & CEO Of PATA Sri Lanka tourism celebrates the Golden Jubilee of the founding of the (then) Ceylon Tourist Board in 1966, with a commemorative event at the BMICH on Friday, May 27 and will issue a celebratory volume and a special stamp to mark the event. It has every reason for joyous celebration, for in these fifty years the national travel and tourism industry has made giant strides from being a small industry with hope, to become today the country's fourth biggest industry in terms of earnings for the national exchequer and will soon become the third biggest, with the prospect of becoming the biggest, sooner than many expect. Even as we celebrate, it behooves us to reflect upon what our beginnings were and, indeed, our genesis. On this happy occasion let us look back on who our friends were and who helped us to get this far to where we are. The relationship between Sri Lanka tourism and PATA – the Pacific Asia Travel Associa

On the sunny shores of Cenderawasih Bay in Indonesia, local squid fishermen spend months on rickety wooden platforms, hoping to land as many large catches as possible. These platforms often attract an abundance of marine life, which in turn draws the attention of whale sharks, considered good luck by the local people. A whale shark's visit also proved to be good luck for Italian photographer Alex Varani, who managed to photograph an encounter with one of these gentle giants in Cenderawasih Bay. This striking image, illustrating a unique meeting of the worlds of man and nature, took the top prize in Travel Photographer Asia's 2016 Photo Contest, winning Varani over RM20,000 worth of prizes. Varani's prize-winning picture, along with many others of the landscapes, cultures and peoples of Asia, will be on display during Travel Photographer Asia's exhibition of the Best 50 Photographs of Asia, which will be showing at White Box, Publika in Kuala Lumpur, on May 26. "I

Leading New York design house Coach stated its commitment to the Asia/Pacific region for its Modern Luxury shop renovation. By the summer of 2016, Coach will have over 25% of its Asian travel-retail shop fleet fitted out with the new concept. Coach International divisional vice-president of sales Paulo Colino commented: "Coach has a very strong interest and stake in travel-retail in Asia/Pacific. We currently have a presence in 15 countries, with a total of nearly 80 shops – including airport, downtown, and cruise ship locations. "The performance of the renovated stores have been very strong and the concept has been extremely well received by the Asian consumer. We are pleased with the progress we have made updating the stores and we expect to have nearly half of our shops remodelled in the region by the summer of next year." "We are looking to expand our presence in areas where we can fully execute our Modern Luxury concept and provide consumers with a tr

Published: 24/05/16 Source: ©The Moodie Davitt Report By Helen Pawson, Brands Editor Ballantine's Brasil has a price point of US$22 Pernod Ricard Asia Travel Retail has introduced Ballantine's Brasil to Asia travel retail, following its launch in Europe. Made with Scotch whisky cask steeped with Brazilian lime peel, the spirit is said to represent the fusion of the traditions of Scotland mixed with the passion of Brazil. Featuring citrus and vanilla, Ballantine's Brasil claims to provide a smooth taste. The signature serve, the 'Highland Samba', is a mix of Ballantine's Brasil and lemonade, served over ice and topped with two slices of lime. Source: Ballantine's Brasil launches in Asia travel retail ahead of Olympics

Yang Hai Lu and Zhen Rong Zhang are turning to the restaurant business after briefly flirting with retirement. The husband-and-wife team plans to open Bento Go, a fast-casual Asian restaurant June 1 in an old Wendy's storefront at 2226 W. Henderson Road. (It was the second oldest Wendy's in the locally based chain. It has since relocated to a new building farther east on Henderson.) They have freshened up the interior and added new signage that includes their trademark smiling cat. The menu centers on healthy, homemade fare. The couple operated China King for 20 years in the Franklinton neighborhood before selling it in 2013, with the hopes of slowing down in their personal lives. Lu and Zhang went to China for a vacation. They visited the family's vacation home in Pennsylvania. "I took him fishing one time," said his daughter, Hei Ling "Annie" Loo. "He's very impatient." "Very boring," Lu, 63, said of retirement.

Southeast Asia travel portal One Click to Asia (OCTA) believe that the rainy season is a great time to travel to Laos – and they're putting their money where their mouth is by offering a Good Weather Guarantee! (TRAVPR.COM) LAOS - May 23rd, 2016 - Southeast Asia travel portal One Click to Asia (OCTA) believe that the rainy season is a great time to travel to Laos – and they're putting their money where their mouth is by offering a Good Weather Guarantee! From 1 April to 31 October 2016, any travellers who book a minimum 7-night trip to Laos with OCTA will get a partial refund if their holiday is disrupted by heavy rain – for every day of 3 hours' or more continuous rain, the clients will receive a refund of 50% of their daily trip cost. The refund will be in the form of actual cash handed over to the travellers during their stay, rather than a post-trip refund or credit for future trips. "When travellers read the phrase 'rainy season', they immediately th

(CNN) - President Barack Obama is making his 10th visit to Asia this week, a reflection of his insistence on moving American foreign policy focus away from traditional hotspots in the Middle East and Europe and toward the populous nations on the other side of the Pacific Ocean. Yet, even as the President arrived early Monday for stops in Vietnam and Japan, including Hiroshima, over the new few days, new threats of terror continue to consume White House foreign policy efforts. The crash of EgyptAir Flight 804, which disappeared over the Mediterranean Sea on Thursday and which U.S. officials suspect was brought down by terrorists, has provided another reminder of the distractions Obama faces in his latest attempt to pivot toward the Asia Pacific. "We obviously have enormous economic and national security interests in the Asia Pacific region, just as we have a profound and enduring interest in preventing any acts of terrorism," said Ben Rhodes, Obama's deputy nation

WTM Connect Asia ran from 18-20 May The inaugural WTM Connect Asia event drew to a close in Malaysia on Friday. As the first ever World Travel Market-branded event in Asia, this three-day trade show gathered buyers and sellers from more than 30 countries, including China, the US, UK, Germany and several ASEAN states. Over the course of the final two days (19 & 20 May), more than 1,800 buyer-seller meetings took place, while other events included fam trips for hosted buyers and networking sessions, such as a beachfront gala dinner at Shangri-La's Rasa Sayang Resort & Spa. Charlie Cracknell, senior exhibition director for Reed Travel Exhibitions, which organises the WTM events, said that initial feedback from delegates had been positive. "We have been del ighted with the feedback from both exhibitors and buyers alike who report highly productive and quality business meetings providing real ROI," he stated. "The event has been enhanced further from exceptiona

Orlando once again topped Cvent's annual list of the United States' top 50 destinations for meetings and events. The meetings technology provider analyzes activity initiated through its hotel sourcing and RFP tools to determine market leaders and this year included Europe, the Middle East and Africa as a region—it previously featured just Europe—and debuted a list for Asia/Pacific. Cvent's Top 10 U.S. Meetings Destinations 1. Orlando, FL2. Chicago, IL3. Las Vegas, NV4. Atlanta, GA5. San Diego, CA6. New York, NY7. Washington, D.C.8. Dallas, TX9. Nashville, TN10. New Orleans, LA On the U.S. front, Chicago landed the No. 2 spot this year, behind Orlando, with Las Vegas rounding out the top three. No surprises there, as these convention cities vie for the top three spots year after year. Orlando has taken the first place four of the five years Cvent has provided U.S. rankings. Nashville was the only potential surprise among the top 10 U.S. meetings destinations, bu

Travel May. 21, 2016 - 06:39AM JST ( ) HONG KONG — According to a new Amadeus report featuring data from Tourism Economics, Asia Pacific's luxury travel market will see faster overall growth than Europe's from 2011 – 2025. North America and Western Europe lead the world's luxury travel market – accounting for 64% of global outbound luxury trips despite only making up 18% of the world's population. However, the Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) in luxury outbound trips for Asia Pacific from 2011 – 2025, projected at 6.3%, will be higher than Europe (5.3%). Leading the region are India and China, with a CAGR of 12.8% and 12.2% respectively. India's projected growth in luxury travel is the highest of the 25 countries explored in this report and presents great potential for luxury travel investment over the coming decade. The report further finds that growth in luxury travel will outpace overall travel, spurred on by consumers' desire for life expe