THE REGION'S booming online travel market has pushed Expedia, Inc. and AirAsia to join forces and establish a 50:50 joint venture company, said to be the first of its kind between a low-cost carrier and an online travel agent.
Under the agreement announced today, a new company will be formed to operate Expedia-branded businesses in Japan, India, South-east Asia and other East Asian markets, as well as AirAsia's packaging and hotel booking websites, AirAsiaGo and GoRooms.
The joint venture will have the exclusive online third-party distribution rights in the region for AirAsia and AirAsiaX flights and travel packages. In addition, Expedia will also be the exclusive third-party travel provider for AirAsia inventory on its sites worldwide.
At the helm of the Singapore-based company is vice president and managing director of Expedia Asia Pacific, Dan Lynn, who will be relocating from Sydney.
Said the new CEO: “Expedia brings global strength in our supplier relationships, a very strong technology background and an understanding of online marketing. AirAsia complements that with its unique understanding of the Asian markets, its very compelling and unique inventory that is low-price but high-quality and its very deep understanding of social media.”
AirAsia Group CEO, Tony Fernandes, said: “We think we have a 'Rolls-Royce partner' here. (Expedia is) going to take our content around the world, which will help AirAsia and AirAsiaX promote our flights in markets that we haven't reached before. Plus, we'll be able to get new ancillary income.”
When asked if the partnership would cannibalise sales on AirAsia's own website, he said: “Who cares? AirAsia.com is a site that's always trying to cope. Everytime we have a sale, our system falls over even though we double, triple, quadruple the capacity. We can't cope with the demand. That's why I said there's no problem sharing some of that.”
Fernandes explained that the Expedia and AirAsia sites would be branded differently and target separate market segments. For example, Expedia may be more dominant in certain countries like Japan, where it is already established, while AirAsiaGo would be bigger in China.
Calling this new venture Expedia's “Asia organisation”, president of Expedia Worldwide, Scott Durchslag, said: “This is going to offer a much more efficient and effective alternative for consumers to travel, so I think it will have a significant impact on traditional, offline travel agents. This is a big leap forward in terms of what's possible.”
Expedia, which rolled out its Singapore website last month, launched its Malaysia and Thailand products today. It will continue to run a full-service business, offering other airline content.
Source : TTG
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Showing posts with label Online. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Online. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Yahoo! lists Penang among world’s top 10
An online travel guide has picked Penang as one of the top 10 islands in the world “you must see before you die.”
Yahoo! Travel writer Gary McKechnie ranks Penang eighth on the list of the “must visit” places.Other islands listed are Bali, Vieques in Puerto Rico, Easter Island in Chile, Ischia in the bay of Naples (Italy), Chiloe in Chile, Bora Bora in French Polynesia, Key West in the Conch Republic, Galapagos in Ecuador and Palm Islands in Dubai.
These destinations offered something that could not be found anywhere else, said McKechnie in his article ‘10 Islands to Explore Before You Die’ (http://travel.yahoo.com/p-interests-37926474).
He praised Penang as Malaysia’s food capital and suggested that visitors did their “food crawl” along George Town’s street stalls.
He recommended that foodies head to the area adjacent to the Kek Lok Si Temple in Ayer Itam to feast on delicious food of rice, noodles, fish, shellfish, chicken, pork and vegetables. He also suggested visitors try out lor bak, lok-lok and ikan bakar.
On the local architecture, he described Penang as having a range of modern high-rise buildings to 19th-century British architecture.
He also pointed out a mix of beach resorts, preserved mangroves, fishing villages, temples, mosques and churches.
“Kek Lok Si was the best example as the largest Buddhist temple in South-East Asia,” he said.
Source : STAR
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Thursday, January 06, 2011
http://www.shoppingnsales.com/2011/01/06/11-13-march-2011-matta-fair-2011/
Travel-related expenditure like purchase of airline tickets and accommodation is the top online spend category for Malaysian Internet users, according to a Visa consumer survey.
The 2010 Visa e-Commerce Consumer Monitor found that 82% of Malaysian respondents bought airline tickets over the Internet, and 72% purchased travel accommodation online over the past 12 months.
The survey was based on 3,516 online interviews with regular Internet users in six growing e-commerce markets – China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and Thailand.
Respondents from Malaysia reported spending an average of RM6,297 online in the past 12 months. Of this, an average of RM865 was for online purchase of airline tickets, RM473 on travel accommodation and RM456 with online travel agents.
Malaysia Visa country manager Stuart Tomlinson said online booking for air tickets, purchase of financial services or electrical appliances are getting more common and many Malaysian online shoppers feel it is more convenient to shop on the Internet as they can compare prices easily and shop at a time that is convenient to them from home.
"From the survey, we also know that 35% of Malaysian respondents rated payment security as the most important factor when transacting online. Visa provides cardholders with an added layer of security with Verified by Visa with one-time passwords.
"Consumers can make online purchases with their Visa card, with the reassurance that their data will be processed securely, regardless of whether they shop at local or overseas websites," Tomlinson said.
Malaysia is ranked No 3 in online shopping with the average amount spent online in the past 12 months at US$2,006, behind Taiwan and China at US$4,041 and US$2,557, respectively, among the six countries surveyed.
Source : TheSun
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
The 2010 Visa e-Commerce Consumer Monitor found that 82% of Malaysian respondents bought airline tickets over the Internet, and 72% purchased travel accommodation online over the past 12 months.
The survey was based on 3,516 online interviews with regular Internet users in six growing e-commerce markets – China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan and Thailand.
Respondents from Malaysia reported spending an average of RM6,297 online in the past 12 months. Of this, an average of RM865 was for online purchase of airline tickets, RM473 on travel accommodation and RM456 with online travel agents.
Malaysia Visa country manager Stuart Tomlinson said online booking for air tickets, purchase of financial services or electrical appliances are getting more common and many Malaysian online shoppers feel it is more convenient to shop on the Internet as they can compare prices easily and shop at a time that is convenient to them from home.
"From the survey, we also know that 35% of Malaysian respondents rated payment security as the most important factor when transacting online. Visa provides cardholders with an added layer of security with Verified by Visa with one-time passwords.
"Consumers can make online purchases with their Visa card, with the reassurance that their data will be processed securely, regardless of whether they shop at local or overseas websites," Tomlinson said.
Malaysia is ranked No 3 in online shopping with the average amount spent online in the past 12 months at US$2,006, behind Taiwan and China at US$4,041 and US$2,557, respectively, among the six countries surveyed.
Source : TheSun
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Airlines leverage on social media sites
As travellers become more Internet and social media-savvy, airlines have started to leverage on social media sites for branding, promotion and marketing.
Airlines including Malaysia Airlines (MAS), AirAsia Bhd, Singapore Airlines, Cathay Pacific and Delta Air Lines are using Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr and even blogs to market themselves and engage with the public. Some airlines turn their Facebook page into a fan page whereby they can connect with their fans on the Internet. Some promote their business, products, and new offerings on Twitter to reach out to more people.
MAS senior general manager, commercial strategy, Dr Amin Khan said the carrier had a two-pronged approach for its Facebook and Twitter accounts. “For Malaysia Airlines Travel on Facebook, @MAS Twitter account and blogger engagements, our primary objective is to inspire travel by engaging and building a connection with our fans and followers.
Our efforts here are focused on engaging our younger audience and customers, around 20 to 35 years old. This includes promoting our fares and deals, destinations, travel stories and competitions,” he told StarBiz.
Amin said MAS started its social media outreach including the Malaysia Airlines Travel on Facebook in March 2009. “To date, we have more than 125,000 fans on Malaysia Airlines Travel on Facebook and some 16,500 followers on @MAS Twitter account.”
He added that the MH Deals by Malaysia Airlines on Facebook, which started in January, had 37,000 fans and it had 3,500 followers on @MHdeals Twitter account. “We also have 11,500 fans on MH Students Facebook pages. A majority of them are students who are currently studying in
MAS has managed to generate great interest with its lunch hour sales on Facebook. “The idea for the lunch hour sale came from our Facebook fans. We are constantly engaging with them to get their feedback on what they would like to see. We are also planning other promotions according to ticket availability and seasonality,” Amin said.
A quick search on Twitter revealed that AirAsia has one of the most followers on its Twitter account with some 50,086 followers. The budget carrier had previously operated under AirAsiaDotCom on Twitter. However, last Friday it announced to its followers that it had managed to secure back its @AirAsia twitter handler.
AirAsia has 478,708 fans on its main Facebook site. On top of the country specific sites that AirAsia has on Facebook and Twitter, it has a dedicated AirAsia YouTube channel, AirAsia Blog: Just Plane Thoughts and Flickr account as its official gallery of AirAsia pictures.
Media specialists see social media as a great platform to get the online community involved, to motivate them to travel, get them to spread the word on which airline to use.
“Most of these airlines make use of Twitter to introduce new events, offer a limited number of air tickets at discounted prices, etc,” a media specialist said. She added that airlines were beginning to use social media productively. “Facebook is an excellent way to engage customers. And both MAS and AirAsia are doing it well.”
She said both carriers managed to encourage their customers to engage with one another. “They made it easy to access the airlines and build relationships. Potential customers can also ask questions and get help. If their customers are happy, it means returning customers to the carrier.”
She said it was good to note that AirAsia had managed to put links on its websites to generate interest on its Twitter and Facebook pages and vice-versa. “It (AirAsia) manages to interact well on Facebook. Every news item it posts seems to get feedbacks and there are heaps of praises from fans.”
Last month, US-based Delta Air Lines had introduced the Delta Ticket Window, a Facebook application that allows its fans to find, book and share flights via the “Book a Trip” tab on its Facebook Page. The carrier believes it can capitalise on a captive audience given that Facebook is the most trafficked website on its inflight WiFi service. It is a cutting edge offering for the airline which is unparallelled by other airlines.
Asked if MAS would start offering such service, Amin said its offerings would tie in closely with its digital strategy. “For example, we are revamping our MASTraveller portal as part of our strategy to inspire travel. In line with this, our Facebook and Twitter accounts will be promoting destinations and encouraging user-generated content.”
“We also have a social media feature on MHmobile. After a customer books his ticket on flymas.mobi, he will be able to share his itinerary on his own Facebook page, Tripit or Dopplr. This ensures that all his friends are aware of his travel plans, and he is also able to make other travel arrangements such as hotel bookings and car rentals via Tripit or Dopplr,” Amin said.
Amin said all its channels were focused on attracting consumers to its main website, www.malaysiaairlines.com. MAS employee bloggers also share their experiences on its official blog. The carrier has a team managing the Facebook pages and Twitter accounts beside traditional media and other digital initiatives such as the website, applications for our mobile site, flymas.mobi, mobile gadgets and others.
Friday, July 02, 2010
Google weighs into airfare market
News out of the United States that Google has entered the online travel market, buying ITA Software, a flight information software company, for $US700 million.
The move to acquire Massachusetts-based ITA will see Google muscle into a market controlled by Expedia, Kayak, Orbitz, Microsoft's Bing Travel and other sites.
The web search giant said its acquisition of ITA "will create a new, easier way for users to find better flight information online".
"The acquisition will benefit passengers, airlines and online travel agencies by making it easier for users to comparison shop for flights and air fares," Google said in a statement.
"Airline travel and search are a terrific opportunity for more innovation, more investment and more interesting products,"
Google chief executive Eric Schmidt said in a conference call.
"There's clearly more room for competition and innovation here."
Google stressed that it "won't be setting air fare prices and has no plans to sell airline tickets to consumers”.
"Our goal is to build a tool that drives more traffic to airline and online travel agency sites where customers can purchase tickets," the company said.
ITA specialises in organising airline data, including flight times, availability and prices.
Bing, Kayak, Orbitz and TripAdvisor are among ITA's present customers and Google said it looked forward to working with them and will "honor all existing agreements".
Google vice president Marissa Mayer said nearly half of all airline tickets are now sold online and Google said requests for travel-related information are among the highest-volume queries received at the search engine.
"But for many people, finding the right flight at the best price is a frustrating experience," Mayer said.
Source : TravelMole
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
The move to acquire Massachusetts-based ITA will see Google muscle into a market controlled by Expedia, Kayak, Orbitz, Microsoft's Bing Travel and other sites.
The web search giant said its acquisition of ITA "will create a new, easier way for users to find better flight information online".
"The acquisition will benefit passengers, airlines and online travel agencies by making it easier for users to comparison shop for flights and air fares," Google said in a statement.
"Airline travel and search are a terrific opportunity for more innovation, more investment and more interesting products,"
Google chief executive Eric Schmidt said in a conference call.
"There's clearly more room for competition and innovation here."
Google stressed that it "won't be setting air fare prices and has no plans to sell airline tickets to consumers”.
"Our goal is to build a tool that drives more traffic to airline and online travel agency sites where customers can purchase tickets," the company said.
ITA specialises in organising airline data, including flight times, availability and prices.
Bing, Kayak, Orbitz and TripAdvisor are among ITA's present customers and Google said it looked forward to working with them and will "honor all existing agreements".
Google vice president Marissa Mayer said nearly half of all airline tickets are now sold online and Google said requests for travel-related information are among the highest-volume queries received at the search engine.
"But for many people, finding the right flight at the best price is a frustrating experience," Mayer said.
Source : TravelMole
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Monday, April 05, 2010
Everyone wants to be a Hotel GM
Playdom’s Social City continues to make real progress, having quickly established itself as one of Facebook’s most played games, while Zoo Paradise by CrowdStar and Hotel City by Playfish both show promising growth.
Hotel City’s acolytes increased at an astonishing rate, with 800,000 wannabe hotel bosses flocking through its doors in the past week.
The game is fresh out from Playfish, now the Facebook arm of video game giant Electronic Arts, and is a new twist on the business management genre made popular by Restaurant City and Zoo World.
Players construct and decorate hotels, choosing to offer either larger, more luxurious, and expensive rooms or smaller, cheaper rooms that can lead to a higher number of guests.
There are also other types of social function rooms available in order to increase guests’ satisfaction levels and pander to their whims.
Facebook friends can be summoned to help clean up and maintain each player’s property, but if volunteer help isn’t available then workers have to be hired, representing a drain on the hotel’s resources.
One is almost tempted to see Hotel City as a thinly-veiled metaphor for a Facebook game developer’s business plan.
When players are able to generate big buck income from advertising hoardings and vending machines in and around the hotel project, we’ll know that FacebookTycoon isn’t too far away.
Top ten fastest growing Facebook games, Friday, April 2
1. Social City (10,905,836 = +1,842,269 / +20.3 per cent)
2. Zoo Paradise (2,275,240 = +1,273,705 / +127.2 per cent)
3. Bubble Island (4,397,582 = +927,725 / +26.7 per cent)
4. Hotel City (935,242 = +812,641 / +662.8 per cent)
5. FarmVille (82,847,179 = +689,247 / +0.8 per cent)
6. Tiki Resort (4,134,716 = +641,776 / +18.4 per cent)
7. PetVille (20,855,791 = +618,829 / +3.1 per cent)
8. Texas HoldEm Poker (29,170,503 = +568,488 / +2.0 per cent)
9. Ameba Pico (901,147 = +404,046 / +81.3 per cent)
10. Pet Society (19,619,697 = +320,841 / +1.7 per cent)
Numbers in brackets relate to total monthly users, the increase in monthly users, and the weekly percentage growth.
HOTEL CITY : http://www.facebook.com/hotelcity
Source : TMI
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Sheraton launches new website, adds Facebook
Sheraton Hotels & Resorts announced today the launch of the new sheraton.com, the first hotel industry website to feature Facebook Connect and allow visitors to interact with their friends and family by sharing their travel experiences through today’s most popular social networking site. In 2006, sheraton.com became the first hotel industry website to embrace social media by featuring user generated content. Today, the brand continues to enhance the social media experience for guests by tapping into new social networking channels and enabling a two-way dialogue through the unique global travel community on sheraton.com. The launch of the new site is part of a $6 billion worldwide effort to revitalize the iconic Sheraton brand, including an investment of $2.3 billion in new hotels, $1.5 billion in renovations and $400 million in signature brand initiatives throughout North America.
Facebook Users can Now Share and Discover via sheraton.com
The new site enables Facebook members to interact through sheraton.com over travel experiences by sharing stories, tips and photos about their best travel finds, destination favorites and passion for travel. Users can visit sheraton.com and now post their stories by logging into their Facebook account via Facebook Connect. Once a story is approved and posted to the site, Facebook Connect enables sheraton.com users to tag their Facebook friends in their story, inviting them to jump into the conversation as well as share their travel experiences with all of their Facebook friends. Not a Facebook member? No worries – anyone can post their travel tales and photos by simply entering their email address. Have a question or comment for Sheraton Hotels about an upcoming stay or recent visit? The new site also lets visitors create a two-way dialogue with the brand through its online community.
“The new sheraton.com reflects how people communicate and stay connected today,” said Hoyt H. Harper, senior vice president for Sheraton. “Our guests are technologically-sophisticated travelers who are eager to share their experiences through today’s most popular social networking sites, like Facebook. We wanted to use the power of social media to go beyond merely just transacting with customers and provide a meaningful experience by creating a global community where travelers can easily engage in an active, exciting dialogue about their passion for travel.”
Explore Our Global Neighborhood
Upon entering the new sheraton.com visitors can click on “our community”, or go directly to sheraton.com/community, where they will be welcomed by a globe that represents the Sheraton brand’s “global neighborhood” and invited to explore what other guests are saying about their travels as well as share stories of their own. The globe is organized by region and powered by Microsoft’s Bing Maps and populated with pictures and stories that have been submitted by guests and travelers. Users can log in thru Facebook Connect, allowing them to "connect" their Facebook identity, friends and privacy to the site. The site’s new search optimization also allows visitors to search stories by activity and interest, including beach, romance, sports, business and spa, so that relevant stories are immediately accessed. Each story is additionally accompanied by hotel information, a booking portal and applicable special offers for effortless access to relevant information.
To explore the Sheraton brand’s global neighborhood, share your story or discover new destinations please visit the new www.sheraton.com.
Sheraton Hotels, like all brands within Starwood’s robust portfolio, is proud to offer the Starwood Preferred Guest® program, which made headlines when it launched in 1999 with a breakthrough policy of no blackout dates on Free Night Awards. SPG® offers members the ability to redeem awards at more resorts, more luxury properties, more European hotels and more golf properties than any other hotel program.
Visit : http://www.sheratonbetterwhenshared.com/?IM=SI_HP_PRIM_EN_GLOBE
Source : TDA
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Facebook Users can Now Share and Discover via sheraton.com
The new site enables Facebook members to interact through sheraton.com over travel experiences by sharing stories, tips and photos about their best travel finds, destination favorites and passion for travel. Users can visit sheraton.com and now post their stories by logging into their Facebook account via Facebook Connect. Once a story is approved and posted to the site, Facebook Connect enables sheraton.com users to tag their Facebook friends in their story, inviting them to jump into the conversation as well as share their travel experiences with all of their Facebook friends. Not a Facebook member? No worries – anyone can post their travel tales and photos by simply entering their email address. Have a question or comment for Sheraton Hotels about an upcoming stay or recent visit? The new site also lets visitors create a two-way dialogue with the brand through its online community.
“The new sheraton.com reflects how people communicate and stay connected today,” said Hoyt H. Harper, senior vice president for Sheraton. “Our guests are technologically-sophisticated travelers who are eager to share their experiences through today’s most popular social networking sites, like Facebook. We wanted to use the power of social media to go beyond merely just transacting with customers and provide a meaningful experience by creating a global community where travelers can easily engage in an active, exciting dialogue about their passion for travel.”
Explore Our Global Neighborhood
Upon entering the new sheraton.com visitors can click on “our community”, or go directly to sheraton.com/community, where they will be welcomed by a globe that represents the Sheraton brand’s “global neighborhood” and invited to explore what other guests are saying about their travels as well as share stories of their own. The globe is organized by region and powered by Microsoft’s Bing Maps and populated with pictures and stories that have been submitted by guests and travelers. Users can log in thru Facebook Connect, allowing them to "connect" their Facebook identity, friends and privacy to the site. The site’s new search optimization also allows visitors to search stories by activity and interest, including beach, romance, sports, business and spa, so that relevant stories are immediately accessed. Each story is additionally accompanied by hotel information, a booking portal and applicable special offers for effortless access to relevant information.
To explore the Sheraton brand’s global neighborhood, share your story or discover new destinations please visit the new www.sheraton.com.
Sheraton Hotels, like all brands within Starwood’s robust portfolio, is proud to offer the Starwood Preferred Guest® program, which made headlines when it launched in 1999 with a breakthrough policy of no blackout dates on Free Night Awards. SPG® offers members the ability to redeem awards at more resorts, more luxury properties, more European hotels and more golf properties than any other hotel program.
Visit : http://www.sheratonbetterwhenshared.com/?IM=SI_HP_PRIM_EN_GLOBE
Source : TDA
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Radio Interview with Chloe Lim - Hotel Club
With the burgeoning number of online travel operators saturating the market, HotelClub's managing director, Chloe Lim explains how it differentiates itself and pulls ahead of the competition. She also shares how the internet has changed the tourism landscape.
Although the global tourism industry has been impacted by global economic turmoil and H1N1 influenza scare, HotelClub remains unperturbed as it is still seeing healthy growth in the Asian market.
Interview 1
Interview 2
Source : BFM
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Although the global tourism industry has been impacted by global economic turmoil and H1N1 influenza scare, HotelClub remains unperturbed as it is still seeing healthy growth in the Asian market.
Interview 1
Interview 2
Source : BFM
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Friday, August 28, 2009
HolidayCity.com & Bintan Resorts Ferries in Partnership
HolidayCity.com, A Leading Online Hotel Reservation Service, Signs A Preferred Partnership With The Bintan Resort Ferries, The Operator Of Ferry Transportation From Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal, Singapore To The Island Resort Of Bintan, Indonesia. With This Exciting Development, HolidayCity.com�s Guests Who Book Their Bintan Hotels Can Now Make Booking Request On Bintan Resort Ferries On Our Websites.
Bintan Resort Ferries currently operate four Catamarans, the first two - a 270-seat Aria Bupala and a 306-seat Indera Bupala plus two new additions to our fleet; Wan Seri Beni and Wan Sendari , each with 300 seating capacity. Both new generation ferries have Emerald Class on upper-deck, the premium class service whereby passengers can enjoy wider leather seats with more legroom, complimentary hot & cold drinks, dedicated check-in and use of Executive Lounge at Bandar Bentan Telani terminal. All vessels are in compliance to International Safety Standard, equipped with advance technology and managed by professional & experienced crew. A wide range of food and beverages are also available at BRF Deli on-board.
Source : Bernama
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Bintan Resort Ferries currently operate four Catamarans, the first two - a 270-seat Aria Bupala and a 306-seat Indera Bupala plus two new additions to our fleet; Wan Seri Beni and Wan Sendari , each with 300 seating capacity. Both new generation ferries have Emerald Class on upper-deck, the premium class service whereby passengers can enjoy wider leather seats with more legroom, complimentary hot & cold drinks, dedicated check-in and use of Executive Lounge at Bandar Bentan Telani terminal. All vessels are in compliance to International Safety Standard, equipped with advance technology and managed by professional & experienced crew. A wide range of food and beverages are also available at BRF Deli on-board.
Source : Bernama
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Thursday, August 20, 2009
More choices for travellers
TRAVELLING trends are changing and our local aviation industry has picked up on the changes.
Source : MalayMail
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Yesterday, KL International Airport (KLIA) and Malaysia Airports Bhd (MAB) launched the first phase of the Next Generation Hub, a web portal called www.flyklia.
Through this web portal, travellers are able to choose the lowest fare and the quickest route to a destination.
 |
A STEP FORWARD: (From left) Datuk Azmi Murad MAB senior general manager of operations, Yusof Javidi chairman of KLIA airline operators communication, Bashir, Tan Sri Dr Aris Othman chairman of MAB, Mohamed Sallaudin Mat Sah general manager of marketing, Umar Bustamam CEO of Evaman and Faizal Mansur MAB CFO |
“We may not be the first to offer such services to travellers but we are the most updated,” said MAB managing director Tan Sri Bashir Ahmad.
He added that this portal also serves to facilitate people to use Kuala Lumpur as a transit point. In the past, such information was possible but required much more work and hassle. With one website to find the connections, travellers can save time.
The flight planner on the portal, which is free, searches more than 660 airlines worldwide for the best flights and connections available. The search results include links to airlines and other travel portals where travellers can book flights directly.
“The portal empowers the traveller with tools to build unique itineraries. At a touch of a button, travellers may choose to arrive at their destination on full-service carriers and depart on a low-cost carrier. Such combinations would not show up on a regular booking engine.”
Moreover, the website is easy to navigate, said Bashir.
With the launch of the website, Malaysia Airports is also excited to introduce the new “KLIA Next Generation Hub — The new way to the world” branding to convey a new way of doing things for both passengers and airlines.
As for what phase two of the plan will be, Bashir said it will be announced when the time comes.
Source : MalayMail
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Google Maps making its mark among Malaysians
THE online map, which is becoming popular globally, is a new business opportunity for the Malaysian market. It is also an alternative tool in promoting tourism, instead of the conventional advertising platform like the print and electronic media.
“Many people are realising the benefits of online mapping as there is so much more information you can obtain from it,” says South-East Asia marketing head of Google Inc, Derek Callow.
People can look out for places they would travel to or seek information, such as hotel or restaurant listings, and places of interest to visit and events though the online map, he says.
“It would be a great tool to showcase beautiful and diverse Malaysia to the rest of the world.
Callow “Malaysians, for instance, are becoming avid users of Google Maps Malaysia to search for geographic information online,” he says, adding that many people are already creating their own customised maps for personal use or to be shared publicly.
For instance, many food bloggers have listed their favourite eateries and included them on their websites or blogs.
Google Inc operates Google Maps, the number one online map in the world, and launched its Google Maps Malaysia in May this year.
It is more than just addresses and directions. It is a virtual guidebook filled with detailed, up-close information on local places and businesses with local insights, photos and videos created by people who live or have been there, and more.
On the profit that can be generated from the online map service, Callow says the company is not focusing on monetising Google Maps. “Our goal is to provide a free online map platform to connect users and businesses with geographic information.
“Businesses are encouraged to add their company listings and details for free on Google Maps, for example.”
What are the business opportunities that the market can explore on the online map service?
As Google is providing a free marketing channel for Malaysian businesses and small and medium enterprises to be listed on Google Maps, it is thus directing potential customers to their sites.
“Businesses can increase their visibility online by registering their details for free under the service,” he says, adding that business owners can also view detailed information about how users would interact with their listings, and attract more online traffic and potential customers to their businesses.
Vincent Kok, the chief operating officer of Creative Advances Technology Sdn Bhd, the operator of Virtual Malaysia Google Mapplets, says online maps have become more accessible nowadays, especially free maps with street information.
Kok Virtual Malaysia is chosen by Google Maps to be the only travel content partner in Malaysia.
“Our own traffic statistics have shown that since we launched our new geocoded map, such usage has grown by 140%,” Kok says, adding that its maps are also linked to travel packages, and driving directions with estimates of travelling time to the desired destinations.
“We think that maps are more popular in Western countries as street information has been available in those countries for a long time. As for Malaysia, we see the potential usage of online maps growing,” he says.
Other sites that provide street-mapping information for Malaysia include maps.yahoo.com, streetdirectory.com/malaysia and maps.mapking.com, malaysia-maps.com, and map.com.my.
“Maps are an integral part of the travel-planning experience and not being listed could limit the opportunity for them (destinations) to be discovered by travellers,” he says.
From a user’s point of view, Ang Yong Shing says the online map is very useful, especially for someone who is new to a place.
“It helps us to know more about the location and its landmarks,” he says, adding that it is efficient in promoting the tourism industry as this is a free advertising channel.
He urges travel agencies to upload their listings on the online map.
Unfortunately, he says, some of the small places or roads are not visible as the online map is only popular in cities but not really rural areas due to the lower usage of the Internet service.
Source : STAR
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
Friday, August 14, 2009
ONLINE travel bookings soared 30 per cent in Q2 2009
ONLINE travel bookings soared 30 per cent in the second quarter of 2009 as more travel agents use the Internet to reach out to new clients, with Abacus International expecting its online segment volume (bookings through the Abacus system coming through online sources) to increase 10 per cent this year.
The majority of these online players are traditional travel agents who have invested in the online platform to complement their brick-and-mortar bookings, with Abacus vice-president channel management Patrick Lai saying the Zuji's of the region remain only a handful of players.
The 30 per cent growth in Q2 2009 was on top of a 13 per cent growth in Q1 2009 - the only channel that remained stable and, indeed, was the star performer in the volatile market of the past 12 months.
More agents are urged to invest in the online space. Small and medium-sized agencies need not think the investment is beyond their reach, assures Abacus vice-president marketing Brett Henry, who points out that technology costs are now cheaper while solutions to create an online shopfront are easy and quick to set up.
Online bookings are expected to be fastest growing in South Korea, Malaysia, China, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand.
"Agency business owners who got into it two to three years ago are now reaping the benefits," Henry said.
Source : TTG
[tags : malaysiahotelnews hotels malaysia resorts news travel tourism travel tourism news]
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