I&MI Newsletter Asia-Pacific January 2008 Edition

China continues its rapid growth in the hospitality sector. The Ritz Carlton Hotel Company is expanding rapidly. The company recently opened its third hotel property in China and will open another property on Hainan Island, China in the first quarter of 2008. Read about both properties in this issue.

Meanwhile Australia's second city, Melbourne, has a lot to be happy about – the 2006/07 financial year brought 53,000 business visitors to the state of Victoria. That is enough people to fill the city's Telstra Dome stadium. Chris Barlow, the newly elected Chairman of MCVB's (Melbourne Convention + Visitor's Bureau) Board said, 'The results speak for themselves; MCVB has delivered more in economic impact from business events in 2006/07 than any other Australian convention bureau. Melbourne has the infrastructure, commitment and expertise to live up to its title as the Nation's number one convention city.'

In Melbourne, Australia Sandra Chipchase, Chief Executive Officer of the Melbourne Convention + Visitors Bureau was elected new president of the AACB (Australian Association of Convention Bureaux). The AACB is a consortium of fourteen city and regional bureaus. It’s goal is to persuade the global community to choose Australia for their business events.
Ms. Chipchase said "Australia boasts some of the world's best venues for staging conventions and exhibitions. Combined with our vast range of tourist attractions, natural attributes, indigenous history and culture, shopping and food and wine, this makes us a highly desirable business events destination..."

Also in 2006/07, the MCVB opened offices in Singapore and Hong Kong and ran the first ever television-advertising campaign in Asia by a convention bureau. These enterprises are adding to the popularity of Melbourne and Victoria.

And as always, the friendly competition between the two fantastic cities of Melbourne and Sydney continues. For stats, Melbourne moved up from number 34 in the Top International Meetings Cities in 2005 and to number 26 in 2006.

Wishing you in the new year ~ Prosperity, Health, Success ~ Peace in your Heart and Peace on the Planet.
Best

Helena Miele, CITE
Editor electronic newsletters

At the Phoenix Seagaia Resort in Miyazaki City, Japan, there is a 'Y100 Million Plan', which offers exclusive hire of the resort city for two days and one night. Phoenix Seagaia facilities include the Five-Star Sheraton Grande Ocean Resort with 743 rooms and the World Convention Center Summit with ten conference rooms that accommodate 5,000 delegates. In 2000, the World Convention Center Summit was made famous when it hosted the Kyushu-Okinawa G8 Summit 2000 Miyazaki Meeting of Foreign Ministers.

Also included in the 'Y100 Million Plan are the Shosenkyu Onsen and Banyan Tree Spas, the Tom Watson Golf Course, the Seagaia Tennis Club, the bowling alley, and more unique tropical resort and other event venues. The 'Y100 Million Plan' provides free shuttle bus service between the resort and Miyazaki Airport and train station, loan of stretch limousines, original room keys bearing your company logo and installation of personalized banners. For more information visit the website and/or send an e-mail.

E-mail: yoyaku@seagaia.com
Web site: www.seagaia.co.jp/english/guidance

Conferences & Teambuilding at JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa

JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa is known for its versatile meeting space, inspiring venues and outstanding service. Recent trends in meetings have confirmed that many companies now combine their meetings or conferences with teambuilding. Corporate teambuilding programs have been a huge success at JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa. The resort has added to its various teambuilding offers a fun-filled Tuk Tuk Rally, JW Executive Tours and Pirates of the Andaman which have become an instant hit with the participants. The Survivor Phuket combines sightseeing on beautiful deserted islands with the excitement of specific corporate teambuilding games. The new program, the Pirates of the Andaman follows a treasure trail on the beautiful grounds of the JW Marriott Phuket. The group is broken into teams who have to solve a series of unique situations that reflect actual situations in the work environment. The first team to open the treasure is the winning team.
For more information on teambuilding programs at JW Marriott Phuket Resort & Spa, please contact

sean.panton@marriotthotels.com or click here.

The date of the next CIBTM, the China Incentive Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition organized by Reed Travel Exhibitions, is being pushed back. Originally scheduled to take place in 2008, the CIBTM will now take place in 2009 due to the impact of the Beijing Olympics. The new dates are 8-10 September 2009 and the new venue is the state-of-the-art China National Convention Centre (CNCC), which will serve as the main international media & broadcasting centre for the Summer Olympics in 2008. The CNCC is both 25 minutes from city center and from Beijing International Airport. The CNCC includes a Grand Convention Hall with 6,400 sqm (68,889 sqf) of space, which accommodates 6,000 delegates, an exhibition hall with 24,00sqm (258,334 sqf) of space and a ballroom, which accommodates 3,500 delegates. The convention hotel for the CNCC is the 4-Star China National Convention Centre Hotel that is located adjacent to the center. The China National Convention Centre Hotel is an official hotel partner of CIBTM and the new InterContinental Beijing North has been designated as CIBTM's Headquarters Hotel.

CIBTM is a showcase for Chinese and international destinations, products and services for the Meetings, Incentive, Convention and Exhibition industries.

Website: www.cibtm.travel

Accor Hotel and Resorts opened a new flagship hotel this month on Jiango Road in Beijing. The 417-room property was conceived and designed by award winning German architects GMP, the company responsible for the reconstruction of the Berlin Olympic Stadium. GMP designed the hotel in a Sino-French style accentuating the cultural links between France and China.

For meetings, the Wanda has ten meeting rooms, all located on the same floor. The Grand Ballroom, which is divisible into three rooms, accommodates 1,250 attendees theatre style. Nine additional event rooms range in size from 37 too 240 sqm (398 to 2583 sqf). Event facilities have dedicated butler service and are equipped with the latest technology. Restaurants and bars include a French, Chinese, Japanese, open kitchen restaurant and a champagne and wine bar. The Health Club and luxurious LeSpa are available for unwinding.

The hotel is situated in close proximity to the Exhibition Center, subway, Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.

E-mail: sofitel@sofitelwandabj.com
Website: www.accorhotels.com

The 5-Star Leela Goa recently completed a refurbishment program to upgrade and modernize the property. The hotel is located on the beach in southern Goa by the Arabian Sea. It is ideal for incentives and meetings. Refurbishments to this luxury property included restaurant public areas and accommodations. Guest rooms have an Asian-inspired design and bathrooms with separate shower, bathtub and twin vanities. All 185-guest rooms, suites and villas rooms now have views of the hotel's lagoons.

Event facilities comprise four indoor rooms, which accommodate from 16 to 400 delegates and outdoor venues. The lawn and beachfront event areas each accommodate 400 for a reception and 300 for dinner. The hotel has the capacity to organize theme events such as Night of Maharajas, the Goan Experience, Barbecue under the Stars and Kerala Meal for corporate groups. There are six indoor and alfresco dining and drink venues and hotel has a spa center, yoga and meditation centers, floodlit tennis courts, badminton courts and a 12-hole golf course. And there is windsurfing on the beach.

The Leela Hotel is bordered by the secluded Mobor Beach and is close to a local fishing village. The property is easily accessible from both the international airport and the domestic airport and the railway station.

Website: www.theleela.com

The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company will open The Ritz-Carlton Sanya in Hainan Province, China during the first quarter of this year. The property is located on the southern tip of Hainan Island in the valley of the Wuzhi Mountains, an area known for its temperate climate (same latitude as Hawaii), lush tropical forests and miles of secluded beaches.
The resort is built in a U-shape with two wings that include 450 guest rooms with 17 suites, a Ritz-Carlton Club Level with 66 rooms and suites and 33 private villas with individual pools. Guest rooms feature marble-tiled, five-fixture bathrooms, Chinese-inspired furniture, private balconies overlooking the South China Sea, gardens or mangroves, twice-daily housekeeping service, Internet access, DVD players and complimentary daily tropical fruits.

Meeting and event facilities comprise 1,700 sqm/18,299 sqft of flexible space with nine meeting rooms and a 900 sqm/9,688 sqft ballroom that is divisible by four. For dining, The Ritz-Carlton Sanya presents a choice of eight restaurants and lounges including alfresco dining with scenic views of the pool and the ocean. Four swimming pools, tennis courts, a full service fitness center and the largest Ritz-Carlton Spa in the region with 24 treatment rooms and suites will help anyone relax. Off-property, Hainan is home to the 108 meter/350 feet Kwan Yin Statue, the "End of the Earth" scenic spot, Nantian Hot Springs, Monkey Island and the Nanshan. The resort is a 40 minute drive from the Sanya Phoenix International Airport.

Website: www.ritzcarlton.com

The newly opened Ritz-Carlton Beijing Central Place, the company's third property in China, is located in the commercial district along Chang An Avenue. The 305 room property has some of the largest guest rooms in Beijing with a room size of 48 sqm/517 sqft. For events, The Ritz-Carlton Beijing Central has 1,245 sqm/13,401 sqft of high-tech meeting space including a 700 sq. m. (7,535 sq. ft.) ballroom. For dining, Aroma, the all-day restaurant features five open kitchens preparing Indian, Japanese, South-East Asian, and Chinese cuisine and a Western grill. Barolo serves contemporary Italian cuisine and has a private dining room and wine tasting room, surrounded by the private wine cellar. Yu, which means jade in English, serves Cantonese cuisine and has six delicately designed private dining rooms and a 'Tea Master' to help complement each meal with the finest selections of teas. The Ritz-Carlton Bar serves cocktails and light snacks and offers nightly Latin Jazz entertainment. High Tea accompanied by the finest Chinese teas or champagne is served daily in the Lobby Lounge.

Website: www.ritzcarlton.com

The ITB, largest tourism trade show in the world, now has an Asian counterpart, ITB Asia. Messe Berlin, the organizing company for ITB Berlin and the Singapore Tourism Board are hosting ITB Asia, making its debut 22-24 October 2008 at Suntec Singapore. Mr Raimund Hosch, President and CEO of Messe Berlin said, "We are very pleased to be hosting ITB's first Asian edition in Singapore. It (Singapore) is Asia's top convention city for the past 23 consecutive years according to the Union of International Associations Global Rankings, as well as the world's leading business city, so it provides us with the optimal, strategic platform to host this event... Singapore is also a critical hub for business exchange as well as inter-regional and intra-regional trade. With 2.8 billion people within a 7-hour flight radius, it is ideally positioned to attract the largest regional audience."
It is estimated that some 10,000 overseas delegates will attend. Over 500 exhibitors from more than 50 countries are expected to participate in the inaugural event. Mr Lim Neo Chian, Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive of Singapore Tourism Board said, "The decision to anchor ITB Asia here demonstrates Messe Berlin's confidence in Singapore as a strategic destination for staging premium MICE events."
For more information on ITB Asia, contact Ms Thieme at the e-mail below or go to the ITB web site's home page and click on the ITB Asia icon on the left hand side.

E-mail: k.thieme@messe-berlin.de
Website: www.itb-berlin.com

Silversea Cruises is the recipient of "Best Cruise Line" designation from Australia's Luxury Travel magazine. Silversea came in first on the magazine's Gold List awards for the fourth year in a row and all four Silversea ships were recognized in the top ten of the 'Best Small Cruise Ship' category with the Silver Whisper and the Silver Shadow taking first and second place.
Silversea was established in the 1990s by the Lefebvre family of Rome. They set out to build and operate the highest quality ships in the ultra-luxury market and they succeeded. For nine consecutive years, Silversea has also been named "Number One Small Ship Line" in the Readers' Choice survey conducted by Condé Nast Traveller magazine in the USA and in 2007 was named in the UK edition of Condé Nast Traveller's "Top 100 Luxury Travel Experiences" and at the same time topping the Small Cruise Line award for the eighth time. Silversea has been selected as "World's Best Small Ship Line" in the US Travel + Leisure readers' poll for the past eight years.
All Silversea ships have conference facilities and are available for group bookings or full ship charter.

E-mail: smahoney@silversea.com
Website: www.silversea.com

As Nepal's popularity continues to rise, more flights to Kathmandu are coming on line. Hong Kong Express Airways launched a thrice-weekly service to Kathmandu. Flights from Hong Kong to Kathmandu operate on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays and equipment used on this route is a new generation Boeing 737-800 aircraft configured with 164 seats in two classes.
Hong Kong Express Airways launched in September 2005 with service from Hong Kong to Guangzhou.

Website: www.hongkongexpress.com

recently launched a daily, non-stop service to Sydney, Australia. Flights depart Vancouver International Airport at 23:45 hours each night arriving in Sydney at 09:50 hours two days later for a total flying time of approximately 15 hours. The return flight is approximately 14 hours long. The non-stop service takes off more than three hours of flight time from the previous one-stop routing via Honolulu.
Equipment used on the route is an Air Canada Boeing 777-300ER aircraft configured with 42 Executive First Suites and 307 Economy Class seats. Next month, equipment will change to the new Boeing 777-200LR configured with 42 Executive First Suites and 228 Economy Class seats.
Air Canada also flies a daily, one-stop service from Toronto to Sydney.

Website: www.aircanada.com

Singapore's Changi Airport opened a new "green" terminal this month featuring energy-saving skylights, a butterfly garden and over 200 species of foliage spread over enough floor space to cover 50 soccer fields. The new green terminal, Singapore's third, boosts Changi's total passenger capacity by approximately 45% to 70 million and was built at a cost of SGD$1.75 billion (USD$1.22 billion). The terminal's 28 aerobridges include eight specially designed to handle the new Airbus A380, the world's largest passenger jet, the first of which being flown by Singapore Airlines.
The terminal saves energy with natural lighting from the 919 skylights and by positioning air-conditioners nearer to floor-level. In addition, Changi's green terminal has a striking five level high wall of hanging plants, a butterfly garden and koi ponds dotted through out.

The first passengers who landed at the new terminal deplaned from a Singapore Airlines flight from San Francisco and were greeted with a high-powered welcoming committee including government ministers.

Website: www.changiairport.com/t3/

The Suntec Singapore International Convention and Exhibition Centre established a scholarship fund honoring Warren J. Buckley, Chief Executive Officer. During his tenure at Suntec, Buckley was instrumental in leading the Suntec team in hosting many successful events such as the IMF-World Bank Annual Meeting 2006. He steps down from his position as CEO this month but is remembered with the 'Rilla & Warren J. Buckley Meetings Industry Scholarship' Fund. The scholarship benefits students of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (Singapore) who are enrolled in the Bachelor of Science in Hotel Administration, Masters in Hospitality or the Advanced Certification in a MICE programs. Pieter Idenburg, Chief Operating Officer of Suntec Singapore said, "This initiative of establishing a scholarship fund was embraced by many as a way of continuing Warren's commitment to the growing MICE industry and in giving back to the community in which we operate..."

Website: www.suntecsingapore.com