In the news this week: APAC hotels’ half year performance, new food street at Changi Airport, CWT mobile app integrated with gamification, APAC’s best hotel swimming pools
Mixed performance for APAC hotels in H1 2014
Dubai Marriott Hotel Al Jaddaf / Photo credit: Marriott Hotels
Hotels in the Asia Pacific region experienced mixed results during the first six months of 2014, with drops in the average daily rate (ADR) and RevPAR (revenue per available room) when calculated in US dollars.
Year-to-date (June 2014) data released by STR Global shows the region’s occupancy rose 0.9% to 66.9%, ADR fell 3.1% to US$118, and RevPAR decreased 2.3% to US$78.90.
Despite Asia Pacific’s positive occupancy growth, occupancy in South East Asia fell 4.7% driven by Thailand, but its (SEA) ADR in increased by 6.5%.
Elizabeth Winkle, managing director of STR Global, said for the month of June calculated in constant currency basis in US dollar, the region has grown 1.3% in RevPAR.
From a rate perspective, South East Asia (+6.5%) and Australia and Oceania (+2.4%), are the only two sub-regions to report ADR growth on a constant currency basis.
“Asia Pacific is such a diverse region that there is a lot occurring from a political and/or economic perspective. While growth is muted, the region is still reporting increases in the three key performance industry metrics for the first six months of the year, when measured in U.S. dollars in constant currency,” Winkle added.
Key market performers for June 2014 in local currency (y-o-y)
- Auckland, New Zealand, rose 14% in occupancy to 75.3%, posting the largest increase in that metric. Shanghai, China, followed with a 10.3% increase to 73.5%.
- Jakarta, Indonesia (+13.9% to 1,192,753.2 Rupiah), and Osaka, Japan (+12.1% to ¥11,580.3), reported the largest ADR increases for the month
- Delhi, India, fell 7.9% in ADR to 449.3 Rupees, experiencing the largest decrease in that metric.
- Four markets achieved double digit RevPAR increases: Auckland (+21.5% to NZ$105.60), Shanghai (+14.9% to 463.4 Yuan), Osaka (+13.8% to ¥9,757.5), and Bali, Indonesia (+11.8% to 1,132,794 Rupiah).
- Bangkok, Thailand, reported the largest decrease in occupancy (-34.9% to 47.4%) and RevPAR (-36.6% to 1,388.1 Baht).
Key market performers for June 2014 in U.S. dollars (y-o-y)
- Auckland led the ADR increases in June, jumping 20.7% to US$122.91.
- Bali reported the only double digit ADR decrease, falling 10.5% to US$126.50
- Three markets achieved RevPAR growth of more than 10%: Auckland (+37.6% to US$92.50), Shanghai (+15.5% to US$75.30), and Osaka (+11.2% to US$96.10).
- Bangkok (-39.3% to US$42.70) and Phuket (-20.8% to US$44.50) experienced the largest RevPAR decreases.
A food street for Changi Airport T3
Singapore Food Street / Image credit: Changi Airport Group
Missed some good local food while visiting Singapore? Now Changi Airport Group (CAG) makes it possible for you to indulge in these local fare at Changi Airport Terminal Three (T3) while waiting for your flight with the introduction of a Singapore Food Street.
Located in T3’s departure transit mall ,the street features 13 popular hawker stalls specially curated from different corners of Singapore.
Among the famous hawker stalls found at the Food Street are Sin Ming Road Rong Cheng bak kut teh (pork rib soup), Changi Village nasi lemak (Malay coconut rice dish), Odeon beef moodles, Newton Circus satay bee hoon (vermicelli in spicy peanut sauce), and Old Airport Road fried kway teow (fried flat rice noodles in dark sauce).
Most of these stalls have a rich tradition and heritage behind them. For example, Odeon beef noodles is a household hawker name in Singapore with history dating as far back as the 1970s.
Beyond exciting food offerings, the street also offers a glimpse into Singapore’s diverse food culture and rich heritage. It features intricate Peranakan-style decor and nostalgic-looking pushcarts seen in 1960s-Singapore, bringing diners back to the memorable era where many of the best meals were found at the roadsides.
Ivy Wong, CAG’s senior vice president, airside concessions, said the Singapore Food Street adds to Changi Airport’s diverse range of dining offerings. “It brings to the airport Singapore’s colourful hawker food culture, which is a big part of the average Singaporean’s lifestyle. “
CWT gamifies its mobile app to harness traveller loyalty
Image credit: Carlson Wagonlit Travel
Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) will integrate Travel Gamification, a score-keeping functionality, into its mobile app CWT To Go for travel managers to reinforce behaviour compliant with their travel programme.
Travel Gamification is a game-style loyalty scheme for companies in which employees earn points for compliance and track their position on the company’s gamification leader board.
CWT said for those companies that use a points-earned system, travellers will be able to keep track of their position on their company’s gamification leader board, which will help them make better travel decisions that support travel policy and drive savings when they are on the move.
Joel Wartgow, senior director, CWT Solutions Group, Americas, said, “Providing travellers access to the tool via CWT To Go will help them understand the impact of their purchasing decisions, providing travel managers further opportunity to educate and influence their travellers to support the goals of their travel programme.”
Travel Gamification uses customised, competitive game-style elements to influence desired traveler behaviours and drive savings in corporate travel environments. Each programme is tailored to specific client needs to meet the objectives of their programme, and is re-evaluated throughout the life of the engagement.
Wartgow added, “As supplier pricing appears likely to increase through 2014, it’s more important than ever for travel managers to find innovative solutions to drive savings. With Travel Gamification now available and optimised for CWT To Go, we are offering even more ways for companies to encourage the traveller buying behaviours that will drive programme performance.”
Travel Gamification in CWT To Go will be available to companies, which engage CWT Solutions Group in their Travel Gamification programmes.
Cambodia has the best hotel swimming pools in APAC
The Plantation Hotel, Phnom Penh
Travel search site, Wego, together with big data and travel review partner TrustYou, revealed Cambodia tops 15 best rated swimming pools in the Asia Pacific according to thousands of hotel reviews.
“The top four rated pools in APAC are all located in Cambodia, which wasn’t quite what we were expecting,” said Joachim Holte, Wego’s chief marketing officer. “Cambodia is a spectacular destination but we didn’t expect the country to monopolise with such high pool ratings.”
The Plantation in Phnom Penh is number one with a score of 95, with three properties in Siem Reap taking the next three top positions. A fourth Cambodian property, the Golden Temple Hotel, is at number 11.
Vinh Hung Emerald Resort in Vietnam came in fifth with a score of 94, followed by Singapore’s Shangri-La Hotel and Park Hotel Clarke Quay at sixth and seventh placing respectively.
Hong Kong was represented at number eight by the Hotel ICON with its rooftop pool overlooking the harbour, and Phuket at number nine and 15 with The Senses Resort and Hotel Twinpalms respectively. Kuala Lumpur’s Renaissance Hotel came in at 10 with a score of 94.
Two properties in Bangkok – the Chatrium Hotel Riverside and Pathumwan Princess Hotel – scored the number 13 and 14 spots (both tied at 92), with the former scoring the most mentions of all in the collected data.
The rankings are based on pool scores from TrustYou’s Meta-Reviews, which are a summary of all verified travel reviews written worldwide, making this the definitive ranking of the best hotel pools in Asia Pacific.
Benjamin Jost, CEO and co-founder of TrustYou, said, “The hotels that made the list stood out so much to travellers that they wanted to tell their friends, family and other travellers about the outstanding pool atmosphere and experience,” he added.
• Featured image (Holiday Villa Cherating, Malaysia) credit: Holiday Villa Hotels & Resorts
