See, an itinerary like this would not have been possible up to three or even two years ago but low cost airlines have completely changed the game, opening up new points and new connections.

All we had to do to plan this roadshow was go on a site like Skyscanner and work out the best possible flight connections.

Today, we are on a Jetstar flight to Manila. Tomorrow night, we will fly Cebu Pacific to Ho Chi Minh City. On Wednesday, we will jet off to Kuala Lumpur on AirAsia, the airline that will also take us to Siem Reap Friday morning. And we will return to Singapore on Jetstar via Phnom Penh.

Cool, right?

This was one of the points I shared at the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC) 2013 Symposium held in Adelaide last week when I spoke about the Asian travel story and how it’s changed. 

Low cost airlines have changed the way millions of South-east Asians travel and in the next few years, the same thing will happen in North Asia, across Japan, Korea, Taiwan and China. These carriers have taught us in Asia to fly, buy and travel differently. DIY, Low price, instant purchase, impulse buys, new itineraries …

Low cost airlines now form 24% of all air seats in Asia, according to the Centre for Aviation (CAPA) – soon it will be 50% – and this will cause a major shift in how we in Asia buy travel and where we fly to, and, most importantly, how we perceive destinations – ie where we go on holiday may not be dictated so much by distance, as by price, value and experience.

At the Adelaide conference, I learnt that visitors from Singapore to Sydney are up 19%, largely driven by Scoot, the Singapore Airlines’ low cost subsidiary. The growth is coming not from Singaporeans but from new travellers such as Filipino service workers working in Singapore … folks who have not been able to afford a holiday in Australia before.

Low cost airlines have upped the stakes for every destination competing for the Asian dollar. Everyone, including Australia, has to get more creative about putting together competitive packages that get people to say, hey I’ll travel there for the weekend or a short break.

The other thing Australia (and all destinations) needs to get more creative and aggressive about is how it enables customers from Asia to unleash their natural, social tendencies on the web while they are in the country.

We in Asia are among the world’s most voracious social media users and it can be frustrating to stay in a hotel where wifi remains a chargeable utility in most of the branded hotels – at the Intercontinental Adelaide, wifi is chargeable if you are not on the Club floor.

Sofitel Philippine Plaza

Ditto with the Sofitel Philippine Plaza where we are staying tonight – we have a package that includes breakfast but wifi is chargeable and frankly, most business travellers would rather have the wifi than breakfast. But try suggesting that to front office and all you get are blank looks like you’ve suggested something completely outrageous.

Last week, Meritus Hotels & Resorts became the latest hotel group to offer free wifi across all its properties and seriously, it is high time hotels see wifi as part of the overall service they’re providing guests – in fact, they should see it as a marketing expense.

To me, social media has upended the traditional notion of marketing. In the past, you had to spend money outside to promote your product. Today, the best investment you can make is in your product and training so that your customer service is second to none and people will write about you and even better, if you allow them to share how they are feeling at the moment.

Because if I am not sharing it at that very instant, chances are I won’t be sharing it at all because something else would have captured my attention by then …

The food that awaits us

So back to the roadshow which has my complete attention this week – it will be interesting to learn more about the latest trends happening in the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia. These are the new emerging markets that are making the Asian travel story even more interesting and each is developing at its own pace with a set of unique characteristics. 

The Philippines is known as the social capital of the world, with a 93% penetration by Facebook; the average Vietnamese owns 1.4 mobile phones; Malaysians spend 50 minutes a day browsing the web and checking social media networks on mobile alone and 40% of the population owns at least two mobile phones; and Cambodia was the first country to claim more mobile phones than landlines.

These are the markets where leapfrogging is happening big-time and are capturing the interest of online travel players – so follow us on Twitter #witroadshow as we wing our way across South-east Asia with our merry band of road warriors.

Or better yet, join us in Manila,  Monday, Ho Chi Minh City, Wednesday; Kuala Lumpur Thursday; and Siem Reap Friday by registering here