Relux uses new funds to expand inbound business on back of Abe’s ambitious targets
Loco Partners, which manages the members-only luxury hotels and ryokan booking site, Relux, will use the latest 500m yen (about US$4.5m) raised to expand its service for Japanese users as well as expand its inbound business for overseas visitors, signaling a step-up in the competition for inbound to [...]
The Millennial Traveller: Old fashioned storytelling and customer service work for Mr and Mrs Smith
James and Tamara Lohan (co-founders of Mr and Mrs Smith) reveal the strategies that have kept their hotel booking platform going in an increasingly competitive market – keep it ‘niche’, harness the power of content and strive for the best customer service both online and offline.The digital en [...]
Silent revolution taking place as villa bookings become more accessible to travel agents
Private accommodation has become the norm in travel, catering to travellers who demand a personalised service. One might even argue that in some respects, villas surpass hotels in comfort and in privacy. But there is one gaping difference between the hotel industry and villas: its technology.This is [...]
If you want to save money on travel bookings, plan like a woman
Male travellers could save up to $48,000 a year by booking the same way women do, according to a recent study conducted by Carlson Wagonlit Travel (CWT) Solutions Group.That is the estimated savings amount for a company with 1,000 travellers, of which 70% are presumed to be men.The propensity for fe [...]
I stayed in four hotels in 10 days. Here’s my report card.
Recently, I did one of those crazy city hops – going from Hong Kong to Seoul to Bangkok and Saigon in 10 days. In the process, I stayed in four hotels that, to me, capture the diversity of hospitality in Asia and how the industry's changed, and is evolving.Hotel ICON, Hong Kong This is a city know [...]
Keeping up with the bleisure class
By Frederic Saunier, head of corporate IT APAC, Amadeus Asia PacificAll work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Today’s empowered corporate citizen is starting to grasp their travel destiny and make their aspirations known – among their wishlist is the expectation to bring some leisure elements [...]
Local gladiators gear up for battle in South Korea travel market
When asked to describe the state of the Korean online travel market in an image, Min Yoon, CEO of TideSquare, shared an image of a gladiator scene from ancient Rome much to the amusement of the audience gathered for the first WIT Seoul on March 25.He called it “super competitive” and that things [...]
The Millennial Traveller: To earn customer love, hoteliers have to be modern-day Casanovas
Traditionally, customer loyalty could be gained by a simple reward structure, trading in loyalty points for free nights like a kid trading in his arcade game tokens for the large teddy bear from the kiosk.Now, with digital players like OTAs and meta-searches commoditising hotel rates, hoteliers need [...]
AccorHotels buys onefinestay, plans to add 40 new markets
Adding to its arsenal in private accommodation, Accor Hotels has acquired onefinestay, a high-end hospitality pioneer specialising in luxury serviced home rental in key worldwide gateways.The acquisition is for €148M (£117M) and AccorHotels has made a further commitment of €64m (£50m) to help [...]
How Contiki keeps itself fresh for today’s millennials
Contiki has been specialising in the business of group travel for 18 to 35 year olds since 1962, well before the advent of the current generation of young travellers. This travel company may be 54 years old, but it still knows how to get down with the kids.The firm does more than dabble in social me [...]
