News
Distribution becomes top of mind for hotel investors
30/05/2016 by WiT
This is a guest post by Patrick Bosworth, CEO of Duetto, a San Francisco-based revenue strategy technology company. Revenue management and distribution matters used to be discussed in small groups within the silos of small departments. These days, however, distribution and revenue management [...]
Letter from Macau: Will they still come? Taking a bet on the future
30/05/2016 by Yeoh Siew Hoon
My first impression on entering Macau after two years away is it’s still being built – it was exactly the same impression I had from the last visit as well. The airport is being built, Cotai Strip is still being built, there are cranes everywhere and you wonder how in a small place like this for [...]
“Wildlife, not entertainers” campaign targets TripAdvisor and online travel companies
30/05/2016 by Yeoh Siew Hoon
The World Animal Protection organisation is on a mission to get online travel companies behind its “Wildlife, not entertainers” campaign, specifically the battle to stop elephant rides for tourists around the world. Its website currently carries a petition, saying “TripAdvisor Inc. profits [...]
WEGOGO connects tour operators, travel hosts with Chinese travellers on WeChat
31/05/2016 by WiT
A Singapore and Shanghai-based travel startup has created a business platform on WeChat to enable global tours operators and travel hosts to connect with mobile-savvy Chinese consumers. Founded in January last year, WEGOGO has launched its services to businesses in Gili Islands and Singapore so f [...]
The Millennial Traveller: Not all dogs need new tricks, says Walk Japan’s Paul Christie
30/05/2016 by WiT
A conversation with Paul Christie, the CEO of Walk Japan, takes a fair bit of contemplation. While much of our chat revolved around Walk Japan and its success as a tour operator in Japan, very little technical corporate travel jargon was used. There was no talk of social media strategy, direct bo [...]
Top brands back WIT’s first event in London
27/05/2016 by WiT
Momondo Group, CarTrawler, Travel Weekly Group lend support, AccorHotels, Priceline among speakers in first WIT to build digital travel bridge between Asia and Europe. As the European travel market matures, there is no doubt that the new frontier for Europe’s leading travel brands resides in As [...]
The Wrap: HRS expands hotel portfolio with investment in The Lido Group
26/05/2016 by WiT
In the news: HRS’ investment in The Lido Group, profitable 2015 for APAC carriers, Park Hotel’s first hotel in Malaysia HRS expands hotel portfolio with investment in The Lido Group Global hotel solutions provider HRS extended its reach into the Australia market with investment in The [...]
Why the older guy-meet-young techies thing worked for Rome2rio
25/05/2016 by Yeoh Siew Hoon
Interviewing Rod Cuthbert, CEO of Rome2rio, and Michael Cameron, one of the two co-founders of the multi-modal search site is like watching a ping pong match in action – Cuthbert incidentally was a table tennis coach in his hometown of Tasmania. There’s a sense of camaderie and mutual respect [...]
BonAppetour raises US$500k seed investment, with plans to expand presence in culinary capitals
25/05/2016 by WiT
BonAppetour, a community marketplace that connects travellers with home chefs around the world for a true ‘local dining experience’, has raised US $500,000 seed round. The round was led by Wong Toon King (managing director of FarSight Capital), and Prasetia Dwidharma, the investment arm of In [...]
Singapore travellers have large appetite for overseas vacations
24/05/2016 by WiT
The slowing of the Singapore economy in 2015 did not reduce the number of travellers from the island republic holidaying overseas, revealed a survey by Chubb Travel Insurance. The survey on travel leisure trends in Singapore was conducted from November to December last year with participation fr [...]