Regions
Record number of Asians take cruises but account for smaller slice of global cruise pie in 2018: CLIA
24/05/2019 by WiT
A record number of Asian sourced passengers took cruises in 2018, but ended up accounting for a smaller slice of the global cruise pie, according to the latest CLIA cruise report.  CLIA’s 2018 Asia Cruise Industry Ocean Source Market Report said there were 4.24 million Asia sourced cruise [...]
Trade tensions? Ctrip sees opportunity, reports strong financials
23/05/2019 by WiT
Ctrip.com has put concerns over escalating trade tensions with the US and a slowing economy to rest with a strong showing in the first quarter results of 2019.  The online giant’s net revenue increased by 21% year-over-year to RMB8.2 billion (US$1.2 billion) in the first quarter of 2019. Inco [...]
The Wrap: Rising costs halved Asia Pacific airline profitability in 2018
22/05/2019 by WiT
In the news: Airlines take centre stage with Asia Pacific carriers reporting a dip in profits, Malaysia Airlines and Radisson in loyalty partnership and Vietnam looks to technology to lower operational costs Aviation: Rising costs halved Asia Pacific airline profitability in 2018 APAC airline [...]
Ctrip offers insights into customised high-end travel, highlights difference from standard packages
21/05/2019 by WiT
The concept of "customised travel" is relatively new in China, a trend seen only in recent year and, as such, there are uncertainties surrounding this luxury segment. Ctrip, China’s largest online travel agent, shared insights into this growing market in its new report, Chinese High-End Outb [...]
These are the top five cities to meet in Asia Pacific
16/05/2019 by WiT
Singapore, Sydney, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Hong Kong are the top cities for meetings and events in Asia Pacific, according to the Asia Pacific Destination Report 2019. Published by American Express Meetings & Events, a division of American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), the re [...]
The Wrap: Culture holds a fascination for Chinese travellers
15/05/2019 by WiT
In the news: The spotlight is on China with a report on Chinese travellers’ growing interest in culture trips, Dorsett’s partnership with JegoTrip to expand customer base, and Guangzhou’s Heycars collaborating with Amadeus to reach more travel agents Travel: Culture holds a fascination for [...]
YouTrip raises US$25.5m in pre-Series A to help SEA travellers with payments on the road
16/05/2019 by WiT
Singapore startup YouTrip announced today that it has raised US$25.5m in its pre-Series A – making it the largest funding round for a fintech startup in South-east Asia. Participating investors include major Asian family offices and venture capital firm Insignia Ventures Partners. Launche [...]
Chinese sports travel market growing fast, but faces barriers in securing events tickets
09/05/2019 by WiT
Sports travel is a sector that is expanding rapidly in China, with the market expected to grow by 25% to 30% over the next three years, and reach RMB 1.5 trillion (US$221,000 million) by 2020. However, despite the increase in demand and purchasing power the difficulty in securing ticke [...]
WiT Seoul 2019: Invest in predictive data and create sticky customer experiences to win in online travel
08/05/2019 by WiT
At WiT Seoul held in early April, a panel of investors discussed what it would take to capture the hearts and dollars of South Korean travellers in an increasingly competitive travel space. It naturally distilled down to the core importance of harnessing data and analytics to better understand [...]
The Wrap: Malaysia Airlines taking ‘Malaysian Hospitality’ beyond flights
08/05/2019 by WiT
In the news: Malaysia Airlines' second phase of Malaysian Hospitality canpaign, Tourism New Zealand and Tencent partner in tourism push, B2B virtual payment from Sabre and Visa, Airlines: Malaysia Airlines taking ‘Malaysian Hospitality’ beyond flights The rebranded MHassistant app - offer [...]