African expertise puts Travelstart in good stead to tap Middle East growth
With South Africa as its home base and its businesses spread across the African continent, Travelstart believes its roots and experience make it well suited to take on the emerging and fragmented markets of the Middle East. Paulina Klotzbucher, managing director, Travelstart, who has overview of th [...]
Cracking local payments is key to unlocking potential of Middle East
When you combine three forces – a young demographic, an aspirational market of travellers and strong mobile adoption – it stands to reason that the future for online and mobile payments is bright in the Middle East.
Spending is on the rise, said Remo Giovanni Abbondandolo, VP of Business Dev [...]
The Wrap: Kuala Lumpur-Singapore crowned world’s busiest international route for second straight year
In the news: Asia Pacific home to world’s busiest flight routes, more rail options for Ctrip users in Amadeus tie-up, Fliggy’s new shopping channel
Aviation: Kuala Lumpur-Singapore crowned world’s busiest international route for second straight year
The hour-long flght from Kuala Lumpu [...]
Tours and activities suppliers must change mindset and open thinking to tech solutions like payments
It’s difficult to think like a technology company after building a successful offline business. Yet there is pressure on local businesses, particularly in the third largest travel sector – tours and activities – to do so, as competition gets tougher and the biggest way to get discovered is th [...]
Letter from Penang: Why indies who pursue love matter in the big money world of travel
Each time I return to Penang, I discover
a new and interesting business set up by yet another entrepreneur out to make a
difference on the island. This island, after all, was built by traders,
merchants and immigrants, much like my father.
Hikayat is a new creative and arts space founded by [...]
For love and money: From Taipei to Penang, how two independent hoteliers are doing it their way
With the theme of “Love & Money: How To Do Both” threading through WiT Indie held in Penang on March 15, it was interesting to hear the responses from speakers when asked to choose one or the other.
Benjamin Liao, chairman of Taiwan’s Forte Hotel Group, created laughter when he said, [...]
Wego soars to profitability and $1b gross bookings on back of Middle East success
Six years after Singapore-based travel metasearch site Wego entered the Middle East, the region now accounts for half of its total business and is the key reason why the company achieved profitability 18 months ago on $1 billion worth of gross travel bookings across the entire business.
Said Ro [...]
Former Buzzfeed Japan CEO joins Sojern as Asia Pacific VP
Travel tech firm Sojern has appointed former chief of Buzzfeed Japan Masahiro Ueno as vice president of Asia Pacific (APAC) based in Singapore
In his new role Ueno will lead expansion in APAC including Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia and New Zealand.
The former CEO of Buzzfeed Japan, a join [...]
Here’s how to get your experience business discovered
Travel activities account for 9% of global travel market and is the third largest segment of the travel space after airlines and hotels. This is a significant space worth about US$129 billion (RM500 billion).
Nearer home, Asia Pacific is the largest regional market for tours and activities [...]
Marketing to the Chinese traveller: What you ought to know
“There are big changes in the China travel market, which also means big opportunities for marketers.” This was how Reene Ho-Phang, founder and, managing director of BrandStory Asia, described what lies in store for companies looking to do business with this outbound travel giant.
She was giv [...]
