Three accidental indie travel makers, one common purpose
If there is one thing travel entrepreneurs Uttara Sarkar Crees, Andrew Dixon and Simon Wong have in common, it is that they all got into what they are doing by accident but are now following their passion and paths with purpose.
Speaking at the inaugural WIT Indie in Penang last week, the trio sh [...]
WEGOGO launches WeGold ICO to build decentralised travel platform for “fair-share travel ecosystem”
WEGOGO – a business platform on WeChat that enables global tours and activities operators and travel hosts to connect with Chinese consumers –announced its aspirations to be the world’s “first travel blockchain for aspirational travel in Asia”.
To do this, WEGOGO has expressed its inte [...]
Letter from Seoul: South Korea’s travel braces for change as perfect storm approaches
There was a time when I visited Tokyo and I thought I had landed in a science fiction novel. Today I get that same feeling when I visit Seoul.
Its citizens are more attached to their smartphones than anywhere else – by age 12, 72% of South Koreans own a smartphone and they spend 4.5 hours a day [...]
AirAsia heads to Silicon Valley in search of travel startups
AirAsia is making its first foray into US Silicon Valley, home to many startup and global technology companies, to find “the best startups in the travel industry” as the airline puts it.
The low cost carrier is carrying out the search in partnership with Plug and Play Tech Center, a global in [...]
8 key takeaways from WIT Hospitality 2018: Cash flow and real estate may still rule but transform or be left behind
I am sure by now hoteliers must be tired of hearing people tell them they must change. But they do say if you say something often enough, it will happen sooner rather than later.
And It looks like something fundamental is shifting. It felt palpable at WIT Hospitality which took place in Hong Kong [...]
Fancy a 500-mile sidecar ride to Penang? Triquetra.sg’s Simon Wong plans charity rally as part of WIT Indie
Triquetra.sg, the company that offers Vespa vintage sidecar heritage tours in Singapore, will organise a 500-mile Charity ride from the Lion City to Penang, in conjunction with the inaugural WIT Indie being held in the northern Malaysian state.
Founder Simon Wong, who’s speaking at WIT Indi [...]
The Wrap: ‘We Were Built’ – The story of how a Singapore icon came to be
In the news: A journey down memory lane to discover the beginning of Raffles Hotel Singapore; Amadeus’ invests in automated pedestrian analytics and insights company CrowdVision; Alipay adds four more SEA countries to its platform.
HOTELS: ‘We Were Built’ – The story of how a Singapore [...]
TourScanner wants to make tours & activities easy to search, compare and book
Tours and activities has been a notoriously difficult and fragmented vertical to crack. Merchants are still in the process of transitioning from offline to online, and consumers typically book activities in-destination.
Nevertheless, the sector is attracting investment. Phocuswright valued the to [...]
WIT launches Indie event to champion creators of unique, local experiences
WIT is launching an Indie event aimed at empowering independents and creatives at the long tail of the travel experience. The first edition of WIT Indie will be held in Penang, Malaysia, on April 13, and is supported and sponsored by Penang Institute, one of Malaysia’s leading think tanks.
T [...]
Redeam closes US$7.7M in series A funding to boost paperless ticket processing for tours and activities
Automatic ticket processing company, Redeam, has successfully raised US$7.7M in series A funding, led by Vertical Venture Partners with Thayer Ventures, JetBlue Technology Ventures, Tallwave Capital and Peninsula Ventures in participation.
Redeam develops technology that automates ticket proc [...]
