From astro-pads to Spanish accents, there’s a survey for you
Artificial intelligence has spurned the age of the travel survey. Just this week, I’ve been informed about the most difficult accents for Aussies to understand (Spanish), the world’s best cities for singles (Tokyo, followed by Doha), the best vacation rentals in the world (Earth, Moon & Conkers, an off-the-grid astro-pod in Wales, UK) and the World’s Happiest Countries, according to the United Nations (Finland, for the seventh consecutive year).
Tip: if you want to be happy, according to the Finns, try taking a walk in the woods.
The Economist Intelligence Unit has weighed in with its annual survey of the best countries to do business in, and – no surprise – Singapore came out top again, although Greece received an honourable mention for improving its score by the largest margin, “reflecting pro-business reforms, tax cuts and increased business confidence”, the EIU noted.
Finally, Remote, a global HR platform has studied the working culture of the 60 highest-GDP nations to revealed those who offer the best “life-work” balance.
Remote’s study takes into account annual leave, minimum sick pay, paid maternity leave and payment rate, minimum wage, healthcare system, happiness index, average hours worked per week, and GBTQ+ inclusivity.
New Zealand filled the No 1 spot (‘generous annual leave allowance and a high minimum wage, while new mothers benefit from 26 weeks of paid maternity leave’).
Spain filled second place (‘while a midday snooze isn’t part of everyday life in the cities’ corporate hubs, folks in Spain evidently know how to strike the right balance between business and pleasure’) and France was comfortable in third place (‘The French have a notoriously healthy attitude to separating work and play, but it comes at no detriment to the economy).
Trip.com hails Amadeus Mobility
Trip.com has further broadened the scope of Amadeus content offered beyond Air and Hotel Distribution to include Mobility on both Trip.com and Trip.Biz platforms.
The new agreements with Amadeus Mobility will benefit both leisure and business travellers by increasing the number of mobility options available to them: car rental offers via Amadeus Cars Web Services with real-time rates from more than 50 car rental providers in more than 40,000 locations worldwide.
New content provided on Trip.com will focus primarily on mobility options for leisure customers, while content added to Trip.Biz, the global digital Travel Management Company (TMC) powered by Trip.com Group, will include global car providers catering to business travellers’ needs.
Joerg Schuler, executive vice president, hospitality media & distribution, Amadeus, said, “We realise travellers’ needs are changing, and how important it is that Trip.com and Trip.Biz customers have access to all types of travel content, including mobility.”
NusaTrip takes a trip with Trip Affiliates
NusaTrip (NST) has signed a partnership with the Trip Affiliates Network which will enable Indonesia’s leading online travel agent to access TA Network’s fully integrated, open travel ecosystem.
The agreement will give NST access to a comprehensive suite of dynamic products and inventory, including seamless payment options and efficiency-focused modules tailored to enhance control over B2B payment streams.
Patrick Soetanto, CEO NusaTrip, said the partnership with TA Network offered a distinctive platform with omni-channel capabilities and innovative connectivity solutions, “facilitating seamless expansion and entry into the digitalised travel market”.
Love Bali, hate the queues
Good news for those who have been stuck for ages in an immigration queue at Bali’s I Gusti Ngurah Airport. More payment counters are to be installed to allow arriving passengers to pay the recently introduced tourist tax.
Most tourists are smart enough to pay the tax in advance via the Love Bali app – although this itself has had a few teething problems. Local reports indicate the portal is now running almost as planned.
