| Featured in this Asia Pacific Hospitality Newsletter - Week Ending 2 December 2005 |
| The Countdown is On to the Melbourne 2006 Commonwealth Games | Return to Headlines |
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Melbourne is preparing for its biggest sporting event and its biggest party in its history. It is only 15 weeks to go before Australia hosts 4500 athletes from 71 nations and final preparations are underway for this once in a lifetime event. The Games will take place from 15 to 26 March 2006. The Games have a dedicated International Tourism marketing strategy and travel packages are now on sale via official travel agents as well as the official Games website. A global campaign 'United by the Moment' has been launched with support from Tourism Australia and Tourism Victoria. Check out the Games website for information on tickets, travel packages and much more. www.melbourne2006.com.au. To find the official travel agent for each country, go to http://www.melbourne2006.com.au/?s=countrycontactlist. |
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| Accor Expands in Indonesia | Return to Headlines |
| Accor Hotels and Resorts has signed a string of deals in Indonesia and will open five new hotels there next year. Accor's timeshare arm also has announced its first property deal outside Australia and New Zealand. It will spend US$5.3 million developing 23 apartments in Bali. The Queensland-based timeshare company, Accor Premiere Vacation Club ('APVC') is jointly owned by Melbourne-based listed developer Becton Property Group. APVC has been aggressively buying luxury and boutique-style apartments and villas around Australia in the past year. The apartments will be part of the new Novotel Residence at Nusa Dua in Bali, which is scheduled for completion mid next year. Under Accor's new hotel management agreements(mostly for 10 years) Accor will add two Novotels and three Mercure hotels to its stable, bringing the number of hotels the company runs in Indonesia to 38. It aims to have 50 there by the end of 2007. | |
| Kempinski to Manage Hotel in Shanghai | Return to Headlines |
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Kempinski Hotels has taken its first step into Shanghai's hotel market to capitalize on the expected rise in tourism from World Expo 2010. Beijing Key International Hotels Management Co Ltd, Kempinski's joint venture in China, has signed a deal with Shanghai Xintai Real Estate Development Co Ltd to build a Kempinski hotel in the city that will open in 2009. Xintai will fund the project while Kempinski will provide management, as well as branding and marketing services. Xintai estimated the hotel will cost US$247 million. Located along the Huangpu River, the 180,000-square-metre hotel will overlook the future Expo exhibition halls on both banks of the river. The project also features a 44-story office building to attract companies to the area. |
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| Tourism to Grow Fastest in Asia-Pacific Until 2010 | Return to Headlines |
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The tourism industry in Asia-Pacific countries is expected to grow by 6.5 percent annually over the next 15 years, according to the World Tourism Organization (WTO). This would be faster than the anticipated annual world average growth of 4.1 percent. In its Tourism 2020 Vision, the WTO said that from the actual 153 million in 2004, tourist arrivals to the Asia-Pacific region will reach 195.2 million by 2010 and 397.2 million by 2020. Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines, are expected to have the fastest growth in both international tourist arrivals and tourism receipts. Globally, the WTO forecasts that international tourist arrivals will climb to 1.561 billion by 2020 from only 565 million in 1995. Europe is expected to remain the top destination of international travelers, but its share in total tourist arrivals would drop from almost 60 percent in 1995 to 46 percent by 2010. East Asia and the Pacific will displace the Americas as the second top destination of international guests, with its share predicted to widen from 14 percent in 1995 to 25 percent by 2010. |
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| Dadabhai Group to Tap Indian Realty, Hotels Sectors | Return to Headlines |
| Bahrain's biggest player in the tourism sector, Dadabhai Group, is scouting for opportunities in the Indian hospitality and real estate sectors. A feasibility study is being undertaken for setting up serviced-apartments in the country, along with projects for marketing Bahrain as a tourist destination in India. High on the agenda is luring India Inc to set up base in Bahrain and use it as springboard to tap markets in the Gulf. His business interests include real estate, hospitality, travel, construction, trading and education. A way forward could be the Indian government encouraging overseas Indians to play a bigger role in developing India's tourism infrastructure. If Bahrain can attract one million tourists, along with four million transit tourists every year, India needs to think about setting up tourism infrastructure on a global scale. | |
| Ritz-Carlton Tokyo to Open in 2007 | Return to Headlines |
| Located in central Tokyo, The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo will offer travelers a new business address when it opens in early 2007. Situated on the former Defense Agency site in the Roppongi District, the hotel will be part of a mixed-use development that will be developed and owned by a consortium led by Mitsui Fudosan Co., Ltd. The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, L.L.C., will operate the hotel under a long-term lease agreement. The Ritz-Carlton, Tokyo will occupy the top nine levels of a skyscraper designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, L.L.P. The property will feature 250 guest rooms, a sky lobby, several restaurants and bars and a large health club and spa. | |
| Absolute Share Price Performance, as at 2 December 2005 |
