Daily 12 March/März - ITB Berlin

XVIII Friday 12 March ITB Berlin English Daily 2010
Among the numerous projects already in the public arena is a plan to develop the
existing cruise liner port by 2014 (for vessels up to 250,000 tons) to attract cruise
companies to use Hainan as a home port. Hainan is likely to approve land grant and
new property projects this month, so a spate of new hotels is on the cards. The island
currently has some 260 hotels, with 20 classified as five-star. One Hainan official has
commented that 40 more five-star hotels will be built within the next decade, along
with new golf courses, an ocean park, marinas and a yacht club. Not surprisingly, land
prices are escalating rapidly and there is talk of introducing measures to dampen speculation.
Initial word from the provincial government indicates that funding will be made available
to sustain the environment, upgrade tourism services and facilities, build new
essential infrastructure, develop retail facilities, commission research and provide better
tourism education. But the authorities are adamant that Hainan will not become a new
Macau – there will be a sports lottery, according to one Hainan official, but definitely no
gambling.
ASEAN adopts new brandname
Despite being a political entity since the mid-1960s, the Association of South East Asian
Nations (ASEAN) has never been widely recognised by international travellers. As a
result, marketing initiatives such the ASEAN Air Pass or ‘Visit ASEAN Year’ have had little
impact on international tourists. However, this is all set to change, following a decision
by the ASEAN Ministers of Tourism to launch a new strategic plan for the development
of tourism.
The announcement comes just at the time that the ASEAN tourism association
(ASEANTA) – which groups all travel professionals in the region – has received funds
from the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to create a new brand.
As reported yesterday, ‘Southeast Asia, feel the warmth’ kicked off at the ASEAN Travel
Forum in Brunei in January 2010, with its official launch taking place at ITB. For RJ
Gurley, director of the ASEAN Competitiveness Enhancement (ACE) programme,
‘Southeast Asia’ is already a well-established concept in international markets and to use
the term instead of ‘ASEAN’ in marketing campaigns and as a web portal will certainly
raise more awareness.
The campaign’s main support is a new website, developed on a budget of US$500,000
– www.SoutheastAsia.org pulls together general information about the ten ASEAN
countries as well as articles, photos and, most importantly, a search engine and travel
planner. Future travellers will then be able to create their own itineraries and select airlines
and accommodation. Target markets are adventurous culture seekers – a mature
market with purchasing power – as well as inexperienced travellers and young independent
travellers. Long-haul markets (Australia, Europe and USA) will be the main
focus, along with the Indian market. As for Japan and China, two important source
markets for ASEAN, Gurley believes that websites in Mandarin and Japanese will be
essential.