Northstar

NEWS www.travelweeklyweb.com Chat with the CEO Maggie White, Regional General Manager, S/SE Asia & Gulf | Tourism Australia Name your favourite airline. Why? My choice is made on schedules as I have a regional role. Changi Airport is a great hub so I'm able to experience many different carriers that meet my needs for both business and leisure. What do you look for in an airline business class product? Good service and in-fl ight entertainment. What is your favourite mode of travel. Why? Air travel as it gets me to/from my destination quickly. However for relaxation I enjoy cycling especially as Singapore's Park Connector's are increasing. It's great to be able to ride on this vast network and enjoy the diversity which it brings. What is your idea of a dream vacation? A quintessential exper ience seeker, I choose vacations where I can explore exotic destinations well away from the busy city life I lead. I always take my camera along as I enjoy photography which with a DLSR the fun of photography just keep getting better and better. I do all my own research and then hand over the plans to a specialist agent who knows these off the beaten track destinations well; they can then tailor and customise my itinerary to suit my needs. I like being close to nature and will usually go hiking before I indulge in local arts, culture and food. Last year I trekked the Western Dolpo region in Nepal which was amazing; very few international visitors come to this region which is quite spectacular. There are number of passes to be crossed and the Himalaya's whilst beautiful especially when snow capped peaks come into sight, you have to respect nature as the weather can turn bad at any time. You need to be well prepared. The Nepal goverment is hoping more trekkers will fi nd this magic part of their country. Who is one person you would like to vacation with? My sister. She is an amazing traveller – tolerant, understanding and great fun to be with. What makes Aus t ral ia a great repeat destination? Australia is a big country which offers diverse experiences. Each of our eight states and territories have different characteristics which can cater to almost every interest. The two largest metropolis of Sydney and Melbourne are so dif ferent from Hobart and Adelaide, both of which are compact yet filled with much colonial architecture. Beyond the cities the regions have so much to offer from spectacular nature which depending on the time of day is great for photography; 6 | ■ TRAVELWEEKLY ASIA | 05 JULY 2011 the light in Aus t ralia is pretty unique. The more relaxed pace of life is also appealing for visitors along with the open spaces. One can return from a holiday in Australia rejuvenated. Australia is a perfect self- drive destination and people love driving and exploring the destination in their own time and at their own pace. Many visitors return to Australia to explore the myriad of different routes available right across the country People also return to Australia for their favourite lifestyle experiences like hanging out with the locals, enjoying the café culture in Melbourne, living it up in Sydney or Queensland. relaxing by the beach at Noosa in Name three things about Australia that tourists don't know • Australia is the sixth largest country in the world – A land of wide-open spaces, it is about the same size as the 48 mainland states of the USA and 50 per cent larger than Europe, but has the lowest population density in the world – only two people per square kilometre. • Melbourne's famous tramway system is the largest outside the European continent – It spiders out across the city and is more than 240 kilometres long. • More than 80 per cent of Australians live within 50 kilometres of the coast – There are no privately owned beaches in Australia, they are public places for all to enjoy. What is Australia's spend on attracting SE Asians to Australia? Asia is a key strategic growth area for the Australian 2002 Tourism Industry Potential. The industry aims to double overnight visitor expenditure to $140 billion by 2020. Business events visitors to Australia will make an impor tant contribution to this objective, as the Australian business events sector is already wor th nearly $8 billion in overnight visitor expenditure. Our budget ref lects the growing impor tance of markets such as Indonesia, India and Vietnam along with the well established countries such as Singapore and Malaysia. Any other Comments? Australia is a destination that can meet either individual or MICE meeds. The tourism infrastructure is well developed making it easy to be f lexible and carefree when on a vacation. Innovation drives the events industry so you can be assured of some pretty amazing experiences if you choose an incentive trip to Australia. Chinese hotel groups dominate Asia Pacifi c ranking BEIJING – MKG Hospitality has released its 2011 ranking of hotel groups for the Asia Pacifi c region based on room numbers. Chinese groups dominated the regional ranking with Home Inns coming in first place with almost 94,000 rooms, having added an impressive 22,000 rooms to their network while Jin Jiang dropped to second place with almost 90,000 rooms. Jin Jiang was expected to be first place again, but MKG said that the lack of information on their recent development and new hotel openings compelled it to keep the same figures as last year. The third and fourth places in the ranking belong to overseas groups. The UK's IHG came in third place with close to 87,000 rooms while French hospitality giant Accor boasts 83,000 and 4th place in the ranking. 7 Days Group Ltd. has the largest growth in the Asia Pacific ranking. They almost doubled their hotel supply by adding 23,500 rooms to their network bringing their tally up to 56,500 rooms and fi fth place. On a worldwide scale, Home Inns, Jin Jiang and 7 Days Group came in 12th, 13th and 19th place respectively. "The system of reporting figures from Chinese groups is developing as rapidly as their hotel supply. However there is still territory for expansion in China. Figures from China will still be impressive in the future and we look forward to seeing them be more precise," said Mr. Panayotis, CEO of MKG Hospitality. "Regardless, the hotel-population ratio leaves an open market to nourish this emerging market with the hotel supply it needs." www.travelweeklyweb.com

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