ADB funds Kampot port

At the time of the ground breaking Khmer Times quoted ADB Cambodia head, Eric Sidgwick, saying: “The development of this passenger pier will support an increase in tourism in southern coastal areas and help establish a new gateway between southern Cambodia, Vietnam and other destinations in the Gulf of Thailand.”

It will also boost property development with recent news that Japanese investors are keen to build a villa resort to attract Japanese retirees.

Investors from China and France have also shown interest, prompting suggestions that Kampot will ultimately become an attractive option for up-market hotel developers.

Cambodia’s Minister of Tourism, Thong Khon, told Khmer Times during

a site visit, earlier this month, that the port would become a key facility to improve cruise tourism to the region.

Once open the port will be the first in the country with dedicated facilities and a terminal for cruise ships.

However, he declined to confirm which company would be assigned to manage the port under a joint public-private venture agreement.

The project is scheduled for completion by the end of the year to coincide with the Sea Festival, which will be held in the province for the second time, the minister noted.

The project funded by ADB and is part of the Greater Mekong Sub-region Tourism Infrastructure for Inclusive Growth Project, he concluded.

In the long run it will bring more tourists to explore Preah Sihanouk, Koh Kong, and Kep provinces, while serving as port stop before sailing to Phu Quoc Island in Vietnam the minister concluded.

MEKONGNha Trang lines up festival treats.

PAGE 6.

YOUR STORIESEmirates increases flights to London.

DESTINATIONSDo-it-yourself travel to Keng Tung.

PAGE 8-10. PAGE 13.

New port under construction in Kampot, Cambodia, due to open at the end of this year.

ASIAN Development Bank is funding a massive port project in Kampot, an estuary town on Cambodia’s coast close to Phu Quoc island in Vietnam.

Due to be completed by the end of this year ADB funded the project to the tune of USD10 million.

Construction got underway in mid-2017 at a site 6 km southeast of Kampot town in Teck Chhou district’s Chum Kreal commune.

Other ADB funding of around USD8 million will be used to improve tourism infrastructure in Kep and Koh Kong provinces.

Billed as a key project to boost tourism, the port at Kampot will benefit the local economy by providing job opportunities and creating support services to handle up to 1.5 million passengers annually.

Covering a site of four hectares, the six-metre deep port has been designed to attract international tourists setting it apart from the commercial port at Sihanoukville.

VOL 42, ISSUE 09, 18-24 March 2019 NEWS FOR SOUTHEAST’S ASIA TRAVEL PLANNERS Daily NEWS UPDATES at www.ttrweekly.com

A Supreme Administrative Court ruling opens the way for Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Conservation to limit tourist and dive visits to the Similan Islands in the Andaman Sea and technically at other islands in marine national parks.

It also sends a clear message to local tour operators and travel companies to think twice before objecting to measures that will protect islands from ‘overtourism.’

Following on from the closure of Maya Bay in the Phi Phi islands, last year, the department of national parks issued a ruling designed to cap the footfall on Similan Islands at 3,325 visitors and 525 divers daily in response to the considerable damage inflicted on the environment since the islands opened to tourism two decades earlier.

But local tour operators, predictably looking only at their wallets, filed an injunction with the Phuket Administrative Court to overturn the ruling. That manoeuvre allowed them to continue selling tours to the islands through the peak season months December to February. During the boom year 2017, the Similans was overrun with around 5,000 visitors daily, but due to a 4% drop in tourist arrivals to Phuket in December 2018 visits to the Similans dropped significantly.

The supreme court ruling sets the record straight on the department’s authority to cap visits to islands under its supervision, while admonishing tour operators for an abject failure to address the risks and potential damage tourism can inflict on an island’s environment. The

TTR Weekly is a controlled circulation newspaper for the travel industry specialising in Thailand and the Mekong region. Published every Wednesday, alternatively in English, the publication is distributed free to travel agents. Available on subscription outside this qualifying category. Published by Ross Publishing Ltd.

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EDITORIAL: news@rossttr.com Editor: Don Ross

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EDITOR’S POSTHats off

for the Similans tourist cap

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court ruled “tour operators” had failed to deliver a valid argument for opposing the capacity cap.

Predictably, tour operators object whenever their commercial enterprises are at risk even though the islands they exploit for gain are national assets and not private property. Instead of being part of the solution they demand the status quo continues to offer them unhindered access to islands even though it results in catastrophic consequences for the marine environment and reduces the value of tourist assets on the island.

Capacity caps have to be set at all island attractions around the country and in some instances islands should be closed for six months of the year or even permanently to sightseeing endeavours.

Of course, this does not apply to commercially developed tourist islands such as Chang, Lanta Phuket and Samui but there are still thousands of islands that need to be declared off-limits for commercial tourism.

Maya Bay is a fine example of what can be achieved to restore the environment of a bay when closed to tourists for a prolonged period.

The tourism industry has to come to terms with the reality that islands need protection. Development has to be measured by a community’s ability to achieve balance between earning a living and protecting an asset for future generations to enjoy.

To achieve balance, Thailand’s natural assets and the clusters of islands that remain unspoiled should be protected from ‘overtourism’ through serious year-round capacity caps. The brakes need to be applied firmly and the industry needs to recognise that there are enough beach resorts and islands packed with hotels to serve tourist needs for decades to come. A different tourism model needs to be adopted one that helps local communities thrive while ensuring mega projects more suited to urban centres are not approved for beaches and islands.

Don Ross, editor

TTR WEEKLY | 18-24 MARCH 2019 3

PRODUCTION: info@rossttr.comCreative director: Danai Stephen RossGraphics: Suradej Chatsomsiri, Kamolapat Sriveriwan

Red carpet rolls out for PATA’s summit in CebuPATA Annual Summit convenes in Cebu this May, Philippines’ oldest city.

CEBU, Philippines will welcome the Pacific Asia Travel Association Annual Summit 2019, 9 to 12 May.

Hosted by the Department of Tourism, Philippines, the four-day event will take place in the Radisson Blu hotel Cebu.

The summit’s programme highlights a one-day conference under the theme ‘Progress with a Purpose’, which will focus on fundamental challenges, issues and opportunities facing the travel and tourism industry.

The Economist global editorial director, Andrew Staples, will make a presentation on the ‘State of the World Economy’, which will be followed by an insights presentation by Professor John Koldowski, a special advisor to the PATA CEO, on the “current and future state of travel and tourism in the Asia Pacific”.

Following the presentations, a BBC moderated panel will look at ‘Navigating the Numbers’ in travel.

Other topics to during the conference include ‘Destination Management in Times of Uncertainty’, ‘Mainstreaming Sustainable Tourism’, ‘The Power of Data and Insights for Responsible Development’, ‘Accessible Tourism for All’, and ‘The Future of Sustainable Destination Branding’. Confirmed speakers include Haitham Mattar, CEO

EVENTS

– Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority; Robin Yap, chairman Emeritus – The Travel Corporation (TTC); Martin Heng, Accessible Travel Manager & Editorial Advisor – Lonely Planet, and Maja Pak, Director General – Slovenian

leaders and rising stars in the private sector to discuss challenges and opportunities facing the tourism industry.

Cebu is emerging as a destination that can cater to business and leisure activities. While its beaches are a

Coffee and tea traders meet in India

exhibitors from eight countries and a trade visitor footfall of 4000 industry professionals worldwide.

The 2018 edition fielded 70+ exhibitors and had a trade visitor count of 3,750 tea and coffee buyers. There

was a strong turn out of coffee and tea boards from India, Sri Lanka and Africa, as well as associations representing coffee and tea buyers from Europe and North America in keen to source new suppliers.

The show limited to just trade visitors while the exhibitor profile includes tea & coffee manufacturers and brands, machinery, packaging and technology companies.

Trade visitors are made up of mainly tea gardens & coffee estates, roasters And blenders and representatives of niche products such as herbal green and slimming teas, plus retailers such as coffee and tea branded stores. The show owner is Sentinel Exhibitions Asia (www.sentinelexhibitionsasia.com)

COFFEE and tea entrepreneurs will head for the 7th World Tea & Coffee Expo that will be hosted in Mumbai, India, 21 to 23 November.

Hosted at the Bombay Exhibition Centre in Goregaon East, Mumbai, the B2B show is now in its seventh edition.

Since its launch in 2013, the event has always been hosted in Mumbai but has gained support from tea and coffee boards mainly from India, Sri Lanka, China, Thailand and Vietnam.

The two-day 7th World Tea & Coffee Expo 2019 should attract around 90

Tourist Board.PATA’s partnership with the World

Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) will continue with a half-day UNWTO/PATA Leaders Debate during the Summit programme. The debate is an opportunity for public sector tourism

traveller’s dream of a tropical island come true it is also Philippine’s second largest city. Hotels, shopping malls, entertainment centres, casinos, and golf courses are present, but it is also credited with being the oldest city in the Philippines.

18-24 MARCH 2019 | TTR WEEKLY4

More Germans travel to Asia this EasterAsia benefits from increased summer seat capacity, while booking spike for China and Hong Kong.

HONG KONG and China are more popular than ever for Germans intending to take a Easter break this year with bookings for the two destinations registering the highest growth rates.

Flight bookings are ahead of 2018, and increased seat capacity this summer could help sustain the trend, according to the latest findings from ForwardKeys, which predicts future travel patterns by analysing 17 million booking transactions a day.

Overall, intercontinental bookings from Germany are currently ahead 2.7% for the Easter holiday period, compared to last year.

Easter falls on Friday 19 April to Sunday 21 April with the traditional bank holiday on 22 April (UK), but the school holiday for Easter begins 5 April and ends 23 April.

According to ForwardKeys figures, Hong Kong bookings are showing a 31.4% jump compared with 2018, and China 30.9%. Other favoured destinations are the USA, ahead 20.6%, and Morocco, ahead 20.0%.

Although Thailand is not quite show the strongest booking growth, it does seem to be by far the most inspiring destination for a long-haul Easter holiday; as over 40% of all German online flight searches for travel to Asian destinations included Thailand.

This summer, the Asia Pacific region will benefit most from increased intercontinental scheduled seat capacity from Germany.

Between May and October, it’s up 4.1% for the region, which has a 5% market share. The total international capacity increase from Germany is 0.7% on last year.

Flight capacity to other European destinations, representing a 82% market share, is up 0.4%.

Intercontinental destinations with the largest growth in scheduled flight capacity from Germany between May and October, this year, are Qatar, up 18.2%; Thailand up 12.9% and Hong Kong up 10.0%.

The collapse of the German holiday airline, Germania, earlier this month (February), has had an impact on some

TRENDS

destinations, but others are proving to be resilient.

Among those once served by Germania, but still showing capacity growth for this summer are Serbia up 5.9%; Egypt 0.2% and Turkey 7.3%.

ForwardKeys VP insights, Olivier Ponti commented: “Despite very serious

turbulence in the German airline industry, it’s encouraging to see air capacity still growing overall, particularly as capacity increases are a sign of economic confidence. Over the Easter holidays, Hong Kong and China look set to do particularly well from German visitors.”

Phuket: Double-digit growth dwindles in 2018

decelerated momentum and by the end of the year annualized hotel demand had declined by 4%.

Commenting on the rise and fall in performance, C9’s report showed a decline in August through to October eradicated the early gains in the year.

At that juncture, despite negative industry sentiment of a continued drop, a soft landing ensued in the final two months of the year driven mostly on rates, and by year-end the new normal kicked in. Closing out the outlook on Phuket, one of the key takeaways from the C9 Hotelworks report is that the Indian market is seeing a rapid growth in visits to Phuket. In 2018 Indian travellers recorded a 56% year-on-year increase as direct flights were opened from Mumbai, New Delhi and Bengaluru.

DESPITE registering a record high 9 million passenger arrivals at Phuket’s gateway international airport in 2018, performance data indicates that a slowdown in growth rates is on the horizon for Thailand’s top island destination.

That’s the conclusion of C9 Hotelworks newly released Phuket Hotel Market Update.

While airport arrivals grew 8% year-on-year, the gains posted were at their lowest level since 2015 according to consulting group’s managing director Bill Barnett.

Despite the first half of 2018 delivering arrivals that soared by 17% versus the same period in 2017, the second half of the year was marred by the Chinese boat accident, which

https://www.incredibleindia.org/content/incredibleindia/en.html

18-24 MARCH 2019 | TTR WEEKLY6

Beach festival returns to Vietnam’s Nha TrangNha Trang Beach Festival 2019 confirms line up of attractions.

NHA Trang Beach Festival-Khanh Hoa 2019 with nearly 50 art, sports, trade and symposium activities will convene

MEKONG

with a Muay championship and a beach physique contest.

On the sidelines of the Nha Trang Beach Festival-Khanh Hoa 2019, the organising board will hold a fair for handicrafts and commodities and a national conference on tourism personnel training.

The opening ceremony of the festival will be televised nationally on 10 May.

First hosted in 2003, the Nha Trang Beach Festival-Khanh Hoa is organised every two years.

Khanh Hoa is a popular tourist destination in Vietnam noted for its cultural value and beautiful beaches such as the crescent-shaped Nha Trang Beach, Van Phong Bay, Hon Gom peninsula and the islands of Hon Lon and Diep Son.

Through the hosting of the National Tourism Year 2019 themed “Nha Trang – Colour of Sea”, Khanh Hoa aims to promote the beauty of seas and islands and tourism products in the province.

According to the province’s department of tourism, Khanh Hoa welcomed 6.3 million tourists in 2018, including 2.7 million foreigners, and grossed more than VND20.5 trillion (USD885.2 million) in revenue.

This year, the target stands at 6.8 million representing a rise of 7%, including 3.3 million international tourists. Estimated earnings should reach VND 22.5 trillion (USD971.7 million)

festival, traditional “bai choi” singing events, as well as sport competitions with teams from villages nearby.

The festival is being heavily promoted by Vietnam National Tourism Authority on its website as a top calendar

Cambodian airlines focus on ChinaTwo Cambodian airlines have introduced new services to China that should help to boost tourist arrivals to the country this year.

JC Cambodia International Airlines has introduced new routes to China from Phnom Penh and Sihanoukville using Airbus A320 aircraft.

Three weekly flights are now operating between Phnom Penh and Chengdu in China.

From Sihanoukville the airline is offering twice weekly flights to Nanning and three weekly services to Shenzhen.

All the flights are sold to tour companies in the Chinese cities with very few if any seats available for local sales in Cambodia.

Lanmei Airlines strengthened its flights to China last week adding new

10 to 13 May, according to the People’s Committee of the south-central province of Khanh Hoa.

The activities that aim to promote the cultural values of Khanh Hoa and coastal localities, include a “cau ngu” (whale worship) festival, Khanh Hoa birds’ net

event of the year.Besides, a painting exhibition

featuring local beaches other activities include street dancing and concerts in the evenings at seaside locations.

Swimming and beach football tournaments will be organised, together

routes from Sihanoukville and Siem Reap to cities in China.

From Siem Reap it now offers flights Chengdu using an A321 on a scheduled charter basis once in five days.

Another scheduled charter flies from Siem Reap to Qinhuangdao also once every five days using an A319.

A service to Tunxi also operates from Siem Reap every five days. From Sihanoukville a service is now bookable to Guangzhou with three weekly flights using an A319

A three weekly service operates from Sihanoukville to Quanzhou. All the services cater to Chinese booking tours.

https://penang.hardrockhotels.net/

18-24 MARCH 2019 | TTR WEEKLY8

Do-it-yourself travel to Keng Tung hard work Travelling to Keng Tung without a tour company or guide is not as straightforward as you might imagine.

There was a time when proud residents called Keng Tung the “capital of the Golden Triangle” and rightly so.

It shared borders with China, Laos and Thailand and chronicles wrote of bustling mule train routes between China and Siam that passed through Keng Tung, the single town of note in a mountainous land ruled by Shan chieftains known as ‘Saophas.’

Despite its colourful history and charm, Keng Tung struggles to capture the imagination of the thousands of travellers who visit Chiang Rai in far north Thailand, just 160 km south of the Shan State town.

Chiang Rai might have a designated international airport and direct flights from China, Hong Kong, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, but do travellers see it as a viable gateway to press on and explore Myanmar?

The only Thai province sharing borders with two neighbouring countries, there are opportunities to go further. One option is to take the riverboat along the Mekong River downstream to Luang Prabang in Laos and the other is to head north to Keng Tung in Shan State, Myanmar.

Sure you can spend weeks, months

DESTINATION

or even years quietly exploring Chiang Rai, a province that carefully hides its attractions to confuse the casual traveller. But for the incurably curious traveller who has “done Chiang Rai in three days”, the question is always “what’s next”? That question might take them to the border with Myanmar to check just what lies beyond the narrow river bridge that separates the border towns of Mae Sai and Tachileik.

I reckon out of the thousands of international travellers who visit Chiang Rai just a few will peer through the dusty haze that cloaks Tachileik across that

narrow bridge and declare “I am going to find out.”

Finding out starts at the relatively new “Downtown” bus station in Chiang Rai town where the smart looking “blue” commuter vans wait for passengers heading for Mae Sai at the border. The vans depart around every 30 minutes, from dawn to dusk, or whenever all 14 seats are occupied at the THB50 one-way fare. It takes one hour to cover the 59 km distance to the small bus station on the outskirts of Mae Sai town where “song taew’ buses transfer passengers to the border (5 km away at the end of the town’s main street) for a fare of just THB15.

You need to turn your clock back 30 minutes after you cross into Myanmar, but the opening hours at the border checkpoints are 0600 to 2100 (Thai

time).Most visitors cross the

border take a stroll around the dusty market and hurry back to Mae Sai. To accomplish that 250-metre sprint you need to deposit your passport and enter Tachileik on a day border pass.

To visit Keng Tung, 160 km north of the border you will need a visa if you are not joining a tour group accompanied by a guide (border pass valid for up to 14 days for trips to Keng Tung only). Nationalities

that enjoy visa-free status at Tachileik are Singapore, Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and Macau.

Spill to page 10.

Border checkpoint Tachileik, Myanmar.

The surfaced road through the hills to Keng Tung.

Tachileik’s bargain: Duty-free wine store.

ADVENTURE NATURE FOOD FESTIVALCULTURE

The allure of the Land of the Hornbill can be narrowed down to five quintessential ingredients that form the delicacy that is Sarawak; Culture, Adventure, Nature, Food & Festival (CANFF)

Sarawak has over 27 sub-ethnic groups, all with their own distinct language, art, traditions and culture, living in harmony within the 48,050 square miles that make Sarawak.

This creates a spectrum of traditional heritage that can rarely be found in our modern day, with arts, music and craft from each race standing side by side in individual unison, a harmonious symphony as opposed to a melting pot.

www.sarawaktourism.com visitsarawak sarawaktravel

ADVENTURE NATURE FOOD FESTIVALCULTURE

The allure of the Land of the Hornbill can be narrowed down to five quintessential ingredients that form the delicacy that is Sarawak; Culture, Adventure, Nature, Food & Festival (CANFF)

Sarawak has over 27 sub-ethnic groups, all with their own distinct language, art, traditions and culture, living in harmony within the 48,050 square miles that make Sarawak.

This creates a spectrum of traditional heritage that can rarely be found in our modern day, with arts, music and craft from each race standing side by side in individual unison, a harmonious symphony as opposed to a melting pot.

www.sarawaktourism.com visitsarawak sarawaktravel

18-24 MARCH 2019 | TTR WEEKLY10 DESTINATION

Do-it-yourself travel to Keng Tung hard work

If you are eligible for an eVisa, pay the USD50 fee and enjoy the convenience of an efficient online service. Usually, the approval email arrives the same day as your application. This option allows you to travel to Keng Tung by taxi without having to hire a guide.

It takes about five minutes to pass through immigration on the Thai side. After you walk across the bridge and switch to the right side pavement you will see Myanmar’s visa office where you hand over your eVisa printout and your passport is stamped. Again it takes around five minutes, but there is an additional checkpoint at the office next-door where the police register your visit.

Technically, you are now home and dry ready to hire a taxi for the three-hour drive to Keng Tung.

Here lies the hitch for independent travellers not using a guide or tour company. You have to find a taxi, a hit and miss challenge with far too many touts ready to take you to the cleaners.

Walk down the street for 100 metres and at the roundabout take stock of the taxi situation. On the left corner of the road there is a money changer’s desk on the pavement that will exchange Thai baht to kyat at around 47.2 to the baht.

City landmarks: Standing Buddha points to the city and a Catholic

cathedral vies for attention.Taxis will ask for MMK120,000 one-

way to Keng Tung, but we managed to get one for MMK60,000 one-way from a driver who lived in Keng Tung. He had bought himself a right-hand drive, second-hand, Toyota Succeed estate car imported from Japan still sporting the original owner’s company trade mark on the door panels.

Compared with sitting in a new Toyota ‘blue’ commuter van from Mae Sai to the border the transfer to Keng Tung was definitely a downgrade in service with the potential to present layers of hassles and haggling. Just 100 metres difference in tarmac travelled, but worlds apart in service delivery.

We hadn’t finished with the red

Keng Tung lake a great spot to snack and watch the sunset.

The Buddha Park set in a hill, a landmark and interesting stop on the road trip to Keng Tung.

A fisherman tries his luck on Keng Tung’s lake.

tape either. The friendly driver needed to take our passports with the eVisa approval papers back to the immigration to secure permission to drive us to Keng Tung. It took him 45 minutes to do the paperwork, that included 15 photocopies that he would need to deposit with two roadside checkpoints and finally at the immigration office in Keng Tung town after we completed the journey. Counting the original processing with immigration at the border and once again in Keng Tung town, we were checked four times.

Booking a taxi and picking up tourist information and a map of Keng Tung, should have been options available at an office located at the border jointly served by immigration, police and officials from the tourism ministry. As it stands the independent traveller faces numerous pain-points and challenges.

Officials in Keng Tung did respond to the observations saying “you should have seen it years back, the transfer would have taken all day not three hours and the road wasn’t surfaced.”

Correct indeed. Just a few years ago the road transfer from Tachileik to Keng Tung turned into a dusty daylong marathon passing through around six road checkpoints. Taxis and tour buses raced against the clock to deposit foreign travellers at their hotels by dusk before the mountain road closed for the night.

None of this is relevant today or reassuring for travellers flying to Chiang Rai’s airport on direct flights from Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur. Travellers who love to explore the region without travel company assistance will discover travel to Keng Tung is hindered by red tape that discourages all but the most determined.

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18-24 MARCH 2019 | TTR WEEKLY12

Pandaw sails ships to India for Ganges trips

Lower Ganges exploring West Bengal while offering 14-night cruises of the Upper Ganges to Varanasi that feature land excursions to the sacred Buddhist sites of Bodh Gaya.

Offering more cruises on the Ganges in India comes at the expense of Myanmar where Pandaw has reduced its fleet possibly in response to a decline European visitors over the last two years.

Most river cruise passengers joining trips in Southeast Asia are from Europe, while Asian tourists prefer shorter sea cruises on luxury cruise ships out of

Pandaw bases three ships in India to cater to growing demand for river cruise on the Ganges.

PANDAW Cruises has three riverboats offering sailings out of India after one of its ships, Kindat Pandaw, sailed from Myanmar across the Bay of Bengal to the Ganges in India earlier this month.

The Kindat joins sister ships the Kalaw and Katha that transferred to India earlier in the year.

The company is now concentrating on offering seven-night cruises of the

TRADE TALK

Singapore.The shallow draft ‘K Class’ ships can

make it all the way up the Ganges to Varanasi throughout the sailing season and due to having just two decks they can negotiate the low bridges during the heavy monsoon season.

Pandaw offers river cruises throughout Southeast Asia. Using a fleet of shallow-draft ships it allows cruises to remote rivers and coastal routes in Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, China and India.

A&K names group tour manager

Hands-on tours boost conservation

ABERCROMBIE & Kent Southeast Asia has named Simon Marzys as manager groups.

The French-national joins the ranks of Abercrombie & Kent Southeast Asia to drive groups business.

He will oversee private leisure and special interest groups across Southeast Asia, including Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos.

Fluent in French, Spanish and English, he will be able to manage the company’s diverse group tour market, worldwide.

He will be based in Abercrombie & Kent Southeast Asia’s office in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

EXO Travel is selling conservation tours to Indonesia’s coral reefs that it claims should help to preserve natural treasures.

The selection of coral reef tours focusing on sites around Bali, introduces guests to the science behind reef cultivation with coral farm visits guided by local experts.

In Candidasa, on the island’s east coast, guests embark on a full-day tour of a coral farm with a marine biologist, or a local fisherman, to study coral symbiosis and the challenges these ecosystems face.

On the family-friendly sailing and ‘save the reefs’ tour, guests are faced with

an exciting escape room activity, finding solutions that aid marine protection and coral cultivation.

In the afternoon, children between seven and 14 take a sailing lesson under the supervision of a Balinese captain,

while parents set sail on a Hobie Cat trip across the waters of Sanur Bay.

“Indonesia is at the centre of the Coral Triangle, offering a window to the world’s most biodiverse reefs,” says, EXO Travel director of product and marketing, Ruben Derksen. “These tours give travellers the chance to see how local organisations are striving to protect and restore local reefs, while observing their work first-hand.”

EXO Travel operates in 10 destinations in Asia: Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Indonesia, China, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore, with sales offices worldwide.

TTR WEEKLY | 18-24 MARCH 2019 13

Emirates adds second daily flight to Stansted

YOUR STORIES

Emirates to launch second daily flight to London Stansted.

EMIRATES will launch a second daily flight from Dubai (DXB) to London Stansted (STN) starting 1 July.

The additional flight means that Emirates customers will now have 11 daily flight options to and from three London airports.

An Emirates’ Boeing 777-300ER, in a three-class configuration with six private suites in first class, will also operate the second daily flight to Stansted. The aircraft features 42 fully flat beds in business class and 306 seats in economy class. The configuration offers customers an enriched travel experience across all cabins with newly designed seats and upgraded inflight entertainment systems that is second to none.

Customers will also enjoy new levels of comfort with fully enclosed private suites in first class as well as refreshed business and economy class cabins.

“We are increasing capacity to London Stansted to meet steady demand from both leisure and business travellers to and from the region, as well as international student traffic to Cambridge. We continuously seek ways

to maximise convenience and flexibility for our customers and the second daily flight combined with the optimal travel schedules will do exactly that; provide a seamless travel experience with Emirates,” said Emirates divisional senior vice president, commercial operations West, Hubert Frach.

The second daily flight to Stansted also means increased tourism to the region, enabling further trade and economic growth. Popular inbound markets include Australia, UAE, India, South Africa, China, Malaysia and Hong Kong.

Emirates customers travelling from London Stansted will also have more access to destinations across the airline’s global network with convenient connection times. Popular destinations for UK travellers such as Brisbane, Melbourne, Male, Seychelles, Bali, Singapore, Colombo, Bangalore and Bangkok all fall within an approximate two and half hour connection time. Emirates’ partnership with flydubai unlocks even more destination options for outbound travel, with seamless connections to Zanzibar, Kathmandu, Faisalabad and Asmara, to name a few.

Travelling to Dubai for a weekend

getaway or short work trip will also be more convenient with a morning or evening arrival option in Dubai and afternoon or evening arrival in Stansted. All Emirates First Class and Business Class customers travelling to and from Stansted enjoy complimentary chauffeur drive service within a 50-mile radius.

Beginning 1 July, the first daily flight from Dubai to London Stansted will operate as EK65, departing Dubai at 0900 and arriving in London Stansted at 1330. The return flight, EK66 will depart London Stansted at 1500 and arrive in Dubai at 0105 the following day. The second daily flight from Dubai to London Stansted will operate as EK67, departing Dubai at 1415 and arriving in London Stansted at 1845. The return flight, EK68 will depart London Stansted at 2110 and arrive in Dubai at 0710 the following day.

Emirates second daily flight to London Stansted brings Emirates’ total weekly flights to the UK to 140 – six services a day from Heathrow, three daily from London Gatwick and Manchester, two daily from Birmingham, Glasgow and London Stansted, and a daily service from Newcastle and Edinburgh. Emirates serves a global network of 158 destinations.

18-24 MARCH 2019 | TTR WEEKLY14