Accor’s expansion plans in Asia unaffected by Bali bombing
 
(AP) - French hotel and leisure company Accor said Wednesday it still plans to double the number of its properties in the Asia-Pacific region over the next five years despite last month's terrorist attack on the Indonesian island of Bali.

Accor, one of the world's largest hotel chain operators, currently manages 197 hotels and resorts in 15 countries in the Asia-Pacific region, including eight that it owns.

David Baffsky, chairman of Accor's Asia-Pacific operations, said the impact of the Bali bombings on room bookings has so far been limited to a few properties in the region and was not expected to last long.

"We have already seen substantial shifting of activity to other destinations in the region. It is so far a localized issue," Baffsky said.

Accor's Mercure Kuta Bali hotel - located close to the nightclubs where almost 200 people were killed - has seen little short-term impact as it was used by media and security personnel afterward, but it is suffering a drop in forward bookings, he said.

The group's other property in Bali, a Novotel on the other side of the island, now has a 30 percent occupancy rate, down from levels of over 70 percent that are normal at this time of the year, Baffsky said. He added that Accor's 22 other Indonesian hotels were little affected.

Baffsky spoke at the official opening of the group's 17th property in Thailand - the Sofitel Silom, a 38-story, 454-room hotel owned by Thai property developer Sansiri.

In Thailand, the group's forward reservations are generally up 3 percent to 4 percent over the same period last year as tourists change their plans after the Bali blasts.

But on the Thai resort island of Phuket - the focus of several foreign government travel warnings - Accor has suffered a drop in bookings. Thailand's government has strongly criticized the warnings and said tourists are not at risk in the country.

Baffsky said a main area of growth for Accor will be China, where it hopes to bring its presence "to a total of 60 to 100 properties under management, from 18 now."

The group also is eyeing more properties in Japan, where it now has four hotels, and in Korea, where its first property is to open soon. Accor also aims to re-enter the Indian market after a recent exit, he said.  

Management Changes Take Place at MeriStar Hospitality and Interstate Hotels & Resorts

MeriStar Hospitality Corporation and Interstate Hotels & Resorts today provided details to previously announced plans to split the management responsibilities of the two companies.

"Following the merger between Interstate Hotels Corporation and MeriStar Hotels & Resorts, we determined that the increased size of the management company to more than 400 hotels required the full-time attention of a dedicated management team," said Paul Whetsell, chairman and chief executive of MeriStar Hospitality and Interstate Hotels & Resorts. "Furthermore, during these challenging economic times, it's particularly helpful to have MeriStar's executive staff focus solely on the REIT's operations. The paperclip arrangement between the REIT and the management company remains unchanged, and we will continue to take advantages of all the benefits it offers."

• John Emery now will focus solely on Interstate as its president and chief operating officer and a member of its board of directors.

• Jim Calder will continue to serve as chief financial officer of Interstate.

• Bruce Wiles has been promoted to chief operating officer of MeriStar Hospitality. He will be responsible for asset management, acquisitions and dispositions, and project management. 

• Donald Olinger has joined MeriStar Hospitality from Host Marriott as chief financial officer.

• Paul Whetsell will remain as chairman and chief executive officer of both MeriStar Hospitality and Interstate Hotels & Resorts.

John Emery joined MeriStar's predecessor company, CapStar, in 1995 as director of finance, rising to the position of CFO in 1997, COO of the REIT in 2000 and president and chief operating officer of MeriStar Hospitality and MeriStar Hotels & Resorts in 2001. Prior to 1995, he worked for the accounting firm Deloitte & Touche L.L.P. He holds a B.S. in accounting from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. Emery is a certified public accountant.

James A. Calder was formerly chief financial officer and chief accounting officer of MeriStar Hotels & Resorts and chief accounting officer of MeriStar Hospitality. He previously served as senior vice president of finance for CapStar Hotel Company. Prior to joining CapStar, he was senior vice president and corporate controller of ICF Kaiser International. Calder is a certified public accountant. He received a bachelor's degree with highest distinction in accounting from Pennsylvania State University.

Bruce Wiles joined MeriStar in 1998 when the MeriStar companies were created as a result of the merger between CapStar Hotel Company and Dallas-based hotel REIT, American General Hospitality, where he served as executive vice president. He was most recently the chief investment officer of both the REIT and the management company. His background includes extensive expertise in real estate, hospitality and institutional investment. Wiles graduated summa cum laude from Georgetown University and is licensed as a certified public accountant.

Donald Olinger recently joined MeriStar from Host Marriott Corporation where he was senior vice president and corporate controller. He held increasingly important positions with Host Marriott during his nine-year tenure there. Previously, he was with the accounting firm, Deloitte & Touche. He holds a B.S. degree in accounting from the University of Virginia and is a certified public accountant.

Washington, D.C.-based MeriStar Hospitality Corporation owns 109 principally upscale, full-service hotels in major markets and resort locations with 28,099 rooms in 27 states, the District of Columbia and Canada.

Interstate Hotels & Resorts operates more than 400 hospitality properties with approximately 86,000 rooms in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Canada and Russia, including 55 properties managed by Flagstone Hospitality Management, a subsidiary of Interstate Hotels & Resorts. BridgeStreet Corporate Housing Worldwide offers fully furnished corporate housing throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France and 39 additional countries through its network partners. 

This press release contains forward-looking statements about MeriStar Hospitality Corporation, including those statements regarding future operating results and the timing and composition of revenues, among others. 

www.meristar.com

Thailand hotel cancellations: Tourismindustry in crisis

The October 12 terrorist attacks in Bali and warnings against travel in Southeast Asia by the governments of many countries are damaging tourism in Thailand, an industry report confirmed yesterday.

The Thai Hotels Association (THA) reported that cancellations of 32,000 hotel room-nights were expected to cost the industry at least Bt120 million.

The figure shows the negative impact of the bombing in Bali and the warnings issued by many countries against travel in the region.

THA secretary Prakit Chinamornpong said 30 hotels had reported large-scale cancellations, while many others had reported no impact at all since the attacks in the Indonesian island.

He said the association had gathered the figures from 90 member hotels nationwide.

Sofitel Silom Hotel reported that the bombings in Bali had actually created an increase in guest numbers at the hotel because tourists switched destinations from Indonesia to Thailand.

Previously the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) predicted that tourist arrivals would reach 10.5 million this year, a 6-per-cent increase over 2001.

Last year, tourist arrivals grew by nearly 6 per cent to 10.03 million despite the slowdown in the aviation industry after the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.

During the first seven months of this year, the number of tourist arrivals also continued to grow by nearly 6 per cent over the same period last year to 6.24 million, according to TAT statistics.

Roberto Jotikasathira - managing director of tour operator Turismo Thai and vice president of the Association of Thai Travel Agents - said cancellations by incentive-tourist groups had prevailed despite the Thai government recently issuing a statement confirming the country's commitment to protecting visitors.

Roberto said he expected individual travellers to follow incentive-tourist groups in cancelling their trips to the Kingdom.

The Association of Thai Travel Agents recently sent letters to many leading European travel agents to clarify the situation in Thailand, he added.

He urged the government to do more than just issue press releases, saying it should also move to allay the concerns that citizens of foreign countries have about travelling in Thailand.

Juthaporn Rerngronasa, director of TAT's marketing promotion department, said the agency had allocated Bt50 million for public relations activities overseas in a bid to improve the country's image.

Foreign media representatives will be invited to come and experience the real situation in the country, she said.

Bangalore hotels bloom riding on BPO boom..

Business travellers are driving up occupancies in Bangalore’s five-star hotels, with occupancy rates climbing up to cent per cent in some properties, outstripping traditional ‘bookings leaders’ such as New Delhi and Mumbai.

“A lot of technology business is coming to Bangalore which translates into more business travellers to the city,” an official of the city’s newest hotel, the tony Leela Palace, said.

While the average occupancy rate for hotels in the Garden City during the first six months of the current fiscal is above 70 per cent, bookings have risen to 90 per cent and in some cases, even 100 per cent in October.

The chairman of a sub-committee on tourism and hotels of the Greater Mysore Chamber of Industry (GMCI), C K Baljee, said even though there was a slowdown in the information technology (IT) industry, the BPO (business process outsourcing or ‘back-office’) business has come as a handy replacement.

“Business travel is again growing with more companies setting up shop in Bangalore,” he said.

According to Baljee, another reason for the growth was higher discounts on room tariffs and airline tickets.

“Hotels give as much as 40 per cent discount on room tariff, while air travel has certainly become cheaper by nearly 50 per cent,” he said.

An Oberoi Group of Hotels official said: “Bangalore has no off-season because business travellers keep visiting the city all through the year.”

Bangalore has seven five-star hotels with total room availability of around 1,100 and an average room rate of around Rs 5,000.

Nearly 250 rooms were added this year with the opening up of the Leela Palace of the Mumbai-based Leela Group and Park.Com of the Kolkata-based Apeejay Group.

The Oberoi, the Taj Residency and the Le Meridien witnessed 100 per cent occupancy rates during September 2002.

Exactly an year ago, occupancies in all the city’s five-star hotels had sunk to around 50 per cent in the aftermath of the 9/11 incident.

At Le Meridien, the occupancy rate during the busy season is around 90 per cent dipping to around 65 per cent on normal days — the same as a year ago.

At the Oberoi, the occupancy rate is around 75 per cent during the first six months of 2002, dipping by 5 per cent during the same period a year ago.

The Leela Palace which opened recently has an occupancy rate of 75 per cent, while the Grand Ashok, which is now being operated by the Bharat Hotels, has an occupancy rate of 75 per cent but is running at less than half its capacity because of renovation.

The Park.Com operates at 75 per cent occupancy, 10 per cent more than the case last year, and at the same rate as the Taj Residency.

Tourism to Indonesia will be cut by 20% following Bali bombing: World Bank

(AFP)  -  The precedent of a tourist massacre in Egypt in 1997 suggests Indonesia will suffer a 20 percent drop in foreign visitors following last month's deadly bombing on the resort island of Bali, the World Bank said in a report published Wednesday.

The number of visitors to Egypt plummeted 17 percent and revenue from tourism fell 19 percent immediately after the attack in Luxor which killed 60 foreign holiday makers, the bank recalled.

"In the circumstances one could expect at least a 20 percent drop in Indonesia's tourism after the Bali attack, which would represent a little under a one percent loss of income," it said in its East Asia Update.

The impact on consumer and business confidence could reduce economic growth in 2003 by one percent, the report said, adding that Indonesia's gross domestic product (GDP) next year is currently estimated to expand 3.2 percent.

The Bali bombing "is the reason why we do not have an acceleration of growth for Indonesia next year", says Homi Kharas, chief economist for East Asia and the Pacific at the World Bank.

In 2001, tourism in Indonesia generated 5.4 billion dollars, comprising 3.7 percent of its GDP. For the whole of Asia, which has also been indirectly affected by the Bali drama, the tourism industry brought it between 25 and 26 billion dollars last year, accounting for four to five percent of the region's economic output.

The prejudice against East Asia as a holiday destination had already intensified following the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington. Tourism to East Asia from September to December 2001 was down eight percent from a year earlier.

At that time, foreign visitors had only just started to return to Indonesia after dropping sharply in the wake of Asia's financial crisis in 1998, when the number of visitors dropped by 17 percent and revenue from tourism plunged 36 percent, noted the World Bank.

"The horrific October 12 attack on tourists in Bali underlines the urgency of fighting terrorism and political violence and, more generally, of strengthening law and order in the South East Asian Countries," the report said.

"The experience of countries like Egypt also shows that tourism can recover substantially from terrorist attacks if the government takes sufficiently firm action against the perpetrators."

Nearly 3,000 Travel Industry Leaders Attend 72nd World ASTA Travel Congress

Nearly 3,000 travel agents and other travel industry professionals have already registered, with more expected to register on-site during the 5-day event. The 2002 ASTA World Travel Congress is being held at the Honolulu Convention Center on Nov. 3-8. In year's past, cities hosting an ASTA World Travel Congress have seen considerable and immediate economic benefits. Just as importantly, however, is the fact that Honolulu as well as the entire state of Hawai`i's tourism industry can count on an increase in the number of visitors it will see in the coming months and years.

"Any community which has previously hosted an ASTA World Travel Congress event knows that the result for them is an influx of travelers who were sent there at the recommendation of their travel agents," said Tanzman. "It's not unusual for host cities to realize an increase in tourism in the years immediately following ASTA's World Travel Congress." Since the focus of this year's Congress is clearly education, ASTA travel agent members will be taking advantage of a host of Congress seminars ranging from hands-on technology sessions to destination specialist courses. ASTA has provided delegates with a program that addresses their current needs, including seminars on everything from tips on proven low-cost marketing strategies and maintaining company morale to strategic ideas for remaining profitable in today's marketplace.

Sho Dozono, president and CEO of Azumano Travel in Portland, Oregon received the ASTA 2002 Travel Agent of The Year Award at yesterdays general session of ASTA's 72nd World Travel Congresss in Hawaii.Dozono began his career in the travel industry in 1976 when he joined Azumano Travel. He has served as the agency's president and CEO since 1987. Dozona is a stong advocate of diversity and is committed to championing Oregon as a travel and tourism destination, as well as a fertile ground for business and investment opportunities. Promoting Oregon to Pacific rim nations has been Dozono's primary focus for the last 16 years, and his efforts have yielded the production of a television series titled: "From Oregon with Love," produced in conjunction with the Fuji Television of Japan. The series has intoduced the state to a large Japanese audience and jas generated considerable Japamese interest in travel and tourism to Oregon

Former astronaut Jim Lovell with highlight Day Two of the general session for the 2002 ASTA World Travel Congress with his presentation about the "successful failure" of Apollo 13. The ill-fated Apollo 13 lunar mission occurred April 11-17,1070, and captured the world's attention after the spacecraft was critically damaged during its ascent to the moon. The crew, commanded by Captain Lovell, was forced to abort the mission, abandon the spacecraft, and make a harrowing return to Earth, including circling the moon in the small lunar module, which was not designed for such a trip.After safely landing in the South Pacific, captain Lovell and his crew were picked up by the U.S. Navy and recounted in the award-winning 1995 film, Apollo 13 which starred Tom Hanks.

Pattaya peachy after winning SKAL congress bid

The Thai resort of Pattaya has been picked to host the much-coveted 2006 SKAL World Congress, after a landslide victory against second favourite venue London.

Many of the major 2006 sessions will be staged in the Pattaya Exhibition and Convention Hall (PEACH), located next to the Royal Cliff Beach Resort. Delegates at the 2002 congress being held in Cairns, Australia, this week voted by nearly two to one to give the event to Thailand s seaside resort in preference to the UK capital which had fought hard to win the event.

The Skal World Congress is held annually and draws up to 2,000 tourism and airline professionals for a week-long action-packed meeting, said to be worth about US$11.9 million.

Thailand sent a large delegation to Cairns to make a bid to bring the prestigious event to Pattaya. The last time Thailand hosted the congress was in 1996, when Pattaya was again chosen as the venue.

Starwood launches annual expo in Singapore as part of business and leisure tourism drive

Largest sales mission this year consists of 26 hotels from 9 countries in Asia-Pacific

Following the success of the Annual Sales Expo in Australia, New Zealand, Japan and Hong Kong, Starwood Hotels & Resorts will launch it's Singapore Expo from November 6th to 8th, 2002. More than 26   hotels and resorts  from 9  countries in Asia Pacific will participate in this year's sales mission that will be held in Sheraton Towers Singapore.

Starwood Expo is the main sales mission organized on an annual basis by Starwood Hotels & Resorts to update the travel and corporate industry on its hotel developments around the world.   The Expo also allows Starwood the opportunity to thank its business partners in key destinations such as Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan,  Australia and New Zealand for their support over the past years for its hotel brands -  Sheraton Hotels & Resorts, Westin Hotels & Resorts, St Regis, The Luxury Collection, Four Points by Sheraton and W Hotels.

"Singapore represents a major market for many of our hotel brands around the world.  Its strategic location has positioned Singapore as a very important business and economy hub, which allows Singapore to have greater airline access and growth marketing alliances.   This is an important element to support increase in the business and leisure travel market." stated John Mims, Vice President Sales & Marketing, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Asia Pacific.   "This annual event is an opportunity for us to come together to 'celebrate' the success with the travel industry in Singapore which have been such great supporters of Starwood's group of hotels.  We recognise this important well-established relationship and would like to bring it to the next level." added Mims.

Starwood Expo was first introduced four years ago as the forum for hoteliers from Starwood properties around Asia Pacific to meet, update and extend its appreciation to both trade and corporate clients in key cities.  This year's Expo sees a record participation of 26 hotels from 9 countries, including Australia, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, Brunei, Philippines, Malaysia, China and Thailand.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with more than 750 properties in 80 countries and 110,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. With internationally renowned brands, Starwood is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchiser of hotels and resorts including: St. Regis, The Luxury Collection, Sheraton, Westin, Four Points by Sheraton, W brands, as well as Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts. For more information, please visit us at www.starwoodhotels.com  

Pertlink & Infotel join hands to deliver winning IT solutions to the hospitality industry of Vietnam

Pertlink Limited headquartered in Hong Kong, has today signed an Memorandum of Understanding “MOU” with Phuc An Company Limited (INFOTEL) headquartered in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, to deliver innovative Information Technology (“IT”) solutions to the hospitality of Vietnam.

The partnership has evolved as a direct result of Pertlink’s visibility in creating Vietnam’s first free wireless high speed internet project at the Hanoi Horison Hotel www.swiss-belhotel.com/hanoi.html. The success of this project has yielded measurable results not only by dramatically increasing guest satisfaction levels, but also higher revenues from its customers.

“The need to explore and capitalize on this evolving market is of paramount importance,” says Terence Ronson – Managing Director of Pertlink. “The results of our efforts conclusively prove that we have the vision and wherewithal to deliver winning solutions in different markets; ones that not only act as differentiators, but also as business drivers.” Ronson adds. “Our flagship project in Hong Kong – Best Western Rosedale on the Park www.rosedale.com.hk remains Hong Kong’s first and only cyber boutique hotel, which after almost two years of operation is the definite market leader and has been bestowed many accolades from the trade and consumers. Our projects in China with UNOTEL www.unotel.net.cn have changed the hospitality landscape by creating a new brand of technologically advanced hotels specifically catering to the growing sector of business travelers in the 3-star category. Now we see that the hospitality industry in Vietnam urgently needs to move up to the next level in regards its IT awareness and implementation, and so our very special partnership with INFOTEL will allow us to do just that.”

Phan Phuc Hung – Director - INFOTEL said upon the signing of the agreement; “With offices in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, INFOTEL has been catering to the needs of the hospitality industry of Vietnam for many years, especially in our capacity as the authorized service provider of MICROS-Fidelio products – a leading provider of enterprise applications for the hospitality industry. A large portion of our success is due to our concentration on customer services such as the capability to offer training as well as help-desk and remote access support. We understand the nuances of this unique industry, and have the capability and required mindset to offer a very high level of service which in turn, is required from our clients to theirs. That is the nature of the hospitality industry - delivering service. We too have identified a need to expand our services such as in the provision of high-speed internet access, so partnering with Pertlink augment what we have to offer, at the same time allowing our company to deliver new and innovative solutions to our existing and prospective client base. We are honored to be their local service providers.”

Ronson adds, “Individually both of our companies possess a wealth of domain knowledge and expertise. The joining together creates tremendous synergy which will amongst many other things help deliver HSIA (high speed internet access) to the Vietnam hospitality industry encompassing but not limited to Hotels and Service Apartments. What separates us from others? Quite simply we understand the market differently - our perspective on the business allows us to have a unique insight and vision thereby positioning technology not just for the sake of it, but more importantly to enhance service, enhance brand loyalty, culminating in enhanced revenues. No one does it quite like we do!”

Website:  www.pertlink.net