Cruise lines name regional team leaders

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February 21, 2023

Singapore, 16 February 2023: Regent Seven Seas Cruises and Oceania Cruises, both part of parent company Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings, have named new VP sales and GM chiefs for the Asia Pacific.

Regent Seven Seas Cruises named Lisa Pile as vice president of sales and general manager of Asia Pacific as part of a robust succession plan.

Having been Regent’s vice president of sales for Australia and New Zealand operations since the Asia Pacific head office was established in 2015, she will lead the local sales team and outbound department across the region.

With more than 25 years of senior leadership experience, she led commercial and marketing teams for leading global luxury hospitality brands across the Asia Pacific, China, the UK, Europe and Africa.

Oceania Cruises has appointed Jason Worth as vice president of sales & general manager of Asia Pacific.

He is responsible for the strategic expansion, vision and continued growth of the company’s presence in the fast-growing Asia-Pacific market.

He joined Oceania Cruises in 2011 and was most recently vice president of sales in Australia & New Zealand, a position he has held for over three years.

Formerly, he held the post of vice president of finance and accounting Asia Pacific at the parent company, Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings.

Langkawi to host Routes Asia 2024

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TTR WEEKLY

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February 20, 2023

LANGKAWI, 20 February 2023: Langkawi Development Authority (LADA) will host Routes Asia 2024 from 3 to 5 March 2024 with co-host partners Malaysia Airports Holding Berhad (MAHB) and Tourism Malaysia.

The travel industry trio officially won the bid to host 14 January 2020, but due to Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, LADA and Co had to hold off on hosting the event.

Steven Small [Brand Director of Routes]; Vijit Keawsaitiam [Senior Executive Vice President, General Manager of Chiang Mai International Airport]; Mohamed Sallauddin Mat Sah [General Manager Aviation Marketing and Development, Malaysia Airports]; Mohd Shahrir Mohd Ali [Director International Promotion (ASEAN), Tourism Malaysia]; Tuan Haji Ahmad Fuad bin Che Ani @ Abd Ghani [Deputy Chief Executive Office, Langkawi Development Authority]

However, at the close of Routes Asia 2023 held in Chiang Mai last week, Routes handed over the baton to LADA to take the hosting rights for the 2024 event.

LADA Deputy Chief Executive Officer Tuan Haji Ahmad Fuad bin Che Ani @ Abd Ghani said: “We are proud to be the host of such a prestigious event and to be given this unique opportunity to collaborate with Malaysia Airports Holding Berhad (MAHB) and Tourism Malaysia. This event is a real testament to how far we have come, and we would like to thank the organisers of Routes Asia for entrusting us with the responsibility of hosting this event. We hope this event will provide us with the platform to showcase Langkawi’s majestic beauty and all it offers to visitors worldwide”.

Routes Asia attracts leaders from airlines, aviation, airports and tourism organisations who participate in a comprehensive event programme with face-to-face meetings and networking opportunities, enabling them to gain industry insights.

During the 2022 edition in Danang, Vietnam, 550 local and international delegates representing 194 organisations, including 81 airlines, 79 airports, 11 destinations, and 23 aviation service providers from Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America, joined the event.

“We look forward to hosting the masterminds of the airport, airline and tourism industries worldwide. The exchanging of thoughts and ideas from these esteemed individuals can serve as a masterclass in education for all of us. We will be well prepared by this time next year to give these industry players a platform to connect and showcase their brilliance in executing strategies for the future of the air service industry across the Asia Pacific,” added Tuan Haji Ahmad Fuad.

The successful bid to host Routes Asia 2024 was attributed to past successes in the Airport Service Quality (ASQ) survey. ASQ is a global survey by Airports Council International that measures overall passenger satisfaction with terminal safety, facilities, services, and cleanliness.

For the third quarter of 2022, Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and Langkawi International Airport (LGK) retained their positions as the world’s best airports. Both airports achieved perfect scores of 5.0 respectively in the survey.

As the airline and tourism industry emerged from the ashes of the Covid-19 cloud, the three-way partnership involving LADA, Malaysia Airports and Tourism Malaysia was crucial.

“The Routes Asia event celebrates this coalition and highlights the importance of these industries coming together. With this, LADA hopes to emphasise and lead the way forward within the route development community in what will be a memorable Routes Asia 2024,” the LADA press statement concluded.

About Langkawi Development Authority (LADA)

Langkawi Development Authority (LADA) was set up by the federal government to plan, promote and implement development on the island of Langkawi. It was officially established on 15 March 1990 under the Langkawi Development Authority Act 1990 (Act 423) and placed under the authority of the Ministry of Finance. Through all their efforts, LADA is committed to supporting the efforts of all parties in restoring the heyday of Langkawi’s tourism sector for the collective prosperity of the island and its communities.

For more information on LADA, please visit https://www.lada.gov.my/en/ or https://naturallylangkawi.my

(Your Stories: LADA)

Emirates celebrates Mother Language Day

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TTR WEEKLY

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February 20, 2023

DUBAI, UAE, 20 February 2023: Emirates embraces linguistic diversity on board, saying it is in line with UNESCO International Mother Language Day, due to be celebrated on 21 February.

The special day honours the importance of cultural and linguistic diversity for sustainable societies, and the airline highlights the vast array of languages spoken onboard by its multicultural cabin crew, the comprehensive and detailed website translated into 28 languages, as well as the vast library of in-language content available on its award-winning inflight entertainment system, ice.

Emirates proactively hires multilingual cabin crew, as communicating with passengers in their native language is considered a core part of Emirates’ signature hospitality. Emirates cabin crew are recruited from more than 130 countries and together speak more than 70 languages.

On Emirates.com, the website that provides information on every aspect of the Emirates experience, the content can be viewed in 28 different languages with a simple click. The Emirates app for iOS and Android is available in 19 different languages.

On Emirates award-winning ice, there is a vast array of content in over 40 languages, from movies to TV series to music, poetry, and podcasts. A library of over 1900 movies is available in multiple languages, with vast choices available, including English, Arabic, Hindi, French, Spanish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, German, Punjabi, Urdu, Bengali, Russian, Mandarin, Cantonese and many more. For those who prefer to watch a boxset or hit TV series, ice offers over 500 episodes of Arabic TV and 29 channels of TV shows from India and Pakistan. Many of the smash hit English-language comedy and drama series are available in various dubbed languages, including Italian, Spanish, Japanese, German, French and more. Passengers can visit the dedicated ice page on Emirates.com and select any language to see what content is available.

For the musically minded explorer, ice is home to up to 40,000 hit songs spread across genres, including K-Pop (Korean), Afrobeat (Yoruba, isiZulu and more), P-Pop (Tagalog), Reggaeton (Spanish), C-Pop (Mandarin, Cantonese) and Opera (French, Italian and more). Passengers can also listen to Polish, Russian, Urdu, Punjabi, Hindi, Sinhala, Tamil, Malay, Thai, and Turkish tunes, among others.

For those who wish to brush up on their language skills before they reach their destination, ice even has uTalk Language Learning on ice TV – a module that helps passengers learn essential phrases in a new language while they fly – available in Arabic, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, German, and French.

Emirates is the world’s largest international airline flying to 140 destinations around the globe. The airline has always held a deep commitment to cultural and linguistic diversity, celebrating the nuances of different cultures onboard in a multitude of ways, from serving regionally inspired cuisines to respecting the practices of various religions, such as fasting or periods of a required vegan diet to celebrating special occasions onboard from Christmas to Eid, to Lunar New Year to Oktoberfest to Diwali, and providing cultural entertainment from a wealth of regions so that all passengers fly better.

About International Mother Language Day

International Mother Language Day was approved at the 1999 UNESCO General Conference and has been observed worldwide for the past 23 years. UNESCO believes in the importance of cultural and linguistic diversity for sustainable societies and works to preserve the differences in cultures and languages that foster tolerance and respect for others. Multilingual and multicultural societies exist through their languages which transmit and sustainably preserve traditional knowledge and cultures.

For more information on the airline, visit https://www.emirates.com/ae/english/

(Your Stories: Emirates)

PAL reopens flights to Beijing & Shanghai

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February 20, 2023

MANILA, 20 February 2023: Direct flights from Manila to Shanghai, Pudong and Beijing in China are back on the Philippine Airlines schedule according to the airline’s latest travel advisory.

The airline resumed flights to Shanghai three times weekly (Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday) starting 14 February. Twice weekly flights to Beijing (Tuesday and Friday) resume today, 21 February

Shanghai-bound flights will increase from three a week to daily starting 26 March. Flights to Beijing will also increase from two to four weekly on 26 March.

Quanzhou (Jinjiang) and Macau will rejoin the PAL network in March, and at the same time, flights will increase on routes already established to Xiamen and Guangzhou (Canton).

SHANGHAI

PR 338 Manila-Shanghai – until 21 March, every Tuesday departing at 0505, arriving at 0900.

PR 336 Manila-Shanghai – until 25 March, every Thursday and Saturday, departing at 1130 and arriving at 1510.

PR 336 Manila-Shanghai – starting 26 March daily, departing at 1050, arriving at 1430.

PR 339 Shanghai-Manila – until 21 March every Tuesday departing at 1050, arriving at 1445.

PR 337 Shanghai-Manila – until 25 March every Thursday and Saturday, departing at 1655, arriving at 2050.

PR 337 Shanghai-Manila – starting 26 March daily, departing at 1400, arriving at 1950.

BEIJING

PR 358 Manila-Beijing – until 24 March, every Tuesday and Friday departing at 0700, arriving at 1155.

PR 358 Manila-Beijing – starting 26 March, every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday, departing at 0710 and arriving at 1155.

PR 359 Beijing-Manila – until 24 March every Tuesday and Friday, departing at 1255, arriving at 1805.

PR 359 Beijing-Manila – starting 26 March, every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday departing at 1255, arriving at 1755.

Quanzhou (Jinjiang) and Macau rejoin the PAL network in March.

QUANZHOU JINJIANG

Flights to Jinjiang are scheduled on 19, 22 and 24 March, then daily flights resume on 26 March.

PR 356 Manila-Quanzhou (Jinjiang) – 19 March departing at 1100, arriving in Jinjiang at 1335.

PR 356 Manila-Quanzhou (Jinjiang) – 22 March departing at 1100, arriving in Jinjiang at 1335.

PR 356 Manila-Quanzhou (Jinjiang) – 24 March departing at 1055, arriving in Jinjiang at 1335.

PR 356 Manila-Quanzhou (Jinjiang) – starting 26 March, daily departing at 1110, arriving in Jinjiang at 1340.

PR 357 Quanzhou (Jinjiang)-Manila – 19 March departing at 1425, arriving in Manila at 1710.

PR 357 Quanzhou (Jinjiang)-Manila – 22 March departing at 1425, arriving in Manila at 1710.

PR 357 Quanzhou (Jinjiang)-Manila – 24 March departing at 1425, arriving in Manila at 1710.

PR 357 Quanzhou (Jinjiang)-Manila – starting 26 March, daily departing at 1430, arriving in Manila at 1655.

MACAU

PAL will restore twice weekly flights between Manila and Macau, starting 26 March.

PR 352 Manila-Macau – every Thursday and Sunday, departing at 1330, arriving at 1550.

PR 353 Macau-Manila – every Thursday and Sunday departing at 1650, arriving at 1925.

PAL adds flights on existing routes to Guangzhou and Xiamen

GUANGZHOU (CANTON)

A ramp-up of services between Manila and Guangzhou (Canton) saw PAL’s flights increase to twice weekly on 16 February, with the airline scheduling daily service by 26 March.

PR 382 Manila-Guangzhou (Canton) – until 25 March every Saturday, departing at 0235 and arriving at 0455.

PR 382 Manila-Guangzhou (Canton) – until 23 March every Thursday, departing at 0505 and arriving at 0900.

PR 382 Manila-Guangzhou (Canton) – starting 7 March until 21 March every Tuesday, departing at 0230, arriving at 0455.

PR 383 Guangzhou (Canton)-Manila – every Thursday and Saturday departing at 0555, arriving at 0835 (23 and 25 March.

PR 383 Guangzhou (Canton)-Manila – 7 to 21 March every Tuesday, departing at 0555, arriving at 0830.

Effective 26 March, the airline schedules daily Guangzhou flights.

PR 382 Manila-Guangzhou (Canton) – daily departing at 0205, arriving at 0435.

PR 383 Guangzhou (Canton)-Manila – daily departing at 0545, arriving at 0810.

XIAMEN

PAL will increase Manila-Xiamen-Manila services from twice weekly to three weekly starting 25 February.

PR 330 Manila-Xiamen – every Friday departing Manila at 0730, arriving in Xiamen at 0955.

PR 330 Manila-Xiamen – every Tuesday departing Manila at 1415, arriving in Xiamen at 1640.

PR 334 Manila-Xiamen – every Saturday, departing Manila at 0735, arriving in Xiamen at 0955.

PR 331 Xiamen-Manila – every Tuesday, departing Xiamen at 1740, arriving in Manila at 2030.

PR 331 Xiamen-Manila – every Friday departing Xiamen at 1155, arriving in Manila at 1430.

PR 335 Xiamen-Manila – every Saturday departing Xiamen at 1105, arriving in Manila at 1340.

(Source: PAL Travel Advisory)

Perak plays the lead role at MATTA Fair

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February 20, 2023

KUALA LUMPUR, 20 February 2023: The Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) confirms Perak as Malaysia’s Featured Destination for MATTA Fair scheduled for 17 to 19 March 2023, at Malaysia International Trade and Exhibition Centre (MITEC), Kuala Lumpur.

The 52nd MATTA Fair will occupy three exhibition floors representing 37,000 sqm of space booked by exhibitors to present their offers. MATTA Fair will set a new record as Southeast Asia’s largest international travel fair.

Tourism Perak will showcase the ’12 Icons of Perak’ as a collection of breathtaking natural features, grand vistas, and famous spots that should top a visitor’s must-see list. The state has booked the largest booth space at 1590 sqm of all the state tourism organisations joining the MATTA Fair this year.

MATTA Fair’s partnership with Tourism Perak will help attract more local and foreign tourists to the state. Statistics show that Perak received 1.4 million domestic tourists in 2021 and aims to be the main domestic tourism destination this year.

“The participation of Perak this time around is considered one of the preparations by the state of Perak to celebrate the Visit Perak Year 2024 and to further strengthen the Visit Ipoh Year 2023 by providing a promotion and marketing platform to approximately 95 players in the tourism industry in Perak.

“By embracing the ‘heritage building’ theme, the MATTA FAIR KUALA LUMPUR programme will highlight the uniqueness and specialities found in the state of Perak through handicraft products, food, small and medium industry products, art and culture, as well as tourism products and many more. Various activities will be held for lucky visitors over the three consecutive days event,” said Tourism Perak chief operations officer, Mdm Zuraida binti Md Taib.

Admission is free to the fair, open to trade and consumer visitors from 1100 to 2100 for three days, Friday to Sunday from 17 to 19 March.

Visit the MATTA Fair website and social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, or subscribe to its new Telegram channel @MATTAHQ to obtain the most recent updates.

ABOUT MATTA

MATTA is the leading and largest national travel association in Malaysia, with close to 3000 members, comprising local tour and travel agents and overseas affiliations. With a full-time secretariat in Kuala Lumpur, MATTA also has state chapters in Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Melaka, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Terengganu, Kelantan, Johor, Penang, Perak, Kedah/Perlis, Sabah and Sarawak.

RCL pipeline counts three Icon ships

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TTR WEEKLY

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February 20, 2023

SINGAPORE, 20 February 2023: Construction of Royal Caribbean International’s second Icon Class ship got underway last week at a ceremony to mark the cutting of the first piece of steel at Meyer Turku shipyard in Turku, Finland.

The soon-to-be-named ship will set sail in 2025, following the debut of Icon of the Seas in January 2024, the first of three Icon-class ships that are in the RCL construction pipeline.

Icon Class made headlines when revealed in October 2022, creating resounding feedback resulting in Royal Caribbean International’s single largest booking day in its 53-year history.

Cruise ships drop anchor in Singapore

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TTR WEEKLY

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February 20, 2023

SINGAPORE, 20 February 2023: You could say it was a sight for sore eyes to see Singapore’s four terminal berths for cruise ships fully occupied last week, possibly the first time since Covid-19 locked down global tourism in 2020.

Cruise the World’s Facebook account posted photographs of four ships at the docks at the Harbourfront’s Singapore Cruise Centre and Marina Bay Cruise Centre.

Photo credit: Cruise the World. Marina Bay Cruise Terminal

Cruise the World’s eagle eye photographer captured shots of two ships under Resorts World Cruises. Genting Dream docked at the Marina Bay Cruise Centre to allow passengers to disembark before departing for two weeks in dry dock. The ship will be homeporting in Hong Kong in mid-March once it returns to service.

Resorts World One berthed at Singapore Cruise Centre (Harbourfront), preparing for a media preview the evening of 16 February before raising anchor for its first commercial cruise on 17 February, a two-night High-Seas Weekend Getaway Cruise. It moved to the Marina Bay Cruise Centre, where passengers boarded the ship for the first cruise under its new branding. (Previously Explorer Dream)

TUI Cruise ship Mein Schiff 5 berthed at Marina Bay Cruise Centre for another 14-day Southeast Asia cruise.

Then there was Oceania Cruises Nautica berthing at the Singapore Cruise Centre as part of a 64-day Capetown, South Africa to Yokohama, Japan voyage.

Photo credit Cruise the World. Singapore Cruise Centre (Harbourfront).

Singapore Cruise Society’s Facebook page welcomed Queen Mary 2 to Singapore last week as part of the ocean liner’s 117-Night Centenary World Voyage. Recognised as the World’s last remaining ocean liner in active service, the ship berthed overnight in Singapore.

According to the Singapore Cruise Society Facebook page, “compared with cruise ships, the QM2 was built with thicker hull plating to withstand harsh North Atlantic waves.”

Cruise the World speculates that Singapore might need more berths for cruise ships soon.

Meanwhile, the Philippines Department of Tourism noted that Seabourn Encore became the first cruise line to return to the Philippines earlier this month after a three-year pandemic-induced hiatus. Seabourn Encore, homeporting out of Singapore, sailed to the Philippines on a five-day cruise visiting four ports in the country, starting with Puerto Princesa on 9 February, followed by visits to Boracay, Coron, and an overnight stay in Manila.

(Source: Cruise the World and Singapore Cruise Society)

https://www.facebook.com/sgcruisesociety

https://www.facebook.com/cruisetheworld.news

National budget fails Malaysia’s tourism

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February 20, 2023

KUALA LUMPUR, 20 February 2023: A major revamp of Malaysia’s national budget 2023 should be an urgent priority if the country’s tourism industry is to stay competitive, says the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA).

In a press statement released last Friday, MATTA called for a major overhaul of the National Budget 2023 to revitalise Malaysian tourism businesses in the face of fierce competition and global economic concerns.

“From 2009 to 2019, international tourist arrivals ranged between 23.65 million and 26.1 million, indicating that Malaysia remains a largely static tourism destination, except a one-time high of 27.44 million arrivals in 2014 owing to Visit Malaysia Year 2014, said MATTA President Datuk Tan Kok Liang.

“It is evident that earlier national budgets were ineffective in boosting the country’s tourism sector and placing it in a ‘comfort zone’ whilst other ASEAN destinations experienced extremely high growth rates”.

“MATTA proposes that budget financing must be more focused on ‘destination visibility’ advertising, as well as the enhancement of tourist products and infrastructure, while at the same time providing enough assistance for tourism stakeholders to strengthen in the aftermath of the Covid pandemic. Additional initiatives are required to promote domestic tourism, as a full recovery to pre-pandemic levels is not anticipated until 2024 or 2025.”

He claimed there was a “lack of iconic tourism products for several years, and the government ought to provide more attractive incentives other than the traditional tax incentives such as pioneer status or investment tax allowance to encourage tourism investments”.

MATTA has submitted a comprehensive budget proposal to the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture, and Ministry of Finance, which includes the following pointers:

There is an urgent need to establish an independent Tourism Recovery & Growth Fund to ensure the availability of funds to assist tourism businesses in upgrading their facilities and service infrastructure.

Digital Promotions Matching Grant and Overseas Promotions Funding to compensate for a weakened Malaysian currency.

Allow double deductions for corporate companies to hold staff incentive trips and holidays for their employees within the country rather than in foreign destinations.

Tax relief of MYR5,000 for individual taxpayers and their families to spend on domestic travel within Malaysia will further enhance domestic tourism.

Exemption of excise duty when purchasing new, locally produced tourism vehicles. Severe economic hardship has caused many operators to dispose of their vehicles to avoid bankruptcy and, in the process, has severely depleted our tourism fleet capacity. This will benefit local vehicle manufacturers and enable tourism operators to rebuild fleet capacity quickly to meet the anticipated demand as tourism recovers.

MATTA recommends a remission of import duties on foreign-made luxury automobiles. This is to ensure that tourism vehicles are suitable for more affluent (higher yield) tourists and shifting customer preferences and to maintain our competitive edge.

KLIA requires a new satellite that satisfies today’s global security requirements and can better facilitate passengers’ efficient mobility between passenger terminals.

“The current state of the aerotrain service and the backup bus service leaves much to be desired. This offers a poor first impression of the nation, said Tan.

“We have been losing ground to nearby competitors such as Singapore, Bangkok, and Jakarta. Likewise, Langkawi is losing out to Phuket and Bali for the same obvious reasons. Despite knowing that our tropical climate can be either excessively hot or wet, the comfort of passengers is not given adequate consideration.”

“To increase arrivals from high-potential source markets, in particular India and China, it is necessary to revamp existing visa procedures which includes the introduction of multiple-entry visas valid for one year, Visa-on-arrival (VOA) facilities, and lower visa costs. To revitalise the tourism industry, the national government could also consider investing more funds towards the launch of VISIT Malaysia Year 2024,” concluded Tan.

(Source: MATTA)

Centara names corporate PR director

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TTR WEEKLY

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February 17, 2023

BANGKOK, 17 February 2023: Centara Hotels & Resorts, Thailand’s leading hotel operator, has announced the appointment of Pornchanok Thongrungrot as its new corporate public relations director.

Pornchanok, or Pao, as she is better known, joined Centara in 2015 as assistant corporate public relations manager. Since then, her talent and professionalism have helped her to achieve a series of promotions, and she is now more than ready to lead the group’s corporate public relations division.

*Pornchanok has worked with Centara Hotels & Resorts since 2015, achieving three promotions.*

Pao gained strong marketing and communications experience with local and global brands across multiple industries, including Boots Retail Thailand, Yum Restaurants International (KFC and PizzaHut Thailand), and TTMWM – an affiliate of Toyota Motor Thailand. This gave her the perfect platform to build her career with Centara.

Since joining Thailand’s leading hotel and resort company, she has supported several major PR campaigns and marketing initiatives, including the launch of Centara Reserve, the personalised luxury lifestyle brand, and the expansion of the family-focused Centara Mirage concept in Vietnam and the Middle East. She successfully implemented Centara’s international PR strategy in 2018 and tripled the brand’s media value through several media and influencer trips over the past few years. Pao also helped to skillfully guide the company’s corporate PR strategy through the global pandemic.

Fluent in Thai and English, Pao has become a well-known and highly respected figure among the local and international media, with excellent contacts among journalists, editors, bloggers and influencers in Thailand and overseas.

“Since Pao joined Centara in 2015, we have been hugely impressed by her ability and expertise. She has a natural understanding of the PR industry and excellent interpersonal skills, which enables her to build and maintain strong relations and generate positive media coverage. Also, being of the millennial generation, she is at the forefront of all the latest media trends and social media platforms. I am delighted that Pao has been promoted to the role of corporate public relations director and look forward to continuing to see her flourish for many years to come,” said Centara Hotels and Resorts vice president brand, marketing & digital, Tom Thrussell.

For more information about Centara, please visit www.centarahotelsresorts.com

(Your Stories: Centara Hotels & Resorts)

Cruise tourism returns to Sabah

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February 17, 2023

KOTA KINABALU: Cruise tourism has returned to Sabah with the arrival of the Seabourn Encore ship, bringing over 1,000 passengers, including crewmembers, to the Land Below the Wind.

The cruise liner entered state waters on Wednesday (15 February) morning and pulled into the Sabah Port. Its most recent stop was in Boracay, Philippines.

This is the first cruise visit in Sabah this year, with the last arriving in 2020, before the closure of international borders and tourism due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sabah Tourism Board (STB) team was on hand to welcome and present goodie bags to cruise passengers who would be spending the night in Kota Kinabalu before the Seabourn Encore set sail at 1800 from Sabah Port en route to its homeport in Singapore.

STB chief executive officer Noredah Othman said the resumption of the cruise tourism industry is an encouraging sign that Sabah remains a popular destination for cruisers.

“This year, we expect eight cruise ships to come, and Sabah can expect an increase in the number of tourists visiting the state.

“The return of cruise ship tourism can help promote Sabah as a tourist destination to a broader audience, allowing visitors to explore the city and nearby attractions.

“Cruise ships typically visit multiple destinations on a single itinerary, and the exposure that Sabah gets as part of this itinerary can encourage tourists to consider Sabah a standalone holiday destination,” she said.

Noredah said cruise ship tourism had contributed tens of thousands of visitors to Sabah, stressing the vital need to tap into the cruise market for the state to diversify its tourism industry.

This poses an opportunity for more products to be introduced, especially in the city centre for cruise passengers. This is not limited to Kota Kinabalu, as cruise ships berth in Sandakan.

Sabah had the most cruise ship arrivals in 2019, with 26 cruise ships and 37,431 passengers.

In 2018, Sabah received 21 cruise ships and 21,738 passengers, compared to 17 ships and 23,474 passengers in 2017.

From January to February 2020, Sabah welcomed five ships and 9,140 passengers.

For more information on Sabah, visit www.sabahtourism.com.

(Your Stories: Sabah Tourism Board)

Cruise lines name regional team leaders

Langkawi to host Routes Asia 2024

Emirates celebrates Mother Language Day

PAL reopens flights to Beijing & Shanghai

Perak plays the lead role at MATTA Fair

RCL pipeline counts three Icon ships

Cruise ships drop anchor in Singapore

National budget fails Malaysia’s tourism

Centara names corporate PR director

Cruise tourism returns to Sabah

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