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Post-tsunami Khao Lak
makes a comeback
Khao Lak, slightly more than three years after it was badly destroyed by
the tsunami in 2004, is up and running with most hotels rebuilt and high
occupancy rate reported during the last high season from November 2007
to March 2008. More rooms are slated to open within the next few years.
Slated to open in October is the new 300-room Kempinski Hotel Cher Fah
on Khuk Khak Beach.
Slated to open in November are 232 new rooms at the Khaolak Emerald
Beach Resort & Spa, bringing the resort’s total room inventory to 358.
The property opened its newly developed 126 rooms and facilities in
November last year.
Thomas Cook Northern Europe contracts manager, Ake Bjork, said his
company planned to open about two to three four-star hotels in Khao Lak
with Thai owners in November next year.
Elsewhere in Phang-nga province, where Khao Lak is located, the 79-villa
Raffles Resort Phang Nga is slated to open in 2011. (TTG)
Bangkok Airways offers promotions for new Macau service
Bangkok Airways will be launching a daily direct Bangkok-Macau service from July
4, with special promotions available only in Thailand.
The flights will operate using the two-class configuration Airbus 319 with 12
business- and 132 economy-class seats.
From July 4 to August 31, passengers booking the new service on the airline’s
website will get a special roundtrip economy ticket at 4,000 baht (US$120) and
those buying the Blue Ribbon Class seat will get another seat free. The
promotional prices are exclusive of tax and surcharges. (TTG)
Fuel fee mess
Increasing surcharges are testing loyalty of long-haul market
Raini Hamdi (TTG Asia)
The strength of the long-haul market to Asia will be put to the test
as the latest round of fuel surcharge increases kicks-in at the end of this
month, when the fee in many cases will be as much as, if not more than, the
air fare on major carriers. Effective June 25, a passenger buying, say, a
London-Bangkok-London ticket on Thai Airways International pays a US$460
fuel surcharge alone, i.e., excluding the air fare and other taxes, compared
with US$250 now.
Malaysia Airlines’ (MAS) fuel surcharge on the route is US$340 now; from
June 24, it will rise to US$456.
Other major Asian carriers, Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific, charge a
fuel surcharge of US$190 and US$182 respectively on the route and, at press
time, have not announced a new round of increases.
Different airlines have different strategies that determine the fuel
surcharge on a route. Factors such as fuel hedging, fleet efficiency and air
routings all play a part and, according to UK operators, carriers are
starting to be very creative with fuel surcharges.
Virgin Atlantic, for example, applies different increases across different
cabins and MAS offers a discounted fuel charge on a throughout route.
The UK, a traditional market for Asia, is a cause for concern, with tour
operators interviewed saying, as it is, consumer confidence is low due to a
weak economy.
The pound has also weakened considerably against the Thai baht and Malaysian
ringgit, while rising fuel costs are also causing ground transfer prices to
rise, “be it Bangkok-Hua Hin or Kuala Lumpur-Pangkor”, as Western & Oriental
UK group head of product, David Kevan, points out.
Spiralling fuel surcharges may dent travel confidence further and although
bookings to Asia remain strong now, these are based on current brochure
prices, with fuel at around the US$200 per person level.
Thomas Cook Signature UK regional contract manager (East), Victoria Sertic,
said the real impact would only be seen when the new brochures were produced
in the next two to three months.
She added: “In the past six months alone, the fuel surcharge has doubled and
now an average return fuel surcharge on a straightforward single centre
long-haul holiday has broken the US$500 per person mark.
“For destinations such as Bali some airlines are charging as much as US$772
per person. Any savings that we get in the form of tactical offers from our
airline partners is completely overshadowed by these huge fuel surcharges.
“Holiday prices are increasing in some instances by 200 pounds (US$392) per
person between the editions for the same itinerary, which is down to fuel
and currency fluctuations such as strength of the euro against the pound and
the US dollar against the pound. “
Kuoni UK product manager (Far East), Tamara Diethelm, said 2008 figures for
Asia were looking positive, but these surcharges would eventually affect
clients travelling to Asia, coinciding with the credit crunch hitting home
in the UK. Her strategy is to work together with the hotels and ground
agents to offer clients as much as possible – be it service or upgraded
experiences – for the higher prices they are paying.
Ms Sertic expects the family market will take the biggest hit as people stay
away from scheduled airlines and go on packaged, charter holidays.
“These (charter) operators seem to be controlling the fuel issue much
better.
“They charge nowhere near as much as the scheduled airlines by being able to
manage both their ground and air stock,” she said.
Short-haul travel is not expected to gain, as the fuel surcharges hit all
routes and these destinations are also seeing a big jump in prices,
according to Ms Sertic.
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