SOUTH PACIFIC
Cruise market expands in southern hemisphere
Industry still failing to cater for LGBT market
Abigail Chanellor
TOURISM PROVIDERS have been told they need to improve their staff training to better cater for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender travellers. Speaking at the “What’s next for LGBT
Russell-Pavier (centre) says PNG’s cruise market is growing
SELF-PROCLAIMED “niche” destination Papua New Guinea has seen an increase in the cruise market according to Robin Russell-Pavier, account director for PNG Tourism Authority. The cruise, super yacht and private charter
market has also shown growth in Fiji. Jane West, the UK and Ireland representa-
tive for Fiji, said: “Cruise is strengthening again, both domestically and internationally, with over 25 international cruises a year.” Samoa, which is now accessible from Fiji
with the newly relaunched Fiji Air route, saw a 5.5% increase in arrivals in 2012.
MIDDLE EAST HOTELS
Rotana growth strategy sees second Iraq opening
ROTANA HOTELS & Resorts has opened its second hotel in Iraq this week. The new property in Karbala, one of the
world’s largest pilgrimage destinations, joins the original property in Erbil, which opened three years ago. The hotel group also has two properties in development in Baghdad. Omer Kaddouri, executive vice-president
and chief operating officer, said: “Iraq is an underserved market in terms of hotel business. Life is going on in Iraq, and the people deserve stability.” The new additions are also set to be
enhanced with the Christmas Day opening the Salalah Rotana Resort – the group’s first hotel in Oman. The property, which is launching ahead of
the opening of Salalah’s international airport in 2015, will be Rotana’s 50th hotel and will bring it half way towards an ambitious expansion plan for 100 hotels by 2020. Before the end of 2014, Rotana plans to
open a total of 10 properties in Jordan, UAE, Doha and Bahrain.
Playing games at home is an increasingly appealing holiday option
POOR LATES sales in the UK this summer were because kids cannot be torn away from social media networks and computer games, WTM heard. Steve Endacott, owner of On Holiday
Group, said that during the heatwave experienced in the UK this summer, customers failed to book last-minute holidays overseas because children now prefer being at home, where they can access the internet and play computer games, than going on a beach holiday. “We’ve had hot summers before, but I’ve
never seen a drop-off like it. Parents no longer need to take their kids on a beach holiday to break up the school holidays – the kids think it’s boring. And for a tour operator, that’s scary,” said Endacott.
Lastminute.com managing director Mark
Maddock revealed that 85% of holidaymakers now take a smartphone with them, and 90% of them will use it for more than four hours per day. A quarter of the 2,000 holidaymakers the online travel agency surveyed said they would not stay in a hotel that does not have Wi-Fi connectivity. Offering guests free Wi-Fi gives customers
“a reason to buy”, Maddox insisted. Endacott added providing free Wi-Fi was
the cheapest way for a hotel to differentiate. “Normally, it takes 10 years to create differ- entiated product, but if you don’t have budget, install Wi-Fi and Playstations – it’s cheap.” Tui Travel’s director of product, Mark Hall,
said that giving reps in Cyprus iPads and enabling guests to contact them by email, social media and Skype had been a success, as had providing free Wi-Fi on coaches.
tourism?” seminar at WTM yesterday, Ian Johnson, founder and chief executive of Out Now Business Class (ONBC) said: “Staff training is essential to help get staff up to speed with what has become an unstoppable LGBT consumer revolution for the travel industry. “Over the past 22 years we have come on
a journey from ignorance through tolerance and acceptance to inclusion. Inclusion is now much more the norm, but it’s not enough; it’s about respect.
UK MARKET
‘Scary’ prospect as kids prefer to stay at home and stay connected
“To work effectively in this marketplace
you have to let the customer know you are comfortable with them – the way your sales interface happens can affect how people feel about your brand,” he added. Johnson cited an example of a gay couple
who experienced a frosty reception at a London hotel when they reasserted that they did indeed want the double room they had booked. “You’ve paid your money to go on holiday
and you shouldn’t have to walk into a hotel thinking: ‘What’s about to happen?’” he said. “We are obviously pleased that all ONBC
members now receive unlimited online staff training to help deliver better understanding and customer service to LGBT guests.” The Out Now Global LGBT2020 Tourism
Report, commissioned by ONBC, showed the annual spend on tourism by LGBT people was predicted to reach $202 billion in 2014. The research also revealed that the highest
spending market was the US, followed by Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Germany and Turkey. Johnson also pointed out that the
acronym LGBT may soon be replaced by the more inclusive LGBTI – recognising an increasing awareness of intersex issues in society. “Intersex people are becoming more
visible, and their unique issues are slowly becoming better understood," Johnson said. “In Australia, for example, the acronym
LGBTI has become the norm instead of LGBT, and the global tourism industry definitely needs more education on what being inter- sex means.”
WINTER CAPACITY
WTM 2012 deals boost airlift to Canary Islands
BUSINESS NEGOTIATIONS at World Travel Market 2012 have led to an increase of 1.3 million air seats to the Canary Islands for the 2013-14 winter season. The Canary Islands had a hugely
successful WTM 2012 leading to a 20% increase in its winter capacity from a number of its key markets including Britain – which covers 300,000 extra seats – Germany and Scandinavia. The Canary Islands vice-minister of
tourism Ricardo Fernandez said: “WTM is the main tourism event for us, as we are able to have negotiations with all our key tourism markets, as well as speak with operators from markets we would like to increase.” The islands have already sold more
than 100,000 holidays for summer 2014 from the British market. The minister cited improved deals with a number of tour operators from the UK, including Tui and Thomas Cook. Fernandez added that at WTM this year
he and the Canary Islands team had been able to focus on improving links and increasing capacity from emerging source markets of Russia and France, as well as its traditional key markets.
07.11.2013 07
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