Hyatt Regency makes a comeback in Kuala Lumpur

HONG KONG – Hyatt has announced that a Hyatt affiliate has entered into a management agreement to develop a new 450-room Hyatt Regency branded hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

Set to be completed in 2024, the new hotel will mark the return of the Hyatt Regency brand to Kuala Lumpur.

For leisure and business travellers visiting the Malaysian capital, Hyatt Regency Kuala Lumpur aims to provide guests with a seamless, intuitive service alongside refreshing food and beverage concepts and flexible spaces suited for […]

Touring Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady cruise ship

I wanted to start a cruise line when I was 27 years old, so it was wonderful to finally see my dream turned into reality as we stepped on board Virgin Voyages’ first ship for the first time.

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I wanted to start a cruise line when I was 27-years-old, so it was wonderful to finally see my dream turned into reality as we stepped onboard @virginvoyages’ ship for […]

Bali boom squeezes Ngurah Rai Airport capacity

DENPASAR – Bali’s Ngurah Rai Airport is set for a further expansion as the growing popularity of the island tests the airport’s capacity.

Over the past five years, growth in total passenger numbers averaged 9% annually, leading to a 2019 record number of 24 million passengers. This was the figure quoted as the airport’s capacity when it was upgraded and extended in 2014.

In order to accommodate future growth, Indonesia is reviewing development plans that would allow the airport to serve 37.6 […]

Oyo axes staff and pares back ambitions

Oyo’s founder Ritesh Agarwal on Monday sent an internal note to all its India employees confirming rumors that surfaced recently that the budget hotel chain was laying off staff.

He also offered a new roadmap for the embattled company for 2020 and beyond. The priorities outlined are telling on where Oyo has gone wrong, and beg the question: Will this go down as a dark chapter in Oyo’s history, or will Oyo be history?

The note did not say how many staff would be […]

Australian tourism battles its own blaze

Australian tour operators are fighting the perception that the country is unsafe for visitors and that much of its naturally beautiful environment has been destroyed.

Misrepresentation of the bushfire crisis by international media has hurt Australian tourism
Many popular tourist destinations unaffected, visitors encouraged to stick to travel plans upon doing due diligence
Economic impact drastic in destinations across the country

Unaffected destinations such as the Blue Mountains (Three Sisters rock formation pictured) have registered a 60 per cent decrease in visitors

Australian tour operators […]

Indonesia’s tourism investment stalls in tangle of red tape

JAKARTA – Efforts by Indonesia’s president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to relieve pressure on Bali’s tourism infrastructure by creating a series of ‘new Balis’ is being thwarted by too-strict regulations and super-slow bureaucracy, investors claim.

Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) head Bahlil Lahadalia said investors are attracted to the tourism sector but become “entangled in strange regulations”.

Lake Toba in North Sumatra, Borobudur temple in Central Java, Mandalika in West Nusa Tenggara and Labuan Bajo in East Nusa Tenggara are among 10 destinations being […]