Brunei tourism helps to raise standards of tour guides in Brunei

After two weeks each of intensive training, 39 tourism professionals received, during a ceremony officiated by YM Dato Paduka Hj Mohd Hamid bin Hj Mohd Jaafar, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Industry and Primary Resources and Deputy Chairman of the Brunei Tourism Board, a certificate of participation for having attended the hands-on training course for tour guides delivered by two qualified British trainers from the World Federation of Tour Guide Associations.

As the persons with whom the majority of tourists have the most contact with when visiting Brunei, tour guides play a crucial role as “ambassadors” of sorts to foreign visitors, as they are the ones explaining to tourists about the culture, history, nature, way of life, society, and institutions of Brunei.

It is, therefore, important that tour guides should be equipped not only with the correct information, but also the correct techniques to deliver such information, as this would provide both a pleasant and informative experience to the tourists. Satisfied tourists are the best way to promote a destination, as word of mouth publicity is by far the most important element influencing the decision by tourists to visit a particular destination.

Though a satisfying experience of Brunei involves also a number of other elements, such as quality of service in hotels, restaurants, shops, and taxis, the quality of welcome by immigration and custom officials, the friendliness of people in general, and the quality and diversity of tourism products and attractions, which are everyone’s concern, it is often the quality of the guiding services that will be the most memorable element in a tourist’s holiday.

With Brunei still being in the learning curve in regards to its fast-growing tourism industry, which has seen an increase of over 40 percent in tourist arrivals this year, as well as a growing number of cruise ships calling on Muara port, Brunei Tourism and the Brunei Association of Travel Agents were concerned that the level and quality of guiding services in Brunei was not of the desired standards compared to neighboring destinations.

To address this, after consultation with members of the travel agents’ association and after a process of selection among several proposals, it was decided to appoint the world’s leading authority in tour guide training, the UK and Cyprus based World Federation of Tour Guide Associations (WFTGA), a non-profit organization affiliated with the United Nations World Tourism Organization representing tour guide associations from over 50 countries on 4 continents and with a vast experience in delivering tour guide training courses around the world through highly-qualified trainers who are themselves practicing guides in their respective countries.

For the hands-on training course, which is a short but intensive course focusing on guiding techniques, skills enhancement, and communication, two trainers from the United Kingdom, Mrs. Iris Barry and Mrs. Mary Kemp Clarke came to Brunei to deliver two courses over a four-week period, with each course ending with a written and practical assessment, in which trainees had to demonstrate skills and knowledge in a bus tour around the capital city, walking tour of downtown Bandar, and museum tour at the Brunei Museum.

The lead trainer, Mrs. Iris Barry, is an active Blue Badge tourist guide in Scotland, England, and Wales with 22 years of experience in the field, as well as a certified trainer with years of experience training tour guides around the world and with a number of tourism-related degrees, in addition to being a trained archaeologist and published author on the subject of South American pre-history.

Assisting her in delivering the course was Mrs. Mary Kemp Clarke, also a Blue Badge guide in Scotland with many years of experience in both guiding and training internationally, as well as being an archaeology and Spanish language graduate, among many other qualifications and honorary positions in several associations.

With such eminently-qualified trainers, the objective of this course was to improve the skills and techniques of the guides by learning from best practitioners. Those guides who will pass the assessment, which will be finalized by year end by the WFTGA Training Committee in the UK, will then receive an accreditation badge endorsed by Brunei Tourism and the WFTGA and recognized by the Brunei Association of Travel Agents. This will be a first step towards future implementation of a compulsory licensing system needed to regulate the profession, as well as the quality of the guides who must take care of visitors to Brunei in a professional, competent, and regulated manner.

In order to train and accredit the majority of practicing guides in Brunei, Brunei Tourism will call again on the WFTGA to conduct more Hands-on Training courses in the near future.

For more on the WFTGA and its activities, and on the benefits of setting up a tourist guide association, the WFTGA website at: www.wtfga.org can be consulted.

Vietnam's first privately-owned airline launched

HANOI, Vietnam — Vietnam's first privately-owned airline began flights Tuesday, aiming to tap rising demand for air travel in the fast-growing Southeast Asian nation.

Indochina Airlines, owned by a group of Vietnamese businessmen, is operating four daily flights between the southern commercial center of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, said company spokeswoman Nguyen Thi Thanh Quyen.

The company, chaired by Ha Hung Dung, a well-known Vietnamese pop music composer and businessman, also offers two flights daily between Ho Chi Minh City and the central coastal city of Danang.

"The launch of our airlines aims to meet growing air travel demand in Vietnam and will offer more choices for customers," she said.

Indochina Airlines is the third airline to offer domestic flights in Vietnam, joining national carrier Vietnam Airlines and Jetstar Pacific, a partnership between a state-owned carrier and Australia's Qantas, which holds an 18 percent stake.

Indochina Airlines has registered capital of $12 million, Quyen said, and is leasing two 174-seat Boeing 737-800s.

In the next two or three years, the company hopes to add flights to the resort city of Nha Trang and the ancient capital of Hue, as well as countries in the region.

Passenger air travel to and from Vietnam has grown between 13 and 17 percent annually in recent years, according to Vietnam's Civil Aviation Administration.

Thai Buddhist Wedding Ceremony

These vary depending upon which region you marry. Plus most weddings performed by visitors to Thailand will be atleast themed with the Buddhist ceremonies. The ceremony will take place inside a monastery - due to Buddhist believes the monks are not allowed to do the full ceremony outdoors but a blessing ceremony after is possible. You will require to be be wearing traditional Thai dress.

Traditional Thai Wedding Ceremony & Thai theme Wedding Ceremony

Again, these vary depending upon which region you marry. Traditional Thai Wedding Ceremony offering a superbly romantic wedding ceremony.

The wedding proper begins with the groom, accompanied by the celebrant, leading the colorful "Long Drum Parade" across the garden or beach to where the vows will take place. Before the altar, the groom is joined by the bride. Dressed in a traditional, close-fitting, brightly colored Thai silk outfit she has been hidden nearby. The celebrant then addresses the bride and groom, and guests. To the traditional Thai music, the couple solemnly pronounces their vows and exchange rings. The cake is cut and champagne toasts (that can be accompanied by fireworks) are made. Invited Monks chant prayers of health, happiness and prosperity for the wedding couples� marriage. In return, the couple present the monks with alms and food. The bride and groom then kneel together, and a holy string is draped from one persons head to the other, forming a circle and connecting the couple. This symbolizes their spiritual union. Flower garlands are presented and powder is placed on the forehead. They then Wai by clasping their palms together in the traditional prayer-like gesture while one by one the guests pour a conch shell full of sacred water over the couple's hands while saying a blessing for good luck. Gifts of either envelopes containing money, or presents that have been placed in a basket beforehand are now checked by the bride's mother. The ceremony is completed with the newlyweds planting a "Love Tree" at as a gesture life of love.

Church weddings & western style civil wedding ceremonies are also popular. Often after a church wedding a Thai style blessing in arranged. Western style civil marriage ceremonies are often used for beach weddings in Thailand.
Wedding in Thailand has never been easier.

South Korea Joins Lucrative Practice of Inviting Medical Tourists to Its Hospitals

SEOUL, South Korea — In this city’s Apgujeong district, famous for its high-end boutiques and plastic surgeons, tourist buses unload Chinese and Japanese visitors looking for a nip and tuck as part of their packaged tour.

On the resort island of Jeju, the government is building Health Care Town, a 370-acre complex of medical clinics and upscale apartments surrounded by 18-hole golf courses and scenic beaches, to lure foreigners in need of medical care.

West of Seoul, on the muddy beaches of Inchon where American troops splashed ashore 58 years ago to fight in the Korean War, a new steel-and-glass town is rising to attract foreign visitors, including medical tourists.

South Korea has joined Thailand, Singapore, India and other Asian nations in the lucrative business of medical tourism. Heart bypasses, spinal surgery, hip-joint replacements, cosmetic surgery — procedures that may cost tens of thousands of dollars in the United States — can often be done for one-third or even one-tenth of the cost in Asia, with much shorter waiting times and by specialists often trained in the West.

Americans fleeing the high cost of medicine at home have spurred the trend. Last year, 750,000 Americans sought cheaper treatment abroad, a figure projected to reach 6 million by 2010, according to a recent study by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions, a consultancy. Asian nations are also wooing wealthy Middle Eastern patients who have found it more difficult to get a visa to enter the United States since the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The number of foreigners coming to South Korea for medical care is still a fraction of those getting treatment in India, Thailand and Singapore, industry officials said. But clinics and the South Korean government are trying hard to attract these tourists, who not only bring in money for cash-strapped hospitals but also help the economy by staying on to shop and sightsee after their procedure is over.

The government has revised immigration rules to allow foreign patients and their families to get long-term medical visas and altered laws to permit local hospitals to form joint ventures with foreign hospitals in some cases.

When Hassan and Fatima Al-Abdulla of Qatar arrived in Seoul in October, they found a car and an English-speaking nurse waiting at the airport.

Soon they were checking into the Wooridul Spine Hospital so Ms. Abdulla could have surgery for her chronic back and leg pain.

Mr. Abdulla found his wife’s hospital room — furnished with a television, broadband Internet access, private bathroom, sofas and an extra bed — so comfortable that he decided to stay with her rather than go to a hotel.

Ms. Abdulla had all her pre-surgical tests the day she arrived. The next day, she was on an operating table.

“I feel very good,” she said five days after her surgery. “I can walk and shop now.”

Mr. Abdulla said he and his wife were now eager to visit the stores and museums in Seoul, “probably spending more on shopping than in the medical center.”

Wooridul Spine Hospital said it expected to draw about 1,000 foreign patients and $1 million in revenue from their treatments in 2008, its third year of wooing foreigners. It said its patients hailed from 47 countries, with about a third from the United States.

Wooridul plans to build a hospital branch, apartments, a concert hall and an art museum on the Jeju Island as part of its medical tourism offerings, in addition to the golf course it has already built, said Lee Mi-jeong, a Wooridul spokeswoman.

“We believe this is a major future industry for our island,” said Kim Kyung-taeg, head of the government-run Jeju Development Center. “The town will specialize in medical checkups, long-term convalescence and procedures Korean doctors do well and cheaply, such as plastic surgery and dentistry.”

No government records are available on how many medical tourists come to South Korea. But a survey of 29 hospitals showed that they treated 38,822 uninsured foreign patients — excluding certain categories like long-term Korean expatriates — between January and August, compared with 15,680 in 2007, according to the government-financed Korea Health Industry Development Institute.

It said 25 percent of those patients were from the United States, and 10 percent each were from China and Japan.

Medical fees are strictly controlled by the government as part of a national health insurance program, but hospitals like Wooridul can negotiate fees with foreign patients without interference from insurance authorities.

Gregory Kellstrom, a civilian forklift operator at the American military base in Seoul, decided to go to Wooridul recently to get spinal scans and medication for his back and hip problems instead of returning to the United States.

“For me personally, this is not about money,” said Mr. Kellstrom, 42, who paid out of his own pocket but planned to apply for reimbursement from his American insurer.

“In the States, it will probably take easily six months just to get the treatment I have here in one day,” he said.

Baialinova Dariakul, 49, the wife of a wealthy businessman in Kyrgyzstan, said she came to Wooridul for treatment for her spinal tumor because it was unavailable at home. Fumiko Yamada, 75, a Tokyo resident who recently had a back operation at Wooridul, said she would have had to wait years to get an appointment with a leading Japanese surgeon who performs the same operation.

Some Koreans fear that social inequality will grow if medical resources and skilled workers migrate from public health care to better-paying jobs that cater to foreigners, said Dr. Yoon Dae-hyun, a psychiatrist at the Healthcare System Gangnam Center at Seoul National University Hospital. But he added that the effort to attract foreigners could inspire more local hospitals to upgrade their services.

“There isn’t much of a gap anymore between the good hospitals in Asia and the United States,” he said.

His center plans to open a marketing office in Los Angeles, and hopes to attract medical tourists from the pool of two million Korean-Americans. Foreigners who can document Korean ancestry can qualify for the South Korean national health insurance.

Sally Im, a Korean-American from Honolulu, recently traveled to Wooridul for back surgery. After her husband paid two months’ worth of premiums — about $90 — on their arrival, a portion of Ms. Im’s medical bill was covered by the South Korean government. The couple ended up spending $3,200, rather than the $30,000 that her operation would have cost in the United States, Wooridul said.

Not everyone in South Korea is happy about such arrangements, fearing that ethnic Koreans from abroad could become a drag on the national insurance coffers. There is talk of limiting benefits to long-term residents.

The Ims, meanwhile, were happy that they had an alternative to the American medical system.

“We met a good doctor and had good surgery,” said Ms. Im’s husband, Stan. “We feel very lucky.”
Source: nytimes

India turning affordable, quality option for medical tourists

BANGALORE - India is soon growing to be a popular medical destination following the availability of health care facilities that matched international standards but offered it at a fraction of the cost abroad.

The estimated international medical tourist arrivals to India was 4,50,000 as against Singapore's 4,20,000 and over a million in Thailand, said Vishal Bali, CEO, Wockhardt.

Nearly 13 hospitals in India had been JCI (Joint Commission International) accredited. JCI was the US-based quality assessor that awards accreditation to hospitals outside US.

The Deloitte Study on medical tourist estimates that 750,000 Americans travelled abroad for health care in 2007 and the number is estimated to increase to six million by 2010.

The study estimates that the Global market for Medical tourism tobe currently at 60 billion dollars.

The growing cost of healthcare in the US, the high premium to be paid is leaving a lot of American out of the insurance cordon. Nearly 70 million US citizens were underinsured or not insured. In comparison health care cost in India was nearly just a fraction of the cost incurred in the US.

A cardiac surgery, which would cost 9000 USD, in India would cost around 75,000 to 100,000 USD in the US. A spine surgery costing around 8000 to 9000 USD in India could cost around 65,000 USD while a joint replacement in India would have a patient paying up around 8500 USD while it would cost around 55,000 to 65,000 USD in the states, says Bali.

Even with the travel to India and stay cost involved, patients would still end up paying much less if they chose India as an option to undergo treatment, he said which was leading to more US patients looking to India.

South Korea invites tourists to its hospitals

SEOUL, South Korea — In this city's Apgujeong district, famous for its high-end boutiques and plastic surgeons, tourist buses unload Chinese and Japanese visitors looking for a nip and tuck as part of their packaged tour.

On the resort island of Jeju, the government is building Health Care Town, a 370-acre complex of medical clinics and upscale apartments, with 18-hole golf courses and scenic beaches, to lure foreigners in need of medical care.

West of Seoul, on the muddy beaches of Inchon where American troops splashed ashore 58 years ago to fight in the Korean War, a new steel-and-glass town is rising to attract foreign visitors, including medical tourists.

South Korea has joined Thailand, Singapore, India and other Asian nations in the lucrative business of medical tourism. Heart bypasses, spinal surgery, hip-joint replacements, cosmetic surgery — procedures that may cost tens of thousands of dollars in the United States — can often be done for one-third or even one-tenth of the cost in Asia, with much shorter waiting times and by specialists often trained in the West.

Americans fleeing the high cost of medicine at home have spurred the trend. Last year, 750,000 Americans sought cheaper treatment abroad, a figure projected to reach 6 million by 2010, according to a recent study by the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions, a consultancy. Asian nations are also wooing wealthy Middle Eastern patients who have found it more difficult to get visas to enter the United States since the 2001 terrorist attacks.

The number of foreigners coming to South Korea for medical care is still a fraction of those getting treatment in India, Thailand and Singapore, industry officials said. But clinics and the South Korean government are trying hard to attract these tourists, who not only bring in money for cash-strapped hospitals but also help the economy by staying on to shop and sightsee after their procedures are over.

The government has revised immigration rules to allow foreign patients and their families to get long-term medical visas and has altered laws to permit local hospitals to form joint ventures with foreign hospitals in some cases.

Philippines Tourism focuses on Asian Neighbors

Despite the global economic slowdown, tourism officials remain confident that the local industry will be resilient as marketing efforts continue to mine specific markets.

The tourism department cited the recently concluded International Tourismus Borse (ITB) in Singapore, the largest travel trade show in Asia, where the Philippines was among the top sellers for tourism products, including the MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions) and leisure segments.

"Our presence in this inaugural ITB in Asia is significant, as we maintain our mark in the Asian region, where a huge growth potential is certain," Tourism Secretary Ace Durano said in a statement.

Peter Long, chief executive of TUI Travel PLC, a leading European leisure travel company in Europe, said another 600 to 700 million people are expected to travel from and within Asia over the next five years.

The tourism department said it will take advantage of this growth.

"The focus on Asian travel buyers and sellers is timely, as there are many opportunities to be tapped with the emergence of the middle-class in China and India, as well as other source markets in the region," Durano stressed.

Rica Bueno, tourism head for Team Asia Pacific, said the department has positioned the Philippines as a destination of choice in Asia, with a strong emphasis on leisure and incentive travel.

Eduardo Jarque, Jr., undersecretary for tourism planning and promotions, also noted the growth in the incentive travel for the Indian market, and English and Secondary Language training for the Korean market.

"Career women from Southeast Asia are looking for places where they can unwind. Our beaches and spas are among the best,” Jarque said.

Tourist arrivals from the Asia Pacific region accounted for 18 percent of total inbound traffic in the first half of 2008.

The introduction of specialized products on incentive and adventure attracted more visitors from Australia, which grew by 12 percent in the first semester of the year. Hong Kong has been revived with the introduction of new products and tapping new trade channels.

The ASEAN region accounted for a 7.5 percent share of total arrivals, according to a mid-year report.
Souce: abs-cbnews

Internet presence essential for destination marketers as more Indians source travel information online

With over half of Indian travelers using the Internet to search for information about destinations aboard, travel operators and tourist bodies need an effective online presence if they are to capture India's early adopters and increasingly-affluent travelers, according to the latest India Outbound Travel Monitor conducted by The Nielsen Company in partnership with the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA).

The survey shows that, while traditional media such as newspapers and magazines remain the primary source for travel advertising and information for many, the Internet has become a popular advertising channel - drawing greater attention among Indian outbound travelers. The online platform is also gaining in popularity among travelers from India's smaller cities.

“The convenience of comparing prices and easy access to more detailed information makes the Internet a popular go-to source for travelers," said Vatsala Pant, associate director - client service, The Nielsen Company, India. “An effective online presence ensures optimal deployment of marketing strategies, yet a standard online advertising may not be enough to capture the attention of increasingly technology-savvy Indian travelers.

Oliver Martin, associate director, Strategic Intelligence Centre, PATA, said, “It is critical for marketers to establish an early presence online, as well as developing an effective engagement model with their target travelers long before they start actively planning their trips."

Conducted using face-to-face interviews with a fully-structured questionnaire during July - August 2008, the Nielsen India Outbound Travel Monitor is a nationwide study surveying 2,000 male and female consumers aged 18+ who have traveled outside India in the last 12 months and stayed at least two nights away from home. The Monitor studies traveler behavior, attitudes, and opinions about traveling and provides insight into decision making processes, information sourcing, booking choices, accommodation, and more.

While the majority continues to turn to conventional channels - travel agents and tour operators - for their travel arrangements, Indian outbound travelers (12 percent) are increasingly booking their travel online. “India's outbound travel market is recognized as one of the key emerging sources of tourism for the world, and as Internet penetration and adoption of the web as a commercial channel increases, so will online travel bookings," added Pant.
According to Nielsen, Nepal, Singapore, and Thailand are the most popular destinations for online bookings among Indian travelers. “It would seem that, for many, face to face interaction with a bricks-and-mortar travel agent is still preferred to the ease of booking over the internet. Relationships established with travel agents and the trust that has been built with an offline entity over the years win out over the fear of the unseen or unknown," said Vatsala Pant.

Jayashree Janardhanan The Nielsen Company India Email: Jayashree.janardhanan@nielsen.com Tel: +91 22 6663 2825 or +91 983 395 2084 Oliver Martin PATA Email: Oliver@pata.org Tel: +66 2 658 2000 or +66 81 908 8638

AirAsia is Top Brand from Emerging Markets

AirAsia, the leading and largest low-cost carrier in Asia, has been recognized as the ‘top brand to watch’ in the UK Trade & Investment’s New World Brands annual report. AirAsia is the only South East Asian company to make the list of top ten brands from emerging markets across Brazil, Russia, India and China.

New World Brands, which was produced in co-operation with the Economist Intelligence Unit, examines many of the world’s fastest-growing and most innovative companies from emerging markets. AirAsia is ranked above other successful companies such as Chery Automobile, Haier, Marcopolo, Reliance, and Springs Global.

AirAsia currently flies to more than 60 destinations and boasts the lowest operating cost of any carrier worldwide. The airline has optimised costs by operating a faster turnaround time, improving aircraft utilization and crew efficiency, and providing a pay-per-use passenger service, all of which results in savings which are passed back to consumers in the form of low fares.

Dato’ Sri Tony Fernandes, AirAsia Group CEO, said: “This is a great achievement for AirAsia to be recognized as a top new world brand and reflects our hard work and pioneering attitude to make air travel an affordable reality for everyone across Asia. We always focused on being a global brand and the investment is now beginning to reap the rewards.”

According to the report, leading brands from emerging markets are “shaking up industries” and challenging conventional business wisdom while benchmarking themselves against global standards.

Tony Fernandes added: “Despite the current challenging market conditions, AirAsia is still going strong. We have successful joint ventures in Thailand and Indonesia, as well as AirAsia X, the low-cost, long-haul subsidiary of AirAsia. Our fleet in Malaysia has been fully upgraded with the more modern Airbus A320s. We are vigilant in our efforts to maintain AirAsia’s notoriously low fares, and our disciplined low-cost model sets a global standard for airline efficiency.”

AirAsia was also recently ranked Top 5 among Asia Pacific’s airline brands, ahead of Malaysia Airlines and Qantas, among others, in the Top 1000 Brands 2008 survey conducted by TNS for Hong Kong-based Media magazine.

Philippines: Tourists targeted for condos

Manila, Philippines - The government is working with property developers to sell condominium units as second homes for foreign tourists in a bid to boost repeat visits, the Tourism department said in a statement yesterday.

"What we are doing is opening up new marketsin Australia, Korea, Japan and Chinafor the developers, while we are broadening and deepening the market base of tourism," Tourism Sec. Joseph H. Durano said in a phone interview yesterday.

"The reason we are concentrating on Asia Pacific is because they [make up most of] our repeat visitors. It’s easier to convince them to take the next step and own a second home," Mr. Durano said, adding that tourists who own second homes also stay longer.

To do so, the Tourism department is providing information on property developments in the country, particularly those near tourist attractions, through Web sites, advertisements, and investment shows abroad. The department counts big name developers like Ayala Land, Inc., Fil-Estate Corp., Megaworld Corp., SM Development Corp. as among its partners for this campaign.

While the Constitution prohibits foreigners from owning land in the Philippines, foreigners may own condominium units, Mr. Durano noted.