Now you can ‘Grab’ a hotel as well

If you’ve used Grab you’ll realise what a big announcement this is. It immerses yet another service within their intuitive App. Grab, already a leading App in Southeast Asia, has announced the launch of its ‘Hotels’ booking service.

The company says customers will now be able to book hotels and other accommodation from Agoda and soon, Booking.com directly from their Grab app, and additionally enjoy special hotel offers when they book through Grab.

The company said its customers can access and easily compare prices across millions of places to stay, ranging from a wide choice of luxury and budget hotels to apartments, vacation homes, and family-run B&Bs.

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“Travellers are an increasingly important audience for Grab. With more Southeast Asians travelling than ever before, the launch of ‘ Grab Hotels’ highlights our commitment to provide the most relevant services to our customers as Southeast Asia’s leading everyday super app.

“Our ‘Hotels’ service adds to the multiple benefits we already offer travellers, including the most comprehensive miles and travel loyalty program for any O2O platform, discounts at lounges and F&B outlets at major airports in Southeast Asia, and exclusive Grab transport pick-up points at airports in Indonesia and the Philippines,” said Jerald Singh, Group Head of Product and Design, Grab.

More features and benefits will be added to the ‘Hotels’ service throughout the year. Grab customers will get free travel personal accident and flight delay insurance with each hotel booking, as well as special ride offers. In addition, customers will be able to pay with GrabPay, Grab’s cashless payment mode, and earn GrabReward points with each booking, which can be redeemed for more deals and discounts around other travel services, F&B, retail, entertainment and more.

“Grab’s ‘Hotels’ service is ideal for young professionals who travel frequently for holidays, or families looking for the best deals.

“Our partnerships with Agoda and Booking.com allow our customers to easily find the right accommodation – anywhere in the world – for their holiday, and within their preferred budget too! With the special Grab discounts and free insurance, we’re confident travellers can find the most value-for-money deals when booking hotels with Grab.”

Source - TheThaiger

#Cambodia - Tourist arrivals up by 10 percent - Chinese up by 35%

Tourist-at Phnom Penh Airport

A Tourism Ministry report published on Friday said that Cambodia saw a 9.7 percent increase of foreign tourist arrivals during the first quarter of this year.

According to the report, Chinese tourists top the country’s tourism market list with 683,436, a number that increased from quarter to quarter by 35.1 percent. Vietnamese tourists ranked second with 186,863, followed by Laos with 121,489 tourists, Thailand with 97,942 tourists and South Korea with 95,719 tourists.

A total of 1.29 million tourists arrived in the Kingdom via three international airports, while 578,371 arrived via land and waterway.

The report said Phnom Penh and its surrounding areas are the most attractive destinations for international tourists. The area received a total of 1.08 million tourists during the first three months of this year.

Siem Reap province, home to the Angkor temples, received about 787,900 foreign tourists, while coastal provinces such as Preah Sihanouk, Kep, Kampot and Koh Kong received 303,285 tourists.

In a recent meeting, Tourism Minister Thong Khon called on relevant parties to increase the quality of tourism services.

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Mr Khon said poor hospitality in the tourism sector has been reported, particularly in visa processing which requires tourists to spend informal expenses.

Chhay Sivlin, president of the Cambodia Association of Travel Agents, yesterday echoed Mr Khon’s statement. She said poor hospitality in the sector can discourage tourists from returning to the Kingdom.

“With nine to 10 percent growth, we are not satisfied because there are many issues we need to overcome. Other Asean countries try hard to attract foreign tourists and make them stay longer,” Ms Sivlin said. “We have to learn and try our best to get those in the private sector and the government to strengthen tourism services.”

“In terms of hospitality, we see some progress, but only small points,” she added. “When we offer poor services to tourists at border gates, tourists are not satisfied and will end their stay earlier.”

Ms Sivlin noted that the domestic production of goods to be sold to tourists should be increased, so local producers can benefit from tourists.

According to a Tourism Ministry Facebook post, Mr Khon said while most tourists arrived via airports, domestic flights are in need of a boost.

“Foreign tourists want to be able to take a plane from Sihanoukville in order to visit Angkor Wat,” he said. “It is easy to go on cruise ships, but domestic air services are difficult.”

Last year, Cambodia received 6.2 million tourists, with the tourism sector earning $4.3 billion.

This year, Cambodia expects to welcome 6.7 million tourists, while it expects to receive seven million by 2020.

Source - KhmerPost

#Cambodia - Unesco, ministry vow stronger cooperation

Unesco pledged to continue working closely with the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism to promote the conservation and sustainable development of Cambodia’s ecotourism sector and support government plans to develop tourism sites in Siem Reap province, including the Angkor Archaeological Park.

During a meeting with Thong Khon, the Cambodian Minister of Tourism, Sardar Umar Alam, Unesco’s new representative to Cambodia, said that, under the leadership of the Cambodian government, his organisation is collaborating successfully with the ministries of Tourism and Culture, the Apsara Authority and the World Tourism Organisation.

He promised to deepen this collaboration to make the Angkor Archaeological Park and surrounding areas, including the Tonle Sap and Prek Toal, into top tourist attractions and biodiversity areas in the region.

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Mr Umar Alam also provided suggestions on improving the conservation of the Tonle Sap, Kulen Mountain, Preah Vihear Temple, Koh Ker, Beng Mealea, and Sambor Prei Kuk, which, he said, can be added to travel packages that include ecotourism sites in the country’s southwest and northeast.

Mr Umar Alam said his organisation will continue to organise programmes to promote the development of Cambodia’s ecotourism and culture sectors, while supporting the Integrated Development Master Plan in Siem Reap, Angkor and surrounding areas.

Source - Khmer Times

Travel plans to Laos ?

Laos has announced it will begin offering electronic visas (eVisa) to foreign tourists and travelers from June this year.

Establishment of the eVisa program will commence in mid-2019, according to a Lao Ministry of Foreign Affairs notice issued earlier this month dated March 11.

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The move comes as the government takes steps to modernize and ensure visa procedures are faster and more convenient for tourist visa applicants, according to the notice.

It is also another means by which the government hopes to attract more tourism to the country.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs consular office is working with all other ministries and departments to ensure the comprehensive and timely development of the eVisa program.

The eVisa program, it is hoped, will allow foreign visitors greater access to information and more convenience in visa processing, and will assist in making the country more widely known among tourists.

It comes as policymakers and the private sector seek to capitalize on the benefits of improved connectivity and widen the range of offerings to attract valuable tourism and travel-related income and investment.

Course -  The Laotian Times

#Vietnam - UK experts explore underground mystery in Son Doong Cave

 U.K. cave experts presume that a subterranean river in Vietnam’s Son Doong Cave could link to another cave.

The journey to explore this river system, estimated to stretch 600 meters in the Son Doong Cave in Quang Binh Province, is expected to last for a week starting Monday.

Dr Howard Limbert, an expert with the British Cave Research Association, who has 30 years of experience exploring caves in Vietnam, including the Son Doong Cave, said it is possible that the underground river of Son Doong links up with the Thung Cave, which was discovered in 1994.

Since Son Doong was discovered in 2009, experts have only explored its dry part and left alone its river system, he said.

The four divers that will take on the latest quest are those who joined the team to rescue the 12 boys trapped with their football coach in a labyrinthine flooded cave complex in northern Thailand in July last year.

They will not dive together at the same time. One would go down first and swim for 200 meters, using a rope to mark the place and return before another continues from that part for another 200 meters.

The work will go on until they reach the other side of the river.

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Rick Stanton, one of the divers, said that each diver will carry two diving cylinders connected with a circulation device that allows them to breathe underwater for six hours straight.

This is the same method they had used when saving the Thai boys.

The group said there will definitely be unexpected difficulties, and that how the situation develops will depend a lot on the real conditions of the river system.

If it is proved that the underground river connects the two caves, Thung will then become a part of Son Doong, raising the current total length of Son Doong from nine km (six miles) to 12.3 km and its total volume will rise from 38.5 million to 40.1 million cubic meters.

Nguyen Chau A, CEO of Oxalis, now the only company licensed to bring tourists to Son Doong, said if this effort succeeds, Quang Binh could lure more science movie producers to the cave.

He also said that the latest diving effort carries more scientific import, rather than serving tourism.

Son Doong opened to tourists in 2013, four years after members of the British Cave Research Association finished their exploration and declared it the world’s largest.

Local resident Ho Khanh first discovered the cave in 1991, and rediscovered it almost 20 years later, opening it up for exploration.

U.K.-based travel guide publisher Lonely Planet said in January that Son Doong Cave is among the best places to visit in 2019, and warns that the trip has to be booked early due to limited slots. The government of Quang Binh Province, known as the kingdom of caves, recently raised the limit for number of tourists allowed to visit the cave from 640 to 900.

The province has over the past years proposed several developments, including a cable car system to boost tourism in the area, but these have met with strong opposition from environmentalists and the public.

Source - VN EXPRESS

VIDEO

#Cambodia - Government creates ‘great tourism zones’

Tourists visit the Wat Phnom historic site in Phnom Penh, Cambodia

A sub-decree issued Thursday coined ‘great tourism zones’, a term for areas where a wide range of tourism-related services is available.

In last week’s sub-decree, the government describes the zones as areas that have accommodation, food and beverage services, entertainment complexes, sports facilities, gardens, parks, health care centres, and other tourism-related facilities.

Great tourism zones must cover at least 100 hectares, according to the sub-decree.

Investors that wish to create great tourism zones in any part of the country must first submit an application to the Tourism Development Committee of the Ministry of Tourism, who will study and evaluate the project and submit a report to the government, the sub-decree said.

Top Sopheak, spokesman at the Ministry of Tourism, told Khmer Times that the concept of great tourism zones is modelled after special economic zones, areas that bring together facilities needed to streamline manufacturing activity.

“In Khmer, the word ‘great’ (piseth) has a similar meaning to the term ‘special’. That’s why the government chose this word,” Mr Sopheak said.

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“Great tourism zones are hubs that offer all tourism-related services. It is based on the same idea that special economic zones, which focus on manufacturing,” he said.

Mr Sopheak said great tourism zones cannot be established in existing tourism sites but only in new locations that show great tourism potential.

Source - Khmer Times

#Indonesia - Mount Slamet to welcome hikers starting this weekend

The hiking trail to Mount Slamet through Bambangan, Kutabawa village in Karangreja district, Purbalingga, is set to be reopened on March 2 following improved weather and ecosystem recovery efforts over the past few months.

"Based on the consideration of weather and hiking trails that have been improved, we have decided to reopen the hiking trail to Mount Slamet through Bambangan in Kutabawa starting March 2," Prayitno, tourism department head of the Purbalingga Tourism, Sports and Youth Agency, told kompas.com on Friday. 

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The trail had previously been closed since Jan. 10 as part of an effort to improve the ecosystem balance in the area and preserve the flora and fauna.

"Following massive hiking activities over New Year's Eve, the trail needed to be rehabilitated, hence it was closed temporarily," said Prayitno.

The agency is said to have deployed two workers to guard the first hiking post and attend to cleanup activities and the maintenance of plants. 

Source - TheJakartaPost