Clik here to view.
How MyRealTrip executed its way out of the pandemic to emerge stronger
With transactions higher than pre-pandemic, Korean startup invests in five companies, bets on families, longstays and co-working DONGGUN Lee will always remember September 23, 2022 – that was the day...
View ArticleClik here to view.
WiT Seoul 2022: Travel brands jostle for position amid intense competition...
FROM traditional giants like Hana Tour to local OTAs such as Good Choice, Tidesquare and MyRealTrip, travel brands in South Korea are jostling for position to catch the recovery wave. In the meantime,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Letter from Phoenix: Gummies, guacamole and lessons from taxi drivers
After three years away, I was curious to see what Narita airport would look like, compared to Incheon where I had just been two weeks prior. This is one of the slower airports in Asia Pacific to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Japan, Land of Bargains, beckons while outbound remains muted
Weak yen, absence of China – “an opportunity to change focus” GIVEN the weakened Japanese yen, the land of the rising sun has become the land of bargains and this will give a further impetus to inbound...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Riding the Covid wave: Americas slowing down, Asia’s still in “sugar rush”
Key takeaways from Phocuswright – worlds apart but some similarities stand out IN a week’s time, we will enter the last month of 2022. At Scottsdale Quarters, a shopping precinct in Arizona, the malls...
View ArticleHow an early nomad’s life shaped Steve Hafner, and how he sees talent, tech...
“With five mouths to feed, I got to stick around” From references to Hugh Hefner to learning from his five daughters and how to ace media interviews, this interview with Steve Hafner, CEO and...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Mobile acceleration changing everything in Asia – stay alert, “the wolves are...
Hospitality tech still “messed up”, opportunities abound for chat, social commerce and innovative bundling The step change in mobile adoption, social, chat as well as the surge in low cost airline...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Letter from Tucson: Desert scapes and tastes, boneyard and beauty of flight
THE night before I left for Tucson, I had my first experience of an NBA match between the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns. Of course, before this, I knew next to nothing about the teams, players...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Letter from Thailand: Hilltribes, elephants, Michelin dining and weed make...
THE kids had been waiting from 7am. They were excited to meet the “foreigners” whom they heard were bringing snacks and winter jackets and their teachers, Kru Prueng and Kru Nim, had told them they’d...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Letter from the skies: The Chinese are coming, so is AI on steroids – hello,...
Let’s welcome back Chinese travellers with empathy, and brace for the AI revolution to come I AM writing this at 15,000 feet, onboard an ATR 72-500 on a Firefly flight between Singapore and Kuala...
View ArticleThe silver linings playbook for travel in 2023
AMID the dark clouds gathering that could dampen travel – recession, inflation, an ongoing war, pandemic still in play – it’s good to focus on the silver linings. So, we asked a selection of travel...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The art of conversations: The difference between an AI GPT and Human GPT
Tip: Make sure the way you speak cannot be replicated by a machine After having had lots of morning conversations with my new-found friend, GPT, you can imagine my delight when I got to mingle with...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Say hi to hybrid hospitality in the name of lyf
Ascott bets big on coliving brand, eyes 150 by 2030 AT lyf one-north, Singapore, they try to do everything differently, down to the smallest detail. For example, Genevieve Khua, whose official title is...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Looking to double numbers in 2023, Singapore plots path to full recovery
Amid changing customer trends, STB to invest $110m in events, plans Rewards scheme ON the Grab ride I took to attend the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) media briefing this morning – to unveil its 2022...
View ArticleClik here to view.
What do metaverse, ChatGPT mean for a destination like Singapore?
Blended answers, by man and machine Keith Tan, chief executive officer of the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), opened his agency’s media briefing this week by jesting, “I’d like to confirm that ChatGPT...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Eric Ricaurte: From voice in the wilderness to “travel’s most wanted man”
After years of toiling away at the fringe, Greenview finds its moment in time FOR more than two decades, his was a voice in the wilderness. Although Eric Ricaurte started his company, Greenview, to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
New world meets old as an ambitious FREED acquires Connexus Travel
Digital and smart merchandising solutions company, FREED GROUP, has acquired Hong Kong’s oldest travel agency, Connexus Travel (formerly Swire Travel), to expand and extends its reach into travel. The...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The dance of the golden lion: We’re all experts by now
As I watched the golden lion perform its dance last night at the Lunar New Year celebration hosted by Sentosa Development Corporation last night, I couldn’t help but relate it to the very similar...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Expedia’s accelerator bet on inclusion and diversity pays off
Final pitch day for 12 finalists set for May Expedia Group’s bet on launching an accelerator focused on inclusion and diversity last September appears to have paid off, with 12 startups joining its...
View ArticleClik here to view.
From Jumbo crabs to jumbo jet: The aircraft that changed travel and shrank...
Last night, I headed to Jumbo at the East Coast Seafood Centre to have chilli crabs. It’s not a place I frequent often because well, as locals, we usually avoid places that are popular with tourists...
View Article