The South East Asia Travel Show

Land-locked Laos is a beautiful part of South East Asia, where tourism is coming back to life despite tough economic times. Overland travel is a dynamic driver, following the launch in 2023 of the cross-border China-Laos railway, and - last month - a new train link between Bangkok and Vientiane. To navigate Laos's changing travel landscape, Gary is joined by Jason Rolan, Tourism Specialist and Senior Partner at RDK Group, and Benny Kong, Co-Founder of Discover Laos Today. In a broad-ranging chat, we address the first-half year visitor arrivals to Laos, and its top inbound markets - and the latest visa entry measures designed to attract more visitors from selected markets. We also discuss changing visitor perceptions, booming hotel investment and infrastructure development, notable shifts in seasonality and labour supply challenges in the hospitality sector. Plus, Benny talks about the popular response to the EV tours and self-drive EV car rentals his company has introduced in three parts of the country - including a vintage-style guided EV trip around Luang Prabang, which is building a viral buzz on social media. 
 

July is a busy season. Chinese summer holiday tourists returned to the region in large numbers, while destinations across ASEAN implemented various measures to boost their full-year tourism arrivals. And we had some extreme weather events as well. So, what were the Top 8 travel and tourism talking points in July? In our monthly round-up, Gary and Hannah travel around ASEAN, with stopovers in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, plus China and India. En route, we discuss TikTok's latest travel play in Thailand and Indonesia, jet planes returning to KL's Subang Airport after more than two decades and growing legal pressure on illegal tour operators. And, a new survey shows that Chinese tour groups are smaller and younger than pre-pandemic. Plus, is Bali the new benchmark in the battle to attract Chinese and Indian tourists? How many countries worldwide does Singapore's power-packed passport enable its citizens to visit visa-free?  And why hasn't Netflix series The Mole been promoted in Malaysia, despite being filmed around the country?

SAF. Future Fuels. Hydrogen. Electric. Hybrid. Aviation contributes approx 2-3% of global CO2 emissions, with the majority being from aircraft movements. But how bad could it get? And what steps are being taken - and how quickly - by governments, regulators, airlines, aircraft manufacturers and airports to reduce emissions at scale? To address these big issues, Gary welcomes back to the show Shantanu Gangakedkhar, Senior Consultant, Aerospace & Defense, at Frost & Sullivan. Shantanu recently wrote a White Paper called Sustainable Technologies in Aviation, and speaks at aviation conferences worldwide. Decarbonising our skies is complex, and will require an entire turnaround of the airline and airport sectors. It will also incur costs that will be passed onto travellers. But how quickly can governments and regulators push through mandates to speed up progress? And, the big question, is Net Zero by 2050 actually achievable? A fascinating deep dive into the critical issues around air travel, air pollution and climate impact. 
 
 

The symbiosis of food and tourism is not a new topic, but the contexts are changing. Across ASEAN and Asia Pacific, fast-moving trends in food tourism are driven by social media videos and tasting tests and a raft of culinary awards, guides, ratings and reviews. Beyond changing traveller appetites, vital issues - such as climate impact, resource allocation, automated farming techniques, and fair pricing for food producers - are gaining urgency. This week, Gary is joined by Jens Thraenhart, Former Executive Director of Mekong Tourism & Former CEO of the Barbados Tourism Board, to discuss these issues, and many more, which were addressed at the inaugural UN Tourism Regional Forum on Gastronomy Tourism for Asia Pacific in Cebu, the Philippines. The event addressed the opportunities and challenges ahead for food tourism across the region, and the issues that impact the food chain and agricultural production as tourism trends diversify. Gary and Jens also reflect on the key themes discussed by government delegations and affiliate members at the 36th Joint Meeting of the UN Tourism Commissions for East Asia & the Pacific and South Asia, also in Cebu. This week's show is adapted from the High-Yield Tourism Podcast. To find out more, visit: www.highyieldtourism.com

So, we’ve passed a significant threshold. The first half of 2024 is completed – and an unseemly scramble will now occur to try and match – or get very close to – 2019 travel metrics across the region. In this context of competition, it’s time to round up the top 8 travel talking points from June – and what an action-packed month it proved to be. This week, Gary and Hannah travel around ASEAN, with stopovers in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines, Laos and Myanmar, plus China and – better believe it – Kenya. En route, we discuss a new round of visa easing in several countries, the first Gastronomy Tourism Forum for Asia Pacific and a boom in film and TV productions in Thailand. Plus, what's happening with Malaysia's much discussed MM2H visa? And will Boracay succeed in attracting more Muslim tourists? Plus, we discuss the highly-anticipated launch of a Bangkok-Vientiane train service, and Air Asia X takes off from KL to Nairobi.

The 'Dubai of ASEAN'. China's Mega-Percentages. The 'Next Taylor Swift' Event. Tourism in an Ageing Region. At the end of the first half of 2024, Gary and Hannah look back at the 10 most consequential travel takeaways in South East Asia and beyond. En route, we discuss political leadership change in three key markets, a proliferation of proposed tourism fees and the expansion of 'digital identity' in airports. Plus, we dive into Singapore's Vision 2040 and Vietnam's visitor forecasts through 2045. Plus, which ASEAN countries negotiated new air connectivity with India, and why are Chinese outbound growth metrics so huge? Finally, the media onslaught is taking shape for what will be the region's Travel & TV phenomenon of 2025. 

This week, Thailand confirmed it IS targeting 40 million arrivals in 2024. Achieving this goal would set an annual record for Thailand and - crucially - surpass the 39.9 million visitors in 2019. It would be a stellar achievement. So, it's the perfect time to assess the year so far in Thai tourism - and look ahead - with Bangkok-based travel journalist Vincent Vichit-Vadakan. We discuss Thailand's visa liberalisation measures in recent months, and its highly anticipated Soft Power Conference later in June - which will present a diverse vision of Thailand's future, including tourism, culture, arts, cuisine, music, fashion and festivals among its 11 soft power pillars. Plus, we chat about new hotel and resort developments, the influence of TV series and movies filmed across Thailand and last-minute flight prices. And, we look ahead to the Marriage Equality Bill being enshrined into law and its potential impact on tourism. Travelling beyond Thailand, we delve into EV tours in Laos, multigenerational travel from India and a major upcoming tourism development in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo.

"The narrative is changing. We're not talking about the pace of hotel rate growth anymore." Stability and volatility may sound contradictory, but both terms help to explain hotel performance in South East Asian markets and China so far in 2024. To delve deeper into the evolving travel, tourism and geo-economic factors influencing the hotel industry, Gary and Hannah welcome Jesper Palmqvist, Senior Director, Asia Pacific, at STR CoStar, back to the show. In a broad-ranging interview, Jesper discusses consumer spending, hotel pipelines, differentiated luxury segments, booking windows, public holidays, weather patterns and the return of seasonality throughout the region. We also address intra-ASEAN flight connectivity and the interlocking travel factors in North East Asia, and their impacts in ASEAN markets. Plus, we dive into the developing post-pandemic trends in Singapore - which is a regional benchmark travel and hospitality market - and the objectives and potential outcomes of its Vision 2040 strategy.