The Wrap: Tokyo"s best city in the world for travel experiences

In the news: Tokyo’s top travel experiences, Accor’s two new hotels in Singapore, new website for Melbourne Convention Bureau, VANs introduced to Singapore

Tokyo’s best city in the world for travel experiences

Tokyo is very popular with foreign visitors – for its beauty, rich culture, food and a hospitable people. Now its attractiveness is enhanced with the latest findings in TripAdvisor’s second annual World City Survey, which had global travellers ranking the city as #1 for helpfulness of locals, taxi service, local public transportation, and cleanliness of streets.

The results were compiled based on more than 54,000 responses from travellers’ recent reviews for featured cities around the world on TripAdvisor’s site.

(Pictured left: Odaiba Rainbow Bridge, Tokyo)

Singapore made it to one of the the high ranking cities in Asia over Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and Hanoi. The Lion City came in first for comfort when travelling alone; second for taxi service, cleanliness of streets, ease of getting around and family-friendliness; and third for friendliness of taxi drivers. It excels

Other high ranking cities include New York City, which ranked first for best restaurants and nightlife; Rome topped the list of attractions/things to do and culture; Dubai, first for shopping and hotels; and Budapest voted best value for money.

Accor increases Singapore’s portfolio with two new hotels

Accor has clinched an agreement with Oxley Gem Pte Ltd (a subsidiary of Oxley Holdings Limited) to manage two new-build hotels in Singapore – Novotel Singapore on Stevens and ibis Singapore on Stevens.

The project marks Oxley Holdings Limited’s maiden venture into the hospitality business.

The two properties, scheduled to open by the end of 2016, will become Accor’s largest hotel development in the Asia Pacific region. They will add 782 new rooms to Singapore’s hospitality scene, and will be part of a combined project in the heart of Singapore,  a few minutes’ drive from Orchard Road and with easy access to the central business district and Changi International Airport.

Novotel Singapore on Stevens will open with 254 rooms, food and beverage outlets, a swimming pool, fitness centre, and meeting facilities that includes a 500 seat ballroom and meeting rooms.

Ibis Singapore on Stevens will have 528 rooms, and feature a lobby bar/café and gymnasium.

The two new hotels will increase Accor’s Singapore portfolio to nine hotels. The hotel group currently operates its Mercure, Novotel and ibis brands on the island republic, with a new Sofitel So scheduld to open by the end of this month.

Meeting in Melbourne made easy with MCB’s new website

The Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB) has launched its new website, which offers comprehensive event planning tools and destination information to make planning a meeting, conference or incentive trip in Melbourne effortless.

The new site is built on a responsive platform so it can be easily viewed across desktops, tablets and smart phones. Its navigation menu makes all information and media such as downloadable brochures, videos and maps accessible with just a click.

Key features include three search modules sortable across accommodation and venue capacity, event service type, tours and activities; pinned “Request a Proposal” and “Compare’”buttons; and Google map integration to see hotels, restaurants, and attractions close to preferred venues or accommodation.

The site also has a ”‘Planning Toolkit” to assist with promotion and delegate boosting for an event; access to the digitally-integrated Melbourne Planners’ Guide; and information and insider tips about visiting the city and greater Victoria.

Karen Bolinger, MCB’s chief executive officer, said that the new website was part of the bureau’s digital strategy to provide more engaging and interactive connections with associations and conference and incentive and meeting planners from all parts of the world.

eNett International introduces VANs to Singapore travel agencies

eNett International, a joint venture between Travelport and PSP International, is rolling out the Virtual Account Numbers (VANs) to travel agencies in Singapore for faster and safer transactions. This payment system has been successfully implemented in Europe.

A VAN is an automatically generated 16-digit MasterCard number for each booking transaction, making reconciliation simple for everybody in the value chain.

Payments are available in 27 currencies, including the Singapore dollar, and foreign currency conversions are provided in real time,, giving price certainty at time of booking.

Speaking at a Travelport and eNett industry seminar in Singapore recently eNett managing director and CEO, Anthony Hynes, said VANs are driven by the emerging needs of agencies tha are looking for more content and the best ways to access them.

”Current trends show that agencies are demanding access to dynamic content that require immediate payment. If agencies only make supplier payments by cash, cheque or debit they might not be able to access a range of content that gives their customers the best rates, including net-commission rates. Or if they pay by corporate cards or store cards they might incur significant reconciliation issues, together with opaque foreign exchange and international transaction fees.”

VANs are about simplifying supplier payments, making it safer and faster for agents to respond to customer needs in an evolving travel environment, Hynes added.

“One of the top features that agents looked for when adopting virtual cards is their ability to integrate within the booking flow in order to reduce handling times and deliver reconciliation efficiencies.

According to Hynes, VANs would protect agencies against supplier default, reduce costs in manual reconciliation, cut down foreign exchange exposure, and give them the opportunity to earn a rebate on transactions.

The Wrap: Tokyo"s best city in the world for travel experiences