The Ministry of Tourism of Republic of Indonesia (MoTRI) signed a strategic agreement with MakeMyTrip to promote Indonesian Tourism in India. Under this strategic partnership, MakeMyTrip and MoTRI will actively run campaigns across MakeMyTrip platforms to endorse tourism to Bali, Jakarta and other regions in Indonesia.

MakeMyTrip will launch a 360-degree online campaign on its platforms, external websites and social media to promote tourism to Indonesia. Through this association MakeMyTrip will aim to tap additional footfall of Indian tourists in Indonesia, this year.

Rajesh Magow, Co-Founder and CEO-India, MakeMyTrip said, “We greatly look forward to working with the Ministry of Tourism of Republic of Indonesia to build the tourism momentum in the region. Indonesia, especially Bali is among the top favourite international destination among Indian travellers and this association will help us tap into the massive potential. We will be providing enhanced travel offerings to encourage travellers to explore the beautiful country of Indonesia.”

Speaking on the partnership, Nia Niscaya, Deputy Minister of Tourism Marketing, Ministry of Tourism of Indonesia, said, “We are delighted to further our partnership with MakeMyTrip, a leading player in the online travel segment and are confident that this association will help us expand our reach in the Indian market. Footfall of Indian travellers holidaying in Indonesia has skyrocketed in the last couple of years. The Ministry is taking additional steps in order to get the incremental growth from India”.

There has been a constant rise in the visits made by Indians year on year. Basis the bookings observed on MMT Platforms, there has been a significant rise of over 125 % in overall bookings to Indonesia during 2017.

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More than 300 million registered users who book trips through online travel agency Ctrip will now have more personalized options and service from AccorHotels as well. The Paris-based global hotel chain and Shanghai-based online travel platform have recently signed a memorandum of understanding to enhance their existing partnership.

The agreement has four components: more prominent promotion of AccorHotels on Ctrip, building a flagship store for AccorHotels, joint development of loyalty programs and cooperation on technology.

Commenting on the partnership, Jane Sun, CEO of Ctrip, said, “With the ever-growing number of outbound Chinese travelers, we are always looking for ways to provide better services for our customers, and with the deepened AccorHotels relationship, we are able to offer magnified experiences and property choices. With the diverse range of hotels offered by AccorHotels, Ctrip customers will have access to a vast majority of its hotels globally.”

AccorHotels’ portfolio currently offers 4,300 hotels and 10,000 private homes in 100 countries, ranging from luxury brands to mid-scale and budget properties.

Chinese outbound tourists have long been a high-priority group for many luxury brands, but the demands and habits of younger travellers are changing rapidly, as they seek out more digitally personalized experiences, including superior guest services and smart device integration.

Image source: Luxuo

A report titled ‘Chinese Luxury Traveler 2016’ states that the continued growth of China over the next several years will ensure that its consumers remain prime targets for brands for the foreseeable future, as even a slowed China exceeds the growth rate of western nations. As a result, travel brands will need to make a connection to this group, the first born in a fully modern China, in the interest of long-term success.

According to the report, personalized service is still the biggest consideration in travelling for luxury Chinese travellers. Besides a liking for amenities, being able to choose pillows of different firmness and having a butler or personalized service through digital channels are also important. While 73 percent demand WiFi, 55 percent want smart TVs, while unique art and design are also high draws. AccorHotels, with its CRS, mobile app, loyalty programs and products like Adobe that it uses to personalize the guest experience with targeted offers and other information, is best suited for this crop of Chinese travellers.

Additionally, China’s travellers, especially the young ones, get most of their travel information digitally, largely from official WeChat accounts. Ctrip, Qunar and Tuniu are popular third-party platforms in the country, making this MoU worth the while for AccorHotels that is aiming to position itself on the Ctrip website and in the Chinese travel market.

AccorHotels will also launch its own program to train and certify at least 250 hotels by 2020 on Chinese Optimum Standards. These properties will be trained to answer major Chinese guests’ expectations. Ctrip says it may invite additional partners to be featured on its platforms as it pursues its goal to provide members with “dedicated experiences and better services to become a one-stop travel shop.”

Chinese residents will make 90 million outbound trips in 2020, with that number increasing by an additional 36 million over the following decade, according to a report by Euromonitor, making them one of the most lucrative audiences for travel providers across the world. By tapping into personalization such as mobility, language customizations and other services, many other brands like AccorHotels can create differentiated experiences that will eventually help enrich services and gain valuable customer insights in the process.

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The Centre inked four MoUs with hospitality major Airbnb, under the aegis of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) to promote tourism and generate technology-enabled livelihood opportunities in the north-eastern region of the country.

DoNER Minister Jitendra Singh said the MoUs were a step towards achieving the goal of doubling the tourist growth rate in the Northeast in the next three years by creating more sustainable accommodation options and enhancing the hospitality service standards in the region.

Development of the region is of prime importance for the overall inclusive growth of India and tourism development has always been one of the government’s key focus areas, keeping in mind the region’s natural beauty and cultural heritage, he said.

The MoUs were signed for strategic partnerships by the North East Rural Livelihood Project (NERLP) and the North Eastern Region Community Resource Management Project (NERCORMP) with Airbnb to generate technology-enabled livelihood opportunities in tourism and hospitality for micro-entrepreneurs in the north-eastern region. They will also help low-income families monetise their existing assets through home sharing.

Under the agreements, Airbnb will provide training to core teams of the NERLP and NERCORMP, which will further train existing and potential hosts on home sharing, responsible hosting, hospitality standards, hygiene and basic amenities. The MoUs also aim at creating hospitality micro-entrepreneurs across key destinations in the North East. Another MoU was signed between NERCORMP and the Himalayan Environmental Studies and Conservation Organisation (HESCO) for leveraging of community resources and appropriate local resources based on technology.

Kum Hong Siew, regional director, Airbnb Asia Pacific, who formalized the partnership, said, “We are excited about working closely with the Government to promote the enviable tourism offerings of the North East of India. Last year, during Brian Chesky’s meeting with prime minister Shri Narendra Modi, Airbnb had committed to develop a homestay ecosystem through adequate skills training and development and promote India’s high potential tourism offerings to the world; and the North East was an inevitable choice. We look forward to supporting the economic growth of the North East by drawing more tourists to the region.”

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