Business travel

At the end of 2015, the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) agreement will come into force, strengthening the ties between the ten nations that make up ASEAN, the association of South East Asian countries. And to celebrate the arrival of this new common market in the world, the low-cost airline group AirAsia has just launched its first air pass valid throughout the zone. 

The 21st Business Travel Show closed its doors in London on Thursday evening. David Chapple, Show Director, talks to Voyages d'Affaires about these two days of reflection, exchanges and negotiations, which confirmed the new international dimension of the event. A date has already been set for 2016, with new projects aimed at further extending the international reach of the London show.

AC Hotels has just opened a new four-star hotel in the Paris region, following on from the one inaugurated last year near Porte Maillot. This inauguration is part of the development of the new brands launched by the hotel group: AC Hotels, but also MOXY and Autograph Collection.

The Air France-KLM group presented its 2014 results to the press on Thursday. The results were logically tarnished by the pilots' strike, while the group intends to stay on course with its Perform 2020 plan: financial discipline and selective growth, with a particular focus on partnerships in Asia. 

Business travellers who are members of the easyJet Plus frequent flyer programme will soon be able to board with a 2nd piece of cabin baggage.

Eurostar published its 2014 results on Wednesday, marked in particular by an increase in traffic (3%) to which business customers were no strangers. Business travel is said to have increased by 4% last year, mainly thanks to the buoyancy of the British economy.

PrivateFly publishes a classification of the most popular routes for private jet hire in Europe and the United States. Le Bourget-Geneva and Los Angeles-Las Vegas would be the most popular routes. 

SAS has just inaugurated its brand new long-haul cabin on board an Airbus A330 flying from Copenhagen to Newark.

The Steigenberger group is continuing to expand in Europe, while opening its first establishments on the Chinese market. The German hotelier has also just unveiled a third brand: Jaz in the City, which will join Steigenberger and InterCityHotel in the group's catalogue in September, with its first lifestyle address in Amsterdam city centre. Véronique Holveck, Steigenberger's Regional Sales Director for France, takes this opportunity to provide an update on the group's development.

The French hotel industry had a mixed 2014, according to results presented today by Deloitte In Extenso. The first half of the year in particular was difficult, with a general decline in occupancy. By contrast, mid-range and top-of-the-range hotels returned to more appreciable levels of performance in the second half of the year.

From 29 March 2015, Air Astana will offer 3 direct flights a week between Paris and Astana, operated on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. It is also inaugurating its new class, theEconomy Sleeper.

A few days ago, the Marriott International group inaugurated its very first hotel in Lyon. The Marriott Lyon Cité Internationale hotel thus becomes the group's 24th representative on the French market.

Pilots at Germanwings will begin a 48-hour strike on Thursday. Almost 900 flights are expected to be affected.

Aéroports de Lyon recently launched a valet parking service, enabling business travellers to delegate the parking of their vehicles to save time and peace of mind.

PrivateFly has just launched its mobile application for the French business travel market. Business travellers can now book their private jet on the online booking platform directly from their smartphone.

Aéroports de Paris is innovating with the inauguration of its first Business Area at Paris-Orly West, designed to welcome business travellers in the best possible conditions by simplifying meetings and professional encounters in an unprecedented context. All of this is backed up by new technological tools, as part of an "experimental contact programme"...

On Tuesday, SNCF presented its "#digitalSNCF" plan, designed to usher in a new era for the company, its employees and above all its customers. Developing connectivity in stations and on the move, investing in start-ups, equipping staff with tablets: in total, some 450 million euros will be spent over three years on this far-reaching transformation, which Guillaume Pepy says will "make SNCF a digital transport operator".

The project for the future "Beijing New Airport Terminal" is taking shape: Zaha Hadid Architects recently unveiled the first projections of the platform designed with ADP Ingénierie, which is to become the largest terminal in the world.

Singapore Airlines will be introducing a new Premium Economy class on 9 August, which French business travellers will be able to enjoy from the beginning of October 2015.