Asia

British consultancy ECA International, a leading global provider of data and information for expatriate management and assignments, has published its annual list of the most expensive destinations to live in. The cost of living index is based on the calculation of prices for food, household and leisure goods, clothing and other items....

The European air traffic control agency, Eurocontrol, recently published some edifying statistics on flight times between Europe and Asia, both before and after Russia's war in Ukraine. And this despite the fact that the European Union has banned Russian aircraft from flying over its territory and that Russia...

The luxurious Raffles Grand Hotel d'Angkor and the Novotel Budapest Centrum may not target the same clientele, but they share a rich past, the Accor group as chaperone and, above all, the same recent history. Closed for extensive refurbishment work, they have seen little or none of the dark days...

We will therefore have to wait until 2025 to see Fairmont take its first steps on the Japanese market. The Fairmont Tokyo project was unveiled by the Accor group at the end of May. While information about this first establishment remains sketchy, we do know that it will be a 219-key address. These will be located on the upper floors...

Business travellers to Central Asia will find a number of new places to stay as they wander around. Among them, a Novotel Living establishment has just opened its doors in Almaty. Its opening had been announced since the end of last year, with the opening of an ibis Almaty Jetisu in the former capital of...

On one side is Jakarta, Indonesia's sprawling capital, home to 13 million inhabitants and all the country's ministries, institutions, banks and corporate headquarters. On the other, 150 km away, is Bandung, Indonesia's third-largest city with 2.5 million inhabitants. The capital of West Java province, Bandung is the country's leading university centre. A city where creative industries...

Finnish national airline Finnair has grown and prospered in the shadow of its large eastern neighbour. It has benefited from the post-Soviet era from 1991 onwards. An era of opening up to the outside world for Russia, reflected in the development of the travel market and rising living standards...

The Japanese government continues to turn a deaf ear to calls from the country's business community. The community is calling for Japan to reopen completely, while the rest of Asia - with the notable exception of China - is once again welcoming international visitors. Japanese and foreign companies based in the country believe that...

After two years in the wilderness, Thai Airways International is presenting a summer timetable more in keeping with its status as an intercontinental airline. This resumption follows the easing of entry restrictions to Thailand. In fact, the Kingdom is set to continue this trend (see box). Nearly 70 destinations between Thai Airways International and Thai...

For two years now, the Hong Kong government has modelled its economic, security, social and health policies on those of Beijing. With all that this entails in terms of the image of a city that was long considered a model of economic and social liberalism. Not only have individual freedoms been eroded by the...

It's breaking news, and it's good news! The Vietnamese government's decision to fully reopen its borders to international travellers is also accompanied by a return to pre-Covid practices for entry formalities into the country. As a result, 13 countries - excluding ASEAN members - are once again eligible...

Most European and Asian airlines operating between the two continents have been severely affected by the closure of Ukrainian airspace and the ban on aircraft from nearly forty countries flying over Russian territory. Among the airlines most affected is Finnair. The Finnish airline has been...

Through a partnership with the country's largest hotel owner, Vinpearl, Meliá intends to rapidly gain a foothold in the Vietnamese market. The Spanish group is planning to name the new hotels in its network Meliá Vinpearl, in order to "highlight the unique personality and strength of Meliá Vinpearl".

With the easing of entry formalities, French travellers will once again be able to converge on Singapore. They will discover a destination resolutely committed to sustainable tourism. This exemplary approach is reflected in the many concrete measures taken, particularly in the tourism sector. Starting with the hotel industry and its flagship...

On 28 January in Kuala Lumpur, the AirAsia group unveiled its new identity: Capital A. The name change reflects a new commercial strategy for the carrier. Capital A brings together a wide range of travel and lifestyle activities. A rather unique phenomenon in the...

With the announced opening of a hundred hotels in 2022 in Asia-Pacific, Marriott International is fast approaching the 1,000 mark in the region. The American group expects to pass this milestone by the end of the year. While waiting for this major milestone, the group's offering will have been enhanced by a number of nuggets, including the largest hotel...

In the battle over the Covid-19 pandemic, it seems that the Omicron variant no longer frightens the Asia-Pacific region. Lassitude after two years of a complete shutdown that decimated the economies of countries heavily dependent on tourism, realism in the face of a pandemic that is gradually becoming endemic due to herd immunity. And then, probably...

It's a newcomer to European skies. The young carrier Bamboo Airways, Vietnam's first private international airline, is landing in the European Union this February. The carrier has had its sights set on Europe since its creation in 2018. Bamboo Airways wasted no time in initiating a memorandum of understanding with Prague airport and the...

We console ourselves as best we can. Recently, Channel News Asia was singing the praises of Singapore Changi airport. It has to be said that CNA is an emanation of the Singaporean government. So it's only fair that the channel should support an institution like Changi. CNA headlined the story...

According to Executive Traveller, the streamlining of Cathay Pacific's two frequent flyer programmes will take effect in July and will mean the demise of the Marco Polo Club brand. "Cathay" will be the new name behind the carrier's frequent flyer programme. The airline told the Australian site that the separate Asia Miles and Marco Polo Club frequent flyer programmes will be...