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Accor has accelerated the pace of its 'Smile Across Asia' promotional
campaign as travellers begin to return to the group's hotels in China and
Hong Kong.
Occupancy levels in its China hotels jumped 96 per cent in June compared
to May, while hotels in Hong Kong improved by over 13 per cent during the
same period. Promotional campaigns originally intended to start running late
August in Hong Kong and mainland-based publications was brought forward to early July to take advantage of the increased confidence amongst
Asian travellers.
Business travel to Hong Kong is also expected to improve with the
rescheduled Hong Kong Gift and Premium Fair in July followed by the Asia
Pacific Leather Fair in October. Both events were cancelled last April at the
height of the SARS outbreak.
Senior Vice President Sales and Marketing Asia Pacific, Mr Ray Stone, said
the pace of recovery was encouraging.
"Accelerating the 'Smile Across Asia' campaign is a positive sign, even if it is
still very early in the recovery process. It reflects both the market trend and
Accor's confidence in Hong Kong and China and our intention to have a significant presence there."
When the SARS virus first broke out, Accor targeted domestic travellers in
Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam where it has the highest concentration of
hotels. The return of regional travellers is expected to spark an international
comeback as the situation continues to improve.
Having just returned from two major travel events in Australia and New
Zealand - Australian Tourism Exchange and TRENZ - Stone said the feedback from customers "was beginning to turn positive." |
