United Travel to acquire major stake in Top Team

Sliema, 08/01/10 - Top Team Incentives and United Travel have “forged a strategic alliance”.
As a result, Top Team has moved to United Travel’s head office in Sliema. Both companies will continue to operate as separate entities, but “will pool resources to achieve synergy”.

Iain Tonna, director of United Travel, says that such “strategic alliances are a natural progression in the current climate”.

Both companies will be strengthened as they consolidate diverse areas of specialisation, Tonna adds.
More importantly, Tonna confirmed that United Travel is planning to formalise the alliance by taking a majority shareholding in Top Team Incentives.

Sandra La Rosa, managing director of Top Team Incentives, says “she is excited by this development”, and adds that “sharing resources will allow me to focus on developing new products for Top Team”.

Efly ceases operations

Mosta, 05/11/09 – Efly European Airlines, the locally registered low cost carrier that started operating in September, discontinued its Malta-Catania flights on Tuesday.

When contacted today, at its San Gwann office, the airline’s senior management was not available, but a secretary told Island Travel Trader Online that frequencies to Catania – its only route – had been discontinued “for now” and that the last flight had been on Tuesday.

Efly’s website, although still showing a timetable, no longer accepts online bookings nor does it explain the stoppage.

The airline introduced a scheduled frequency from Malta International Airport to Catania on 19 September using a 112-seat, BAe 146-300.

A spokesman at the Department of Civil Aviation, meantime, quashed rumours that efly’s Air Operator Certificate – a mandatory licence – had been withdrawn. The airline, he told Island Travel Trader Online, ceased operations for its own reasons.

Norwegian Air Shuttle reschedules Malta

Mosta, 16/10/09 – It’s not all doom and gloom. Norwegian Air Shuttle has just announced that it will be operating to Malta as of next spring.

The low cost carrier says it will fly to the islands from both Oslo and Copenhagen. The routes are on sale as of today.

Norwegian Air Shuttle began operating to Malta from Oslo in April 2008 with two frequencies a week, on Tuesdays and Saturdays. But by year’s end it announced that it would not be flying to Malta in 2009.

Ryanair offers to save Malta’s tourism industry

Dublin, 24/09/09 – Ryanair wants to save Malta. That is the message from the Irish low cost carrier in a press release issued today.

The self-proclaimed “world’s favourite airline” says that in the first eight months of the year Malta lost 200,000 tourists - a nine per cent year on year decline. “This is despite Ryanair growing passenger numbers to Malta by six per cent in the period”.

“Ryanair”, continues the statement, “will grow its European traffic by 15 per cent this year to 66 million passengers. However, growth in Malta will account for less than one per cent of Ryanair’s overall growth due to high airport charges”.

Ryanair continues to “grow” passengers and tourism in countries such as Italy and Spain, “where airport costs have been reduced – in some case to zero – in order to stimulate inward tourism and protect jobs. Italy and Spain will account for 50 and 35 per cent respectively of Ryanair’s growth this year as both countries have addressed the main deterrent to growth – airport costs”.

Ryanair recently announced its ninth and tenth Italian bases at Bari and Brindisi, It also announced 39 new routes to the Canary Islands “thanks to the reduction in airport costs by the islands”.

“Ryanair urges Malta to follow Italy and Spain and address their exorbitant airport costs immediately in order to grow passenger numbers and jobs. If cost reductions are secured Ryanair will immediately help to reverse the declining tourism trend in Malta by growing further.”

In May Ryanair announced it would base two aircraft in Malta from October if Malta International Airport reduced its costs. With October just a week away, and an impasse reached, it is highly unlikely that the airline will open a base here.

It has committed itself to new bases in Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom and announced increased frequencies on its network. Therefore, the question is: where will it find the additional aircraft to base here if it gets its way with airport charges?

Air Malta teams up with the Malta Experience

Luqa, 24/09/09 - Air Malta has teamed up with the Malta Experience, one of the island’s leading audio-visual attractions, to offer its passengers more added value.

On presentation of their Air Malta boarding card at the Malta Experience ticketing office, all KM passengers will benefit from a 10 per cent discount on adult admission fees and 20 per cent discount on the admission fee for children under 14. Moreover, customers will also benefit from a 10 per cent discount on shop retail and 15 per cent discount on cafe retail.

To benefit from this offer, passengers are to present their boarding card within 10 days from the date printed on their boarding card. The offer is valid until 31 December 2009.

Island Hotels goes public in 60 minutes

St Julian’s, 22/09/09 – It is now standard practice for a bond or share offer to be oversubscribed “within 60 minutes” of being floated. And this morning’s offer by Island Hotels Group Holdings (IHGH) was no exception.

Considering that this was the first equity offer since the economic downturn, and that the tourism industry is faring badly plus the fact that today’s offer sat in between two other sizeable flotations, the result is perhaps more significant.

Today was the day when one of Malta’s most successful hospitality companies went public. On offer were 140,000 bonds, at €100 each, and 17,200,600 shares were placed on the market. However, 8,817,300 shares had already been allocated to Double You Ltd and T Ltd, owned respectively by brothers Winston J and Trevor Zahra.

Winston is the newly appointed chief executive of IHGH and Trevor is a director, whilst their father – Winston V – is group chairman.

Manchester United footballers Gary Neville, who has also been appointed a director, and Ryan Giggs bought 1,100,000 shares each on 18 September for a combined total of €2.2 million, whilst another 250,000 shares were reserved for company employees.

Consequently, available for the general public were 5,933,300 shares at €1 each, and these went on sale at 08:30 this morning. By 09:45 the combined offer of “€14 million in bonds and €17.6 million in equity had been oversubscribed and the company decided to close subscription lists….just over an hour after opening”.

Today’s flotation marks the end of a 22 year business bond between Nazzareno Vassallo and his Vassallo Builders Group and the Zahra family and their holding company, TMC Ltd.

In 1987 the partnership between Vassallo and Zahra was formed to own and operate the Bugibba Holiday Complex, over the years the company – Island Hotels Group – acquired and ran the Coastline Hotel, the two Radisson Blu properties and Island Caterers.

The association was straightforward and worked well, with Vassallo taking a back seat role and the Zahras driving the business. Vassallo was chairman of the board and Winston Zahra senior was managing director.

Earlier this year, however, Vassallo decided to opt out and after amicable negotiations decided to sell all but one per cent of his stock in the company, whose name was altered to Island Hotel Group Holdings plc.

Following Vassallo’s divestment and today’s flotation, the Zahra family now own 75 per cent of the company whilst 6.24 per cent is owned by Man Utd footballers and the balance, 18.76 per cent has been taken up by the general public.

Meantime, the 10-year, €14 million bond issue, bearing 6.5 per cent, was floated by the Vassallo Builders Group and TMC “as part of an acquisition and restructuring programme of the group”.

Although the whole issue has been taken up, the tranches are still unknown. According to the company’s prospectus, €8,900,700 of the bonds – 63.57 per cent of the offer – were reserved for CareMalta bondholders. At the time of writing Island Travel Trader Online was not aware of CareMalta’s take-up.

Commenting on the success of the flotation, the chairman and board of directors of IHGH said, not surprisingly, that they “are very pleased with the success of both the bond offer and the equity offer.

“This is the first time we have come to the market as a company, and we are very thankful to the Maltese public for the confidence and trust shown in our group as reflected by this extremely positive response to our issue”, said IHGH chairman Winston V Zahra.

His son and CEO Winston J Zahra added that the “company has a strong track record and has grown from nothing to what it is today in a very short time. Our transition from a traditional family company to a fully blown public corporate entity will enable us to continue to fulfil our ambitions in the years ahead, and we very much look forward to growing value and yielding results for all the investors who have shown faith in us”.

Meantime, board members of the new Island Hotels Group Holdings include three Zahras, Gary Neville, Singaporean businessman Kwang Sim plus two more, as yet unmanned, individuals; one is believed to be British and the other Maltese.

Winston Zahra junior pooh poohs the PR value of having celebrity footballers as shareholders, yet admits that “obviously there is an element of PR value but both Gary and Ryan bring a great deal more to the group than PR”, and then adds that neither Neville nor Giggs need to invest €2.2 million for a public relations stunt, and “they have joined the group to make a significant contribution in a variety of areas which will come to light in the near future”.

Cruise liner passenger down 24% in August

Valletta, 22/09/09 - Cruise liner passenger traffic in August totalled 58,172, a slide of 24.1 per cent over the peak summer month of 2008. Put another way, there were 18,474 fewer passengers than in August 2008, according to the National Statistics Office.

In the first eight months of the year, meanwhile, 248,870 cruise liner passengers visited Malta, a drop of 28.2 per cent over the comparative period last year.

Passengers from EU countries accounted for 73.7 per cent of total traffic, with the main markets being Italy, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom.

A significant drop was registered in the Spanish and Italian markets. Cruise passengers from non-EU countries registered a decrease of 9.6 per cent, with the American market representing 60.8 per cent of non-EU passengers.

On a gender basis, females exceeded males by 9.1 per cent. The largest proportion of passengers - 34.2 per cent - were aged between 40 and 59, followed by those in the 60 to 79 age bracket, who accounted for 27.5 per cent of the total.

The average number of passengers per cruise liner, defined as the number of passengers divided by the number of cruise liner calls, increased to 2,237 passengers per vessel for August. There were 26 liner calls in August, bringing the total for 2009 to 141.

Helicopter tours at air show

Luqa, 22/09/09 - Heli Tours will be operating five-minute pleasure flights during the Malta International Airshow, scheduled to be held on 26 and 27 September.
Priced at €25 per person, the flight “will allow you to see the air show from a unique and breathtaking perspective”.

Heli Tours suggest that people book online at helitours@heli-link-Malta.com or call 23696350 or 23696442.

SevenAir launch winter schedule

Sliema, 20/09/09 – SevenAir will be operating two frequencies a week to Malta from Tunis – on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Flight UG1300 will leave Tunis Carthage Airport at 11:15 for a scheduled arrival in at Malta International of 12:25. The return leg, UG1301 will leave at 13:10 and arrive in Tunis at 14:20.
Flights will be operated using either a 90-seat, jet-powered, Bombardier CRJ900 or a smaller turbo-prop ATR72.

Efly starts operations

Luqa, 19/09/09 - Efly started operations today with a new frequency from Malta International Airport to Catania. The first commercial flight left at 06:50 with 56 passengers on board a BAe 146-300.

With Efly now on the market, its owners want this “new Maltese carrier to distinguish itself for the level of service offered to the customer, at prices, which are lower than those prevailing today in a monopolistic market”.

Efly European Airline is the brainchild of Italian businessman Luigi Crispino, whilst Frans Camilleri was appointed as accountable manager.

Camilleri says Efly has further routes in the pipeline and is studying the local market to make sure it always meets customers’ expectations. The response for the Catania route was overwhelming.

Government ‘promises’ language schools support

Sta Venera, 11/09/09 - Dolores Cristina, Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sport recently had a meeting with the heads of English language schools.

The purpose of the meeting was to “achieve an informed opinion on the state-of-play of the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) industry in Malta and to support an agreed roadmap for further action”.

Cristina “promised” to ensure that the teaching of EFL receives the adequate support necessary to help the industry grow and to ensure quality and standards in the whole learning experience.

She referred to the work programme presented by the EFL monitoring board, the body entrusted to regulate and facilitate the teaching of EFL in Malta, and said that she agreed that concrete action needs to be taken to provide the sector with the adequate resources which her ministry can offer.

In this respect it was agreed that the EFL monitoring board should have a higher profile; a revised legal notice which establishes flexible but higher standards; its own budget and operational structure; its own offices adequately resourced and administered autonomously and a more professionally-run monitoring process so that the standards and quality of the teaching of English as a foreign language could aim towards the country’s target of excellence.

“This was a tall order indeed, but one with a clear vision which should lead the businesses concerned and government to a new relationship based on established standards, procedures and criteria for the assessment of the industry’s operational context.

“This is an industry which attracts to our islands over 83,000 students a year”. Cristina expressed her interest to see the industry growing at a rapid pace and within high quality standards.

Westin confident of business upturn

St Julian’s, 17/09/09 – Like most other hotels, the Westin Dragonara Resort “has had a difficult year”, says general manager Michael Camilleri Kamsky.

“We had a relatively good first quarter, but Q2 was weak in the MICE segment”, he continues.

Business picked up in summer “and in August we were close to last year’s occupancy levels, although income was 1.5 per cent down for the month.

“Overall, revenue is down some 15 per cent this year compared to 2008”, explains Camilleri Kamsky.

Although the Westin claims it maintained its rates, tour operator business did slide this year and so did online bookings in early 2009; “these picked up dramatically in July and August following new strategies introduced regarding web-based sales”.

Meantime, the Westin’s local corporate business remained “strong” this year, as did the domestic market generally.

“September”, he says, “looks positive” and he thinks that it will perform a “little bit better” than the hotel did in June, whilst October’s figures will mirror those of May 2009.

“The first quarter of 2010 is our biggest concern”, admits Camilleri Kamsky. And the main reason for that is that conferences and incentive business – a major segment for the Westin - remains in the doldrums.

“In the past, Q1 has traditionally been strong in the MICE segment, then tour operator traffic would kick-in in the second quarter. Camilleri Kamsky says the first half of 2010 “will be tough”, but expects July and August to perform as they did this year and for “MICE to pick up again after summer”.

Camilleri Kamsky is bullish that business will pick up by 2011 – “that will be the comeback year”.

The Westin’s ability to weather the economic storm is down to not being overly alarmed. “We did not panic”, says Camilleri Kamsky, who explains that downturns are cyclical and occur, on average, every seven years.

And to confirm his confidence in an upturn, he goes on to announce that the Westin will be refurbishing its rooms in the next six to 12 months.

“Everything will be changed except TV sets and beds”, since these were recently replaced. The upgrading of the bathrooms, which started in February, will continue. Last winter the bathrooms in executive club rooms were made over.

Food and beverage outlets were refurbished at the end of last year.

The management of the five star Westin Dragonara Resort, which celebrated its 12th birthday in June, is confident their product will come through this recession mostly unscathed, but it does call for support from third parties; such as more government assistance for the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA).

“The MTA is doing its best in promoting and marketing Malta, but I feel that the government should allocate more funds to help it do this”, says Camilleri Kamsky.

“Besides more international marketing we should take another look at the US market. An American carrier should be enticed to operate to Malta from the US; I’m sure this would create a boom from the US”.

Corinthia to rebrand, operate capital hotels

New York, 17/09/09 - Tony Potter, chief executive officer and managing director of CHI Hotels & Resorts (CHI), was the keynote speaker at Corinthia Hotels’ annual media business breakfast held at Tavern on the Green in New York City last Thursday.

Potter revealed major developments concerning the Corinthia Hotels’ rebranding project, new positioning on the market and gave details on CHI’s rapidly-expanding portfolio of luxury hotels, most notably the exclusive Corinthia Hotel London, due to open in 2010.

On rebranding, Potter said this project is now in its final phase, and the elegant new livery will shortly be gracing the façades of all Corinthia Hotel properties worldwide. “A new highly-interactive web site and complimentary hotel collateral are being launched simultaneously, while the stylish new hotel directory reflects the true essence of the brand and the opulence of its hotels. The finalisation of this project is in line with the brand’s repositioning to the upper tier of the luxury hotel sector.

More than ever, the Corinthia Hotels brand is poised to play an increasingly-prominent hospitality role worldwide with the opening next year of the stunning 296-room luxury Corinthia Hotel London, located in the heart of the capital in Whitehall alongside the Thames.

Meanwhile, negotiations are currently underway for similar upscale properties in other leading destinations, such as Paris, Moscow, Rome and New York. This represents a dramatic move for the luxury Corinthia Hotels collection, which to date has been steadily building a five star portfolio in key European destinations and the Mediterranean basin.

The company recently reopened the totally renovated and extended Corinthia Hotel St Petersburg, which now offers the largest conference facilities in the city. It has completed the refurbishment works at the Corinthia Palace Hotel & Spa in Attard, added a state-of-the-art spa at the Corinthia Hotel Lisbon and launched the first stage of the Corinthia Beach Resort in Sharm El Shaikh, Egypt with the opening of the Tiran Hotel. This will shortly be followed by the opening of the adjoining Tiran Residence and the Corinthia Resort Hotel to complete the Corinthia Beach Resort - Sharm El Shaikh.

The development of the Corinthia Lake Resort and Spa –scheduled for a 2011 opening - in Romania and the Corinthia Budapest Gate and Residences, opening in 2012, in Hungary are both on schedule, while plans for the construction of a second hotel in Libya, the Corinthia Hotel Benghazi, are at an advanced stage.

Apart from the Corinthia Hotels that already form part of the exclusive Wyndham Grand Collection, CHI will also be operating a number of Wyndham- and Ramada-branded hotels that are currently under development - these include the Wyndham Port Lixus Resort in Morocco, the Ramada Abu Dhabi Mafraq and the Ramada Abu Dhabi Beach and the Ramada Hotel & Suites – Jumeira Beach in Dubai.

Excelsior celebrates second birthday

Floriana, 10/09/09 – Where in Marsamxett Harbour are there sandy beaches? Nowhere, I hear you say. But you would be wrong. There are two.

One, much favoured by ducks, is located by the bridge that links Gzira and Manoel Island. The other is private and is at the Grand Hotel Excelsior.

The beach is artificial (pictured left), similar to the much larger perched version at Qawra. Having a sandy beach - in a country known for the lack of them - is an added attraction of this five star hotel, which today celebrates its second birthday.

“We soft-opened, but never had an official opening”, Grand Hotel Excelsior general manager Norbert Grixti says.

This year, however, a series of in-house events for the staff have been planned to mark the anniversary, with the highlight being a visit by President George Abela.

The past two years have been “fantastic”, exclaims Grixti. His team of some 270 full employees and around 150 part-timers has hardly changed and is made up of 26 nationalities.

The hotel’s upbeat mood is reflected in its performance. The fact that it is not located in a tourist resort has not skewered its business.

“The leisure market is strong; 35 per cent of our clients are holidaymakers ”, says Grixti.

The hotel enjoys “lots of tour operator traffic, but the amount of business varies in accordance to the seasons”, explains the Excelsior’s GM. “In summer tour operators represent 45 per cent of our business. In the winter and spring it’s MICE” (meetings, incentives, conferences and events).

On a nationality basis, the Excelsior’s main source markets for the leisure sector are Germany and the UK, plus Bulgaria – “we have an aggressive agent there”.

Being a stone’s throw from the capital, Valletta, it is not surprising that corporate business is equally strong, as is the conference and incentive travel segment. But with the recession, MICE slowed down this year.

Nevertheless, next month, October, sees the opening of the new exhibition hall on the second level. “This will give us the opportunity to host two events simultaneously”.

Grixti meantime reports a “good August”, businesswise, and expects September to show positive results as well. “But the last quarter of the year is difficult to forecast…it’s all last-minute bookings nowadays”.

To help bottom line figures, most hotels open their facilities to the general public. Not so the Excelsior. Grixti remains adamant that outlets such as the gym and the swimming pools be reserved for hotel guests only. And only guests can berth their boats in the hotel’s private yacht marina.

The exception is the spa. Opened at the end of last year, this exceptional centre offers a variety of treatments by far eastern staff.

August air traffic down 3.4 points

Luqa, 08/09/09 - In August Malta International Airport registered a 3.4 per cent decline in passenger movements. This results in an average decrease of 8.8 per cent for the first eight months of 2009 when compared to the corresponding period last year.

The total number of passenger movements on scheduled and non-scheduled flights in August was 377,283 a drop of 13,265 when compared to August 2008. Aircraft movements increased by 1.2 per cent whilst cargo and mail figures slid 11.3 per cent.

The passenger traffic from Malta’s main markets, the UK and Germany, decreased by 5.8 and 9.9 points respectively, whilst the Italian market registered an increase of 4.8 per cent when compared to August 2008.

The busiest day in August was the 18th in terms of passengers with 15,454 movements whilst the highest number of aircraft movements totalled 110 on the second.

Heli Tours launches Malta-Gozo chopper link

Mosta, 22/08/09 – Gozo’s heliport, virtually unused since the end of 2006, is being de-mothballed and put back in service. Heli Tours has just obtained landing permits there, and the first flight was operated on Thursday.

Heli Tours managing director Philip Bayne tells Island Travel Trader Online he’s planning at least two flights daily from Malta International Airport to Gozo’s heliport, located on the outskirts of Xewkija.

The flights, on an ad hoc basis, will take between nine and 11 minutes and cost €105 per person for a round trip, or €65 per person one-way.

Although this is an informal service, with no strict timetable, flights – to be operated using a four-seater Robinson R44 helicopter – are being slotted at 10:00 and 13:00.

Meantime, Bayne says that the helicopter sightseeing tours now available from MIA will be adapted with the heliport as the starting point.

Gozo’s heliport has not been used on a regular basis since Spanish operator Helisureste ceased flying between it and MIA on 29 October 2006.

AI paying off at Seashells Resort

Qawra, 22/08/09 - This has been an eventful year for the four star Suncrest Hotel. For starters, Joseph Vella was appointed general manager on 1 April; a month later it changed its name to Seashells Resort at Suncrest and, most importantly, it changed it modus operandi.

Nearly 21 years after it opened, the management of the Suncrest decided to drastically change its operating system, and adopted the all-inclusive (AI) concept.

Since 17 May guests staying at the hotel for five nights or more can opt for the AI concept.

All meals, snacks and drinks – alcoholic as well - consumed between 07:00 and 23:00 at the hotel’s restaurants and designated bar are included in the holiday package. Guests wearing the distinctive red wristband may eat and drink as much as they want without having to pay anything extra.

For a small surcharge of one can upgrade to VIP AI status and a yellow wristband; benefits include staying in a junior suite, booze on offer are international brands and guests may have dinner in a poolside, VIP grill with just 15 tables.

“During a recession, clients are more price conscious than ever”, says Vella. “People want to know precisely how much they will spend on a holiday, and with all inclusive they know exactly what it’s going to cost”, he explains.

“All inclusive is what the market wants at the moment”, Vella adds.

The new operating model is also partly the reason why the hotel’s name was changed – ‘rebranded’, in today’s speak.

“We wanted a name for the all inclusive concept, yet we also wanted to keep ‘Suncrest’ as it is well-known both locally and internationally. Additionally we also wanted to identify the property more as a beach resort than simply an hotel”, Vella explains. And the name they came up with was Seashell Resort at Suncrest; the company name, however, remains Suncrest plc.

The operating change is beginning to pay off. For the first couple of months results were low: “Because we announced the AI concept in May, we were too late for tour operator brochures, but we closed June with 38 per cent of guests on all inclusive”, says Vella.

In July, occupancy in the 451-room resort was up to 90 per cent, with a good chunk of guests on AI holidays. Twelve per cent of guests, however, were language school students.

Vella expects to close August with an average occupancy of 85 per cent, of which 45 per cent will have been on an AI basis.

September and October also look promising, but at the end of November the property will close for winter and will reopen in March 2010 – this will be its third winter closure.

The Seashells is strong on the UK and German markets and is making serious inroads in Eastern Europe.

“The all inclusive market is one we want to develop, and to this end will be further upgrading our product to attract this sector of the market”, says Vella.

Although no major refurbishing is planned over winter, the paintbrushes will be in use and general maintenance will be carried out.

“We will be replacing rather than refurbishing this winter – major jobs were done last winter and the winter before that. And it’s not financially viable to remain open under the present economic conditions”, admits Vella.

Amphora slashes Tunisia packages

Gzira, 22/08/09 - North Africa specialist Amphora Travel has a slew of special offers to Tunisia.

The ‘pre-school relaxation holiday’, for instance, offers free transfers and accommodation for a child aged between two and 11 at the El Mouradi Club Kantaoui, but pays €125 for the flights. For €479 – down from the brochure price of €508 - per adult the package includes all taxes and fees, return flights from Malta to Monastir on Sevenair, transfers to and from the El Mouradi Club and seven nights accommodation on an all-inclusive basis. A second child, up to 11, pays €278 for the package. And just to confuse people, this offer applies to the El Mouradi Club Kantaoui and not to the other two properties that share similar names and are located at Port el Kantaoui – the El Mouradi Palace and the El Mouradi Club Selima, both of which are also featured in Amphora’s 2009 brochure.

Other offers from this operator include a €25 discount on flight-only deals and to hotels in Hammamet and Port el Kantaoui.

Amphora also features packages to Tunis, Gammarth and Tabarka. The company is one of the few that programmes the up-and-coming destination of Tabarka, located on Tunisia’s north coast (see Tunisia’s new holiday spots).

Other North African countries programmed by Amphora include Egypt and Libya.

For more information go to www.amphoratravel.com

Costa Cruises plans 56 Malta calls

Mosta, 20/08/09 – Costa Cruises plans to make 56 liner calls to the Grand Harbour next year, according to the Italian company’s Malta agent, SMS Travel & Tourism.

The first is scheduled for 19 March 2010 and the last on Christmas Eve. Seven Costa liners will be calling in Malta next year.

A good night’s sleep trumps sex

White Plains, 20/08/09 - A great night’s sleep trumps great sex, according to 51 per cent of the US respondents to a new global survey of sleeping habits conducted by Westin Hotels & Resorts.

Just how desperate are we for sleep? Well, 42 per cent said they would rather have a sleeping pill on their hotel pillow than the ubiquitous chocolate, and 62 per cent take a relaxant, sleep or stress medication when travelling overnight.

Today, Westin unveils the results of a new global sleep study of more than 12,500 frequent travellers in 10 countries - a follow-up to a sleep study the hotel giant conducted a decade ago when it launched its now iconic Heavenly Bed.

When Westin debuted its revolutionary all-white bed, it spurred a global hotel bedding war that instantly made earth tone polyester bedspreads and foam mattresses relics of old. Millions of travellers have benefited, and today 43 per cent of frequent travellers say the quality of sleep on the road has improved, 25 per cent of road warriors said they would “pay $100 more for a hotel with a great bed”, and more than half would go out of their way to stay in a hotel with their favourite bed.

While good beds on the road may be easier to find, sleep itself can be elusive and our round-the-clock work life, today’s economic woes and good old fashioned relationship problems often get in the way of a good night’s sleep. To wit: 56 per cent of US respondents said that with our 24/7 lifestyles, a good night’s sleep is more important than ever, though unfortunately 61 per cent believe that today’s technology and constant connectivity impairs sleep. And our beloved Blackberrys make for dreadful sleep companions. Sixty per cent said their PDAs have prevented them from getting shuteye.

Fifty eight per cent of respondents said the biggest worry keeping them up at night is bills and paying the mortgage. Another key culprit that keeps people tossing and turning is problems with their spouse or partner (25 per cent).

In the 10 years since the Westin brand conducted its original sleep study, our desire for sleep has increased, and our sex lives have suffered. Today 51 per cent of frequent travellers in the US prefer a great night’s sleep to great sex, compared to just 31 per cent who chose sleep over sex 10 years ago.

Contrary to conventional wisdom, it’s men who are more likely than women to take sleep over sex, with the majority of women saying they prefer sex to snoozing. And Americans are not alone - in nine of 10 countries surveyed, sleep beats sex - only the Canadians prefer seduction versus slumber.

Cruise traffic down 30% this year

Valletta, 19/08/09 – July’s cruise liner passenger traffic was down 16,351 to 55,183 people compared to July 2008, according to the National Statistics Office.

In the first seven months of the year, meanwhile, total cruise passenger traffic to Malta amounted to 190,698, a drop of 29.4 per cent over the same period last year.

Passengers from EU countries accounted for 70.8 per cent of total traffic, with the main markets being Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. A significant drop was registered in the Spanish and Italian markets.

On the other hand, cruise passengers coming from non-EU countries showed a decrease of 5.5 per cent, with the American market representing 61.8 per cent of the non-EU passengers.

On a gender basis, females exceeded male passengers by 10.2 per cent. The largest proportion of passengers - 33.2 per cent - comprised persons aged between 40 and 59, followed by those in the 60 to 79 age bracket, who accounted for 31.6 per cent of the total.
The average number of passengers per cruise liner, defined as the number of cruise passengers divided by the number of cruise liner calls, increased to 2,628 passengers per vessel for July. There were 21 cruise liner calls in July, bringing the total so far this year to 115 compared to 197 calls last year.

Hotel Juliani recognised by Expedia

St Julian’s, 14/08/09 - Parliamentary Secretary for Tourism Dr Mario de Marco, said that in an international scenario of late bookings and more independent travellers, online marketing and bookings are proving to be crucial, as they highlight the strategic relevance of how the internet has completely revolutionised the travel and tourism industry.

He said this during a visit to Hotel Juliani in St Julian’s after it was awarded a select insider award by Expedia.

De Marco said that Expedia is one of the largest online booking engines in the world with some 85,000 worldwide hotels registered, “and it is of great credit to the Maltese hotel industry that five Maltese hotels have made it to the prestigious select insider list which features only one per cent – 850 - of the hotels listed”.

He added that the fact that the four star Juliani ranks 29th worldwide, and 11th in Europe, is of “great merit for the owners, management and staff of the hotel”.

De Marco said that in view of the ever increasing relevance of the internet in the tourism industry, this year the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) will be spending almost €800,000 in online marketing and advertising alone. This includes banners and search engine specialised listings, as well as offers in conjunction with various airlines, tour operators and hotels.

He concluded by urging tourism operators to make more use of the internet and the huge opportunities this has brought about, whilst adding that both the government and the MTA have come up with support schemes specifically targeted for such initiatives by private enterprise.

Three bidders vie for casino contract

Valletta, 13/08/09 – The government has received just three applications for the running of the Dragonara Casino in St Julian’s - Dragonara Casino Ltd, the current operators of the property, Tomino Ltd – operators of the Oracle casinos in Qawra and St Julian’s – and from newcomer Novomatic Peninsula Consortium.

Novomatic is an Austrian gaming company with casino interests in the EU, South America and Africa.

Whoever obtains the deal, will run the casino for 10 years. The government, meantime, “wants reputable bidders experienced in the casino management business, that can make substantial capital investment and the required refurbishment, upgrading and modernisation, thus enhancing the Dragonara Casino’s competitive stature within the sector and supporting its distinctive positioning as a regional entertainment centre and a high calibre leisure attraction. The government also aims to ensure that the Dragonara Casino will provide an upscale and unique gaming experience, backed-up by leading edge gaming equipment and technology and excellent customer service”.

Fear of swine flu keeps Maltese at home

Valletta, 13/08/09 - Outbound travel for June was down 2.7 per cent. According to the National Statistics Office 24,927 Malta residents travelled abroad in June, compared to the 25,628 in June 2008.

It is not the state of the economy that kept the Maltese at home, but rather a fear of swine flu, according to industry pundits.

As always, the majority of travellers - 87.3 per cent - travelled to EU destinations, the most popular being Italy and the UK. In addition, an estimated 3,167 tourists opted for non-EU destinations.

Travel costs are determining factor for Germans

Mosta, 13/08/09 - The price is the decisive factor: increasingly the choice of destination is determined by the travel budget.

According to the ADAC (Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club)Travel Monitor, which is presented each year at ITB Berlin, in the future half of all those polled want to spend less on their holidays. For 37.9 per cent of those, value for money is the deciding factor when choosing a destination at which to spend the best weeks of the year. This is a 2.8 per cent increase compared with last year. Savings on ancillary holiday costs are also being sought by a growing number of holidaymakers, the actual figure being five per cent more than in 2008.

According to Martin Buck, director of the Competence Centre Travel and Logistics at Messe Berlin, “there is no doubt that holiday travel is one of the basic needs of people in Germany. The good news for the travel industry is that, before Germans completely renounce holiday trips during difficult economic times, they will choose a destination that is within their budget”.

It is, therefore, obvious that the cheaper vacation countries are proving popular with German visitors. Within Europe it is Spain, with 10.6 per cent, maintaining a narrow lead over Italy, with 10 per cent. Austria is in third place with 6.8 per cent. Despite the difficult economic situation, long-haul travel seems to be almost as popular as ever. Compared with last year, only 0.5 per cent fewer Germans are planning a trip to far-off destinations, with the United States still occupying the top spot, thanks to a weak dollar and the positive Obama effect.

To an increasing extent, the price is the deciding factor for long-haul travellers, too, with 28.3 per cent of those questioned looking for tour operators who are offering cheaper deals. For trips within Europe, 22 per cent of travellers are seeking low-priced offers, while 15.8 per cent are on the look-out for bargains on holidays in Germany.

There are savings to be made across a broad front during the coming season. “In general, holiday travel will be cheaper next winter”, is the forecast by Martin Buck for travel over the next six months. “All the leading tour operators have announced price cuts averaging between three and five per cent, due to falling hotel rates and air fares, and these savings will be passed on to the customers”.

Ryanair to operate Bradford-Malta route

Mosta, 11/08/09 - Ryanair is basing two aircraft at Leeds Bradford Airport from next March. This will be Ryanair’s 34th base, and its 11th in the UK.

The low cost carrier plans to introduce 14 new routes from Bradford – one of them will be to Malta. This twice-weekly service, operated on Thursdays and Sundays, will start on 25 March 2010.

“We’re delighted to be announcing this new route to Leeds Bradford, Ryanair’s twelfth route from Malta”, says sales and marketing executive Ida Buonanno.

Ryanair already operates 11 routes from Malta to the UK (Edinburgh, Bristol and London-Luton), Spain (Madrid and Barcelona), Italy (Pisa, Bari, Venice and Trapani), Ireland (Dublin) and Sweden (Stockholm).

Tourism can play leading role greening global economy

Brussels, 11/08/09 - With climate change and the global recession driving the current international political agenda, both politicians and businesses are warming to the idea of a global green economy.

The tourism sector is in the frontline of these burning issues, yet is unlikely to receive the attention it deserves in the current high-level discussions concerning the replacement of the Kyoto protocol that will be finalised in Copenhagen this December.

The World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) is doing its best to raise the profile of the sector as a key strategic element of global resilience and recovery, teaming up with the European Travel Commission (ETC) and VisitSweden next month to show how tourism can play a leading role in the development of a sustainable global economy.

The Gothenburg Symposium, taking place on 14 and 15 September in Gothenburg Sweden, has been convened as part of the UN’s Davos process to address how the development of sustainable consumption and production relates to the tourism sector in the run-up to the Copenhagen Agreement.

Leading figures from the European Union, national governments and industry will also be there to clarify how their respective institutions are greening the sector in order to make the necessary changes imposed by the climate change agenda and by the global economic crisis.

Professor Geoffrey Lipman, UNWTO assistant secretary general underscored the organisation’s commitment to work across the industry – public and private sector to advance a coherent response to the climate and development imperatives. The Gothenburg meeting will make an important contribution both in support of “sealing the deal” in Copenhagen and the longer road to a green economy.

Rob Franklin, ETC executive director, is making sure that national tourism organisations (NTOs) are fully informed of the prevailing problems and opportunities.

“Climate change”, he says, “is a driver of sustainable development, and NTOs need to pay attention to global and European-level policies and programmes that will help them maintain and improve their market share”.

The Gothenburg Symposium will launch the ETC’s own climate change and sustainable tourism knowledge networking strategy for NTOs, using the European Environment Agency’s innovative DestiNet Sustainable Tourism Portal (http://destinet.ew.eea.europa.eu).

Las Vegas tourism ‘slumps’

Mosta, 11/08/09 – Spare a thought for Las Vegas. The city’s tourism industry is described as being “in free fall” with visitor arrivals continuing to fall in June, according to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

In June, 2,980,122 visitors stayed in Las Vegas, a drop of 6.3 per cent from the same month in 2008, with 3,179,472 visitors.

Las Vegas visitors seemed to respond to marketing programmes and room rates discounted by 25.5 percent on average, the convention authority said. Yet the occupancy rate came in at 82.2 per cent, down 7.2 percentage points from June last year.

Nevertheless, the Las Vegas room occupancy rate was 28 per cent higher than the US national average, at 54.6 per cent.

Convention attendance, meantime, dropped from 438,044 in June 2008 to 355,436 this June, an 18.9 per cent drop. And gaming revenue dropped 14.7 per cent.

MIA traffic six point in July

Luqa, 09/08/09 - In July Malta International Airport (MIA) registered a 6.3 per cent drop in passenger movements. This results in an average decrease of 10 percent age points for the first seven months of 2009, when compared to the corresponding period last year.

Total passenger movements on scheduled and non-scheduled flights in July totalled 347,223, a decline of 23,541 when compared to July 2008. Likewise, aircraft movements, cargo and mail figures slipped 1.6 points.

Passenger traffic from Malta’s main markets, the UK and Germany, decreased by 10 per cent, and nine per cent respectively, whilst the Italian market improved by 8.4 per cent when compared to July 2008.

The busiest day of the month was the 28th, in terms of passengers with 14,047 movements whilst the highest number of aircraft movements totalled 108 on the 19th.

Muslim cyber terrorists hack Travelmalta

Mosta, 06/08/09 – Travelmalta.com, this site, was hacked last night by cyber terrorists. They deleted all of Travelmalta’s files and replaced the index page with a badly spelled message denouncing the US, Israel and Denmark (left).

Titled Made in Morocco, it claims that “this hack is to defend Islam that has been harassed by Denmark and USA and Israel”.

This childish looking, yet nasty page warns, “all enemies of Islam…we will not lost this war and we will continue to this way. Arab hackers pass from here. Sorry admin your security is bad = 0%. As long as you kill our kids in Ghaza, we fuck your servers. We are the nightmare of western websites in the cyber”.

Clearly, whoever is responsible intends to damage as many west-hosted sites as possible. What they intend to gain is not clear, except for pointing out security weaknesses in servers – that are rapidly fixed with improved firewalls.

Why Travelmalta was targeted is a mystery. The site focuses solely on travel to and from Malta and is apolitical.

“I was about to upload new stories when I realized our site was no longer there”, explains publisher Terence Mirabelli.

“Every file had been deleted and replaced by this Made in Morocco rubbish”, adds Mirabelli.

“Naturally, we have back up copies of the site, and it’s just a matter of uploading it again.

"These people really haven’t gained anything by doing this, except for being a minor annoyance and wasting our time”, says Mirabelli

It is very difficult to trace where this attack originated, as the hackers steal IP (internet protocol) addresses to hide their tracks.

Air Malta launches mobile phone check-in

Luqa, 06/08/09 - Air Malta has launched free mobile phone check-in for all its flights from Malta International Airport. Passengers travelling with or without luggage can now check-in and select their seat on KM flights through their internet-enabled mobile phones.

Air Malta passengers can now login on to www.mobile-airmalta.com from their mobile phone as early as 23 hours and up to two hours before their scheduled departure time. Passengers can check-in for their flight by entering their name and flight number and have their bar-coded boarding pass delivered to their mobile phone in image format. Apart from being able to choose their seat on board the aircraft, passengers can go through the airport formalities before entering the restricted area and at the departure gates simply by displaying the boarding card image on their mobile phone.

Speaking about this innovative service, Joe Cappello, Air Malta’s chief executive, says: “Following the encouraging feedback and take-up of check-in through our web portal launched last year, we went a step further and are now are offering check-in facilities through mobile phones.

“Only a few airlines in the world have started to use this technology and we are excited to be one of the first. With the introduction of these new facilities and investment in new technologies we are reaffirming our commitment to our passengers by offering them an even easier service at the airport.

“We are not only simplifying the check-in process, but, also, through reducing paper, we are helping our environment”, added Cappello.

Passengers travelling with luggage can also make use of mobile check-in, however they must proceed to the drop-off web check-in counter and check in their luggage on arrival at the airport.

As a start Air Malta is offering mobile check-in for its flights leaving from Malta to all its destinations, however it will be expanding this service to incoming flights at selected airports in the near future.

This new service complements the recently launched web check-in through Air Malta’s portal www.airmalta.com and the traditional check-in service at Malta International Airport.

Unlike other airlines, Air Malta is offering traditional, web, and mobile check-in for free.

For more information and for frequently asked questions on mobile check-in one can visit www.airmalta.com/mobile-check-in.

Survey identifies British ‘holiday hagglers’

Mosta, 05/08/09 - A quarter of Britons now negotiate on their holiday price, with only 11 per cent accepting the first quote they are offered, according to Visa Europe, the Travel and Hospitality Industry Digest reports.

However, 39 per cent admit to blowing the budget once they get on holiday, with many overspending by up to £200 (€235.40) a week.

Visa Europe claims only 22 per cent now book a traditional package holiday, with 42 per cent opting for a DIY package.

Short breaks remain an impulse buy, with 20 per cent of holidaymakers booking just one or two weeks before travelling.

A further quarter book short breaks only two to four weeks ahead, while a third (35 per cent) book one to three months in advance.

Only 13 per cent of short breaks are booked three to six months before travel and just four per cent six to 12 months out.

The survey of 1,077 holidaymakers also found 93 per cent think the British airport experience is stressful.

The cost of food and drink at airports is the main bugbear (35 per cent), closely followed by delays (27 per cent).

Overcrowding (10 per cent), bad customer service (six per cent), uncomfortable seating (six per cent) and poor airport design (two per cent) are other key complaints.

MIA reports €3mn profit in six months

Luqa, 31/07/09 – Like all other travel-related companies, Malta International Airport (MIA) has had to revise its projected arrival figures for 2009 to 2.9 million, down from 2.94 million. For the first six months of the year there has been a drop of 153,755 passengers movements, down 10.9 per cent over the January to June period of 2008. In the first six months of the year, MIA handled 1.25 million passengers between.

In the same period, aircraft movements slipped by 7.2 per cent whilst seat capacity decreased by 6.8 points. The seat load factor decreased from 68.9 per cent to 65.9 per cent in the past six months. Cargo and mail activity dropped by 12.2 points for a total of 8,119 tons handled.

These decreases are reflected in MIA plc’s financial results for the first six months of the year. With profits of €3.05 million on a turnover of €20.5 million, these are eight per cent down on the previous semester.

Meantime, an optimistic Julian Jaeger, MIA’s CEO, is confident that the second half of the year will produce better results, although he admits, “it will still be tough”.

Ryanair to operate 39 routes from Canaries, Malta base now remote

Dublin, 31/07/09 - Ryanair will open 39 new routes from the Canary Islands this winter starting in October. This will comprise of 16 new routes from Gran Canaria, 15 from Lanzarote and eight from Tenerife.

These routes will bring two million new passengers, create 2,000 new jobs and deliver a visitor spend of more than €386 million for the islands, Ryanair’s COO Michael Cawley claims.

Ryanair’s expansion in the Canary Islands is due to “zero tourist taxes in Spain and the 100 per cent discount on airport charges this winter”.

However, “the continuation of these routes past 31 March 2010 will be dependent on the extension of these vital discounts”, warns Cawley. But, he adds: “We are confident that in the current climate of reduced traffic and tourism in Spain and the Canary Islands that the Spanish government will see the wisdom of extending low airport costs, not just in the Canary Islands but throughout Spain”.

One of the reasons for this switch from UK and Irish airports is because “airport charges at Dublin and Stansted are increasing, and the Irish and UK governments have imposed suicidal tourist taxes of €10 and £10 respectively”.

Meantime, the possibility of Ryanair basing two aircraft in Malta from October grows increasingly remote.

The low cost Irish carrier announced in mid-May that it was waiting for a decision from the Maltese government to base aircraft here – if there was a reduction in airport charges.

With just over two months before the intended deployment of the B-737s, Ryanair is still waiting for the government’s response.

The main reason for the delay, insiders tell Island Travel Trade Online, is that the government is “studying” a report from state-owned Air Malta on how a Ryanair base here would affect “the national carrier’s bottom line in these economically perilous times”.

Heli Tours orders second helicopter

Luqa, 17/07/09 – Heli Tours, operators of aerial tours, is adding a second aircraft to its Malta-based fleet.

The new helicopter, a Robinson R44, will shortly join the existing R44. However, the new addition will be equipped with floats, “which will allow us to perform the most difficult tasks on- and off-shore”, Heli Tours MD Philip Bayne tells Island Travel Trader Online.

In recent months, Heli Tours has been contracted by yacht owners to shoot aerial photographs of their vessels entering Malta’s harbours. “We have been flying international crews of photographers to perform demanding and sophisticated jobs of shooting luxurious yachts and picturesque landscapes, formidable fortifications and beautiful bays”, explains Bayne.

The company has also carried out photography for the Malta Tourism Authority and video footage from its helicopters is being used for the opening sequence in a locally produced TV show.

Meantime, Heli Tours’s core function, operating aerial sightseeing tours of the islands continues (see When eagles chopper around). It offers several ‘off-the-shelf’ tours ranging in price from €165 per person to a more affordable €75 per person at weekends. All tours can be booked online from the company’s website at www.heli-link-malta.com.

Cruise traffic down 22% in five months

Valletta, 17/07/09 - In May 32,132 cruise liner passengers visited Malta, a decrease of 56.9 per cent over the comparative month in 2008, the National Statistics Office reports.

The average number of passengers per cruise liner decreased to 1,285 per ship in May. There were 25 liner calls in May, bringing the total for 2009 to 71, compared to 105 last year.

In the first five months of the year, meanwhile, 101,879 cruise liner passengers arrived in Malta, a drop of 22.4 per cent over the comparative period last year. Passengers from EU countries accounted for 64.1 per cent of total traffic, with the main markets being Germany, the United Kingdom and France.

A significant drop was registered in the Italian and Spanish markets. On the other hand, cruise passengers from non-EU countries showed an increase of 50.6 per cent, with significant increases from the American market.

On a gender basis, female passengers exceeded males by 11.8 per cent. The largest proportion of passengers - 42.3 per cent - comprised persons aged between 60 and 79, followed by those in the 40 to 59 age bracket - accounting for 30.8 per cent of the total.

Outbound travel rises in 2009

Valletta, 17/07/09 – Following international trends, outbound traffic in May was down 13.3 per cent to 20,482 compared to the same month last year.

However, in April 24,984 Malta residents travelled abroad, an increase of 31.2 per cent over April 2008.

Meanwhile, the number of Malta residents travelling internationally in the first five months of 2009 totalled 102,870, slightly up over the corresponding period last year with 101, 985, according to the National Statistics Office.

Of these, 87.2 per cent travelled to EU destinations; the most visited countries remain the UK and Italy.

Milano Due to close for €0.5mn refurbishment

Gzira, 16/07/09 – The Hotel Milano Due (left) will close in November for a €500,000 refurbishment and renovation programme. The three star property will reopen in early March 2010, general manager Franklin Pulis tells Island Travel Trader Online.

Scheduled is a new electrical and plumbing system that includes the installation of “second class water infrastructure services and a grey-water treatment plant”. Put another way, a recycling plant that employs used bath and sink water to flush lavatories will be installed in the hotel’s basement.

All 106 bathrooms will be retiled and have new sanitary ware, accessories and soffits fitted. New public toilets are planned.

The roof terraces will also be retiled and a pool built. Retiling plus a new electrical and plumbing system are also planned for the seventh floor kitchen. The Panoramic restaurant, on the seventh, is to be refurbished and renamed the Penthouse restaurant.

Bedrooms are to have a new room management energy system. Movement sensors will detect whether a room is occupied; if not, the electrical supply will be cut as an energy saving measure. Rooms will be accessed via a new door locking system with a state-of-the-art card reading system.

The hotel’s entrance is to be restyled and the reception area will be totally revamped. And the entire building will get a new coat of paint.

This will be the first major refurbishment and renovation at the Milano Due since it opened in 1989, although in 2002 soft furnishings were replaced.

During the hotel’s closure, its popular, street-level Pomodoro café and pizzeria will remain open.

“This refurbishment will put us back in the marketplace with a bang”, says Pulis. Although the Milano Due has always enjoyed high occupancies, he feels that after the refurbishment it will be much a “more desirable address”.

Vueling-Clickair merge

Barcelona, 15/07/09 - Five year-old Vueling, the Spanish low fare airline, formally combined with its rival Clickair on 9 July to create what the new Vueling CEO Alex Cruz called “a merger of equals”, Flightglobal reports.

With the union “consummated”, the 36-month old Clickair brand disappeared and Vueling has flag carrier Iberia, still a competitor in some routes, as a key shareholder with a 45.85 per cent stake. The new airline is now the second Spanish carrier and a sizeable player in the LCC market, flying 11 million passengers a year from six key bases in Spain including its Barcelona airport HQ. The new Vueling encompasses a route network of almost 50 destinations.

Alongside the Iberia shareholding in the new Vueling are Hemisferio/Planeta with 14.3 per cent; Nefinsa, owner of regional Spanish airline Air Nostrum and a former Clickair partner, with 4.15 per cent. A number of small shareholders have nearly five per cent with the remainder of the stock being traded on the Spanish stock market.

The new Vueling (IATA code VY) operates 35 Airbus A320s (18 aircraft from Clickair and 17 from Vueling). It serves a total of 46 airports (all main hub airports and terminals) embracing a total of 92 routes. Clickair and Vueling had an overlap of 17 routes, including Malta, but this overlapping capacity will be used to strengthen weaker routes and launch new, viable ones, says Cruz, adding that “the new Vueling must deliver a three year plan to the board in October and a zero growth plan is unlikely to be acceptable”.

Vueling operates to Malta from Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia.

New golf business ready for take off

Mosta, 14/07/09 - A group from the Sussex-based James Andrews School of Golf returned from a weekend mission to Malta recently with very strong early indicators that a new business initiative could make their business pan-European overnight.

David Wicks, head of sales and marketing at the James Andrews School of Golf, initiated the Malta trip as a result of his managing the first overseas competition for the Sussex U14s golf squad last October. The English golfers got to compete with juniors from Malta, Belgium and Germany in what turned out to be a success in its own right, but also the seed of a new pan-European golf initiative.

A key component in the success of this fledgling enterprise has been the early interest and active support of two Malta-based businesses - Business Meetings Malta (BMM) and Air Malta.

“We knew it was a good idea for golf, but the financial support of business helped confirm that not only is it a great idea for the game but is commercially viable too”, explains Wicks.

While the idea was conceived in Malta, the involvement of the national airline effectively opens up the potential for golfing trips to as many as 40 destinations - Sicily looking a likely candidate for the next destination.

For juniors getting their first taste of international competition in a safe, relaxed and beneficial environment is just one area for potential development. Additionally, societies or corporate groups can take advantage of such trips for leisure, residential tuition or conference and incentive usage.

“We are looking at this very seriously as a long-term partnership and it’s attractive for two main reasons, its simplicity and business synergy”, explains Air Malta’s general manager marketing and product, Brian Bartolo.

“It’s simple because part of our strategy is to grow business in a two-hour flight time radius of Malta and that fits neatly into the likely limit golfers are prepared to travel for a three to five day break.

“The number of companies in the partnership is low; just three and so it’s relatively easy to manage. Air Malta’s job is to give access to very competitive air travel to a wide choice of golfing destinations. The golf school’s job is to provide proven coaching content that incentivizes people of all ages, motivations and playing abilities to engage. Business Meetings Malta’s role is to provide logistical, planning and mechanical support that ensures smooth operations “with which we avoid any disasters that will give unhappy experiences and deny us return business and referrals”, says Theresa Delia CEO of Business Meetings Malta.

11% drop in passenger movements at MIA

Luqa, 08/07/09 - In June Malta International Airport registered a 10.1 per cent drop in passenger movements. This results in an average decrease of 10.9 per cent for the first six months of 2009 when compared to the corresponding period last year.

The total passenger movements on scheduled and non-scheduled flights in June were 277,833 a decline of 31,313 when compared to June 2008. Likewise, both aircraft movements and cargo and mail figures registered a slide of 3.7 and 2.6 points respectively.

Passenger traffic for Malta’s main markets, the UK and Germany, decreased by 6.1 per cent, and 14.5 per cent respectively, whilst the Italian market saw an increase of 9.6 per cent when compared to June 2008.

The busiest day in June was the 30th in terms of passengers with 13,345 movements whilst the highest number of aircraft movements totalled 98 on the 28th.

CHI Hotels opens its hotel on Red Sea

Floriana, 01/07/09 - CHI Hotels & Resorts (CHI) opened its newly built 351-room Tiran Hotel as part of the Corinthia Beach Resort Sharm al Sheikh, Egypt, today. The property is owned by Egypt’s Cyrene Tourism Investment Corporation.

Situated in one of Sharm al Sheikhs finest locations in the heart of Montazah, the resort offers “an outstanding vacation, diving and conference experience”. The four star Tiran Hotel features 351 rooms and suites with sea and mountain views, two restaurants, including an Indian specialty restaurant, three bars, an extensive landscaped outdoor pool and children’s pool, a kids club, an amphitheatre, a business centre, an internet café and a spacious conference hall with adjoining syndicate rooms. The Tiran Hotel has its own private beach featuring relaxation facilities, dining and a bedouin tent.

Other facilities include a day spa with whirlpools and a variety of beauty and relaxation treatments, a tennis court, a mini-golf course, a dive centre and extensive water sports activities.

Commenting on the hotel opening, CHI’s chief executive officer and managing director Tony Potter said: “At a time when hotel companies worldwide are considering their options in view of the current economic scenario, CHI Hotels & Resorts is confidently forging ahead with its plans of refurbishing and improving its existing properties, while opening more hotels in existing and key destinations across all three brands it operates.

“In addition we are pleased to be opening individually branded properties such as this magnificent Tiran Hotel in Sharm al Sheikh, which forms part of the Corinthia Beach Resort, similar to its sister Corinthia Beach Resort operation here in Malta. We are extremely interested in the beach resort concept in other locations around Europe”.

Seaplane flights from Gozo to Sicily expected soon

Valletta, 01/07/09 - Harbour Air, which operates a seaplane service between Malta and Gozo, plans to start a Gozo-Sicily frequency.

The 50-minute flights will operate from Mgarr harbour to Catania airport, explains company spokesperson Anton Gambina, The Malta Independent reports.

A round trip flight is expected to cost between €150 and €210.

The new service is expected to boost Gozo’s tourism industry and give the island more exposure, publicity and income.

Discussions with the Malta Tourism Authority and with the Gozo Ministry are ongoing and positive, as they are keen to get the concept off the ground as soon as possible.

Harbour Air is currently operating 10-minute flights from Malta International Airport to Mgarr harbour, as well as from Valletta Grand Harbour to Mgarr. Since its twin otter type aircraft is amphibian, it can land on both land and sea, and can seat up to 17 passengers.

The company also runs 30-minute scenic flights around the islands from the Grand Harbour.

KM expands code share deal SN Brussels

Luqa, 09/06/09 - Air Malta has expanded its codeshare agreement with Brussels Airlines. The agreement offers Air Malta passengers seamless travel connections to destinations not serviced by the airline by connecting through Brussels airport.

With this new deal in place - which allows each carrier wider access to the other’s seat inventory - Air Malta has started using its code on flights operated by Brussels Airlines to Copenhagen and Toulouse, as well as on the route Brussels-Catania-Brussels operated by the Belgian airline. Through this codeshare, both airlines are now able to offer their customers more connections through the Belgian capital.

Air Malta started the code sharing with Brussels Airlines way in November 2004. From a four-time weekly flight, Air Malta - the operating carrier on the Malta-Brussels-Malta route - has upgraded its frequency to Brussels to a daily flight.

Air Malta also concluded an agreement with Brussels airport whereby KM club class passengers may use of the Brussels Airlines’ lounge.

Commenting on the enhancement of the codeshare agreement with Brussels Airlines, Brock Friesen, Air Malta’s chief officer commercial said: “We are continuously enhancing the network of destinations offered to and from Malta. Sixty per cent of our flights are now code shared, giving additional benefits to our passengers whilst increasing accessibility to Malta to easier connections”.

Geert Scott, vice president communications at Brussels Airlines said: “SN Brussels has been working in close collaboration with Air Malta for the last five years. The extension to the existing code share agreement came as a natural step”.

Both airlines expressed their intention to further increase co-operation to other destinations if suitable connecting points in Brussels become available.

Cruise traffic slumps in April, but 23% greater in 2009

Valletta, 07/06/09 - While cruise passenger traffic slumped by 17.4 per cent in April, when compared to April last year, the first four months of 2009 saw an increase of 22.9 per cent over the corresponding period in 2008.

In April 37,934 cruise liner passengers disembarked in Malta, a drop of 7,990 compared to April 2008, according to the National Statistics Office.

In the first four months of the year, total cruise passenger traffic amounted to 69,747, an increase of 22.9 per cent over the comparative period last year. Passengers from EU countries accounted for 65.8 per cent of total traffic, the main markets being Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Italy. The American market registered a rise, representing 62.6 per cent of non-EU passengers.

The average number of passengers per cruise liner, defined as the number of passengers divided by the number of cruise liner calls, rose to 1,224 passengers per vessel for April. There were 31 liner calls in April, bringing the total for 2009 to 46, compared to 53 calls last year.

Serena Beach Club sold and renamed, seeks EU funding

Xlendi, 03/06/09 – The two star Hotel Serena Beach Club & Spa has been sold to All Season Holidays Ltd and has been renamed the Hotel Xlendi Resort & Spa. Its new owners now want to have it recategorised as a three star by the Malta Tourism Authority, are looking for EU funding and “have already approached international hotel chains for recognition and affiliation”.

All Season Holidays Ltd is a new company that is jointly owned by Joe Vella and his wife Mary Rose, who has been appointed managing director and sole director. Tony Coleiro, meantime, has been “entrusted with the operations of the hotel since 1 January 2009, in the capacity of chief executive”.

Joe Vella, who was charged with trying to defraud a French couple staying at the hotel last summer when he was MD of the Serena Beach Club “has no role whatsoever” in the new set-up, Coleiro told Island Travel Trader Online. “He decided on his own to retire from the scene”, he added.

Charmaine Vella, daughter of the owners, has been named sales and marketing manager whilst Dr Renzo Pace Asciak is now responsible for the “business development of the company and the health, spa and beauty centre”.

Coupled with the new management changes is an upgrading and refurbishment programme of this two star, 178-bed property. Two years ago a new wing was built that “consists of 12 presidential suites” (pictured left). And the “upgrade of the old part of the hotel has already started”, explains Coleiro, “six of the one bedroom suites are already done and in use”. The remaining is nearing completion.

Other embellishments include the “painting and redecorating of all apartments and hotel rooms and renewing all bathrooms…Changing upholstery, curtains, bedspreads, sheets and towels…The TV system has already been changed to digital, adding more than 200 channels and giving us the possibility to install five in-house movies to be provided in all rooms”.

Other general upgrades include renovating the restaurant, kitchen, modernising the buffet breakfast room and bar in the old part of the hotel. A new games room for adults, a children’s playroom and a crazy golf course, in the inner courtyard between the old and new wings, have been commissioned. And a new restaurant is due to open in the new wing.

A new launderette was due to come on stream by May so that “we will be doing our own laundry services instead of using third parties”. An energy saving solar heating system will replace electricity for heating water and the hotel intends to convert from electric power to photo voltaic power”, according to its new CEO.

Meantime, says Coleiro, since the hotel “has been undergoing structural and management changes, tour operating companies and DMCs showed interest to promote the hotel with their respective trade partners. Amongst tour operating companies, RCI has also endorsed such improvements and will re-negotiate a new contract with immediate effect.

“Furthermore”, he continues, “we have also applied for EU funds…for three star property embellishments in respect to enterprise-oriented EU funding opportunities arising from the forthcoming structural funds 2007-2013.

“Our objective is that by means of this structural and management changes, the Hotel Xlendi Resort & Spa will be one of the leading quality hotels in Gozo, which will definitely lead us to the opportunity to be internationally recognised for quality assurance and eco certification”.

Asked by Island Travel Trader Online whether this change of name is a consequence of the bad publicity the Serena Beach Club has had in the past year plus the bad press it has on TripAdvisor?

“When I was approached to take over the operations of the property”, replies Tony Coleiro, “I wanted to make sure that things will be changed. This was done through a legal process, and with the cooperation of everyone on board I managed to change everything. Besides, the property is undergoing a vast refurbishing programme, the new part is open for customers and the old part is undergoing this upgrading programme.

“The MTA product and planning [division] is informed of such progress and all is regularised through the proper sources; that is, Malta Financial Services Authority and the Malta Tourism Authority licensing department. Furthermore I have also initiated the process for reclassification to that of a three star superior.

“Regarding Trip Advisor, I am also taking legal action against them for the simple reason that they changed the name of the property and listed the same complaints under the new name without the company’s written consent.

Fortina introduces rejuvenation rooms

Sliema, 02/06/09 - The five star Fortina Spa Resort have just introduced wellness rejuvenation rooms. These rooms, all 14 of them, are equipped with the latest “sleep, wellbeing and fitness equipment including a personal Vibrogym” (pictured left).

The rooms offer the latest technology to help revitalise body and mind “by creating the perfect environment to soothe you into a deep healing sleep, leaving you to wake feeling refreshed and invigorated”.

Wellness rejuvenation rooms look and are furnished like most other upscale hotel rooms; however, look ‘under the bonnet’ and it’s another world.

For starters, beds come with magnetic and far infrared mattresses, which magnetise one’s “entire body, relieving it from all aches, pains and stress. The proven benefits are numerous and cover everything from encouraging deep healing sleep, to aiding the lymphatic system to release toxins. The anti-bacterial bedding kills dust mites - which is a great relief for anyone who suffers from asthma or sinus problems”.

Moreover, pillows are also magnetised; these help “reduce neck and shoulder pain, they also stimulate circulation resulting in healthier blood with increased oxygen and nutrients”.

The Fortina is the first hotel in the Mediterranean and Europe to introduce energised bedding.

Rooms also come with a Vibrogym – that look like personal transporters without wheels – and a body energiser. The former “provides the equivalent of a full body workout in just 15 minutes; benefits include improved blood circulation, muscle tone, cellulite reduction and weight loss”.

The body energiser uses a “patented rotation effect to produce a magnetic field that is dynamic rather than stationary. The energiser combines this with a soothing massage to help increase circulation, stimulate and helps relax”.

Rejuvenation rooms also have a water de-ioniser, to filter all the water in the bathroom for an “invigorating, soft, purified, mineral rich, perfectly PH balanced shower”. The showers cubicles in some of the rooms offer spectacular views of Marsamxett Harbour

Naturally, all rooms have an air purifier that removes contaminants from the air “including viruses and bacteria, great for allergy sufferers and asthmatics, giving mountain fresh natural air indoors”.

Spa entrepreneur and the Fortina’s managing director, Michael Zammit Tabona says:

“We are really excited to introduce the wellness rejuvenation rooms, a brand new concept which we have created to offer our guests an even wider range of health benefits which they can access in the privacy of their own rooms.

“We are always pushing boundaries and like to introduce the most advanced technologies available on the market to ensure that those seeking serious recuperation from the strains of modern life get just what they are looking for”.

Rack rate for a night in a rejuvenation room is €366 for two, inclusive of breakfast.

Mondial retails cheap Med cruises

Valletta, 02/06/09 – Cypriot-owned Louis Cruise Lines is now featuring Malta as a point of embarkation for its Mediterranean cruises. Available are six, eight and 12 day cruises to both sides of the Med aboard either the Orient Queen or Coral.

Cruises start in Genoa and the lead-in price for a 10-day Spanish Odyssey package, sold by Mondial Holidays – seven nights, all inclusive, on board the Coral and three nights in a three star property in Marseilles, inclusive of round-trip flights to the French city – is a staggeringly cheap €1,229 per person. The price also includes coach transfers, and airport and port taxes, Air Malta’s fuel surcharge.

Louis Cruises’ Malta general sales agent (GSA) is Mondial Holidays, or, to use the current trendy phrase, it is the “sole preferred partner.

Louis Cruises’ PR machine explains that it specialises “in itinerary-focused programmes, rather than in offering the floating resort concept of its mostly American-owned competitors, Louis offers what are arguably the most attractive cruise itineraries on the market…. A typical Louis one-week Mediterranean cruise itinerary normally incorporates seven or eight different ports whereby more conventional cruise lines usually offer just four or five at most.

“The fact that Louis’ fleet mostly consists of ships carrying no more than 1,400 passengers means that service on board is more personalised and the embarkation and disembarkation process runs smoother. In addition, the size of Louis’ ships and the size of the crew ensure that passengers are given much more personal attention, and the level of interaction between passenger and crew makes one feel more at home”.

One of the reasons why Louis’ ships carry fewer 1,400 passengers is because most of its vessels were built before the boom in cruising; hence their capacity is small. Built in 1971, the MV Coral, for instance, accommodates 924 passengers in 374 cabins. The older Orient Queen, built in 1968, has fewer cabins – 364.

But that is no bad thing, the ships are kitted out with all the mod cons found on newer liners. Cabins, on the other hand tend to be on the small and Spartan side.

Then again, these are all-inclusive bargain basement prices, and should prove popular on the Maltese market.

“The advantage of booking a ready-packaged group holiday that includes the cruise itself, flights, transfers, services of a tour leader and land-based hotel accommodation”, says a Mondial spokesman, “is that it costs less and that it makes it easier for passengers to travel”.

MIA-Ryanair charges row on the boil - again

Mosta, 29/05/09 – The ongoing tiff between Ryanair and Malta International Airport (MIA) is on the boil again.

Ryanair claims MIA is overcharging the Irish low cost carrier, whilst the airport operator says that because its prices have not been increased “for so long may easily be translated into a reduction in itself”.

This latest row was sparked on 19 May when Ken O' Toole, Ryanair’s head of route development, told a press conference the airline would base two aircraft in Malta if airport costs were reduced. “We need reduced costs to support reduced fares”, he said.

Also addressing the conference, Ryanair analyst Colin Casey claimed that Malta’s charges are an average of three times higher than other European airports’ and “this is a major constraint for low fares”.

Ryanair, O' Toole explained, wants a scheme that rewards those carriers that bring large numbers of passengers to Malta; “we want a fair and transparent cost base, were growth should be rewarded”.

Ryanair wants to base two of its Boeing B-737s here from October, and would fly to 12 new routes and “deliver 600,000 additional passengers” to the islands.

Having a base here would double the number of passengers Ryanair flies to Malta to some 1.1 million. It would generate an additional €275 million in income for the islands and provide direct employment for about 120 people.

However, O’ Toole added that Ryanair had not had talks with MIA about its plans, but with the parliamentary secretary for tourism Dr Mario de Marco and senior staffers of the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA).

“We discussed the potential of a permanent Ryanair base in Malta, and the benefits the islands would derive from it”, said O’ Toole.

“If the strategy we presented coincides with the government’s desire, then we can talk about numbers”, he added.

But, he continued, MIA’s costs need to be cut for the airline to place aircraft in Malta.

Although O' Toole was polite and diplomatic when telling the press about his meeting with De Marco and the MTA, the airline’s press release about the event was anything but.

“Ryanair”, it said, “has provided a rescue plan to the Malta Tourism Authority…. Today we call on the Malta Tourism Authority to work with Ryanair to promote the island internationally and allow us to deliver 1 million of high spending international tourists to Malta…and protect the future of those working in Malta’s tourism industry.”

Within 24 hours of reports of the press conference appearing in the local media, MIA responded with a release of its own. Malta International Airport, it said, had not increased fees since 2006, and these were “well within the European average”.

MIA, it continued, also welcomes the introduction of new routes, and in 2008 had spent €1 million on incentive schemes to promote new destinations. Routes that benefited from these incentives were Bari, Girona, Stockholm, Venice and Edinburgh – all routes served by Ryanair.

In retaliation, Ryanair called on MIA “to stop misleading the Maltese public by claiming that its airport charges are within the EU average”.

In a statement issued yesterday it says it paid an average of €7.80 per passenger in airport charges last year. However, “when MIA’s existing cost of almost €20 per passenger is combined with handling costs of €5 per passenger at Malta, the total passenger cost is more than three times Ryanair’s average cost.

“It is such excessive costs from a monopolist private company that are holding Malta’s tourism industry to ransom, with MIA only interested in lining the pockets of their shareholders”.

The release ended with a quote credited to Colin Casey who sais: “If MIA is genuinely interested in the Maltese economy, it should reduce its airport charges by offering a volume discount scheme in return for guaranteed growth. Such a scheme would be open to ALL airlines that achieve the necessary growth criteria, on a clear and transparent basis.

This would stimulate passenger traffic which will have a direct impact on the tourism and leisure industries whilst also improving the business prospects for Malta. Cost reduction schemes have recently been announced by the Dutch, Greek and Spanish governments in an attempt to reverse their declining tourism trends and Malta International Airport should follow suit”.

This biff is far from over. Not unexpectedly, the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association has come out in favour of a Ryanair base here, and the MTA and parliamentary secretariat for tourism are reported to be keen on the scheme as well.

No doubt something will be worked out – expect an announcement by the end of July or early August that Ryanair will be establishing a base here by October, when the winter schedules are introduced.

Travellers say economy, more than environment, makes them waste-conscious

White Plains, US, 27/05/09 - The faltering economy – not the fragile environment – is the biggest motivator for frequent travellers who have become “more conscious of waste”, according to a survey commissioned by Element Hotels, which is launching the Element Eco-Travel Index, an annual index of green travel habits among frequent travellers. Element is Starwood Hotels & Resorts’ newest lifestyle hotel brand and green trailblazer and innovation lab for environmentally sustainable construction, building and operational practices. Element is the first hotel brand to mandate that all its properties pursue the US Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for high-performance buildings. To date, there are only five Element hotels, all in the US.

According to the Element Eco-Travel Index, nearly 78 per cent of respondents said they are paying more attention to wasteful habits like “leaving the lights on, leaving the TV on, [or] leaving the faucet [tap] running.” But more than 41 per cent say their vigilance about squandering resources is “due to the economy, while just 28 per cent claim it’s “due to the environment”.

Eco-conscious habits slip during trips, the Element Eco-Travel Index also reveals. Though nearly half (46 per cent) of frequent travellers say they “always” recycle glass and plastic at home, that number dips to 36 per cent on the road. Conserving water matters at home – more than 34 per cent say they limit shower time or lawn-watering – but only 20 per cent watch water consumption while travelling. Only about one-third of travellers surveyed consider themselves “outstanding” in their personal “green programs,” with most feeling more like “green beginners”.

“Whether they’re motivated by saving money or saving the planet, travellers clearly want the opportunity to follow green practices on the road,” said Brian McGuinness, Starwood’s senior vice president of specialty select brands. “That’s why we built green choices into the Element guest experience. The more accessible, intuitive, and enjoyable green options are, the more travellers are going to embrace them”.

Among other findings in the Element Eco-Travel Index, which polled 1,008 people who had stayed in a hotel at least three nights in the last 12 months and usually spend at least $100 (€72) per night on a hotel room:
• More than 65 per cent of respondents said they’re more likely to change sheets and towels daily in a hotel versus in their home.
• Women tend to take “green habits” on the road more than men do. Men were more likely than women to change sheets and towels daily and leave the lights on while sleeping.
• At home, just under 35 per cent of travellers said they always conserve energy by lowering the thermostat, but just 25 percent say they do the same on the road.

The Element brand’s green features are designed to be as aesthetically appealing as they are eco-friendly, so guests never compromise on style and comfort. Element Hotels are equipped with energy-efficient, stainless steel appliances and lighting, amenity dispensers in the showers to reduce waste and water-efficient taps and fixtures. Guests can continue daily routines such as recycling paper and plastics, while those driving hybrid cars are rewarded with priority parking. Even the ubiquitous Do Not Disturb sign has been replaced with an environmentally friendly magnet. For more information, visit www.elementhotels.com.

EasyJet inaugurate Newcastle frequency

Luqa, 23/05/09 - EasyJet’s first flight from Newcastle landed last night at Malta International Airport, with a load factor of 90 per cent. As this was the maiden flight of this new route, disembarking passengers were welcomed with small gifts.

Carly Brear, easyJet’s commercial manager said: “We are delighted to have started flights between Malta and Newcastle, bringing our total number of UK destinations to three, along with our popular flights to London Gatwick and Manchester.

“It is clear from our load factors that people are embracing the chance to take advantage of easyJet's famously low fares on this route, whether it is to experience the vibrant city of Newcastle with it's many shops and bars along with access to stunning countryside or to bask in the beautiful Maltese sunshine”.

Malta Tourism Authority CEO, Josef Formosa Gauci expressed satisfaction that the route from Newcastle kicked-off so positively with a 90 per cent load factor, and hoped that the route would continue to be popular, “thus strengthening the flight capacity from Malta’s core source market, the UK”.

Easyjet operates flights to Malta from Newcastle on Mondays and Fridays.

European hospitality industry calls for a shift in EU policies

Stockholm, 12/05/09 – Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association (MHRA) representative George Micallef and Malta Business Bureau CEO Joseph Tanti were among the 40 hotel, restaurant and café associations from 25 European countries attending the 59th HOTREC general assembly in Stockholm.

Top of the agenda was the current economic crisis and participants discussed the challenges and threats faced by the European hospitality industry “during the worst economic crisis since World War II”.

All HOTREC member associations reported worrying business trends across Europe. On the eve of a major renewal of leadership within EU institutions, the president, Kent Nyström, called, on behalf of HOTREC, for a shift in EU policies, based on a triptych of sound economic principles to hasten the recovery: pro-business policies, no burdensome legislation but, instead, better regulation. Today’s deep economic crisis has put the hospitality industry under great pressure. As a result, many investment projects are being cancelled or postponed, access to credit almost evaporated and the sector is witnessing a sharp slowdown of demand.

While the hospitality industry needs to mobilise all its strengths to survive the economic slowdown, future EU leaders must adopt more favourable policies rather than burdening further a key industry for the EU economy, says HOTREC.

The pan-European association welcomed the outcome of the VAT saga on reduced rates, which should serve as an example of a healthy pro-business policy. On the other hand HOTREC considered the EU’s commission proposal of imposing food labelling requirements to restaurants as a clear example of a burdensome and inappropriate legislation and which should be withdrawn.

HOTREC also discussed the latest developments in relation to social affairs, and in particular the revision of the working time directive. Participants welcomed the fact that member states will retain the possibility to opt-out of the 48 hours weekly working time ceiling. Such possibilities are key to the sustainability of hospitality businesses in some states.

The general assembly also examined the progress carried out by the working party in charge of producing a charter for fire safety in hotels in Europe and the fire safety methodology promised by HOTREC to the EU institutions. This HOTREC initiative is a clear demonstration of the hospitality industry’s commitment to the provision of safe services to its clients.

The next HOTREC general assembly will be in Barcelona from 5 to 7 November 2009.

Hix markets hunting trips

Sliema, 08/05/09 – Hix Travel is organising a series of hunting packages to the Balkans. Available are four nights, five days programmes to Serbia’s northern region of Vojvodina at €1,300 per person. The price includes flights to and from Belgrade, taxes, transfers, full-board accommodation in a three star hotel and a bird hunt. Birds that can be shot are quails, pigeons and turtledoves. The first departure is scheduled for 6 August and the programme runs until September.

Wild pig hunting is also on offer in June only.

Eden Leisure Group reports revenues of €23million

St Julian’s, 08/05/09 - The Eden Leisure Group announced positive, preliminary results for the year ending 2008. Speaking at its annual meeting Ian De Cesare, chairman of the Eden Leisure Group and Eden Finance reported revenue in excess of €23 million and a consolidated EBITDA of €5.5 million.

The InterContinental continued to be profitable, however revenue and profit for the largest hotel in Malta fell when compared to 2007. Revenue for the hotel dropped by 11 pert cent due to many external factors including a significant 21 per cent increase in five star rooms, the international economic climate and the reduced value of the sterling, which is having an overall negative outcome on the tourism sector globally and Malta in particular.

During this downturn in tourism, and over winter, the InterContinental Malta “took the opportunity to invest in a planned €1 million refurbishment program of 110 club rooms funded through existing cash flows, in anticipation of the upturn in tourism”.

Overall the group’s entertainment business continued to grow, yielding a 7.6 per cent increase in turnover for the year as well as an 8.5 per cent increase in income before fixed charges. De Cesare said these results were particularly encouraging considering the economic climate in Malta and abroad, and given the challenges being faced by the entertainment segment including the large increases in costs attributable to energy and part time labour, as well as the continued issue of piracy affecting the cinema industry.

The group’s debt was serviced for the year and has also have embarked on a refinancing programme in anticipation of the bond due for redemption in 2010.

De Cesare said that while the prospects for tourism in 2009 are not positive, the group’s entertainment arm is expected to continue to grow. He added that the group’s strategy of diversifying its portfolios of strategic business units pays off, particularly during such times of international instability, and has placed the Eden Leisure Group in a strong position for the future.

MIA notches 1.4 point increase in April traffic

Luqa, 08/05/09 - In April Malta International Airport registered a 1.4 per cent increase in passenger movements. The first four months of 2009 resulted in an average decrease of 9.4 per cent when compared to the corresponding period last year.

Total passenger movements on scheduled and non-scheduled flights in April were of 255,013, an increase of 3,442 passengers when compared to April 2008. Both the seat load factor and cargo and mail figures slipped 0.4 points and 23.9 per cent respectively.

Passenger traffic from Malta’s two core markets, the United Kingdom and Germany, experienced declines of 9.6 per cent and 1.2 per cent respectively whilst Italy increased by 10.6 points. MIA registered increases of 15.1 per cent on the French market and 521.7 per cent from Cyprus.

The busiest day in April was the14th, in terms of passengers - with 11,931 movements - and the highest number of aircraft – 90 - in the same day.

Air Malta to abandon fuel surcharges next winter

Mosta, 07/05/09 – Air Malta will do away with its fuel surcharge from November, says chief executive Joseph Cappello.

Asked by Island Travel Trader Online why KM persists in adding this surcharge at a time when the price of oil has plummeted and most of its competitors have dispensed with this additional cost, Cappello answered by saying that fares are so low nowadays that “fuel surcharge is a misnomer…the quoted price on an airline ticket includes all charges".

Nevertheless, when booking online on the Air Malta site, a round-trip on its blue ribband route to London’s Heathrow on, for example, 7 July is priced “from €97” and the return, a week later, is tagged at “from €41”. However, under the “summary of fare selected” the total price tag is €241.70, broken down as follows”
• 1 adult €138 (€97 plus €41)
• Taxes €53.70 (departure/arrival tax of €23.92, UK air passenger duty at €11.29, airport security charge €2.19 and international passenger service charge of €16.30)
• fuel surcharge of €50.

The same routing on 7 November with a return seven days later, meantime, will set you back €124.82. As Air Malta’s CEO says, there is no fuel surcharge, but taxes have risen by €1.12. The UK’s air passenger tax will be €12.41, as opposed to the current €11.29.

According to Cappello, the fuel surcharge portion of its online booking engine is a “hang-over” from the past and it will be gone “from November”.

MTA to open Dubai office

Mosta, 07/05/09 - The Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) is planning to open a representative office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, “to tap the regional market”.

With the number of tourist arrivals from its core European markets expected to decrease this year, the MTA is looking elsewhere to make up the numbers.

“Due to the tough global economic conditions, especially in Europe where leisure travel is affected, it will be difficult to match last year's numbers. Therefore, we are looking at India, Russia and the Gulf, especially the UAE, where we have a strong air connectivity through Emirates, to source leisure travellers”, MTA CEO Josef Formosa Gauci is reported as telling Gulf News.

"Dubai and the Gulf are a strong market for us, and we hope to attract more tourists from the region”.

The MTA's initial plan in Dubai, says Formosa Gauci, is be to create awareness of Malta by launching a promotional campaign in the coming months through the satellite office.

The MTA will facilitate familiarisation visits for travel and tour operators in partnership with hotels and airlines, he adds.

Paul Fleri Soler, Emirates’ Malta-based manager adds: "Malta has been focusing too much in the European markets, although the Gulf Cooperation Council states are a potentially strong market for the country, if promoted properly. We have to promote Malta in the Arab market together”.

Emirates serves Malta from Dubai with daily flights via Cyprus. And the airline is planning to offer a three-nights package starting from Dh2,000 (€416), including return airfare, bed and breakfast and airport transfers.

Paradise Bay Resort signs three-year deal with France’s Touristra

Cirkewwa, 05/05/09 – Paris-based tour operator Touristra will be programming the islands as of next year, after a break of more than 11 years “with the promise of bringing over 4,000 tourists in the first of a three-year deal worth an estimated €11 million”.

Touristra used to sell “thousands of holidays” at the Hal Ferh Holiday Village in Ghajn Tuffieha; but when its owners, Air Malta, closed the complex it pulled out of Malta.

Robert Arrigo - managing director of Robert Arrigo and Sons, who are also local handling agents of Touristra – says the French company will start operating to Malta next April. And last night it signed a deal with the four star Paradise Bay Resort Hotel in Cirkewwa for room allocations. It also penned an agreement with Air Malta for the advance purchase of airline seats.

According to Arrigo, who is also a member of parliament on the Nationalist Party bench, Touristra’s three-year deal is estimated to be worth between €10 and €11 million in sales, hotel bookings and excursions.

Attending the contract signing at the Paradise Bay Resort Hotel were premier Lawrence Gonzi and parliamentary secretary for tourism Mario De Marco.

PwC warns travel faces long road to recovery

Mosta, 05/05/09 – The UK branch of PricewaterhouseCoopers has dismissed the idea of a short-term recession in the travel industry, and is warning the trade to prepare for three to five years of reduced activity, reports the Travel and Hospitality Industry Digest.

With an 80 per cent increase in travel company insolvencies from Q408 to Q109, the start of this year has mirrored the level of insolvencies last autumn, when 13 companies in the XL Group collapsed.

This time around no single group accounts for a large number of failures, there are simply more small travel businesses falling at the first hurdle.

Ian Oakley-Smith, director of business recovery services at PwC, said: “History shows that there has always been a strong correlation between total consumer spend and consumer spend on travel.

“Travel businesses should therefore expect this trend to continue, which is likely to mean that spending on travel will decline for some time yet.

“In the last recession, holidays were impacted at both volume and value levels. This is likely to recur and will take its toll on travel companies.’

He added: “The travel market has swollen with both supply and demand over the recent boom years, but we are now headed into a new reality. 2009 will be a journey of discovery to assess how deep the recession actually is and therefore how long it will impact travel.

“The fundamentals suggest that demand will not return to the previously high levels, quickly.

“Travel companies must avoid making any short-term decisions now and focus on guiding their business through a medium term industry recession. In turn this will help them create a sustainable business model for the years ahead – both good and bad”.

Radisson properties to go ‘blu’

Mosta, 04/05/09 – The two Radisson SAS properties in Malta will drop the SAS name next month and replace it with the word ‘blu’.

Radisson SAS was created in 1994 when SAS International Hotels (SIH) joined forces with the Radisson brand. But since November 2006, when the SAS Group sold its interests in the hotel company, it no longer held a formal connection with the Radisson brand.

The new name was announced by Kurt Ritter, president and CEO of the Rezidor Hotel Group – operators of the Radisson brand - in February at the opening of the first Radisson Blu at Zurich Airport, Switzerland. In the coming year, the new name will be transitioned throughout the Radisson SAS portfolio in Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA).

The €3 million name change only applies to Radisson hotels operated by Rezidor in EMEA and does not include Radisson Edwardian hotels in the United Kingdom or Radisson properties operated in the Americas, Asia Pacific or other parts of the world. The word ‘blu’ is a stylized, shortened version of the word ‘blue’, derived from the blue box that contained the ‘SAS’ name on the original Radisson SAS logo and signage.

"We are extremely proud to hoist the Radisson Blu flag”, said Ritter. "After many, very successful years as Radisson SAS, we are eager to fly the exciting new Radisson Blu name on an ever-growing number of destinations”.

Radisson Blu’s senior vice president and COO, Thorsten Kirschke, explained that the change from SAS to Blu would be a gentle evolution through into 2010. “We currently have more than 200 hotels in operation or under development, so the name change has been designed in such a way that it will avoid any unnecessary disruption but still create an impact”.

The renaming of the Island Hotels Group-owned Radisson SAS Bay Point Resort in St George’s Bay and the Radisson SAS Golden Sands Resort and Spa in Golden Bay is slated for June.

The Westin Dragonara upgrades kitchen

St Julian’s, 02/05/09 – The main kitchen at the Westin Dragonara Resort has been upgraded.

The overall upgrade included new flooring, soffits, the re-segmentation of various departments, and the introduction of energy saving lighting as well as a new kitchen range by Austria’s Ambach.

MIA posts a profit for financial 2008

Luqa, 01/05/09 – In 2008 Malta International Airport plc maintained almost the same profit levels as 2007’s, despite the difficulties set by the global scene that impacted the aviation industry.

Moreover, further to the net interim dividends paid of €4,059,000 (0.06 per share), MIA paid out a final net dividend of €0.057 per share which cumulatively translates into a higher dividend than 2007.

“In 2008 MIA may safely be considered to have achieved satisfactory results, notwithstanding worldwide economic obstacles that, already in the second half of last year, had started to affect our operations”, said MIA CEO Julian Jaeger (left) during the company’s AGM, held on 30 April at the Corinthia Hotel St George’s Bay.

“Beating the three million passengers mark”, Jaeger continued, “was no mean feat, especially considering that the registered increase of 4.7 per cent is being compared with 2007 which undoubtedly was a record year”.

In the light of the bleak financial environment such results warrant MIA to look ahead with confidence. This is substantiated with the investment afforded for the expansion project of the terminal, which is currently nearing completion and will be fully operational by the summer to generate additional income even in the short-term.

“Notwithstanding the turbulent times, we still stand by our forecast of 2009 ending with a minus 5.5 per cent of passenger movements, which in fact is less negative than originally expected, especially considering that for summer 2009 seat capacity should reach 3,063,060 and this means an increase of plus 0.8 per cent when compared to summer last year”, continued Jaeger.

“Moreover the month of April, until the 28th, shows our passenger traffic at a marginal increase when compared to this time last year which, in turn, means that this has brought us to a cumulative minus 9.5 per cent to date” reiterated Jaeger.

The modernisation of the terminal is intended to enhance comfort and services for both travellers and locals alike, suffice to mention that during 2008 MIA invested €4.5 million on this upgrading which has increased the retail landside area by 164 per cent and airside by almost 49 per cent.

More importantly the entire area allocated to retail concessions has been rented out on more lucrative terms that warrants an increased revenue from the commercial sector. This will be accentuated by the food and beverage area which, having been restructured and almost doubled in size, has allowed the addition of a food court with nine catering outlets and a common seating for some 400.

This year’s plan will also include works on the conference amenities, the expansion of the car park - to accommodate an additional 500 vehicles - as well as the Lufthansa Technik area which alone will generate a significant increase in yearly rent. MIA targets commercial revenue to increase its share from 19 per cent in 2008 to 30 per cent by 2010.

Fewer cruise passengers in March, but more liners

Valletta, 01/05/09 – In March there were 1,113 fewer cruise liner passengers than 12 months ago, according to the National Statistics Office. Total cruise passenger traffic totalled 5,053. Embarkations from and landings in Malta stood at 17 and 19 persons respectively.

In the first three months of the year, meanwhile, 31,831 cruise liner passengers visited Malta, an increase of 20,990 compared to Q1 of 2008.

Passengers from EU countries accounted for 58 per cent of total traffic, the main markets being Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain and Italy. American cruise passengers represented 64.8 per cent of non-EU passengers.

On a gender basis, male passengers exceeded females by two per cent. The largest proportion of passengers - 48.5 per cent - comprised persons aged between 60 and 79, followed by those in the 40 to 59 age bracket - accounting for 29.0 per cent of the total.

The average number of passengers per cruise liner rose to 2,121 per vessel in March. There were three cruise liner calls in March, bringing the total for 2009 to 15 compared to six last year.

MIA retains seat capacity for summer, new carrier to come online

Luqa, 01/05/09 - In March there was a drop of 18.8 per cent in passenger movements at Malta International Airport. This result in an average decrease of 14.4 per cent for the first three months of 2009 when compared to the corresponding period last year, this was mainly due to a decreased seat capacity of 10.7 per cent.

Q1 of 2009 has been negative and this was mainly due to a lack of seat capacity, moreover comparisons are complicated by the general elections traffic in Malta in March 2008, as well as the timing of Easter, which also fell in March.

Julian Jaeger, CEO of Malta International Airport, reiterates that “the drop in passenger figures in the first quarter was expected, in actual fact in our forecast we even expected it to be worse, therefore we find no reason to rethink our predictions at this point whereby we have gauged minus 5.5 per cent by year end. In April we should be expecting to see a changing picture for the better, however summer will no doubt be crucial”.

Despite the current decline faced by other European airports MIA in collaboration with the Malta Tourism Authority has managed to secure last summer’s seat capacity. The estimated seat capacity for this summer is positive and is expected to reach 3,063,059 - an increase of 0.80 per cent when compared to last year’s summer period.

The analysed airline schedule for the beginning of the summer for more than 600 European airports shows that seat capacity is down by around 4.8 per cent, according to the Official Airlines Guide (OAG).

Meantime, Vueling, flying from Madrid, and Click Air, operating from Barcelona, have re-confirmed their routes for summer. Air Nostrum, a new operator, will provide three weekly flights from Madrid. (The Spanish industrial group Nefinsa owns 22 per cent of Click Air and 75 per cent of Air Nostrum.)

Moreover, Air Malta has repositioned its 12th aircraft in Malta and will be increasing frequencies on its network with additional flights to the UK, Germany, Italy, Russia, Turkey and Bulgaria. The national carrier will also be launching four new routes - to Verona, Stuttgart, Paris CDG and Warsaw.

Furthermore, Ryan Air has replaced Bremen with Bari whilst flights from Trapani will double to four a week. The Irish LCC also introduced two weekly flights to Edinburgh. In July, Ryan Air will be adding Bristol to its routes and will offer the service twice weekly.

SAS has just launched flights from Stockholm, and will operate this route twice weekly. Besides easyJet’s current schedule, two weekly routes to Newcastle will be starting in May.

Credit crunch or not, more Maltese travel

Valletta, 01/05/09 – In February an estimated 16,840 Malta residents left the islands, just 202 fewer than 12 months ago according to the National Statistics Office.

The majority, 14,446, travelled to EU destinations, with the most popular being Italy and the United Kingdom; 2,394 chose destinations beyond the European Union.

In the first two months of this year, meantime, the number of residents travelling abroad totalled 36,595, an increase of 3.3 per cent over the corresponding period last year.

Cruise traffic up 268 per cent in 2009

Valletta, 01/05/09 – In February 14,180 cruise liner passengers visited Malta, an increase of 11,716 over the corresponding month last year. Embarkations from and landings in Malta stood at seven and 36 people respectively, according to the National Statistics Office.

The average number of passengers per cruise liner, defined as the number of cruise passengers divided by the number of cruise liner calls, decreased to 2,026 passengers per vessel for February. There were seven cruise liner calls in February, bringing the total for 2009 to 12 compared to two calls last year.

In the first two months of the year, meanwhile, 26,760 cruise liner passengers visited Malta, up from 4,657 in the comparable months of 2008. Put another way, there were 267.6 per cent more passengers in January and February this year than 12 months ago.

Passengers from EU countries accounted for 60.4 per cent of total traffic, with the main source markets being Germany, the United Kingdom, Spain and Italy. On the other hand, the American market remained substantial, representing 63.9 per cent of non-EU passengers.

Promotional fares from Egypt Air for Malta market

Gzira, 13/04/09 - Egypt Air has introduced special fares to the Middle East, Africa and the Far East. Lead-in fares to Cairo start from €175, and to destinations such as Bangkok, Beijing, Johannesburg, Nairobi and Mumbai they start from €549 with a special baggage allowance of 30kgs. These fares, however, do not include taxes and are exclusively for the Maltese market.

Flights to and from Malta are scheduled twice weekly - on Thursday and Sunday - and are operated with an Embraer 76-seater.

For details contact Egypt Air on 21341548 or email the carrier’s Malta GSA on info@egyptair.com.mt.

Egypt Air, meantime, plans to introduce new destinations in the coming months, including a four times weekly service to Dar Es Salaam and expanding its network to Africa.

19th edition of Island Travel Yearbook published

Mosta, 11/04/09 – Need to know who the MD of Alpine Sterling is, or whether the Paradise Bay Resort has WiFi, or need to check the entrance cost at the Mdina Experience?

All these questions, and more, are answered in the nineteenth edition of Island Travel Yearbook.

Produced by Island Publications, Island Travel Yearbook has been in print since 1991 and is considered to be the most authoritative reference source on Malta’s travel and tourism industry.

Updated annually, the 178-page 2009 edition, published in early March, includes detailed listings of travel agents and destination management companies; accommodation facilities on the islands; conference venues, floor plans and incentive travel facilities; tour operators and the foreign firms they represent; airlines, both schedule and charter, that service Malta; shipping and cruise lines; car, coach and cycle hire firms; English language schools; diving schools and sports facilities; boat and yacht chartering; special interest travel; 20 year statistics showing the development of the industry…and much more.

This comprehensive directory ensures that Island Travel Yearbook is used on a day-to-day basis as an information source for the industry - in Malta and abroad.

A unique photographic who’s who of Malta’s senior executives, involved in all sectors of the travel and tourism industry and relevant government agencies, is also included.

Island Travel Yearbook is on sale at good book shops in Malta and Gozo – retailing at €25 - and available internationally by post from www.travelmalta.com.

Island Travel Yearbook is also available to download as a pdf file at a cost of €12 (to download go to www.travelmalta.com.)

Island Publications are also publishers of the Malta Hotels Directory. This annual title lists all accommodations available in the Maltese islands and is produced on behalf of the Malta Tourism Authority. The 2009 edition was published in December 2008.

Virtu Ferries order €60mn catamaran

Ta’ Xbiex, 08/04/09 - Virtu Ferries will be replacing the high speed catamaran Maria Dolores with a new, bigger vessel in August 2010.

The Ta’ Xbiex-based company has just signed a contract for the new vessel with Austal Ships of western Australia; the vessel will be one of the largest aluminium hull catamarans in Europe. Austal are the builders of Virtu’s Maria Dolores, delivered in 2006.

The new catamaran, an Austal Auto Express 107 will be named Jean de la Valette (see artist's impresseion, above ) and will be delivered to the owners in August 2010. She will replace the Maria Dolores on the Malta-Sicily route.

The Austal 107 was chosen following a long and rigorous selection process; it was judged the best vessel for the route due to her versatility and all round efficiency, as well as being tailor-made for the route’s requirements, based on passenger feedback.

The Jean de la Valette will have a seating capacity for 800 passengers on two decks, with three catering outlets and a central shopping area. The decks will offer a passenger-friendly seating density of two to three seats per row, as well as an upper deck lounge area overlooking the vessel’s bow. A central staircase will lead to a first class seating area featuring a separate catering facility and two VIP lounges. Outdoor seating will also be available for more than 110 passengers, in both economy and VIP lounges.

An additional new feature, specific to this vessel and at the request of Virtu, will be a dedicated lounge for truck drivers; the lounge will be furnished with full reclining seats with footrests.

The vehicle deck will have a capacity of 230 cars or 45 cars and 342 truck lane metres equivalent to 23 trailers. This will enable Virtu Ferries to service the growing need of private passengers with cars and campers, tour operators with coaches and commercial vehicles and trailers with accompanied cargo. The vessel will be certified to carry dangerous cargo such as LPG, diesel and petrol in bulk.

Henri Saliba, managing director of Virtu Ferries, says “demand for cargo traffic between Malta and Sicily - since we joined the EU - has exceeded our expectations. This is a €60 million investment that will cater for the demands of the Maltese commercial, industrial and tourism sectors into the future and provide a scheduled year round service”.

The Jean de la Valette will have a crew of 24 and will be powered by four diesel engines providing 50,000-horse power driving Rolls-Royce propulsion water jets, giving an approximate speed of 39 knots. The latest sea-keeping technology, Austal Ride Control, will be installed for maximum passenger comfort in heavy weather conditions.

The Jean de la Valette will fly the Maltese flag, like all other Virtu vessels.

Virtu Ferries have been operating high-speed ferries between Malta and Sicily since 1988. The Maria Dolores makes more than 500 round trips a year between Valletta and Pozzallo and Catania, effectively making Malta part of mainland Europe.

Venezia Lines, a wholly owned subsidiary of Virtu Ferries, has since 2001 operated a six months seasonal service between Venice and eight Adriatic ports in Slovenia and Croatia. Two high speed passenger ferries, San Frangisk and San Pawl are deployed on this service, with a third San Marco due to be introduced. Another high-speed vehicle-passenger ferry San Gwann operates between Bari, Italy, and Durres, Albania.