Brand USA Led U.S. Contingent at ITB Asia 2017, Southeast Asia’s Leading Travel-Trade Marketplace
For the fifth-straight year, Brand USA, the destination-marketing organization for the United States, hosted an exhibition space at ITB Asia 2017 in Singapore, October 25 to 27.
ITB Asia, now in its tenth year, is the leading trade exposition for Southeast Asia’s outbound tourism industry. The yearly show – which spanned leisure, corporate, and MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions) travel – allowed more than 850 travel buyers to meet with 760 exhibitors in 2016.
Southeast Asia include the ASEAN nations of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, The Philippines, and Vietnam. It is the third largest in the world after China with a travel market of 633 million residents. With a stable and consistent economic growth, outbound travel from ASEAN to the United States increased from 2014 to 2015 by an overall average of 6 percent to almost 780,000 visitors. Total tourism spending is close to U.S. $6 billion, fueled by rising per capital income. According to a recent wealth report by Credit Suisse Research Institute, there are about 150,000 millionaires in Singapore, and by 2021, the number is forecasted to grow to 180,000.
Singapore’s Changi Airport is the sixth busiest airport in the world and Southeast Asia’s premier aviation hub, serving over 58.7 million international passengers in 20161 with more than 100 airlines that fly to 380 cities. Changi Airport’s fourth terminal will be fully operational by end 2017 and is expected to handle an additional 16 million passengers a year.
New Non-Stop Flights From Southeast Asia to U.S.
The region will also see a series of airline developments enhancing air connectivity to the United States.
• June 2017, Air Asia X, the long-haul arm of Air Asia, had launched their one-stop services from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to Honolulu, Hawaiʻi four times weekly.
• 29 October 2017, United Airlines will be launching daily non-stop flights between Singapore and Los Angeles, California.
• 19 December 2017, Scoot Tigerair is also planning to launch their one-stop services from Singapore to Honolulu, Hawaiʻi via Osaka.
• Year 2017: Garuda Indonesia is planning to re-operate its flight service to the U.S. via a transit in Japan before heading to Los Angeles, California or New York City, New York.
• Year 2018: Singapore Airlines plans to launch its non-stop service from Singapore to New York City, New York and Los Angeles, via a brand new ultra-long-range variant of the Airbus A350.
In 2016, Singapore Airlines launched its daily non-stop flights between Singapore and San Francisco, California. In addition, it added another non-stop flight from Singapore to Manchester England, and then onward to Houston, Texas five times weekly. United Airlines, on the other hand, launched their daily non-stop flights from Singapore to San Francisco, California.
Brand USA Events at ITB Asia 2017
Brand USA teamed up with U.S. Embassies and the U.S. Commercial Service to organize a series of trade events at ITB Asia and to provide business opportunities for U.S. exhibitors to meet with close to 100 Southeast Asian travel buyers including wholesalers, tour operators and agencies, OTAs, MICE planners and intermediaries, as well as media representatives.
The events included:
• International Media Marketplace Asia – Representatives of more than 80 prominent media outlets from Australia, China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand met exhibitors during this full-day event.
• Brand USA Pavilion Kick-Off Ceremony – U.S. Ambassador to Brunei Darussalam, Craig Allen, has graced the ribbon-cutting event for Brand USA Pavilion at ITB Asia 2017.
• Window to ASEAN – Breakfast Market Briefing – Brand USA together with Southeast Asian offices of the U.S. Commercial Services in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Brunei, and The Philippines will share the latest outbound travel updates and marketing opportunities with U.S. exhibitors.
• Brand USA Southeast Asia Travel Exchange and Reception – During this travel trade seminar, U.S. destinations and attractions will be presenting their latest product news to 100 leading Southeast Asian buyers, including wholesalers, tour operators and agencies, OTAs, MICE planners, and intermediaries.
Brand USA also distributed its U.S. Travel Tip Kits to travel buyers. The kits provided an overview of the United States through regional itineraries, maps, and information on gateway cities and nearby destinations beyond the gateways.
Brand USA Partners At ITB Asia 2017
U.S. travel-industry exhibitors who participated in the Brand USA Pavilion at ITB Asia included:
Alamo Rent a Car, Caesars Entertainment, Explore Marketing LLC, Guam Visitors Bureau, Gulliver’s Gate, Group Sales Box Office/Broadway.com, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, MGM Resorts International, Maverick Helicopters and Airlines, NYC & Company, One World Observatory, Philadelphia Convention & Visitors Bureau, Papillion Group, Sundance Helicopters, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Team America Receptive Tour Operator, Tour America LLC, Wellington Hotel, Washington, DC, and Myrtle Beach Area Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Representation firm in region
Brand USA has had a marketing presence in Southeast Asia since 2013, through local representation by an Asian tourism-marketing agency, BRANDSTORY Inc. The agency, which has a regional office in Singapore, specializes in multi-channel marketing programs. BRANDSTORY Inc also represents Brand USA through its regional offices in Taiwan and Hong Kong.
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About Brand USA
Brand USA, the destination marketing organization for the United States, was established by the Travel Promotion Act as the nation’s first public-private partnership to promote the United States as a premier travel destination and to communicate U.S. travel policies and procedures to worldwide travelers. The organization’s mission is to increase international visitation to the United States in order to fuel the U.S. economy and enhance the image of the United States worldwide. Formed as the Corporation for Travel Promotion in 2010, the public-private entity began operations in May 2011 and does business as Brand USA. According to studies by Oxford Economics, over the past ten years Brand USA's marketing initiatives have helped welcome 8 million incremental visitors to the United States, benefiting the U.S. economy with more than $58 billion in total economic impact and supporting, on average, more than 37,000 incremental jobs a year.
For industry or partner information about Brand USA, visit TheBrandUSA.com or follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and X/Twitter. To discover more about the USA and the boundless diversity of American travel experiences and authentic, rich culture, please visit Brand USA's consumer website VisitTheUSA.com; follow Visit The USA on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram; and watch travel shows on GoUSATV.