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Strong interest in Guam grows at travel fair in Malaysia

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GVB

Guam continues to generate strong interest in Malaysia and was one of the newer and popular destinations featured at the country’s top consumer travel fair.

The Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (MATTA) Fair is a bi-annual travel fair that ran from March 15-17, 2019 in Kuala Lumpur. Over 1,300 booths took up about 95,000 feet of exhibition space in seven halls at the Putra World Trade Centre. Guam was among the 272 organizations that were present to include travel and tour agencies, national tourism organizations, hotels, resorts, theme parks, cruises and other businesses. Organizers estimated this year’s fair to exceed over 110,000 visitors and sales of over $51 million. This is Guam’s second time having a presence at the event.

Mayor Robert Hofmann, committee chairman of the Guam Visitors Bureau’s North America and Pacific Market, noted that as an emerging market for Guam, Malaysian visitors are intrigued they can travel to the island visa-free.

“I think there’s huge interest in Guam from not only the Malaysia population, but also people that travel to Malaysia from countries like Singapore, the Middle East, and India,” said Hofmann. “It’s great to see they’re excited about Guam. It’s exotic to them and it’s a new destination they’re looking forward to seeing. They don’t know much about our history, but they are a culture similar to ours. We should start to learn more about their culture because we have so many commonalities and could retrace some of our steps to Southeast Asia where the CHamoru people came from.”
GVB
North America and Pacific Marketing Manager Mark Manglona conducts a Guam product presentation to Philippine Airlines and travel agents in Malaysia.
GVB
Team Guam takes a group photo at the Guam booth in the 2019 MATTA Fair.
GVB
A look at some of the 1,300 booths that were at the 2019 MATTA Fair in Kuala Lumpur.


A culture at the forefront

Fairgoers witnessed multiple performances from Guma Taotao Tano at the three-day event as they shared Guam’s unique CHamoru culture through song and dance.

“Malaysia is a very rich cultural place,” said Guma Taotao Tano musician Vince San Nicolas. “I believe that our 4,000-year-old history is vital to share with them in person. Bringing out the re-identification and resurgence of the CHamoru culture is very important to share with the rest of the world so that we’re known as the CHamorus from Guam and the Marianas.”

Airline and travel agents create Guam packages

While in Kuala Lumpur, GVB met with Philippine Airlines and other travel agents for a Guam product presentation to further develop the Malaysia market.

Philippine Air offered special fares from Malaysia to Guam via Manila during the MATTA Fair.  Travel agents, such as Apple Vacations and Golden Tourworld Travel,  have also been promoting six-day packages to Guam.  The agents have already confirmed Guam is scheduled to welcome group travelers from Malaysia in the coming months.

“We’ve been making great leads and strides in promoting Guam in the region,” said GVB North America and Pacific Marketing Manager Mark Manglona. “We’ve developed key partnerships with travel agents who have put up all-inclusive travel packages and we also have a very good relationship with Philippine Airlines. They’ve been very supportive and connected us with travel agents.  There is a tremendous opportunity to promote Guam in Malaysia and we look forward to growing and developing this new market.”

The next MATTA Fair will be in September 2019.

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Fraport 2018 Fiscal Year: Revenue and Earnings Increase Significantly

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Fraport

Boards propose dividend increase to EUR2 – Outlook remains positive
In the 2018 fiscal year (ending December 31), Fraport AG continued on
its growth path, achieving new records in revenue and earnings.
Supported by strong passenger growth at its Frankfurt Airport home
base and its Group airports worldwide, revenue climbed by 18.5
percent to nearly EUR3.5 billion. After adjusting for revenue related
to capital expenditure for expansion measures at the international
Group companies (based on IFRIC 12), revenue rose 7.8 percent to over
EUR3.1 billion. About two-thirds of this increase can be attributed
to Fraport’s international portfolio – with the airports in Brazil
and Greece, in particular, making a significant contribution.
Fraport AG’s executive board chairman Dr. Stefan Schulte said: “We
are pleased to look back on another very successful year, especially
for our Group airports around the world. Here in Frankfurt, however,
2018 presented challenges due to the constraints in European airspace
and the strong traffic demand. For the medium and long term, we are
very well positioned both at Frankfurt Airport and in our
international business. Moreover, we are laying the foundations for
further long-term growth by implementing our expansion projects.”
Revenue and earnings targets achieved
The operating result (Group EBITDA) climbed markedly by 12.5 percent
to over EUR1.1 billion. The Group result (net profit) rose even
stronger, by 40 percent to EUR505.7 million. This includes earnings
gained from the sale of Fraport’s stake in Hanover Airport, which
contributed EUR75.9 million. However, even without the positive
effects from the Hanover transaction, Fraport already achieved its
revenue and earnings targets. Operating cash flow slightly dipped by
2.0 percent to EUR802.3 million. This was mainly due to changes in
the net current assets related to the reporting date. After adjusting
for these changes, operating cash flow rose by 18.8 percent to
EUR844.9 million. In line with expectations, free cash flow fell
sharply by 98.3 percent, because of more extensive capital
expenditure for Frankfurt Airport and Fraport’s international
business, while remaining in positive territory at EUR6.8 million.
Given the positive business development, the Executive Board and
Supervisory Board will propose to the Annual General Meeting that the
dividend be raised to EUR2.00 per share for the 2018 fiscal year
(2017 fiscal year: EUR1.50 per share).
Passenger traffic rises noticeably at FRA and internationally
Serving some 69.5 million passengers, Frankfurt Airport (FRA)
achieved a new passenger record in 2018 and growth of 7.8 percent
compared to 2017.
CEO Schulte commented: “We are pleased that the airlines have
significantly expanded their flight offerings at Frankfurt Airport
for the second year in a row, thus improving connectivity and
prosperity for businesses far beyond the Frankfurt Rhine-Main Region.
Until the first pier of the new Terminal 3 opens in late 2021, we
will focus on maintaining a high level of service quality at
Frankfurt Airport – while dealing with the constraints affecting the
entire aviation industry. In particular, enhancing the situation at
the security checkpoints will be a top priority for us.”
In response to strong passenger growth, Fraport hired over 3,000 new
staff members at Frankfurt Airport in 2018. Despite the constraints
experienced at some central process points in the terminals during
peak periods – particularly at the security checkpoints – global
satisfaction of passengers with Frankfurt Airport was at 86 percent
in 2018 – thus even posting a slight increase compared to the
previous year (2017: 85 percent). To provide additional space for
security checkpoints, Fraport is investing in an extension to
Terminal 1 for installing seven extra security lanes in the summer of
2019.
Fraport’s international portfolio also posted a significant gain in
passenger traffic during 2018. In Brazil, the two airports of Porto
Alegre and Fortaleza reported a 7.0 percent increase to 14.9 million
passengers in 2018 – Fraport Brasil’s first year of operating these
airports. At the 14 Greek airports, traffic rose by almost 9 percent
to 29.9 million passengers. Antalya Airport in Turkey grew by a
significant 22.5 percent to 32.3 million travelers, a new historic
passenger record.
Outlook: Growth expected to continue
Fraport is forecasting sustained growth at all of the Group airports
in fiscal year 2019. At Frankfurt Airport, passenger volume is
expected to rise between around two and roughly three percent.
Fraport expects consolidated revenue to increase slightly up to
around EUR3.2 billion (adjusted for IFRIC 12). Group EBITDA is
expected to reach a range of around EUR1,160 million and
approximately EUR1,195 million, despite the non-recurring revenue
from the sale of Fraport’s stake in Hanover Airport. The application
of the IFRS 16 accounting standard – which changes the accounting
rules for leases – will not only make a positive contribution to
Group EBITDA, but will also lead to much higher depreciation and
amortization in fiscal year 2019. As a result, Fraport expects Group
EBIT to be in the range of about EUR685 million and around EUR725
million. The company also expects to post a Group result (net profit)
of around EUR420 million and about EUR460 million. The dividend per
share is expected to remain stable at the higher level of EUR2 for
the 2019 fiscal year.
Fraport’s four business segments at a glance
Revenue in the Aviation segment increased by 5.5 percent to slightly
over EUR1 billion. This was due partly to higher revenue from airport
charges resulting from increased passenger traffic at Frankfurt
Airport. At EUR277.8 million, segment EBITDA increased by 11.3
percent year-on-year, while segment EBIT rose 6.5 percent to EUR138.2
million.
Revenue from the Retail & Real Estate segment dropped 2.8 percent
year-on-year to EUR507.2 million. A major reason for this drop was
significantly fewer proceeds from the sale of land (EUR1.9 million in
the 2018 fiscal year versus EUR22.9 million for the same period in
2017). In contrast, parking income (+ EUR8.3 million) and retail
revenue (+ EUR0.8 million) grew. Net retail revenue per passenger
fell 7.4 percent year-on-year to EUR3.12. Segment EBITDA increased by
3.4 percent to EUR390.2 million, while segment EBIT climbed 2.8
percent to EUR302.0 million.
Revenue in the Ground Handling segment rose by 5.0 percent
year-on-year to EUR673.8 million. The strong growth in passenger
traffic resulted, in particular, in stronger revenue from ground
services and higher infrastructure charges. On the other hand,
passenger growth also led to higher personnel expenses at the
FraGround and FraCareS subsidiaries. Accordingly, segment EBITDA
declined by EUR7.0 million to EUR44.4 million. Segment EBIT dropped
considerably by 94 percent, but at EUR0.7 million still remained in
positive territory.
At nearly EUR1.3 billion, the International Activities and Services
segment significantly advanced by 58 percent compared to the previous
year. After adjusting for the EUR359.5 million in revenue related to
IFRIC 12, the segment’s revenue rose by 20.1 percent to EUR931.4
million. This revenue growth received major contributions from the
Group subsidiaries in Fortaleza and Porto Alegre (+ EUR90.9 million),
as well as Fraport Greece (+ EUR53.2 million). Segment EBITDA
increased a noticeable 28.3 percent to EUR416.6 million, while
segment EBIT jumped 40.7 percent to EUR289.6 million.
You can find our 2018 Annual Report and the presentation from the
press conference on our financial statements (as of 10:30 a.m.) on
the Fraport AG website.

MEDIA CONTACT: Fraport AG, Torben Beckmann, Corporate Communications, Media Relations, 60547 Frankfurt, Germany, E-mail: t.beckmann@fraport.de

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Sexually assaulted by hotel staff? TripAdvisor tells woman leave a review

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TripAdvisor is the largest travel site in the world, with 456 million people visiting the site every month to search for accommodation and other hospitality sites ranked according user reviews.

Two women alleged they were raped by staff employed by businesses currently promoted on TripAdvisor and said the company is failing its “duty to public safety” in the way it handles such complaints. They said they fear others are at risk without information about prior alleged incidents being made visible on the business page. These hotels are continuing to be promoted on TripAdvisor.

One woman said she was raped by a tour guide whose business was being promoted on the TripAdvisor. After contacting the hotel where he worked and reporting him to the police, she wanted to warn other tourists.

TripAdvisor’s response was to tell her to leave a first person review detailing her sexual assault on the website.

“I was in disbelief. Am I seriously being asked to recall the humiliating details of my own sexual assault? Was this global company pushing me to relive my trauma on their forum for everyone to see and comment, or worse of all for the perpetrator who is still out there, to respond to me, troll me?,” she said. “It left me feeling shattered, hopeless and alone.”

TripAdvisor told her that they do not remove a business from their site if a staff member was accused of sexual assault or rape, even temporarily to conduct an internal review. The company then shared 5 links with her of reviews detailing sexual assault and rape, allegedly committed by staff at different hotels, as examples of how she might write her own review.

In one review that TripAdvisor shared with her in an email dated November 2018, an 18-year-old woman said she had her drink spiked and was raped at a resort in Jamaica. She claimed the hotel hired lawyers to mount a case against her, even after undergoing a rape test at a local hospital.

The resort currently has a 4.5-star rating out of 5. There is no flag on the hotel’s TripAdvisor page to suggest any such attack has ever occurred. The only way to know would be to scroll through and read more than 5,000 reviews.

TripAdvisor ranks hotels based on the star rating given by users, but individual reviews are presented chronologically on listing page for the hotel. A review which detailed allegations of sexual assault could easily be overtaken by more recent reviews and be harder to find.

There are 40 examples of reviews describing sexual assault, rape, and groping committed by staff members of highly-rated hotels and other travel businesses on TripAdvisor. In only 14 of those cases, the hotel or travel business – such as tour guides – had replied to the review, with just one review indicating whether disciplinary action had been taken against the staff member in question.

TripAdvisor left this woman’s review as pending, because she did not write it as a first person account and it remains unpublished. She told the company she did not want to publish “first hand experiences” in fear of being contacted and identified by people whose attention she did not want to attract, including the alleged perpetrator. TripAdvisor suggested she created a burner account under an anonymous name to leave the review.

TripAdvisor has previously attempted to grapple with complaints of sexual assault. In November 2017, it said it would add a warning tags to hotels where “health, discrimination, and safety” issues have been reported – but would not explicitly say what the business has been flagged for. The decision came after the company deleted a review detailing a rape case in a hotel in Mexico because the language used breached its guidelines.

The amount of time a badge remains on a business listing is determined on a case-by-case basis, but the company uses a period of 3 months as a guideline for re-evaluation. TripAdvisor said there are currently 4 flags up on business listing pages. None of the flagged hotels or travel businesses have any warning on the business page of prior allegations made about staff.

Complainants believe a red flag on a business for 3 months to evaluate the ongoing safety of the listing is not enough, especially when little to no action is taken against the alleged attackers still employed at hotels and businesses.

Another woman, Christine, 44, from Toronto, Canada, alleged she was raped in a hotel in the Caribbean while on holiday with her family. She said the process of leaving the complaint of sexual assault as a review was futile as reviews were routinely “buried” by other reviews, making it difficult for users to find.

She added that the reviews detailing sexual assault attacks should not be lumped alongside other 1-star reviews complaining about “bed sheets.”

“They definitely should have a different kind of review system, for these types of incidences so they’re not buried in with everyone’s reviews about you know, the quality of the towels or the sheets. Especially if it’s a safety issue, particularly for women.”

Christine decided to go public with her story because, she says, “TripAdvisor has a major platform and really they have a duty for public safety, because it is a big problem. I’m not overstating it when I say it’s widespread.

“Many women contacted me and said this has happened to them, too, by a different staff member at another hotel. And we need to be aware of it.”

TripAdvisor said while the company was unsure if the reviews complaining of rape would have an impact on a business, it believed reviews were “very helpful” to travelers to inform them about where to stay or visit.

TripAdvisor added it had a team of hundreds of people working on content moderation focused on “maintaining the integrity” of the site, and that thousands of reviews on the website described health and safety issues, including sexual assault and other crimes.

The company said it took into account a number of issues before giving a business a flag, including whether a staff member of a business listed was implicated in the review complaint. The company adds a flag to listings where there are media reports of the issue or when a first-hand review is not “readily accessible.”

It said its notifications are not confirmation of the events but were there to “encourage consumers to do additional research outside of TripAdvisor” of the safety of the businesses. However, the company claimed most businesses that had received a flag had taken steps to address the issue that caused the media coverage.

In a statement to the Guardian, TripAdvisor said: “It is terrible that some travelers endure serious issues such as assault or rape, and we hope our platform can be used by them to help warn and protect others. It is important that reviewers follow our publishing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of our reviews, and when these reviews are not readily available and news reports exist that detail recent and pervasive health and safety matters, TripAdvisor’s notification process helps alert travelers about potential issues at a location.”

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