AsiaNet  88774

SINGAPORE, March 30, 2021 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

Global rollout of vaccines has improved 2021's travel outlook, but other

measures will play a key role in recovery, particularly in Asia says CEO John

Brown.

Confidence in the vaccine rollouts, discussions around COVID-19 passports and

alternative state quarantine announcements have triggered an increase in

international travel searches, according to digital travel platform Agoda.com.

Agoda's search data highlights green shoots of recovery and a growing optimism

by travelers across Asia that international travel will start to return, with

Australia, South Korea, Japan and Indonesia witnessing an increase in the

number of international destinations in their top 30 searches in March 2021

compared to December 2020. Travelers from these markets are joining Mainland

China, Taiwan and Singapore in their optimism for the resumption of

international travel. Only Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand continued to

see zero international destinations in their top 30 searches in both December

2020 and March 2021. However, interestingly, Thailand and the Philippines both

feature strongly as destinations, with Bangkok securing a spot in six out of 11

origin markets' top 30 search lists.

Market | Number of international destinations in top 30 search (March 2021) |

Number of international destinations in top 30 search (December 2020)

Mainland China | 10(Hong Kong SAR, Macau SAR, Bangkok, Dubai, Singapore, Tokyo,

Edinburgh, London, Cebu, Boracay Island) | 10(Bangkok, Macau SAR, Hong Kong

SAR, Singapore, Phuket, Tokyo, Maldives, London, Taipei, Pattaya)

Singapore*(top 10 destinations searched) | 9(Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Manila,

Boracay Island, Pattaya, Hong Kong, Phuket, Bali, Penang) | 9(Bangkok, Kuala

Lumpur, Bali, Dubai, Penang, Pattaya, Manila, Hong Kong, Khao Yai)

Taiwan | 8(Tokyo, Hong Kong, Kyoto, Jeju Island, Osaka, Bangkok, Seoul,

Sapporo) | 8(Tokyo, Kyoto, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Osaka, Maldives, Singapore, Bali)

Australia | 4(Bali, Pattaya, Bangkok, Manila) | 1(Bali)

South Korea | 4(Bangkok, Las Vegas, Tokyo, Bali) | 1(Bangkok)

Japan | 3(Bangkok, Manila, Pattaya)| 1(Bangkok)

Indonesia | 1(Genting Highlands, MY)| 0

Malaysia, The Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand | 0 | 0

Alongside these growing searches, Agoda's data shows booking patterns start to

normalise and return to pre-COVID trends, as behaviour indicators such as lead

times and prices, which both reduced heavily in the spring and summer of 2020,

dip less sharply.

"There are definitely reasons for the travel industry in Asia to start to feel

more optimistic, and vaccines will be critical to full recovery, but

initiatives like government subsidy programmes, such as TTogether in Thailand

or GoTo Japan have been successful in harnessing the demand for travel and

supporting domestic accommodation providers. Agoda's search data shows that

travelers are looking to resume international travel, buoyed by the

implementation of the vaccine roll-out, but there is more to do," explains John

Brown, CEO Agoda.

"The vaccine rollout in Asia is commencing, but the pace across the region will

vary, with some markets such as Singapore being fully vaccinated this year and

others like Japan, Thailand and Vietnam looking more likely in 2022, so these

heavily tourism-dependent economies need to consider how to accelerate the

return to normality. Governments will need to innovate how they approach

re-opening of their borders, balancing the very real need for the safety of

their own citizens, and visitors alike, with the economic reality. For the

foreseeable future, quarantine remains a stumbling block to international

travel, so the provision of alternative state quarantine, as launched in

Thailand and Hong Kong, might prove to be a sensible solution in line with a

vaccine programme. Corporate technology partners able to move fast, will be

able to provide governments with support to manage the complex variables that

markets face."

Alternative quarantine solutions (ASQ)

With travelers raring to go, now more than ever, public-private collaboration

is integral as the world works towards the sustainable recovery of the travel

and tourism industry, an essential pillar in Asia Pacific making up 10% of

APAC's GDP in 2019. International travel will take on a new reality with

integrated measures to facilitate safe and responsible international travel,

ranging from rapid testing, health certificates, COVID-19 vaccine passports and

more. Quarantine stays is another key measure with the likes of the Thailand

and Hong Kong governments exploring ways for travelers to embrace quarantine

stays, working closely with private companies to assist with technology

solutions.

As the first market to implement ASQ, Thailand's Ministry of Public Health and

Department of Health Service Support partnered with Agoda to leverage the

travel platform's tech solutions enabling returning Thai nationals and

residents to choose their preferred accommodation direct on the travel

platform. With Thailand announcing the reopening of borders to international

tourists this July, Agoda's ASQ platform will offer travelers flexibility in

terms of types of accommodation choice and other variables such as duration of

stay.

"We are seeing rays of hope as markets announce the re-opening of borders

through initiatives like the Taiwan-Palau or potential Australia-Singapore

travel bubbles. With more markets exploring travel corridors, Alternative State

Quarantine accommodation provides a solution to help resume international

travel by enabling travelers to choose a quarantine property that best suits

their needs. We are working closely with local governments and our

accommodation partners to identify tech-enabled solutions to spur on and

support the revival of local tourism economies," concludes John Brown, CEO of

Agoda.

Visit www.agoda.com/press for top searched destinations of key markets.

Editor's Notes

--Top destination data is based on Agoda' search data on 1 December – 10

December 2020, 1 March – 10 March 2021 with check in dates 1 Mar – 31 Dec 2021.

About Agoda

From its beginnings as an e-commerce start-up based in Singapore in 2005,

digital travel platform Agoda has grown to offer a global network of over 2

million properties in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide,

offering travelers easy access to a wide choice of luxury and budget hotels,

apartments, homes and villas, to suit all budgets and travel occasions. In

2019, Agoda added a flight product and packages to help make travel even

easier. Headquartered in Singapore, Agoda is part of Booking Holdings (Nasdaq:

BKNG) and employs more than 4,000 staff in 28 countries. Agoda.com and the

Agoda mobile app are available in 39 languages. www.agoda.com

SOURCE  Agoda

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   Caption: John Brown, Agoda CEO