ASEAN'S HIGH-TECH TRAVEL WEBSITE SLATED FOR LAUNCH SOON

By Manik Mehta

NEW YORK, Jan 7 (Bernama) -- Malaysian travel and tour operators, and others
connected with the tourism sector, can avail of a new Southeast Asian search
site soon.

Described as a high-tech travel website, SoutheastAsia.org is being touted
as an “anchor for a new destination marketing campaign for Southeast Asia”.

The site, which will be launched on Jan 25, will allow users to research,
plan and book multiple destination trips to and within the 10 member countries
of Asean.

SoutheastAsia.org will also have a special section for travel agents and
others in the travel trade -- travel and tour operators are being encouraged to
submit content now.

The new site is the brainchild of a three-way partnership between
Singapore-based Wego Pte Ltd, the Asean Tourism Association (ASEANTA) and the
Bangkok-based Asean Competitiveness Enhancement (ACE) Project.

The ACE Project is funded by United States Agency for International
Development (USAID) Regional Development Mission Asia. It aims to help Asean
enhance the integration and competitiveness of its travel and tourism sectors.

"One of our strategies for enhancing the competitiveness of Asean tourism is
to encourage more travel suppliers to participate online to take better
advantage of regional integration and marketing efforts," said ACE Project
director R.J. Gurley.

SoutheastAsia.org will feature a content-rich, meta-search capability that
will search dozens of sites before presenting results integrated into an
interactive map and trip planner. The trip planner is being developed by
Wego.com based on its existing meta-search technology.

"The trip planner will draw upon the great variety of bookable flights,
hotels and innovative itineraries that are available in the region," said Wego
chief executive officer Martin Symes.

Wego and ACE will share the trip planner's development and integration
costs. ACE will cover the website's development costs.

Wego will host and maintain SoutheastAsia.org on servers. Wego and ASEANTA
will share the revenues generated by the trip planner.

SoutheastAsia.org is also part of a new strategy designed to showcase the
wide variety of travel options available in Southeast Asia, while also helping
to raise global awareness of Asean as a community of nations.

The website targets international tourists, especially adventurous culture
seekers, special-interest travelers and cruise enthusiasts.

It will offer themed feature articles, events, and points-of-interest
content, as well as provide a forum for user-generated content, such as travel
tips, trip anecdotes, photos and videos.

Chairman of ASEANTA and vice president of marketing support for Philippine
Airlines, Felix Cruz, said part of the strategy was to raise awareness
of Southeast Asia as a desirable regional destination relative to Europe, the
South Pacific, and the Caribbean.

Much of the content on SoutheastAsia.org is being conceived and designed
around niche themes such as ecotourism, train travel, cultural sightseeing, and
cruising.

"Visitors will be able to research, plan and book experiences ranging from
stays in village guest houses, trekking and mountain biking in the hills, all
the way to pampering in luxury beach resorts and spas," Gurley said.

SoutheastAsia.org will have a soft launch during the Asean Tourism Forum
which will take place in Brunei on Jan 21-28, 2010. During the event, partners
will announce a new destination marketing brand and campaign agreement designed
to further encourage travelers to visit multiple Southeast Asian destinations,
stay longer and spend more money in the region.

-- BERNAMA