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The KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is optimistic of attracting a higher number of business and leisure travellers…
The KLM Royal Dutch Airlines is optimistic of attracting a higher number of business and leisure travellers to its new Kuala Lumpur-Jakarta sector this year.
Its Malaysia manager Estee Ng said the optimism was based on the expected higher demand for its flights as the airlines had devised several packages to meet business and leisure travellers` needs.
We`re very bullish on this new destination as we believe there is a great demand for the sector.
As one of the world`s leading airlines, we`re confident travellers to Jakarta will choose KLM as their preferred carrier, she told Malaysian journalists at a joint press conference with the Jakarta City Tourism Office executive director Aurora Tambunan.
Seventeen Malaysian journalists were here on a three-day media familiarisation trip from Thursday.
She said KLM viewed Jakarta as a strategic destination given its location as the social, cultural and political hub besides the cordial G-to-G ties between Jakarta and Amsterdam.
KLM starts the inaugural five-day a week Amsterdam-Jakarta flight via KL International Airport (KLIA) on Nov 1. The airline will depart KLIA at 4.15pm and will arrive in Jakarta at 5.15pm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.
The return flight will take-off from Jakarta at 6.55pm, arriving in KLIA at 10pm before departing to Amsterdam on the same day.
KLM has been enjoying higher load factor for the past few months, and after a situational analysis, we decided to add Jakarta to our list of Asian destinations. she said.
Other destinations are Bangkok, Taipei, Singapore, Hong Kong, Seoul, Osaka, Tokyo, Beijing, Shanghai, New Delhi and Manila.
Ng said the airlines also expects a bigger draw-in of tourists from Singapore, Malaysia and Europe as Jakarta prepares various tourism programmes under its Enjoy Jakarta tourism campaign.
Organised by the Jakarta City Tourism Office, several events on shopping, dining, golf, spas, marine tourism and nightlife have been arranged in Jakarta beginning end of March, she said.
KLM, she said, would also rely on its winning business-class service proven to be its best selling point to garner more businessmen`s interest to prefer using the airline.
On Enjoy Jakarta, Tambunan is hopeful it will help put Jakarta back on the Asian tourism map and lift the capital city`s position as a leading tourist holiday destination.
We`re hoping Enjoy Jakarta can draw in about 1.5 million in-bound tourists, especially from Singapore, Malaysia and Europe this year.
If it is achieved, it will be higher from the 1.3 million tourist arrivals last year, she added.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales. She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
