Ep 148: 10 Reasons August Was an Eventful Month for Travel & Tourism in Asia Pacific

About This Episode

1 Sep 2022 • 32m42s

Two-thirds of the way through 2022, travel and tourism in South East Asia are gaining momentum. Visitor arrivals increased across the region in August, while stirrings of travel activity in China and Japan are sparking optimism.

This week, Gary and Hannah assess the 10 key travel talking points of the past month throughout Asia Pacific. The journey takes us to Singapore, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam, plus China, Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong.

En route, we discuss airline fleet expansions, robust domestic travel, entry visa extensions, jet fuel prices and the shifting redefinition of what it means to be “fully vaccinated”.

Plus, we’ve got the latest news as the China-ASEAN high-speed railway map takes shape, and the recently announced details of T5 at Changi Airport, which will significantly expand air capacity in Singapore.

View All Episodes

Latest Episodes Catch up with the pods you may have missed

Play
10 Oct 2025 • 34m24s

Ep 271: Chinese Holidaymakers Jet Off, Multiple Muslim Tourism Initiatives & Fiscal Relief for Travel Workers: September + Golden Week in Review

After three weeks in Japan, Singapore and Italy, Gary and Hannah are back in KL to recap the top travel talking points from September and early October. China’s Mid-Autumn Golden Week has just wrapped up, so we assess the current state of play in a diversifying Chinese outbound market. Elsewhere, we discuss a raft of new Muslim-friendly tourism initiatives being introduced across South East Asia, note a shift towards waterborne transport innovation and crunch the numbers of a tax relief scheme for travel industry workers in Indonesia.
Play
25 Sep 2025 • 32m29s

Ep 270: From Japan to South East Asia to South America: Confronting the Cumulative Challenges of Tourism, with Joao Romao

Economic and social processes shape tourism development, but - in turn - tourism reshapes economic spaces, and that is creating new challenges in South East Asia and beyond. This week, Gary welcomes Joao Romao, Associate Professor at Yasuda Women’s University in Japan, to discuss his new book, Economic Geography of Tourism. An economist, tourism strategy advisor and former travel documentary maker, Joao assesses contemporary tourism through a lens of shifting global economic, technological, societal, environmental and political challenges.