Ep 241: Indonesia's Tourism Budget Bust, Malaysia's New State Airline & the Philippines Goes Michelin: February 2025 in Review
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
PodbeanAbout This Episode
28 Feb 2025 • 30m50sWhere did February go? Already, we are two months into 2025, and what a fascinating month it proved to be. Some compelling regional stories emerged. So, as we do every month, Gary and Hannah discuss the Top 8 tourism talking points from a hectic February. The journey takes us to Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia and the Philippines, plus Hong Kong, China, Japan and India.
En route we ask and answer the following questions:
- Which was the first ASEAN country to surpass 2019 arrivals?
- How will Indonesia’s tourism budget cut impact inbound arrivals?
- Why is China promoting Xishuangbanna as visa-free for South East Asian tour groups?
- Who will win the race to 40 million visitors, Thailand or Japan?
- And where in the world was the first Michelin-starred Filipino restaurant?
Latest Episodes Catch up with the pods you may have missed
Play
4 May 2026 • 18m00s
Ep 302: Thailand's Newest Tourism Tax, 2 ASEAN Airlines in Global Flight Cuts Top 10 & Baby Shark in Singapore: Start the Week with The South East Asia Travel Show
Why is Thailand considering a second tourism tax? Could the Philippines rescind its decision to scrap an outbound air travel fee? Which ASEAN airlines are cutting the most flights from May-July? And is India’s outbound growth story hitting an energy-crunch roadblock? Those are four of the key questions Gary and Hannah ask and answer on our Start the Week show. To kickstart the May holiday week, we head to Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines and Myanmar via India and South Korea to tackle the 6 top regional talking points.
Play
27 Apr 2026 • 15m31s
Ep 300: Thailand & Cambodia Pursue Peace, Myanmar Nears ASEAN Return & Embodied AI Tourism in Malaysia: Start the Week in The South East Asia - Part 1
Is a rapprochement between Thailand and Cambodia getting closer? Could Myanmar soon return to ASEAN? And how will embodied AI transform the tourism landscape in South East Asia? Those are three of the top questions Gary and Hannah ask and answer in Part 1 of our two-part Start the Week show. To kickstart the lead-up to the May holiday period, we head to Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia and China to tackle the talking points that matter.
