JETSTAR passengers booked on a Thailand-to-Sydney flight have been stuck on the resort island of Phuket since Monday because of maintenance problems.

Flight JQ28 was due to leave Phuket at 9pm (local time) on Monday, but the flight was cancelled, leaving hundreds of passengers to spend Australia Day stranded far from home, Natalie Soltyszewski said.

The passengers were put up in a hotel on Monday night and told they would leave at 5pm (local time) yesterday, but due to more maintenance problems that flight was also cancelled after they had boarded the aircraft.
Jetstar again arranged accommodation for them last night.

The Qantas-owned no-frills carrier later confirmed the stranded travellers would be picked up by bus to catch a replacement flight to Sydney at 5.30pm today.

But tempers were frayed as the passengers waited for information. …click here to read more

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Club Med Australia has reported a resurgence in the FIT sector – particularly families, outbound from Australia.

The all-Inclusive holiday concept has trended upwards from all Australian states, despite most tourism and hospitality sectors trending down in the second half of 2009 – the reporting period being from May 1 – October 31, 2009.

Club Med said the good result came on top of a strong first half, which saw increased growth of the FIT sector.

“Families are recognising a Club Med holiday allows them to budget, pre-pay in Australian dollars, and more importantly, stick to that budget on holiday, because it is all included, so there can be no nasty surprises at the end,” says Gwenola Hanaut, marketing manager for Club Med Australia

“There is no doubt that everyone, including businesses and MICE, have adopted a more conservative attitude in 2009,” she added.

“One very pleasing aspect is that we have grown the actual number of bookings too, so we have been introducing new family groups to the Club Med concept in a very tough trading environment.”

Outstanding resorts in 2009 have been Bali, where Aussies top the arrivals charts, and a resurging Bintan Island in Indonesia – possibly due to increased air access from Australia, a major refurbishment program in 2008 and relative political stability in the region.

Phuket is recovering, helped by new air services from V-Australia and Pacific Blue, plus ramped up Jetstar services in 2010.

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PHUKET- Is Phuket ready to give Bangkok a run for its money as the top tourist draw Thailand?

Australians are among those who appear to think so.

Last month, Pacific Blue launched direct service from Perth to Phuket.

This month V Australia launched non-stop flights from Melbourne.

And next week, Jetstar adds two more services per week from Sydney to Phuket, bringing the carrier’s total number of services per week to five during the busy December and January period.

“Phuket is a perennial favorite among Aussies as an international holiday destination,” said Simon Westaway, Jetstar’s head of corporate relations.

“Adding an additional Saturday and Sunday service makes it all the more accessible.”

Jetstar isn’t stopping with Sydney, either. From December 15, Jetstar Asia launches a twice-daily service from Singapore — services that will connect through to Jetstar’s existing daily Perth-Singapore service.

“I’m not surprised these airlines have commenced direct service to Phuket,” said Craig Fong, director of sales and marketing for Mövenpick Resort & Spa Karon Beach Phuket, site of the inaugural Asia Connect Thailand regional hospitality conference last week.

“I think they all would have started sooner if not for the global economic crisis and domestic political issues last year, which carried forward into this year.

“However, the situation is much more stable and you can see demand is returning to pre-crisis levels. With direct service at the right price point now too, Phuket is poised to realise big gains.”

Traditionally, Phuket’s hotels have relied on major tour wholesalers for their Australian business.

“The online channel represents a substantial opportunity moving forward but you can’t underscore enough the resilience and influence of the major wholesalers,” said Fong.

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