Business Traveller Asia-Pacific Edition December 2016

It’s not about individuals – although for the majority that is often the way. The real story is about division: the splitting of societies down lines of wealth, religion, ethnicity, education… powerful elite versus disenfranchised masses. Last month’s US election, and Brexit before it, have shown just how divided the populations of these two major economic powers have become. In Asia, too, many countries harbour divisions in society or ideological schisms that presage an uncertain future – think the Philippines, Thailand, the Hong Kong SAR, Jakarta in Indonesia, Malaysia… Does a move by so many towards isolationism and a“crude sort of nationalism”mean that the great“global village”experiment is failing? And what will this mean for the business travel industry? The truth is neither I, nor anyone else, has any idea. It’s possible that…

ANNA HART is a globally focused writer specialising in social trends and international culture. She has written for The Telegraph, The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal, GQ, Stylist, Grazia, Condé Nast Traveller, Refinery29 and Vogue, and is currently working on a book about the transformative power of travel. In this issue, she reveals the developments taking place in Singapore as the Lion City strives to become the world’s first “Smart Nation”(see page 22). MISCHA MOSELLE is a Hong Kong-based British journalist with 20 years’ experience covering news in hospitality, aviation, food, wine and travel. Getting into the holiday spirit, Mischa takes us on a tour of some of Asia-Pacific’s festive culinary traditions (see page 62). He is currently writing a book based on a recent trek around southern India and is…

TOTO – one of the world’s most renowned toilet maker made famous by the original created, WASHLETs will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2017. TOTO original flush bowl was created in 1917 and has since evolved into a brand famous for the tech forward flushers with seat heaters, rinsing methods, and timed sensors. TOTO pledge to constantly delivers its determination to never stop creating and developing innovation technology with great design to improve people’s lifestyle and culture. TOTO have been deeply involved in the company’s technological development with WASHLETs and helps produce many of TOTO’s different type of watering technologies. The company began with basic experiences by cooperating with 300 company members to find the best angle of water spraying and cleaning. Apart from this, the temperature of the water, air-dryer…

Qantas unveils Dreamliner cabins QANTAS HAS REVEALED details of the cabins that will feature on its B787-9 aircraft, due for delivery late next year. Business class will feature the next generation of Qantas’s fully flat Business Suite, which was recently fitted to the carrier’s A330 aircraft, and will include an adjustable divider between each seat. The cabin will be configured 1-2-1 with a total of 42 seats. Meanwhile, the all-new economy seat will offer an extra inch of seat pitch (compared to that on Qantas’s A380 aircraft), as well as a new personal device holder and USB ports, more storage areas, a seat-back mood light and a larger HD screen. Premium economy passengers will also benefit from a“revolutionary” new seat, details of which will be unveiled early next year. qantas.com.au Hong Kong International Airport to…

FORM OVER FUNCTION Most people dislike forms you are required to fill in when you enter/leave a country. Hence, I was pleasantly surprised when Brisbane International Airport announced a new app that creates a“Digital Departure Card”to replace the paper Outgoing Passenger Card. After you fill in your personal and flight details on the app, you then get a QR Code that you scan at a kiosk at the airport. The irony, however, is then twofold. The kiosk prints your data onto the same Outgoing Passenger Card paper, which you then need to sign and date. After you pass through security and the automated passport control, the officer then directs you to place this document into a large, clear plastic container, without anyone seeing it. This is a sad case of airports trying to move…

Austrian Airlines B777-200 Business class Vienna–Hong Kong BACKGROUND Austrian Airlines began a direct service between Vienna and Hong Kong on September 5 using a B777-200 aircraft – it flies four or five times a week in winter and summer respectively. CHECK-IN For flight OS067 this is in Terminal 3; the business class area boasted eight manned counters. I wanted to carry my two bags onto the plane, but Austrian is strict about carry-on baggage (max weight 8kg) and with 10.5kg I was asked to check one bag in. THE LOUNGE After immigration, Austrian’s lounges are to the right. There are three in the non-Schengen departure area: the largest is for standard business class passengers, with five showers and five chaise longues at the far end, three computers connected to a printer, and a food…