With two travel fairs coming up this month, the tourism authority is urging consumers to protect themselves against travel delays and sudden closures.

The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) launched a campaign on Monday to remind the public to buy travel insurance for their holidays. Three videos have been released as part of the You Think, I Thought, Who Confirm campaign.

A survey commissioned by the STB last year found that about 20 per cent of the over 400 respondents did not buy travel insurance for their most recent trip.

A common reason is the short length of the trip. Others said they felt their destinations were “low- risk” or did not see the relevance of travel insurance, said an STB spokesman. Insurance can act as a safeguard against agencies that go bust. Recent high-profile closures include S Travel last April and Sky Travel & Tours last December.

These left customers with paid-for but unfulfilled packages worth thousands of dollars.

According to STB, 68 travel agencies ceased operations last month. There are over 1,100 active agencies. In 2015, the STB added a licensing condition requiring travel agents to remind customers to buy insurance against agent insolvency.

The National Association of Travel Agents Singapore (Natas) will hold Natas Travel 2017 from tomorrow to Sunday at Singapore Expo Halls 7 and 8. Among the exhibitors are 33 travel agencies.

Its rival, the Singapore Outbound Travel Agents Association (Sotaa), will hold the Travel Revolution Fair from Feb 24 to 26 at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre halls A and B. Of its exhibitors, 16 are travel agencies. Sotaa has said that customers who buy packages at the fair are guaranteed a 100 per cent refund should the agency involved suddenly close down. “Sotaa has secured personal guarantees from directors of these travel agencies to hold them fully accountable,” said Sotaa president Kay Swee Pin.

The Travel Revolution fair attracted 82,000 visitors over three days in February last year, while the Natas fair last March drew 58,000.

mellinjm@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on Feb 16, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Wildlife parks in Singapore welcomed more than 600 baby animals last year, including a cheetah and some endangered species native to South-east Asia.

Saving cheetah cub Deka was one of the highlights at the Singapore Zoo, said Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) in a press release yesterday.

Four-month-old Deka was abandoned at birth by its mother on Oct 3 last year, but vets and keepers managed to save the cub. Although it was weak and malnourished at first, Deka spent its first four days in the animal hospital and received round-the-clock care for the next two months until it was strong enough to be independent, said WRS.

Today, it is active, healthy and enjoys sprinting around its play area. Cheetahs are considered a vulnerable species, with only 7,100 left in the wild.

The zoo, Jurong Bird Park, Night Safari and River Safari make up the four parks managed by WRS. In 2015, more than 700 baby animals were born or hatched.

WRS deputy CEO Cheng Wen- Haur said: “Each animal baby born and hatched in our parks is an ambassador in its own right. Individually, they represent their wild counterparts, but collectively they embody the need to conserve not just each individual species but the environment as a whole.”

Examples of animals under threat that were born last year are the Sunda pangolin, painted terrapin, proboscis monkey, Bali mynah and black-winged starling.

Among the Night Safari’s new additions were three fennec foxes, which will make their debut in the park’s Creatures of the Night show.

This article was first published on Feb 16, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Bus operator Tower Transit said it “inadvertently” hired more bus captains than it needed between December and January, during its recruitment activities.

Six had already signed employment contracts with the Anglo-Australian firm when they were told the offers were being rescinded.

One bus captain was informed by e-mail just two weeks before he was due to start work this month that the company had reached “full staff capacity” and was “unable to proceed” with its job offer.

The man, who did not want to be identified, said the recruitment drive was “misleading” and that those who had quit their previous jobs after getting offers were “left stranded and distressed”.

A Tower Transit spokesman told The Straits Times the company has since tried to help the men who were affected.

“It’s a situation that has caused them distress, and we’re doing everything we can, including direct referrals to other organisations, to help them find similar positions,” he said, adding that only three had responded to the offer of help.

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said Tower Transit had acknowledged “lapses” in its human resource process and told the ministry it would compensate the affected parties, though no details were given of what this would be.

“Affected individuals who have any queries may approach MOM or the unions, if they are union members, for advice and assistance,” said a ministry spokesman.

Both employers and employees should commit to the terms and conditions of the employment contract once it is signed, said Mr Melvin Yong, executive secretary of the National Transport Workers’ Union (NTWU).

“If either party has to revoke the contract, due notification, explanation and compensation should be given,” said Mr Yong, who is also a Member of Parliament for Tanjong Pagar GRC.

He added that the NTWU can help affected employees by linking them up with the Employment and Employability Institute for job placement assistance.

Tower Transit’s willingness to try and find alternative jobs for the affected parties does not “detract from or waive its breach” of the employment agreement if it did not comply with the provisions surrounding its termination, said lawyer Vernon Voon.

The employment and labour relations partner at law firm RHTLaw Taylor Wessing noted: “In the event that an alternative job is offered, that will only go towards mitigation of the damages that the affected parties have suffered as a result of the company’s breach in not observing the terms of the agreement regarding its termination.”

Tower Transit became the third public bus operator here in 2015.

azhaki@sph.com.sg

Additional reporting by Adrian Lim

This article was first published on Feb 16, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

When unwed mothers go to the Minister for Social and Family Development for help, Mr Tan Chuan-Jin sends his team to do what they can.

“I work with a team of grassroots leaders to get in touch with the individuals to understand their situations, including family circumstances and other factors,” Mr Tan told The Straits Times.

Most times, the team helps with financial assistance and employment opportunities.

It is not unusual for Members of Parliament to lend a helping hand.

Ms Tin Pei Ling, the MP for Macpherson SMC, said she has helped around five unwed mothers with their housing needs since 2011.

“We try to find other ways to make them qualify, such as applying with their parents or things like that. In some cases, see if getting a rental flat is possible or if they can tumpangwith their family for now and wait till they turn 35,” she added, using the Malay term for “hitch a ride”.

Said Mr Desmond Choo, an MP for Tampines GRC, in his experience, the Government is sympathetic to the plights of single parents.

“I have encountered instances in which help for public rental housing is provided on a case-to-case basis. They review cases, paying special attention to the difficult circumstances,” he added.

MPs said these mothers need help beyond housing – such as financial aid, employment and emotional support – which grassroots organisations try to help with.

Tampines Changkat, for example, formed a support group for single mothers, said Mr Choo.

Policy disparities for unwed mothers have also been equalised in recent years, said Mr Tan.

This year, unwed mothers have the full 16-week maternity leave, compared with just eight weeks previously.

From September last year, children born to unmarried parents were also included in the Child Development Account (CDA) First Step grant, in which the Government puts $3,000 in each child’s CDA, even if parents do not deposit anything.

This article was first published on February 16, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

SINGAPORE – Lazy lizards are a thing now, it seems.

In true urban jungle fashion, a water monitor lizard was spotted taking a leisurely dip in Jurong East Swimming Complex’s Lazy River attraction on Wednesday (Feb 15).

The Lazy River is a pool with strong currents which visitors can relax in and drift along without the need to swim.

Wednesday’s sighting joins a growing list of reported incidents where monitor lizards have been found in bizarre places.

One of these large lizards was filmed lying motionless on the road right smack in the middle of peak-hour traffic in Buangkok on Feb 3. Its presence caused a mini traffic jam as vehicles tried to avoid running over it.

Roads.sg later reported that the reptile was killed after being hit by a car.

Last September, another made international headlines after streaking across the Formula One Singapore Grand Prix race track.

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen had exclaimed that there was a “giant lizard” on the track, to which his engineer radioed back: “You came face-to-face with Godzilla.”

Earlier that year, a jogger captured a video of a hungry monitor lizard feasting on a dead stray cat at Japanese Garden.

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2016-04-22 18:58:13

Photo Gallery

Monstrous monitor lizard feasts on cat at Japanese Garden in Jurong East

Source: Stomp

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2013-09-22 20:30:22

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Monitor lizard appears at Yishun void deck

Source: Stomp

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Why the rise in sightings?

Acres deputy chief executive Kalai Vanan told AsiaOne that while monitor lizards are commonly found island-wide, viral social media postings of photos and videos have contributed to a surge in media attention.

In fact, there are many more cases that have gone undocumented on cyberspace.

Mr Vanan said that Acres gets an average of about 20 to 30 reports on monitor lizards a month, most of which are cases where the reptiles can or should be left alone. They are usually sighted at places like nature areas, drains and park connectors, which are near the animal’s natural habitat. 

Read also: You won’t believe these gorgeous wildlife photos were taken in Singapore

Despite its large size, Mr Vanan added that these creatures are typically harmless.

“Just like most wild animals, monitor lizards are shy animals which will rather run away when confronted,” he said.

“It is important that we do not provoke or harm them and learn to co-exist with them as Singapore continues to urbanise into a green city.”

A case of mistaken identity

Sometimes, water monitor lizards are also mistaken as crocodiles. But despite its large size, the monitor lizard lacks the bony scutes that run across a crocodile’s body.

One such case last November resulted in the suspension of water activities in Marina Reservoir, after reports of a creature resembling a crocodile surfaced.

Singapore water agency PUB later clarified that it was simply a case of mistaken identity.

“We have checked with more experts, including AVA, NUS, ACRES and Singapore Zoo, and they are of the view that the creature is most likely a monitor lizard,” the authority said then.

Even the monitor lizard that was stranded in traffic in Buangkok was also wrongly identified as a baby crocodile in a Whatsapp message that circulated in early February.

About the water monitor lizard

According to IUCN Red List, monitor lizards are native to Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka and the Andaman Islands.

The most common species found here is the Malayan Water Monitor (Varanus Salvator), which can grow up to 3m long. It typically resides in forests, mangrove swamps and man-made canals.

And in Singapore’s case, it enjoys the occasional dip in the pool.

While it is not a threatened species, it still remains a target of poaching, hunted for its leathery skin, meat and fat. The problem is rampant in Sri Lanka, but also exists in Singapore, although NParks said that these cases are rarely reported to the authorities.

In Singapore, it is illegal to remove wild animals, including monitor lizards, from the wild. Those found in nature reserves are also protected by the Parks and Trees Act. 

debwong@sph.com.sg

329857

2016-09-23 16:31:58

Photo Gallery

Spotting wildlife along the streams in Singapore

Source:

The Straits Times

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SINGAPORE – Lazy lizards are a thing now, it seems.

In true urban jungle fashion, a water monitor lizard was spotted taking a leisurely dip in Jurong East Swimming Complex’s Lazy River attraction on Wednesday (Feb 15).

The Lazy River is a pool with strong currents which visitors can relax in and drift along without the need to swim.

Wednesday’s sighting joins a growing list of reported incidents where monitor lizards have been found in bizarre places.

One of these large lizards was filmed lying motionless on the road right smack in the middle of peak-hour traffic in Buangkok on Feb 3. Its presence caused a mini traffic jam as vehicles tried to avoid running over it.

Roads.sg later reported that the reptile was killed after being hit by a car.

Last September, another made international headlines after streaking across the Formula One Singapore Grand Prix race track.

Red Bull driver Max Verstappen had exclaimed that there was a “giant lizard” on the track, to which his engineer radioed back: “You came face-to-face with Godzilla.”

Earlier that year, a jogger captured a video of a hungry monitor lizard feasting on a dead stray cat at Japanese Garden.

287963

2016-04-22 18:58:13

Photo Gallery

Monstrous monitor lizard feasts on cat at Japanese Garden in Jurong East

Source: Stomp

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44925

2013-09-22 20:30:22

Photo Gallery

Monitor lizard appears at Yishun void deck

Source: Stomp

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Why the rise in sightings?

Acres deputy chief executive Kalai Vanan told AsiaOne that while monitor lizards are commonly found island-wide, viral social media postings of photos and videos have contributed to a surge in media attention.

In fact, there are many more cases that have gone undocumented on cyberspace.

Mr Vanan said that Acres gets an average of about 20 to 30 reports on monitor lizards a month, most of which are cases where the reptiles can or should be left alone. They are usually sighted at places like nature areas, drains and park connectors, which are near the animal’s natural habitat. 

Read also: You won’t believe these gorgeous wildlife photos were taken in Singapore

Despite its large size, Mr Vanan added that these creatures are typically harmless.

“Just like most wild animals, monitor lizards are shy animals which will rather run away when confronted,” he said.

“It is important that we do not provoke or harm them and learn to co-exist with them as Singapore continues to urbanise into a green city.”

A case of mistaken identity

Sometimes, water monitor lizards are also mistaken as crocodiles. But despite its large size, the monitor lizard lacks the bony scutes that run across a crocodile’s body.

One such case last November resulted in the suspension of water activities in Marina Reservoir, after reports of a creature resembling a crocodile surfaced.

Singapore water agency PUB later clarified that it was simply a case of mistaken identity.

“We have checked with more experts, including AVA, NUS, ACRES and Singapore Zoo, and they are of the view that the creature is most likely a monitor lizard,” the authority said then.

Even the monitor lizard that was stranded in traffic in Buangkok was also wrongly identified as a baby crocodile in a Whatsapp message that circulated in early February.

About the water monitor lizard

According to IUCN Red List, monitor lizards are native to Southeast Asia, Sri Lanka and the Andaman Islands.

The most common species found here is the Malayan Water Monitor (Varanus Salvator), which can grow up to 3m long. It typically resides in forests, mangrove swamps and man-made canals.

And in Singapore’s case, it enjoys the occasional dip in the pool.

While it is not a threatened species, it still remains a target of poaching, hunted for its leathery skin, meat and fat. The problem is rampant in Sri Lanka, but also exists in Singapore, although NParks said that these cases are rarely reported to the authorities.

In Singapore, it is illegal to remove wild animals, including monitor lizards, from the wild. Those found in nature reserves are also protected by the Parks and Trees Act. 

debwong@sph.com.sg

329857

2016-09-23 16:31:58

Photo Gallery

Spotting wildlife along the streams in Singapore

Source:

The Straits Times

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Tourists spent more on accommodation for the first nine months of last year, an increase of 28 per cent compared with the same period the year before.

But it was not good news for all hotels. Revenue per available room (RevPAR) fell nearly 5 per cent to $199, according to preliminary full-year estimates from the Singapore Tourism Board (STB).

This came on the back of falling room rates, due to a surge in supply of hotel rooms.

There was a 4.8 per cent year-on-year increase in room stock last year, which brought total inventory to 63,850 rooms across 413 hotels, according to STB.

The average occupancy rate dropped 0.9 percentage point to 84.2 per cent, though the decline was less than expected.

This was due to last year’s record number of tourist arrivals, said CBRE Hotels Asia-Pacific executive director Robert McIntosh.

“It’s been a bit of a saving grace for the hotel industry with serious concerns about extra supply,” he said.

STB’s strategy of targeting Tier 1 and 2 cities in China, Indonesia and India – the top growth markets for arrivals last year – has paid off, he added.

Some hotels said they have benefited from the increased arrivals from these cities, despite keen competition among hotels.

Orchard Hotel said it saw an increase of about 50 per cent in the number of nights Chinese travellers stayed in its hotels last year, and 30 per cent from Indonesian travellers.

Marriott Tang Plaza Hotel saw a 10 per cent increase in occupancy rates last year, as it has been engaging Chinese tourists through Chinese social media and online travel agencies.

At Royal Plaza on Scotts, occupancy went up 4 per cent last year, with business travellers making up 80 per cent of guests.

The hotel works with local agents who have distribution channels in the Tier 1 and 2 cities, said general manager Patrick Fiat.

Mr Imbert Fung, director for South-east Asia and India at travel search engine Kayak said tourists from China, India and Indonesia have a penchant for luxury hotels.

“Tourists from these markets typically favour four and five-star accommodations, accounting for over 60 per cent of their hotel searches.”

According to CBRE’s hotel marketview report for the second half of last year, about 3,400 rooms from luxury to mid-scale hotels are expected to enter the market this year.

Overcapacity in room supply is expected to taper off after next year, which will put the industry in a more stable position, said Mr McIntosh.

“With slowing supply and static occupancy, it looks like 2017 will see the bottom of the drop in RevPAR, then (it will) start to increase,” he said.

The number of hotel rooms in Singapore is expected to grow at a rate that is likely to outstrip growth in the workforce.

To address this, an Industry Transformation Map for the sector was launched last year, aimed at helping hotels here adopt manpower-lean business models, innovate, internationalise and grow the workforce.

tiffanyt@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on February 16, 2017.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.