Press Room

The producer of the show, Ms Tiara Jacqueline, describes the cultural musical show entitled MUD as a performance that showcases the rich culture and heritage of Kuala Lumpur, reflecting the history of how this beautiful city came to be. Staging the show according to her, also goes to the long-term commitment of the development and promotion of arts and culture in the city, and also a move to host a permanent show in one of the city’s oldest architectures in Kuala Lumpur.

Performance is held daily beginning at 3.00 pm and 8.30 pm with tickets available at the Panggung Bandaraya.

In the meantime, the Kuala Lumpur City Hall plans to hold cultural shows regularly at venues in the city as part of the tourism offering of its Tourism Master Plan for 2014 to 2015. In 2012, the City Hall has recorded tourist receipts of 9.3 million and in 2013 at 9.4 million – is expected to continue to grow by 8 percent in 2014 – with the goal of hitting 16 million international tourists by 2025.

Entrance of the 110 year old Panggung Bandaraya theathre.

Talented performers of the MUD musical show.

Opening night of Mud:Our Story of Kuala Lumpur.

The exhibition brings together for two days Asia’s leading MICE organisers to meet and network with the region’s leading hotels, venues, event suppliers, and technology providers. Over 5000 event professionals are expected to attend the exhibition to discover the huge variety of supplies available.

Alongside the exhibition will also be two days of free conference for visitors and exhibitors featuring presentations from the industry’s top most experienced speakers, covering prevalent topics in the Asian event industry such as: guides on event planning; delegate/sponsorship sales training; online and offline marketing; recruiting and training event teams; operations and sourcing; market trends; and much more.

For more information on the exhibition which will be held in Singapore from November 13 and 14, please visit www.miceasiaexhibition.com

A three-day event, it will be held in Yangon from May 26 to 28 and is expected to attract over 200 urban planners, architects, developers, building users, capital investors and key real estate and urban development stakeholders from across the region. Organised by Sphere Conferences with the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI), and supported by Union Ministry of Construction, Myanmar.

There will be discussions and debates on the potential growth plans surrounding Myanmar’s urbanisation and investment opportunities in country’s real estate. The conference covers key areas of: urban and real estate development ranging from infrastructure and utilities; building and construction technologies and city planning; to real estate investment opportunities; and the retail mixed-use development trend in Myanmar.

One of the key highlights of the conference is the keynote joint plenary session featuring the Ministry of Construction, Myanmar, where the insights into the union government’s plans and updates on the Myanmar urban blueprint will be shared.

The second annual Myanmar Urban Development Conference (MUDC) will also be held at the same time. For more information, please visit www.mudc.sphereconferences.com and www.resm.sphereconferences.com.

MICE in Asia is a media of both conferences.

In a ceremony and luncheon held on April 24, the Mayor of Kuala Lumpur, Datuk Seri Ahmad Phesal Talib unveiled the trophy which will be awarded to recipients of the tourism awards. Thirty-two establishments and individuals selected based on their innovation, quality of service and product, as well as their global offerings and standards of excellence in the tourism sector will be given the trophy.

The trophy which is specially customised by Christofle International of Malaysia, is a one-of-a-kind silver trophy exclusively created by the internationally renowned modernist designer Andree Putman. Design of the trophy also incorporates the Kuala Lumpur Mayor’s Tourism Awards signature of the five gold stars.

This year, the panel of judges for all 11 categories will be connected to Yes, Malaysia’s largest 4G network with nationwide footprint, where they can easily review and evaluate each entry online and at anytime and anywhere. The judges are equipped with Chromebooks that are lightweight, thin and sleek for their daily computing needs. It comes with cloud-computing devices with built-in chipset that are seamless and with the internet always on.

Among other partners of the award are Yes, a mobile 4G brand, Shangri-La Hotel and Malaysia Airlines.

The Kuala Lumpur Mayor’s Tourism Award 2014 team with the head of the secretariat Noraza Yusof (extreme left) seen here with the trophy

For more information, please visit www.klmayortourismawards.com

A fully fledged conference programme of structured procurement sessions with suppliers and networking opportunities will be made available to Chinese corporate travel professionals, as of next year. This newly launched edition to be held in Shanghai is aptly named CTW China to reflect the show’s focus on the interests and requirements of the geographical region of China.

The CTW China will be positioned not only as a definitive education event for China’s professionals in corporate travel, but also as a platform for suppliers of corporate travel products and services to connect and engage with the industry. Aside from this, profiled personnel in the corporate travel business are invited to speak on a number of choice topics during the conference.

Signing of MOU between TTG Asia Media (Darren Ng, Managing Director on the right) and Carlson Wagonlit Travel (Albert Zhong, Managing Director).

This is the first ever collaboration between TTG Asia Media and Carlson Wagonlit Travel to co-organise such a programme. “Even though CTW China is established on a proven and tested format, the unique valuable proposition of the show will focus deliberately on the Chinese market,” explained Darren Ng, managing director of TTG Asia Media.

“Participants will be able to benefit immensely from discussions on salient issues key to Chinese corporations, as well as expert advice from experienced practitioners operating in the same environment and facing the same market forces and challenges.” Ng continued.

China is said to be the world’s largest procurer in this sector. The country is currently number two in global business spending. By 2017 with the growth of business travel spending in China projected at 14 percent (second only to India) annually, is on track to surpass United States currently ranked number one.

The 8th installment of the leading International MICE Event in China, IT&CM was held from April 15 to 17 at the Shanghai World Expo Exhibition and Convention Center. Media who are affiliated to the show were awarded a certificate of appreciation for the promotion and coverage of the IT&CM China shows in their printed publication and online.

Awarded by the organisers TTG Events of TTG Asia Media and CITS International M.I.C.E Co., Ltd, the certificate presentation was on April 15 at the Huangpu Auditorium of the Grand Kempinski Hotel Shanghai. This was followed by a press conference on the official opening of the IT&CM China 2014.

Julia Douglas the managing editor of MICE in Asia accepted the certificate on behalf of the publication. Media from other countries such as Australia, China, Germany, Greece, Mexico and Poland also received their certificates.

Representatives of the media receiving their certificate of appreciation from Ooi Peng Ee, General Manager of TTG Events.

Opened early last year, the property is situated in the commercial and entertainment hub of Bangsar – a township on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, also known for its affluent residential suburbs and trendy shops and food and beverage outlets.

The hotel features a spa, swimming pool, kid’s pool and fitness centre. For the business travellers, the property has included the business centre, executive lounge and connectivity lounge. Conveniences available are concierge service, laundry with valet service, shuttle service, limousine service, indoor car park and valet parking. Rooms of the hotel are styled in Asian contemporary designs that are generously appointed with essential comforts. All units are fitted with modern design bathroom that has a tub and rain shower.

As for the restaurants, all the outlets offer global and Asian fares complemented with fine wines at the dining facilities on-site like B’s, La Cucina, Le Petit Cafe, The Lounge, Tempo, Cigar Lounge and Poolside Bar.

For meetings and conventions, the hotel is furnished with 11 meeting rooms and two ballrooms that can cater up to 2,000 guests which is ideal for gala dinners

Aside from attending the World of Accor Expo, members of the media were invited for a one night stay to experience the 5-star services of the hotel and a tour of the rooms and facilities of the property.

Pullman Kuala Lumpur Bangsar – Lobby and Lounge Area

Restaurants and Bars

MICE facilities

World of Accor Expo 2014

A cocktail reception was organised by Tourism New Zealand at the New Zealand High Commissioner’s residence in Kuala Lumpur, to introduce tourism products from the country, and promote Māori arts and crafts.

Mischa Mannix-Opie, Tourism New Zealand’s Regional Manager for South and South East Asia began the evening with an introduction of some exciting destinations in the country, while Karl Johnstone, Director of New Zealand Maori Arts and Crafts Institute spoke about the customary art forms of the Māoris. Also known as Te Puia, the institute has nurtured and trained artists in carving, weaving and other skills including the kappa haka which is the Māori performing arts.

Guests for the evening, had the opportunity to watch an enchanting dance performance by a group from the Institute, and was later served a sumptuous buffet dinner.

Leading professional conference organisers (PCOs), decision-makers of national associations and industry professionals in Malaysia, were invited to share their knowledge and experience on international best practices in delivering successful meetings during the 9th association seminar organised by the Centre held on March 24.

More than 110 participants from over 42 national associations and meeting industry partners participated in the year’s seminar which included roundtable discussions on topics such as: how to attract sponsorships for your event; the benefits of using a professional conference organiser; and international conference and its impact on local associations.

Speaker Datuk Dr Abdul Aziz Yahya, chairman of the organising committee of the 21st FIGO World Congress of Gynecology and Obstetrics 2015 highlighted that having local and regional sponsors to boost one’s event budget will determine the desired outcome and overall quality of the event.

While the president of the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG), Teo Chee Hai mentioned that a compelling proposition and strong programme content are important to attract delegates, especially the generation Y. In the events organised by the federation, attention is also focused on the development of youths.

Once again people and commercial businesses related to the tourism sector, as well as stakeholders in this industry who have actively shown excellence over the past years in promoting Kuala Lumpur as a tourism destination, will be rewarded with the Mayor’s Tourism Awards. This is the second edition of the awards presentation with the inaugural in 2011, and will continue to be held every three years.

Categories of awards of excellence range from accommodation, restaurants, shopping malls, tourist attractions, nightspots, print media, airlines, medical tourism and events and also best international tour operators.

This year the awards committee has introduced the Mayor’s Commendable Awards in recognition of front liners who have made a noteworthy contribution locally and globally in tourism and socially. They will be honoured for their service above and beyond their call of duty.

The awards will be in the form of Platinum and Gold with the judging panels made up of the city’s tourism industry leaders who are experts in their fields. For nominations and more information on the awards, please visit www.klmayortourismawards.com

Press Conference announcing the dates of nomination and catagories of awards.

Panel of judges of the Kuala Lumpur Mayor’s Tourism Awards.