Life on the track

Life on the track

Kedah, Malaysia’s northernmost province, will soon be connected with Kuala Lumpur through a fast electric train service (ETS) that comes into service in September. The journey will take four hours 15 minutes, providing a comfortable choice for travelling from the Northern Province to the capital. Travellers from Thailand can travel overland through Sadao Checkpoint before jumping into the ETS at Padang Besar. The new train travels at 160 kilometres per hour, and stops at Arau, Alor Setar and Bukit Mertajam, ending its journey at KL Sentral station.

 

Swimming with the whales

Holidaymakers along the coast of Queensland can now swim with the humpback whales that live off the eastern shore of Australia. Two companies on the Sunshine Coast and on Fraser Island are offering whale swimming, according to Queensland tourism officials. Once a whale is spotted, swimmers are sent out along a floating line connected to the boat. Tourism operators are trying to expand the whale watching industry, currently estimated to net Australia more than $30 million a year.

 

Hogs on the road

Around 5,000 bikers are expected to visit Denpasar, Bali, for the first-ever Asia Pacific Harley Davidson Owners Group (HOG) Convention on November 4-7.

“We chose Bali for its strategic location, solid infrastructure and entertainment options for people of all ages. These attributes make Bali the perfect location for our event,” notes Martin Engelbrecht, regional customer experience manager for Harley-Davidson Asia Pacific.

The four-day event will comprise several activities, including HOG Enthusiast Adventure Training (HEAT), social events for Harley-Davidson owners and riders, free entertainment, and of course, promotional displays of Harley-Davidson’s newest motorcycles.

 

All about China

The China Outbound Tourism Yearbook 2014-2015 is now available from travel trade association PATA. The Yearbook offers insights into the size and shape of the China Outbound Tourism market, highlighting emerging trends as well as influencing market factors. Based on extensive first-hand research data, the report provides objective analysis and evaluation of different tourist source markets across China, travel trade projections, tourist flow structure and trends in global destination markets. The report costs US$945 for PATA members and chapter members and $1,050 for non-members.

 

Flying high to Mashhad

Emirates is to launch flights to Mashhad, Iran from September 1, the airline’s second gateway into the country. The airline will operate five weekly services utilising a combination of three-class and two-class configured Airbus A330-200 aircraft. Mashhad is Iran’s holiest and second largest city and attracts more than 2 million foreign visitors a year.