Over 500 hotel industry professionals from across Asia Pacific have gathered in Singapore’s Pan Pacific Orchard for the first edition of AHICE South East Asia, taking place from February 27-29.
The program of events commenced on Tuesday evening with a site tour of The Singapore Edition, followed by a networking event at the hotel, presented by Marriott International, where just over 200 delegates, including hotel owners, investors, operators, suppliers and consultants, connected over drinks and canapes.
On Wednesday morning, delegates undertook site tours at Conrad Singapore Orchard, Mondrian Singapore, Pullman Hill Street and The Robertson House by The Crest Collection, before a networking lunch, presented by The Ascott Limited, at the latter property.
AHICE South-East Asia Chair and Convenor, James Wilkinson, opened the conference on Wednesday afternoon, thanking sponsors and partners, as well as hotel leaders Barry Robinson (Travel and Leisure Co), Kenneth MacPherson (IHG Hotels and Resorts) and Rajeev Menon (Marriott International) among others for flying in for the occasion.
“It’s wonderful to be here in Singapore for our first ever AHICE Southeast Asia event and I am excited to see what we’ve put together over the past 12 months, thanks to some incredible supporters and sponsors and everyone in the room today,” Wilkinson said.
The first session of the day was the Essential Industry Outlooks panel, comprised of experts from CBRE, JLL, and STR, where the panellists crunched the numbers and shared their outlook for 2024.
A total of 19 panel sessions will take place over the two days, including The South-East Asia Hotel Operations Outlook, on Day 1, which will feature a panel of key leaders from Accor, Hilton, IHG Hotels and Resorts, Pan Pacific Hotels Group and Wyndham Hotels and Resorts.
At the close of sessions on Wednesday, delegates will unwind with a networking event at Pan Pacific Orchard.
The conference continues through to Thursday evening and will conclude with a networking event at the remodelled Pan Pacific Singapore.
Over the course of conference, the Hotelier Q&A sessions will see a number of top hoteliers take to the stage over the course of the two days including IHG Hotels and Resorts Chief Executive Officer – EMEAA, Kenneth Macpherson; Travel and Leisure Co President and Managing Director International Operations, Wyndham Vacation Clubs, Barry Robinson; Hilton President – Asia-Pacific, Alan Watts; Pan Pacific Hotels Group Chief Executive Officer, Choe Peng Sum; Pro-Invest Group Deputy Chair and CEO APAC, Jan Smits; Marriott International APEC President, Rajeev Menon; The Ascott Limited Chief Executive Officer, Kevin Goh; Swiss-Belhotel International CEO, Gavin Faull; and EVT Director of Hotels And Resorts, Norman Arundel.