neville_nobody
15th Oct 2007, 01:51
Interesting how the LCC phenomena actually cheapens the destinations they serve!!
From the Weekend Financial Review October 13th:
Hayman Island’s owners have ordered a private jet to lure cashed-up guests turned off by the thoughts of flying to the island on budget airlines.
Since Qantas pulled out of the Whitsundays in 2005, Hayman and Hamilton Island guests – some paying up to $1500 a night for a suite on Hayman Island – have had no option but to fly economy on Jetstar or Virgin Blue.
Now that Hayman is targeting American celebrities to buy the 21 mansions it is building with prices of $13 million to $16 million something had to be done. “Given the quality of this product we’ll be delivering, we believe guests would like a private jet experience,” Hayman Island’s manager and Mulpha Australia’s head of hotel investment, Llyod Donaldson, said.
“We have just purchased a Gulfstream private jet that is being delivered to us in 2009. It is being imported into Australia by Mulpha. It will be utilised by Hayman guests from Sydney and Melbourne.”
While Jetstar and Virgin Blue were doing a great job, he said, Hayman Island needed to offer a more elite service for some guests.
Not all would make use of the private jet, of course – Mr Donaldson noted that some of those interested in acquiring one of the island mansions, which are being marketed exclusively to Hayman Island guests, already had their own aircraft.
Mr Donaldson is pulling out all stops to get international tourists interested in staying on Hayman Island, as there has been a softening in overseas holidaymakers to Queensland’s islands.
“Islands are an expensive business to operate and you are fundamentally reliant on only one business sector, which is leisure. You are controlled by access to the area by airlines and it’s very competitive,” he said. “We don’t only compete with Australian destinations, we compete with international destinations. We are reliant on the high-end international market quite heavily and it hasn’t been as buoyant over the past three to five years. In the past 12 months, the high dollar has certainly had an impact – it is not as attractive to the international market as before. We have had to change our strategy to attract more of the domestic market.”
From the Weekend Financial Review October 13th:
Hayman Island’s owners have ordered a private jet to lure cashed-up guests turned off by the thoughts of flying to the island on budget airlines.
Since Qantas pulled out of the Whitsundays in 2005, Hayman and Hamilton Island guests – some paying up to $1500 a night for a suite on Hayman Island – have had no option but to fly economy on Jetstar or Virgin Blue.
Now that Hayman is targeting American celebrities to buy the 21 mansions it is building with prices of $13 million to $16 million something had to be done. “Given the quality of this product we’ll be delivering, we believe guests would like a private jet experience,” Hayman Island’s manager and Mulpha Australia’s head of hotel investment, Llyod Donaldson, said.
“We have just purchased a Gulfstream private jet that is being delivered to us in 2009. It is being imported into Australia by Mulpha. It will be utilised by Hayman guests from Sydney and Melbourne.”
While Jetstar and Virgin Blue were doing a great job, he said, Hayman Island needed to offer a more elite service for some guests.
Not all would make use of the private jet, of course – Mr Donaldson noted that some of those interested in acquiring one of the island mansions, which are being marketed exclusively to Hayman Island guests, already had their own aircraft.
Mr Donaldson is pulling out all stops to get international tourists interested in staying on Hayman Island, as there has been a softening in overseas holidaymakers to Queensland’s islands.
“Islands are an expensive business to operate and you are fundamentally reliant on only one business sector, which is leisure. You are controlled by access to the area by airlines and it’s very competitive,” he said. “We don’t only compete with Australian destinations, we compete with international destinations. We are reliant on the high-end international market quite heavily and it hasn’t been as buoyant over the past three to five years. In the past 12 months, the high dollar has certainly had an impact – it is not as attractive to the international market as before. We have had to change our strategy to attract more of the domestic market.”