Tourism expansion in Asia

Travel in Asia is booming, with budget airlines expanding in south-east Asia and Expedia launching in India.

A number of major airports in the region are set to expand facilities for low-cost carriers, including the budget terminal at Singapore's Changi airport.

Changi is aiming to increase capacity from 2.7 million passengers per year to seven million.

The director-general and chief executive of the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore, Lim Kim Choon, commented: "With increased air transport liberalisation in this region, airlines, including low cost carriers, have now greater opportunities to rapidly expand their air network and increase their flight operations."

In Malaysia, a new low-cost airline terminal is to be developed at Kuala Lumpur, which will be able to handle 30 million passengers a year and negotiations are ongoing to build a similar terminal at Penang airport.

And in India, online travel booking website Expedia is to launch an Indian version of the site to take advantage of the fast-growing market for Indian holidaymakers.

"As the number of Indians travelling abroad continues to grow, the strength of Expedia's international supply gives us an advantage over existing travel providers in the market," explained Sharat Dhall, the managing director of Expedia India.