Darren Edmonstone, managing director of Outrigger Hotels & Resorts, Asia Pacific, is pleased to announce the appointment of William Visser as vice president operations, Asia Pacific.

Visser will be based in Outrigger’s Asia Pacific corporate office in Phuket, Thailand.

He will be responsible for overseeing and directing all hotel operations of the Group in the Asia Pacific region.
Visser previously held finance and operations positions with the Mandarin Oriental and Peninsula hotel groups.

A native of New Zealand, Visser will help Outrigger expand its portfolio of hotels in Asia Pacific. Outrigger currently has properties open in Phuket and Koh Samui in Thailand, Bali in Indonesia, Fiji, and three in Queensland, Australia. It has confirmed additional projects in Bali, Vietnam and Hainan, China.

Edmonstone said: “Bill will be responsible for providing direction to Outrigger’s operations in Asia Pacific. He will also ensure that financial returns are maximized to owners and that Outrigger’s unique brand of hospitality is enjoyed by our valued guests.”

Apart from the Mandarin Oriental and Peninsula groups, Visser also worked for Hyatt International and as a management consultant in London.

Visser is a member of the New Zealand Institute of Chartered Accountants.

WSDE Sport Destination Expo

Thailand will later this year welcome WSDE Sport Destination Expo the crown jewel of the $600 billion sports tourism industry.

The event is only global exhibition and business forum dedicated to showcasing the sport tourism market - the most rapidly growing sector in travel and tourism.

National, Regional or City Tourist Boards with a Sport Tourism portfolio and hotels and resorts offering sporting facilities are expected to attend.

Now in its 2nd year, WSDE 2011 will take place in Bangkok, Thailand - Asia’s Sport Tourism Gateway - from September 27th–29th 2011.