India Tourism was awarded the “3rd Best Tourism Destination in Asia for 2016”, at ITB, Berlin, Germany. Vinod Zutshi, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism along with the members of Indian team received the award certificate presented to India Tourism, for “3rd Best Tourism Destination in Asia for 2016”, on March 12, 2016.

Continuing with its agenda to inspire the spirit of sportsmanship among the travel trade, Emirates Airlines will organise the second edition of its ‘Emirates Cricket Trade Tournament 2016’ for the travel trade on March 12-13, 2016 and then again on March 19-20, 2016 for the finals in Mumbai. It unveiled the cricket trophy in a pre-event networking event where former South African cricketer Jonty Rhodes made a special appearance, enthralling everyone. The format has been made more competitive with 416 players in 32 teams playing 45 games over four days over two weekends. Sunil Kallyat, Regional Manager-Western India, Emirates Airline, wished the players all the best at the networking party.

The Government of Maharashtra has announced ‘industry status’ for  tourism in the state’s new tourism policy.  Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis also declared the state government’s intention to invest up to Rs 30,000 crore in tourism. The policy also underlines a focus on skill development that will consequently enhance employment in the tourism sector. The policy also shows an intention to boost Medical Tourism, Nature Tourism and Agriculture Tourism. The government has proposed to exempt Luxury Tax, entertainment tax, electricity duty charges and stamp duty on investment on land owned by the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) and has offered additional incentives for tourism projects by women entrepreneurs, tourism projects by special people, and sustainable tourist projects. Fadnavis said, “This policy will generate 10 lakh new employment and double the income of state coming from tourism industry.

According to the latest Hotel Price Index report from Hotels.com, Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru topped the charts where travellers paid the most for hotel accommodation in India in 2015. Mumbai is where all travellers, both domestic and international visitors, paid the most for accommodation with a three per cent increase to Rs 8,160 per night. Delhi, which for two consecutive years witnessed an increase in tariff prices, this time marginally fell by one per cent to Rs 6,807.

Lemon Tree Hotels (LTH) inaugurated its first resort hotel in Delhi-NCR at Tarudhan Valley, Manesar. Lemon Tree Hotel, Tarudhan Valley, offers 70 contemporary well-appointed rooms including 18 studio apartments, with introductory rates: Rs 7499++ on weekends and Rs 5499++ (Monday to Thursday). Together with a club house, that comprises of Skinners- a themed bar and restaurant, a Spa- Tattva, a Fitness center, an Archery Range, a Billiards room, Kids zone and a play area; the resort also offers numerous games courts and outdoor activities along with a lap-size swimming pool, to captivate its guests and enthrall its multi-faceted visitors, of all ages. Carnation Hotels, the hotel management joint venture partner of Lemon Tree Hotels has taken over the management of the resort, developed and owned by the Group Silverglades. The management agreement was signed by Rattan Keswani, Deputy Managing Director – The Lemon Tree Hotel Company and Chairman- Carnation Hotels Pvt. Ltd, and Anubhav Jain, Director– Group, Silverglades. The resort hotel also has an exclusive Banquets Arena that comprises of three large conference rooms and manicured gardens to host a variety of events, destination weddings and conferences.

PATA India Chapter, in collaboration with Ministry of Tourism, will be conducting a India Tourism B2B Meet to West Coast America from May 24 to June 1, 2016. Runeep Sangha, Executive Director, PATA India Chapter, informs, “Our proposal for this initiative has been approved by Ministry of Tourism. The focus of this event is to promote inbound tourism from important source markets for India. Meetings are proposed to be held with travel agents & tours operators in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Vancouver & Seattle. All these markets have a variety of travellers representing both, high end as well as mid market. Their interest in India as a preferred destination is well established over many years and is focused on our history, culture, wellness, beach tourism amongst others.” Roadshows will commence with a introductions and a 20 minute Incredible India presentation, followed by a two hour B2B session between Indian sellers and local tour operators & travel agents in each market. Tentative Programme Detailed itinerary is as follows: 1. May 24 -San Francisco 2. May 25 – Los Angeles (Orange County) 3. May 26 – Los Angeles (Beverly Hills) 4. May 31 – Vancouver 5. June 1 – Seattle Participation Fees For PATA Members participation fee is as follows: 1st Delegate: Rs. 57,500.00 + 14.5% Government Service Tax 2nd Delegate: Rs. 45,000.00 + 14.5% Government Service Tax For non PATA Members, the registration fee is as follows: Delegate fee: Rs. 67,500.00 + 14.5% Government Service Tax Air India will be support PATA India with preferred air fares for delegates participating in these roadshows. 100% of the basic fare will be waived on each ticket as per the applicable booking class for …

The much awaited National Tourism Policy is in anticipation of Cabinet approval, says Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State (IC) for Tourism and Culture, and Minister of State for Civil Aviation. “Draft is ready and it has got approval of all concerned ministries. It will go to the Cabinet now for its approval. After Cabinet approval it will be effective. We are expecting it will be done very soon,” Sharma was quoted as saying by PTI.  The new policy aims to cash in on the tourist wanderlust to increase India’s share in international tourist arrivals from the current measly 0.68 per cent to 1 per cent by 2020. (Source: PTI)

Vistara has announced a 25 per cent increase in flights at the start of its summer 2016 schedule, including the launch of new services to Jammu, Srinagar and Kochi. Its network will now cover 15 cities as the airline increases its weekly flights from 317 to almost 400 weekly. With the induction of four new Airbus A320 aircraft during the course of the year, the airline will introduce additional new destinations and further increase frequency on its existing routes. By the end of October 2016, the total number of flights would have increased by 85% relative to the current schedule. Starting April 7, 2016, Vistara will offer direct daily return flights from Delhi to Srinagar and from April 9, 2016 daily same-aircraft flights from Delhi to Jammu via Srinagar. The direct daily return flights from Mumbai to Kochi, and daily same-aircraft flights from Delhi to Kochi via Mumbai will commence from April 14, 2016. The new summer schedule has 17 city pairs connected through direct (non-stop) flights; 16 additional city pairs connected through ‘via’ flights such as Mumbai to Varanasi, Lucknow and Bhubaneshwar and Bengaluru to Guwahati; and over 40 additional single-stop travel options through connecting flights such as Srinagar to Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bhubaneshwar; and Lucknow to Pune and Hyderabad (all via Delhi). Flights and connections on the new schedule will be open for sale through all channels this week. With a focus on enhancing its connectivity in key metros, Vistara will also be increasing the frequency of its existing Delhi-Bengaluru service.

Etihad Airways has announced that it will start operating Airbus A380 between Abu Dhabi and Mumbai from May 1, 2016. With this flight, India’s commercial capital would join the carrier’s other A380 destinations of London, New York, Sydney and from June 1, 2016, Melbourne. The new daily A380 India service will connect over the airline’s Abu Dhabi hub to key A380 destinations of New York and London, and many other cities around the world. With 496 seats comprising The Residence – the commercial airline industry’s only three-room suite in the sky – 9 First Apartments, 70 Business Studios, and 415 Economy Smart Seats – the A380 is a great addition to the wide body fleet.

The ninth edition of Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) will be held at Samudrika and Sagara Convention Centre, Willingdon Island from September 28 to 30 and will focus on themes ‘Responsible tourism’ and ‘Muziris and Spice Route’. It is expected to attract around 1,500 buyers from around the country and abroad. Around 265 stalls of different sizes for the exhibitors within Kerala will be featured at the venue as part of the event. Abraham George, President, Kerala Travel Mart Society, says, “KTM 2016, which will coincide with ‘World Tourism Day’, will reach out to buyers from new international markets, emphasizing focus on the new arenas of tourism, including responsible tourism, and popularize the concept among the common man. To facilitate better interaction between buyers and sellers, we have initiated the process for sellers’ registration much in advance. The buyers’ registration is open till July 29. The mart will be a platform for B2B networking.”