Nikhil Desai, Managing Director, Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC), has said that they are working towards repositioning Goa apart from sun, sand and sea. “While Goa is synonymous with sun, sand and sea, we are trying to attract the attention of tourists to various other offerings in Goa including wildlife, nature, MICE, etc.” he said. He also informed that they are seeing a huge rise in social events in the last one year at a number of properties across Goa. 

Malaysia will reopen its border to international visitors from April 1, allowing travellers who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 to enter the country without quarantine said Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob. Visitors will be required to undergo pre-departure tests (RT-PCR) and upon-arrival tests (RTK-Antigen under professional supervision) 24 hours after arrival.   

In a strategic initiative to capitalize on the high pent up travel desire post the third wave, Thomas Cook (India) Limited – India’s leading omnichannel travel services company and its Group Company, SOTC Travel, have organised India’s first physical consumer roadshows – across over 30 cities pan India. The holiday roadshows have been organised over weekends at viable catchment areas of India’s metros, mini metros like Pune and Tier 2 markets, including, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Hubli, Bhubaneswar, Patna, Indore, Bhopal, Mangaluru, Coimbatore, Kochi, Vijayawada, Surat, Baroda, etc.  On the back of positive announcements on easing of restrictions, reopening of borders, vaccine acceptance and reduced infection rates, the Companies’ internal data reveals high pent up travel demand from Indian consumers. With the upcoming long weekends and school spring and summer breaks, over 85% of its customers have expressed keen interest to plan their holidays.  To support its customers, Thomas Cook and SOTC’s holiday roadshows have been organised at central locations across high potential catchments across over 30 of India’s key cities. Weekends have been selected to offer families the convenience to walk-in at leisure and plan their holidays together with the companies’ experts present on-ground to guide/assist them on travel and health & safety related queries. The Companies’ product range includes India and international favourites, and a diversity of options to delight consumer segments across multigenerational families, millennials/young professionals and couples/honeymooners. In addition to special group tours (accompanied by an experienced Tour Manager), the holiday portfolio includes personalised tours for a group of friends/extended family, individual/solo trips and customised options, specially designed based on the customer’s unique preferences.  Special Offers: Buy One Get One – Companion Free* across select India & International …

Referring to the Export Promotion Capital Goods (EPCG) Scheme, Pradeep Shetty, Jt. Hon. Sec, FHRAI, says, “The single-most important factor in attracting more international tourists is for India to be in tune with global standards if we want to compete with South East Asia and Sri Lanka. This is in terms of technology, décor, property, maintenance systems, etc. Many things are not manufactured in India. Therefore, the EPCG scheme is of primary importance. But it is understood that the government is looking to scrap this scheme altogether for the hospitality industry. We understand that we are moving towards Atma Nirbhar and Make in India but we cannot do that for hospitality till a time when our manufacturing industry gives us singular products in terms of quality, pricing and technology.” 

Suprio Banerjee, Vice President and Sector Head, ICRA Limited, says, “With the onset of the second wave of the pandemic and the later emergence of the Omicron variant, the recovery in passenger traffic remained gradual, in the current fiscal. Further, elevated aviation turbine fuel (ATF) prices (higher by ~68% on Y-o-Y basis in 11M FY2022) and continued fare caps continue to pose a major challenge for the profitability of the airlines. Thus, the Indian aviation industry is expected to report a net loss of ~Rs 250-260 billion in FY2022 as per earlier estimates of ICRA. However, expected commencement of scheduled international operations and the waning ‘Omicron’ wave, will result in a notable recovery in passenger traffic in FY2023 

Costa Cruises will conduct a webinar for the travel trade highlighting new opportunities for them on Tuesday, March 8 at 11 am IST. The webinar will showcase new sailing itineraries to Europe, Dubai and Singapore, offers, fleet introductions, and Covid safety protocols. They will also get a certificate and a chance to win prizes. To register, contact jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or 9650196532. Register directly at https://event.webinarjam.com/register/379/yy8npb8x

In order to acknowledge the efforts undertaken by the State Governments, Union Territory Administrations and various implementation agencies, the Ministry of Tourism has constituted Swadesh Darshan Awards in different categories. The awards will highlight best practices including achievement of planned objectives, innovative approach, adoption of sustainability principals in planning, design and operations, efficient project monitoring, ability to attract private investments in peripheral development and efforts undertaken to ensure optimal operations and maintenance etc. 

Cordelia Cruises introduces first time ever cruising experience from Tamil Nadu to Sri Lanka– a never seen before journey, an unforgettable experience and a journey as beautiful as the destination!  Cordelia Cruises, the only one of its kind holiday destination, makes Her debut in Chennai. It is from here that you could opt for a scintillating holiday by sea to Sri Lanka. The itineraries they offer are versatile with options that are spread over a number of days as well as room categories to meet everybody’s needs and requirements.  Cordelia Cruises by Waterways Leisure Tourism Pvt ltd is India’s only premium Cruise liner. True to its name, Cordelia Cruises promotes and drives the Cruises culture in India through experiences that are curated for Indian families, customized, stylish, luxurious, and most importantly, inherently Indian. 

As per GlobalData, COVID-19 has accelerated the need for companies in the travel and tourism industry to rapidly invest in digital strategies, including the global online travel market, which is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8% between 2022 and 2025 to reach $765.3 billion. If companies do not engage in a strong digital strategy, their competitors will gain a larger portion of the market, warns the analytics firm 

Thailand’s Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) has greenlighted the proposed ‘Thai-Indian Air Travel Bubble’ arrangement, a decision which now awaits Cabinet approval. In line with the ‘Visit Thailand Year 2022: Amazing New Chapters’ marketing campaign, TAT is focusing on further building the Indian market with a particular emphasis on special interest groups with high spending; such as, weddings and honeymoons, golf, millennials, and digital nomads. Among the activities include familiarisation trips and business events.