Category Archives: Agents

Travel industry veteran, Praveen Chugh, passed away in Delhi on March 26, 2019 after suffering a massive heart attack. He was serving as the President of Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) and was also the Chairman of World Travel Agents Association Alliance (WTAAA). Born on October 16, 1955, Chugh recently became the COO of Agency Sales for Via.com by EbixCash, which acquired his company Business Travels Private Limited. He is survived by two daughters. Known for his guidance and expertise in ticketing, Service Tax and GST, he has represented Indian travel industry at various international forums time and again. Subhash Goyal, Secretary General, FAITH, said, “My relationship with Praveen Chugh started ever since he joined TAFI, and he took it to great heights with time. He started his company Travel Services International (TSI) from scratch and made it one of the most successful companies in India. He was one of the finest people I know and was a pillar of strength, not only for TAFI, but for FAITH as well. He was always enthusiastic about new things and had a positive attitude. He was of great help for the India Tourism Mart (ITM), and even sent his staff for the ticketing. He contributed a lot to the industry, especially with Service Tax and GST matters, which he was very clear of. He educated and guided the industry in case of any issues on the same as well as worked on agent commissions along with TAAI and other industry organisations. He has been representing India on various international platforms as well. It is a very sad moment for the entire industry and a personal loss for me as he was …

Cox & Kings Ltd has opened a new franchisee store in Delhi which offers holistic travel solutions to travellers from Patel Nagar, Delhi and extended areas. The store is inaugurated by Hon’ble Mayor-North Delhi Municipal Corporation Adesh Kumar Gupta. Owned by Bharti Dhingra, presently it is Cox & Kings’ 12th franchisee store in Delhi. The other Cox & Kings franchisees in Delhi are located at Pitampura, Lajpat Nagar,Vasant Square Mall, Rajouri Garden, East Delhi, Gurugram-Sushant Lok, Faridabad, Greater Noida, Noida -Ansal Arcade, Indirapuram and Ghaziabad -Rajnagar. On expanding the footprints of Cox & Kings in Delhi, Karan Anand, Head-Relationships, Cox & Kings said, “Since the past few years there has been a 25 per cent growth in travel demand from Delhi. To cater to this demand, we felt the need to expand our presence here with a new franchisee store. A range of Cox & Kings travel services from group tours, customised travel to honeymoon, women-only tours, adventure & self-drive holidays will be made available from here.” Travellers can book from the universe of Cox & Kings line of brands including Bharat Deko domestic tours, Duniya Dekho outbound tours, Getaway Goddess women-only tours, Curious Cat Chronicles education tours, Trip 360˚ adventure outings, Enable Travel- tours for differently-abled and Self Drive 365 and much more. Other products such as insurance, foreign exchange and trade fairs will also be made available from the new franchisee store. Commenting on the current travel trends from Delhi, Anand said, “Though travelling in mixed group tours with family and friends is common, travellers from Delhi are more inclined towards customised holidays, road trips and women-only tours. Along with various domestic destinations, city escapes in Europe/ USA …

A big delegation from Kashmir comprising J&K Tourism, J&K Hoteliers Club and Maharashtra Tour Organisers’ Association (MTOA), organised a Kashmir Conclave in Mumbai to address the safety issue in the state and to encourage the travel agents in India to continue to sell packages. The event was addressed by Advisor to Hon’ble Governor J&K, Khurshid A Ganai. The evening also saw the presence of Rigzin Samphel IAS, Secretary Tourism, Govt of J&K along with Sudhir Patil, President, Maharashtra Tour Organisers’ Association (MTOA), and Mushtaq A. Chaya, Chairman, J&K Hoteliers Club. A delegation of more than 40 members from the travel and hospitality sector of the state of J&K participated in the J&K Tourism Conclave. Ganai said, “We recently met in Srinagar under the chairmanship of Mushtaq A. Chaya. The kind of media publicity that Kashmir tourism received for the Kashmir situation, we felt that we need to come and interact with the stakeholders in the country and particularly starting with Mumbai and the surrounding areas because that is our main source market. Jammu & Kashmir, in particular Kashmir and Ladakh attracts the maximum tourists from all around the world. The government will do and has always been doing for their people, for example we organize Amarnath Yatra in Kashmir which again attracts a lot of people from across India. As you know the common people of Kashmir are peace loving, they want the tourists to be extremely comfortable, we want tourists to come and be our guests. We will do everything, whatever is possible for us to do that you are comfortable and safe.” Sudhir Patil, President, MTOA, said, “In Srinagar, Pahalgam, Sonmarg, Gulmarg and including Katra, Jammu and another …

Trafalgar has announced 100% Definite Departures on its Europe and Britain trips for the 2019 summer season. “We know it’s been a challenging sales year for our agent partners with high consumer interest yet a later booking window, so we are going 100% definite to help our valued partners close the sale and reassure their clients that now is the best time to book.” says Gavin Tollman, Trafalgar’s CEO. To celebrate 100 per cent definite departures and a decade of connecting guests with the locals through its ‘Be My Guest’, Trafalgar is offering US$200 savings per couple for bookings made before 31 March 2019. “Travellers globally are craving reassurance, which they will always get with Trafalgar. With our existing deposit guarantees, our extensive range of 100+ award-winning European trips and our 4.7/5 independent Feefo rating, now combined with our 100% definite departure status, agent partners can sell us with 100 per cent confidence. Cultural experiences like cooking lessons, after-hours dining at the Vatican are other experiences Trafalgar’s guests can buy. “We are always AgentsFirst, and by making our trips 100% Definite Departure status, alongside our great offers right now with up to 15 per cent off all May departures for our Europe and Britain departures, Trafalgar is the only choice to truly deliver on fulfilling one’s travel dreams,” Tollman concluded.

The Indian trade delegation that is currently in France to attend the annual show Rendezvous en France 2019 organised by Atout France has been exploring the potential of regions yet unfamiliar to the Indian travellers. The 32-member delegation hosted by Atout France India includes tour operators from Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Chennai and Bengaluru. The regions that the Indian delegates found appealing for their clients include Provence and the Rhône-Alpes. The two-day show is being held in Marseille this year to promote the region in the international markets. About 915 tour operators from 73 different countries are attending this B2B travel show, one of the biggest trade events in France.

After acquiring Arzoo.com recently, Parag Thakker, MD, Shri Mahalaxmi Vacations, has invested in JustClickKaro.com. Navjot Bhasin, Founder, JustClickKaro.com, announced that with this investment, Thakker would be a director in the company. “We are very excited to announce that Parag Thakker of Shri Mahalaxmi Vacations has made an investment of an undisclosed amount. With this, our 1.5 year long search for an investor has finally come to an end. The company has today become a one-stop shop for any B2B requirement, and with this investment we will be expanding our wings further.” Thakker added that he sees a great potential in the growth of JustClickKaro.com. “We are happy to be investing in JustClickKaro.com and we are sure that it will reach new heights very soon. We have many plans going forward for the company and you will hear many new announcements soon from our end.”

FCM Travel Solutions and KPMG’s recent whitepaper titled ‘Redefining Corporate Travel Management’ forecasts that the Indian business travel market is highly fragmented, with 70 per cent of corporates spending less than Rs 10 million. IT companies have the highest share amongst those spending more than Rs 10 million followed by engineering and pharmaceutical companies. IT, BPO/ITeS and pharmaceutical industries have higher travel spends as a percentage of their revenue. The cost incurred while travelling for business is the second highest operational cost for most organisations. Business travel is central to both maintaining business as well as expanding it and due to rising cost of travel, it is becoming imperative for corporates to drive higher levels of efficiency in their managed travel programme.

A new DMC – One Above – that offers Destination Marketing Services, opened its new office in Mumbai recently. Located in Andheri East, it is headed by BA Rahim, Director, along with co-directors Vishal Somaiya and Irshad Dadan. It already has 15 DMCs in its kitty in countries including Maldives, South Africa, Dubai, Russia, USA, Baku, Cambodia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Sri Lanka and Mauritius.

Travel agents in Kashmir are requesting the Central Government to include Kashmir as a destination in the Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik (UDAN). This comes as a result of the increasing fares to the destination and the negative perception about the state after the Pulwama attacks. Zahoor Qari, Chairman, TAAI – J&K Chapter, says, “We are demanding that the Government extends the UDAN scheme to Kashmir as well. Currently, the perception of travellers towards Kashmir is negative after the recent attacks, and it is a difficult situation. However, the attack happened in a remote area which is far off from all the tourist attractions, where the situation is normal as usual. Also, if UDAN is extended to Kashmir, the state will have domestic connectivity, which would give a positive signal to the entire nation that tourism is normal in Kashmir and travellers should not hesitate in going there. Currently the situation is difficult, and the valley is suffering from a financial crunch, which can improve if domestic tourism develops in the state.”

Red Apple Travel has shut down its operational services in the Pakistan markets with immediate effect in view of the recent Pulwama terror attack. The company condemns the heinous attack of the Indian CRPF bravehearts in Pulwama, Jammu & Kashmir. Red Apple Travel is a B2B travel DMC offering customised holidays that is driven by pioneering technology, designing contextual products and a dedicated team.