Category Archives: NTO (National Tourist Offices)

Los Angeles Tourism is hosting a series of webinars for the travel trade starting from today at 3pm IST, showcasing latest tourism offerings. Participate in the quiz to gain valuable tourism insights and updates and stand a chance to win prizes. For more information or to register, please contact Jaspreet Kaur at jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or 9650196532.

Perfectly located amidst nature and mountains, Zurich is Switzerland’s largest city. Its touristic offerings include multiple excursion options, shopping, gastronomic experiences and a vibrant nightlife. Attend all webinars for a chance to win a trip to Switzerland in 2026! For more information, write to jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or 9650196532.

VisitBritain CEO Patricia Yates, says, “We want more regional destinations across Britain to feel tourism’s economic benefits. Our recently launched global ‘Starring GREAT Britain’ campaign is using the powerful draw of screen tourism to showcase our vibrant cities, contemporary culture and beautiful coast and countryside, alongside our welcome, encouraging visitors to broaden their itineraries, stay longer and to come now.”

South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs’ ground-breaking digital platform for the Trusted Tour Operator Scheme (TTOS) has gone live. This platform will drive increased tourism from the major source markets of India and China by enabling vetted and approved tour operators to submit group applications for large tour groups from these two countries. This addresses a long-standing obstacle to tourism growth, whereby long queues, red tape and the inability to process group applications timeously led to inefficiency in the issuing of visas for tourists from these countries. To illustrate the scale of the change: before TTOS was created, there were only two South African missions in China, and only two missions in India, to serve the 2.8 billion people living in those two countries who wanted to come as tourists to South Africa. But under the new TTOS digital-first system, tourists from India and China who use approved tour operators will no longer have to visit a mission, will no longer fill in a single form, will not need to stand in a single queue, and will receive their visas digitally within three days. In 2023, South Africa only received 37 000 tourists from China and only 79 000 from India. By enhancing visa efficiency and security through TTOS, Home Affairs looks forward to enabling much faster tourism growth from these two burgeoning source markets. The Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Leon Schreiber, said: “The fact that Home Affairs took the TTOS from conceptualisation to implementation in less than six months demonstrates our commitment to embracing digital transformation and to playing our role as an economic enabler to create jobs. Research has shown that for every twelve new tourists attracted by TTOS, we …

Indian tourism to South Korea has witnessed remarkable growth with 176,668 Indian visitors in 2024—a 44% increase from 2023. To push these numbers further, KTO launched its latest trade-focused initiatives, including the Korea Premium Travel Consultant (KPTC) program, K-Incentive Scheme 3.0, and MICE support programs. Myong Kil Yun, Regional Director – India & SAARC Countries, KTO, says, “Our target for 2025 is to welcome 18.5 million global visitors, including 250,000 from India through these initiatives.”

Türkiye has reinforced its position as a leading global tourism destination in 2024, achieving unprecedented growth across key markets and setting new benchmarks in visitor numbers and revenue generation. The country hosted 62.2 million visitors in 2024, marking a 9.8% year-on-year growth and an impressive 20.3% increase compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019. This remarkable performance demonstrates Türkiye’s successful strategy in diversifying its tourism offerings and expanding its global appeal. Tourism revenue reached a historic high of 61.1 billion USD in 2024, representing an 8.3% increase from the previous year. This growth was accompanied by a strong average visitor spend of USD 972, reflecting the country’s successful positioning in the premium travel segment. The extended average stay duration of 10.7 days further demonstrates Türkiye’s ability to engage visitors with its diverse attractions and experiences. The Indian market has emerged as a particularly strong growth driver, with visitor numbers increasing by 20.7% compared to 2023. This surge can be attributed to enhanced air connectivity between major Indian cities and Turkish destinations, growing popularity among Indian wedding planners and MICE organisers, and the introduction of specialised Turkish experiences catering to Indian preferences. Strategic marketing initiatives in the Indian market have also played a crucial role in positioning Türkiye as a preferred destination for Indian travellers. While Russia, Germany, and the United Kingdom remained Türkiye’s top three source markets, other emerging markets demonstrated notable growth alongside India. The USA saw an 8.1% rise in visitors, while China recorded a substantial 65.1% growth. This diversification of source markets underscores Türkiye’s growing appeal to global travelers and its success in attracting visitors from various regions. Beyond traditional leisure tourism, Türkiye has seen substantial growth in …

With the extension of visa exemptions, easy access, direct connectivity and diverse offerings, including gastronomy, culture, heritage, shopping and nightlife — Malaysia presents an unrivalled combination of attributes making it an attractive destination for India’s MICE segment. In a focused endeavor to inspire its top corporates, Thomas Cook (India) partnered with Tourism Malaysia to host a high-impact MICE event in Mumbai. The engagement witnessed strong participation of over 30 CXOs and senior executives from leading multinational corporations and Indian corporate houses across sectors that included BFSI, pharma, electronics, trade etc. along with representatives from Tourism Malaysia and Thomas Cook. These attendees were carefully handpicked by Thomas Cook to attend the exclusive, high-impact event Inaugurated by Mr. Datuk Manoharan Periasamy, Director General of Tourism Malaysia, the event highlighted Malaysia’s unwavering commitment to expanding its MICE offerings and enhancing its accessibility for Indian corporates. Organized in coordination with Nuwal Fadhillah Ku Azmi (Director International Promotion, Asia & Africa), Azura Zainol Abidin (President, Malaysia Sports Tourism), Noriah Jaafar (Director, Tourism Malaysia Mumbai) and T.Ediwanto T.Eddie (Dy Director of Tourism Malaysia), the unique format of the event allowed for a productive blend of business and networking, packed with insightful presentations, engaging discussions and invaluable one-on-one sessions that allowed participants to explore Malaysia’s vast MICE offerings in depth. The intent was not only to showcase Malaysia opportunity but also to inspire significant MICE groups for 2025-26.

The Airbus A321XLR has proven a popular choice with airlines says Gavin Eccles, Managing Partner, GE Consulting & Advisory. “It can fly up to 10 hours, similar to an A330, the difference being we can fly with such distances with 160 people rather than 360 people. This means that tourist boards can start fishing in markets that they have not been to before because the traditional widebody was either too big for most airports or had too many seats that would mean less yield for the airline, resulting in a reluctance to serve certain destinations. But that will now soon change,” he says.

The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) hosted a roadshow in Delhi to introduce new initiatives and enhanced support programs aimed at strengthening collaboration with Indian travel trade. As part of its efforts to boost travel from India, KTO has introduced a $30 per passenger incentive for Korea-bound travellers booked through KPTC members, applicable for travel between April and December 2025. To qualify, packages must include a minimum one-night stay in Korea, a package cost of at least $250 (excluding airfare), accommodation in a four-star or higher category hotel, and submission of required supporting documents. With these initiatives, KTO aims to make Korea a more accessible and attractive destination for Indian travellers. Myong Kil Yun, Regional Director for India and SAARC countries, KTO, said, “With your support, we aim to further enhance travel opportunities, streamline processes, and ensure a seamless experience for Indian visitors to Korea.” KPTC is a specialised certification programme by KTO for travel agents.

Thomas Cook (India) has announced a 24-month strategic partnership with the Moscow Project Office for tourism promotion. The partnership will focus on strengthening cooperation through the exchange of knowledge, best practices and curation of unique-innovative products designed specifically for Indian travellers, towards fostering long-term growth in tourism and business MICE segments between India and Moscow. This strategic partnership aims at capitalising on Thomas Cook and SOTC Travel’s viable leisure and corporate MICE segments in a multi-pronged initiative that focuses on deepening product development, destination knowledge & training, marcom and consumer promotions – to create top of mind visibility and drive visitations from the India market to Moscow and beyond. The partnership will showcase Moscow’s distinctive and diverse appeal as a vibrant destination for India’s leisure, business/MICE and b-leisure sectors. The collaboration intends to maximise on the diversity of consumer segments of India’s leading omnichannel travel service providers, Thomas Cook India and SOTC Travel – across India’s major metros, mini-metros, and emerging tier 2 and 3 source markets. Rajeev Kale – President & Country Head, Holidays, MICE, Visa – Thomas Cook (India) said, “The new age Indian traveller is displaying strong and growing appetite for unique destinations and enriching experiences. Moscow represents a delightful diversity of architecture, art, culture, gastronomy and vibrant nightlife…hidden gems waiting to be explored!  And so, on behalf of the Thomas Cook India Group, I am delighted to announce our strategic long term and multi-pronged partnership with Moscow Project Office for Tourism & Hospitality Development that extends across our range of segments – including MICE and leisure.” “With a vibrant heritage of over 143 years in India, this ground breaking MOU reiterates our leadership position in the …