Category Archives: NTO (National Tourist Offices)

Visit.Brussels together with the Embassy of Belgium in India organized a networking lunch for 35 trade partners at the residence of H.E. François Delhaye, Ambassador of Belgium to India. The event was highly appreciated with warm interactions between the trade partners and representatives from the cultural, economic and visa sections of the Belgian Embassy. In fact, representing Visit.Brussels HQ was its Business Development Leisure – Pieter Callebaut, who was seen interacting with the travel fraternity, while reassuring them about the importance of the Indian market for Brussels’ tourism industry. The highlight of the event was Belgian gastronomy wherein participants were offered a spread of Belgian delights from waffles to beers and fries to Belgian beats. H.E. François Delhaye, while addressing the trade fraternity, said, “During these last two years we have been missing our Indian friends, but now Belgium is open for tourism again and we see the number of visa applications going up. Another good news is that we’ll probably see an increase in the number of flights between India and Europe in the coming weeks. The vaccination level in Belgium is very high and our hope is that this latest wave of Covid will not last long. To our Indian friends I say “Now is the time to start planning your next spring or summer trip to Europe” and there is no better place to start than Brussels, the capital and heart of Europe, a city rich in history and famous for its gastronomy and quality of life.” In 2022, Visit Brussels is planning on continuing to grow awareness and visibility of the European Capital through workshops, sales visits, travel agent destination trainings, consumer programs and much more. Training programmes are in …

Austrian National Tourist Office (ANTO) is conducting a webinar for the Indian travel trade on Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna today from 3:30pm IST. Markus Kustatscher, Tourism Manager of the Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna will present the wonderful Imperial Collections of the Habsburg family in Vienna. “The Imperial Collections of the Habsburgs with the Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna, the Imperial Treasury Vienna and the Imperial Carriage Museum Vienna are one of the most important collections of artworks and breath-taking treasures in the world,” says Kustatscher. To join the webinar, contact jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or call 9650196532.

Jammu & Kashmir Tourism Department has decided to organise winter carnival in the beautiful valleys of Patnitop every week to popularise the unknown or unexplored tourist places in the Union Territory. The 12-day fun-filled carnival will kick off from December 23, 2020 to January 3, 2021 and will be held at Skyview Patnitop by Empyrean, Jammu’s latest adventure and lifestyle destination.

Qantas to launch a brand-new international route from Melbourne to Delhi from 22 December 2021, connecting Victoria to the Indian capital on a Qantas-operated flight for the first time in the airline’s history. From next month, Australia will open for certain categories of fully vaccinated international travellers like students, working holidaymakers and provisional family visa holders. Qantas will connect Delhi with Sydney and Melbourne from December. Australia has approved both Covishield and Covaxin as approved vaccines.

To update the Kolkata Travel trade about the gradual re-opening of Thailand for tourism from India, Tourism Authority of Thailand New Delhi supported by Royal Thai Consulate Kolkata, organized the Amazing Thailand Presentation & Networking Lunch at ITC Royal Bengal on 10th November 2021. Around 75 guests including travel agents, media and wedding planners attended the event. The session started with a welcome address Kasemsan Thongsiri, Acting Consul General – Royal Thai Consulate, Kolkata, who spoke about the consulate matters focusing on their efforts and procedures to assist travel to Thailand for Indians. He also informed the trade about updated guidelines on entering Thailand, protocol for travellers from India as well as documents and process for obtaining Thailand pass and visa. Next information on Thailand Re-opening and situation update was given by Vachirachai Sirisumpan, Director- Tourism Authority of Thailand – New Delhi. He highlighted TAT’s new marketing campaign “Visit Thailand Year 2022” that will emphasize Thailand’s strength in biological diversity and cultural richness under the Amazing New Chapter’s concept. This was followed by a product presentation promoting popular destinations in Thailand like Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Koh Samui and Chiang Mai. The presentation also introduced new products and activities in Thailand that Indian travelers could enjoy. The afternoon ended with a Q&A session where members of the travel trade engaged with the TAT representatives and the Royal Thai Consulate to clear their doubts on flights, procedures, SOPs etc to visit Thailand from India and expressed their desire to visit Thailand soon. This event was a great initiative to reach out to the travel trade in Kolkata and update them about the tourism situation in Thailand as well as to highlight steps …

The National Aquarium, Abu Dhabi’s much anticipated landmark opened on Friday, the 12th of November. Located within the Rabdan Area, the National Aquarium is one of the 11 anchors found within Al Qana, one of Abu Dhabi’s most iconic touristic and lifestyle destinations. The facility includes over 60 exhibits across 10 zones and it is expected to take an average of two hours to complete the journey. Paul Hamilton, General Manager at The National Aquarium says, “We are absolutely delighted to be opening our doors to the public this 12th November and be able to showcase our gigantic and diverse array of animals and animal-related activities to visitors from around the world. The Emirates has a unique relationship with the Arabian Gulf, and it is our mission to honour this connection by incorporating the UAE’s history into the project. The National Aquarium has been years in the making and we are especially excited to be opening in the same year as the UAE’s 50th Anniversary.”

Travellers can travel without quarantine between Singapore and India. The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) announced the VTL expansion, under which travellers from Indonesia and India will be able to enter Singapore from 29th November. “The Ministry of Health has updated its public health assessment and will upgrade India to Category II from 19 November. Our discussions with India are progressing well, and we aim to start 2 daily VTL flights each from Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai by 29 November,” says S Iswaran, Minister for Transport, Singapore.

Remarkable Rwanda, which is home to the mountain gorilla, has in recent years, also become the MICE Hub of the EAC region. The country is now poised to register a sharp increase in religious tourism arrivals, to mark the 40th Anniversary of the Marian Apparitions at KIBEHO on November 28, 2021. The Holy Land of Kibeho is situated in the Southern Province of the country and it is about five hours away from the spotlessly clean capital  city of Kigali. It was on November 28,  1981, when the Blessed Virgin Mary first  appeared to a young teenager, Natalie, saying  “I am the Mother of the Word” . This first Apparition was followed by several others, when not only Natalie, but two other teenagers, Alphonsine and Marie Claire also saw the Blessed Virgin Mary. They were implored to tell the people to mend their evil ways, repent for their wrongdoing and forgive one another.  If not, they were warned that Rwanda would become a “river of blood”. Unfortunately, no one in the country took these three teenagers seriously and just brushed off their apparitions as dreams and fantasies. Thirteen years later, Rwanda witnessed one of the worst genocides in the history of mankind – the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi. Within a short span of just one Hundred days, over one million innocent men, women and children were brutally massacred, turning the country, as they were warned, into a “river of Blood”. To commemorate the 40th Anniversary of the Marian Apparitions,  a Virtual Adoration Service will be live streamed from St. Michael’s Church,  Mahim, where every Wednesday, before the lockdown  in March 2020, thousands of people from all communities and from …

Effective immediately, the Ministry of Health Seychelles has announced the entry of visitors from all countries, including India, irrespective of COVID-19 vaccination status. All travellers will be required to present a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of departure. Additionally, visitors will need to submit a duly filled application for Health Travel Authorization on https://seychelles.govtas.com/ which is subject to verification and approval of the Public Health Authority. A valid travel & health insurance policy to cover COVID-19 related quarantine, isolation or treatment. There will be no quarantine requirement, minimum stay nor restriction on movement upon entry into Seychelles. Conditions for stay for children up to age 17, regardless of their vaccination status, will be as for the parent/guardian they are accompanying. However, all visitors will still be required to adhere to other public health measures put in place in view of the pandemic which will include wearing of face masks, social distancing, regular sanitisation and washing of hands. Visitors are advised to refer to the Department of Tourism travel advisory at: http://tourism.gov.sc/.

Fernando Heredia Noguer, Consul General of Spain in Mumbai, during a panel discussion for the trade on visa, said, “We are processing visas very fast. We take one day to process visas. The visa comes from BLS office and it is processed within one day by the Consulate!” More than 90% of the Spanish population has been fully vaccinated. Spain is safe for tourism. It is also important to note that WHO has now recognised Covaxin as a COVID19 vaccine. However, children between 12-18 who aren’t vaccinated cannot enter Spain.