Category Archives: NTO (National Tourist Offices)

The Tourism Office of Spain – Mumbai continues with its webinar series exclusively designed for the Indian travel trade with one-hour webinars in June-July. The next one will be held on Thursday, 10 June at 3pm IST and will focus on Valencia. Those who attend all three webinars and participate in the educational quiz stand a chance to win Amazon gift vouchers. To register, write to jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or 9650196532.

Over 15 top Regional Tourism Boards, Attractions and DMCs of Korea are confirmed to exhibit at the Korea Travel Expo, to be held from 22-24 June 2021. This will include representatives from Seoul & Busan tourism boards, Jeju Convention & Visitor Bureau and Lotte World with its collection of theme park, aquariums and observatory. Young-Geul Choi, Director, Korea Tourism Organization, New Delhi office, says that currently there are 16 confirmed exhibitors. “My office will also have a virtual booth so that makes it a total of 17 as of now. The exhibitors are a mix of Regional Tourism Organizations (RTOs), DMCs and Tourist Attraction. Regions represented by RTO’s are Seoul, Busan, Incheon, Gyeonggi, Jeju, Gyeongsangbuk-do. In DMC’s, some of them are participating for the first time in the India market and are excited to meet Indian buyers. For tourist attractions, we have the famous Lotte World, which will have a 3-people team and showcase their array of Theme-Park, Aquariums and Observatory. They are also exhibiting in India for the first time. In fact, 1/3rd of the delegation is coming to explore the India market for the very first time or after many years,” he adds. Register at www.koreatravelexpo.com, email Jaspreet at jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or call +91 9650196532.

Young-Geul Choi, Director, Korea Tourism Organization, New Delhi office, has high expectations from the Korea Travel Expo, which is set to be held from 22nd to 24th June 2021. “Through this expo, Indian buyers can reconnect with Korean suppliers and start preparing their tour products and packages for sale in future. The response that we receive from this expo will set the tone for the kind of marketing activities we will do in the rest of 2021,” he says. Register at www.koreatravelexpo.com, email Jaspreet at jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or call +91 9650196532.

Beginning July, on recommendation of Tourism Authority of Thailand, the government of Thailand has said that fully vaccinated international visitors to Phuket province of Thailand, or those who have tested negative upon arrival, will be allowed to enter. There will be no quarantine for international travellers who must remain in Phuket for at least 7 nights before travelling elsewhere, under the proposed Phuket Sandbox programme.  

Korea Tourism Organization (KTO), New Delhi office has announced its 1st virtual ‘Korea Travel Expo’ B2B event for India market from 22nd- 24th June 2021. Participants will get a chance to interact with over 15 top Regional Tourism Boards, Attractions and DMCs of Korea, which are already confirmed to exhibit in the event. The ‘Korea Travel Expo’ is aimed at reconnecting Indian travel agents to their previously known suppliers and also a variety of new exhibitors who are looking forward to connect with the Indian market for the very first time. Interested travel agents can register themselves at www.koreatravelexpo.com, email Jaspreet at jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or call +91 9650196532.

Bahrain’s Civil Aviation Affairs has announced the suspension of entry for travelers arriving from red list countries, namely – India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. Bahraini citizens and residency visa holders are not subject to the suspension but will have to present an approved PCR test certificate conducted no more than 48 hours prior to boarding and undertake another PCR test on arrival and on the tenth day of stay.

One of the global leaders of Safe Tourism, Turkey is ready for 2021 summer season with heightened safety measures. Turkish Ministry of Culture and Tourism and Turkey Tourism Promotion and Development Agency (TGA) hosted the ambassadors of foreign missions, in the Safe Tourism event held in Antalya, Turkey from May 21 to 23. Indian Ambassador to Turkey also graced the event with his presence and experienced the measures on-site. The ministry aims to ensure that all safe tourism measures are experienced directly by the representatives of foreign missions to Turkey. Turkish Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, talked about the preparations for the 2021 summer season and stated in his speech that,  “As a leading country in safe tourism, Turkey welcomed more than 16 million guests in 2020, and we are looking forward to 2021 to be a year of heightened safety in tourism season. We are ready for the Summer  2021  season with  more than 10,000 certified tourism facilities across Turkey.” While addressing the ambassadors during the event, Minster Ersoy also mentioned that, “Tourism safety has been our top priority over the last year and we had a successful season of certification program that has become one of the best practices worldwide. In our national vaccination program, more than 27 million doses of vaccine have been applied to Turkish citizens to date. The vaccination program, in which we prioritize tourism workers, will continue to accelerate in June,” added Minister Ersoy. Launched by Turkey in June 2020, Safe Tourism Certificate certifying compliance with global safety standards for tourist spots,  accommodation facilities and airports. The Certificate have been awarded to more than 9,800 businesses as it enters its second …

A breath test designed to detect Covid-19 and give accurate results within a minute has been approved for use in Singapore. The test, developed by National University of Singapore spin-off startup Breathonix, works like a standard breathalyzer test. A person blows into a one-way valve mouthpiece, and compounds in the person’s breath are compared by machine learning software against the sort of breath signature that would be expected from someone who is Covid-positive.

The Department of Tourism (DOT) Philippines has proposed the possibility of setting up a Green Lane that will facilitate the entry of foreign visitors who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, as part of the national government’s effort to reopen the economy. Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said that she is optimistic about the prospect. “The Green Lane will pave the way for the reopening of our tourist destinations to leisure travellers who are now fully vaccinated,” she added. The Green Lane will make it easier for such travellers to visit the country for leisure as quarantine rules are being relaxed with the progress of the vaccination worldwide.

The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) has appointed Buzz Travel Marketing as its new Indian representative. HE Ali Hassan Al Shaiba, Executive Director of Tourism and Marketing at DCT Abu Dhabi, said, “ As we repurpose our strategy on the road to recovery post-COVID-19, we look forward to working with Buzz to increase the number of visitors and drive growth for Abu Dhabi’s Indian operations across different target segments of Leisure and MICE.” The three-year partnership will support stakeholders and further enhance Abu Dhabi’s long-standing involvement with the Indian market and reinvigorate Abu Dhabi’s trade and marketing strategies with a brand-new outlook as part of the emirate’s upcoming plans for the tourism sector. Nikhil Jeet, Director, Buzz Travel Marketing said, “We are delighted to represent DCT Abu Dhabi in India and I am confident that together we will successfully strengthen the destination’s reach in the Indian market. With a widespread network and a team of dynamic professionals, Buzz Travel Marketing will ensure that Abu Dhabi’s wide range of tourism offerings reaches every travelling Indian. We eagerly look forward to working with DCT Abu Dhabi to implement their renewed strategy in the Indian market.”