Tag Archives: Bengaluru

Twenty14 Holdings, hospitality investment arm of LuLu Group International, is developing two high-profile properties in Bengaluru at an investment of Rs 800 crore that will open in 2020 and 2021, respectively. Adeeb Ahamed, Managing Director, Twenty14 Holdings, says, “We currently have three projects in India, one of which is already operational – the first Tribute Collection by Marriott called Port Muziris in Kochi. The other two are brownfield projects under development in Bengaluru – one is near the airport and the other is in the Electronic City. One of them will be ready by 2020 and the other by Q1 2021.” The two Bengaluru properties are at a combined investment of up to Rs 800 crore, Ahamed reveals while the one in Kochi was at an investment of Rs 52 crore. “We are looking to expand in India and are in final stages of negotiations for other projects across India. We are looking at one resort property and one hill station property but we haven’t finalised yet. We are also looking at Dharamshala and Hyderabad as potential destinations,” he shares. Twenty14 Holdings was established in 2014 and aims to become a billion-dollar investment company by 2025. It is an asset-heavy hospitality investment arm of LuLu Group International and already has a few properties operating in different parts of the world. It is now planning to expand further in India and is looking for appropriate hospitality partners.

In a recent announcement, Ethiopian Airlines has revealed it will be flying four times a week on Addis Ababa-Bengaluru route, making the tech hub its third destination in India after Mumbai and New Delhi to have direct connectivity. The flight will operate on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday on Boeing 737-800 and the flight duration will be of 6 hours and 30 minutes. The flight will take off at 23:00 hours (GMT+3) and will land at Bengaluru airport at 8 am local time.

Almost all markets in India witnessed an increase in Average Daily Rate (ADR) of hotels in the first half of 2019 except for Ahmedabad.  Bengaluru recorded the highest ADR percentage change of 9.3 per cent in this period over the same period last year, followed by Hyderabad at 9.2%, and then Jaipur at 6.7% The figures were revealed by JLL in a report titled Hotel Momentum India (HMI) that gave the performance report of hospitality industry in 11 markets across India.

The Hotel Monitor 2020 by American Express Global Business Travel (GBT), predicts that hotel prices in most key cities will experience only modest rises in 2020. Bengaluru is one of the top business destinations in India. Demand from business travellers will lead to rise in room rates by 5% in 2020, even as supply grows at double-digit rates. Ashish Kishore, Managing Director at American Express Global Business Travel India, said “India is leading the way in global technology advancements, which we’re seeing through the increase of business travel opportunities to Bangalore.” Joakim Johansson, Vice President, Global Business Consulting at GBT, said: “Despite signs that the global economy is facing challenges, the number of people travelling for business and leisure continues to grow. But, in most cities, a full hotel development pipeline means this sustained level of demand will not feed into big rate rises.”

In a bid to expand its footprint in India, Sarovar Hotels & Resorts has plans to come up with 16 new properties by the end of 2019. With this move, it will be adding approximately 970 rooms to its current portfolio. As of now, the company has 6,000 rooms and manages three properties overseas and has a total of 73 hotels in the country. The upcoming hotels will be categorised under three brands— Sarovar Premiere, Sarovar Portico and Hometel Suites. These hotels will be located in multiple destinations which include Goa, Dehradun, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Udaipur, Junagadh, Dahisar, Dibrugarh, Morbi, Jammu, Bodh Gaya, and Dindi, among others. Amongst the 16 hotels, the majority will be under the Sarovar Portico brand, the hotel at Dahisar will be Hometel Suites brand while the property at Bodh Gaya will be under the Sarovar Premiere brand.

Qatar Airways has introduced a new online payment scheme for bookings made on its website exclusively for customers with credit cards issued by Indian banks. The new payment option now makes it possible for passengers to pay for their booking through monthly instalments of 3, 6, 9 or 12 months respectively. The service aims to ease and enhance passengers’ travelling experience by making their booking transactions much more affordable and flexible. It also makes it easier for travellers planning to fly with family and friends, with only a minimum installment fee needed to be paid to complete the purchase. Naveen Chawla, Senior Manager Commercial–ISC, Qatar Airways said, “The launch of the new EMI option gives our passengers tremendous benefits as they can now book their tickets online at their convenience through our website, and also instantly access our latest offers. Through this new user-friendly and affordable payment scheme, Qatar Airways passengers with credit cards issued by Indian banks will now have greater flexibility when it comes to planning their travel itinerary. Those who previously couldn’t book online due to their credit limit or a large outstanding balance will now be able to pay for their bookings effortlessly using their credit card. This service is testament to Qatar Airways’ ongoing commitment to be innovative when it comes to enhancing the travel experience of our customers.” Qatar Airways currently operates 102 weekly flights between Doha and 13 destinations in India, including Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Kozhikode, Mumbai, Nagpur and Thiruvananthapuram.  

Global Destinations is organising a four-city roadshow in the country in order to strengthen relations with the travel fraternity and various private players. Having kicked off in Delhi, the roadshow will travel to Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Chennai. Pranav Kapadia, Founder & Director, Global Destinations, shared, “We have got 12 partners with for the roadshow, which includes five properties from Bintan Resorts and partners from Greece, Vietnam and Bulgaria. We’ve got  Swiss-Belhotel International from Bali, a partner from United states and Air New Zealand from New Zealand. We have invited very select agents for the roadshow. The idea is to either target agents who have the potential as we have not been getting the required support from them or look at agents who have been supporting Global Destinations and haven’t met the partners.”  

The Department of Tourism, Kerala organised Kerala Tourism Partnership Meet 2019 in Delhi to brief the media and trade about developments and initiatives in the state besides highlighting its marketing and promotional plan for the year. The presentation was followed by a cultural programme that showcased Kerala’s dance, art and music forms. On the occasion, BS Biju, Tourist Information Officer, Kerala Tourism informed, “Delhi is one of the most promising markets for us. Business meetings are being organised by Kerala Tourism in both domestic and international markets annually as part of our marketing strategy. 32 tourism industry players and trade partners including tour operators, hotels and other service providers from Kerala held meetings with their counterparts in Delhi.” To further reach out to the domestic market, a series of Partnership Meets are planned in 10 cities. After Ludhiana, Chandigarh and Delhi, the Meets will be organised in Jaipur, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Visakhapatnam, Chennai and Madurai in February. According to the data released by Kerala Tourism, domestic arrivals in the state increased to 1,46,73,520 translating into an 11.39 per cent year-on -year growth in 2017 while international arrivals during the year was 10,91,870, an increase of 5.15 per cent over the 2016’s figures.

GoAir is set to expand its international footmark with the launch of direct flights on Kannur – Muscat – Kannur route effective February 28, 2019. The airline will operate three direct flight services per week and bookings are now open at an attractive all-inclusive one way fare starting from INR 4999. Speaking on the occasion, Jeh Wadia, Managing Director, GoAir said, “It gives us immense delight to add Muscat as our third international destination. Muscat is a key market for us and is in line with our growth strategy and more so for the Middle East. We are hopeful that this service would also prove equally popular with our flyers. We will continue to deliver convenient and hassle-free connections and we stand committed to provide our customers with superior experience at best affordable prices.” Recently, GoAir added Kannur as its 24th domestic destination and was the first and only domestic airline to launch services when the airport commenced its maiden operations. On the domestic front, the airline currently connects Kannur to Bengaluru with 13 weekly flights, Chennai with 4 weekly flights and Hyderabad with 3 weekly flights. On the international front, the airline has recently introduced direct daily connectivity to Phuket from Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru. It also operates 4 direct weekly flights on the Mumbai-Male route, 3 weekly flights on Delhi-Male and 2 weekly flights on Bengaluru-Male route.

Air Italy and Vistara have signed an interline commercial agreement to offer single tickets for all customers from Italy to a range of Indian destinations with effect from January 7. Under the agreement, Air Italy will offer its customers the opportunity to fly to and from Chennai, Goa, Amritsar, Bengaluru, Kochi, Kolkata and Hyderabad, in connection with its Milan Malpensa-Delhi and Milan Malpensa-Mumbai flights launched respectively on December 6 and 13, 2018. Rossen Dimitrov, Chief Operating Officer (COO), Air Italy, said, The commencement of our partnership with Vistara is great news for passengers of both airlines. We are glad to strengthen our relations with our Indian partner which has rapidly expanded its network and services in a very short time. Our India-bound customers departing from the US and from Italy can now benefit from a wider selection of cities in addition to Delhi and Mumbai within a single ticket. Our aim is to ensure our passengers a smooth and enjoyable flight and along with our commercial partner to enable them to discover every part of this magnificent country.