India became the first international market to hit pre-covid levels for Australia says, Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager- India & Gulf, Tourism Australia. He adds, “Arrivals from India for year-ended Sept 2023 were 386,000, which were at par with 2019 levels. Total trip spend by Indian tourists for the year ended June 2023 was A$ 2.2 bn, approx. Rs 12,000 crore, which was 24% higher than pre-Covid.”

According to CAPA Advisory Mid-Year Guidance on India Aviation Outlook FY2024, international operations are coming into greater focus and will receive an increasing share of planned capacity. It adds that both domestic and international airfares are normalising from post-pandemic highs, despite the capacity shortages. It expects this to be particularly visible from Q4.

As per figures released from MoT, India received about 6.43 million foreign tourism arrivals in 2023 (Jan-Sept) who spent about Rs 1,66,660 crore while here. In order to increase the footfall of international tourists in India, Ministry of Tourism, participated in various International travel fairs during the Year 2023 such as FITUR 2023, ITB Berlin, and ATM Dubai.

SITA explores shifting trends that have emerged in the last year and states that while some megatrends identified in 2022 have witnessed rapid growth in the last 12 months, others also continued to develop, including digital travel, with the emergence of digital identities. According to SITA’s 2023 Air Transport IT Insights, by the end of 2026, 82% of airlines will use biometric-enabled digital identity technologies for aircraft boarding, a further 67% confirmed using touchless and 50% single token.

Digital travel platform Agoda collaborated with the Government of Goa and the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) to organize a Hotel Sustainability Training for industry professionals in Goa. This two-day program brought together local hoteliers for a series of sessions led by influential industry experts, aiming to provide them with the competences and tools necessary to enhance their sustainability practices. Throughout the training, participants immersed themselves in real-world insights drawn from best-in-class sustainability practices and actual hotel case studies. Using as a checklist the GSTC Industry Criteria for hotels, attendees were empowered to assess their current performance and then set achievable short-, medium-, and long-term sustainability objectives. Krishna Rathi, Agoda Country Director India, Sri Lanka, and Maldives, sharing his views on the initiative, said, “We are honored to announce our partnership with the Government of Goa and the GSTC for the inaugural session of our Hotel Sustainability Training in India. This initiative, a modest yet important step, aligns with the Goa Roadmap and ‘Travel for LiFE,’ contributing to our collective vision. Agoda is committed to fostering responsible connections between people and destinations. Embracing sustainability practices is more crucial than ever for a more sustainable future in the hospitality industry. With the right knowledge and tools, we aim to accelerate this evolution.” Suneel Anchipaka, Director of Tourism (Goa), at the opening ceremony of the training, commented, “Our government has made sustainable tourism a top priority, and this initiative by Agoda aligns seamlessly with our vision. By equipping hotel professionals with the knowledge and skills necessary to adopt sustainability practices at their properties, we can create a more responsible and resilient tourism industry in Goa. I encourage all hotel professionals to take …

Concluding a tenure of 7.5 years as Regional Director (IMESA) at Singapore Tourism, GB Srithar, stated, “This year has been an interesting year for us. The arrival of Indian visitors has been steadily increasing post-COVID, month by month. As of November 2023, we have recorded 977,500 visitors and we anticipate surpassing 1 million by the year end.” He passes on the baton to Markus Tan from January 1, 2024.

Sharing his expectations from 2024, Ajay Prakash, President, TAFI, said, “We hope that in the new year, India will also look at liberalizing its visa regime so that foreign tourists will be able to travel to India more freely and with fewer hassles. Travel is increasing and India needs to get a fair share of inbound traffic.”

Union Minister of Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya Scindia, led a meeting with key representatives from the airline industry on issues pertaining to performance and services provided by them. He laid emphasis on enhancing On-Time Performance of each airline, and instructed AAI to relook technical specs at VFR-equipped (Visual Flight Rules) airports to help enhance OTP of airlines. He also reviewed the self-monitoring mechanism with regard to airfares followed by each airline and stressed on keeping fares in check on select routes. The DGCA Tariff Monitoring Unit has been institutionalised to routinely monitor airfares on routes selected on a random basis.    

Cross Hotels & Resorts Bangkok is organising an exclusive webinar for the travel trade highlighting the offerings of the property in Bali on Thursday, 14 Dec 2023 at 3pm. Get ready to win exciting prices and register to attend the webinar. Contact jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or 9650196532.

The MTF Team is getting ready for an exciting day of picnic at a surprise location near Mumbai as a warm-up towards the main match day. Close to 200 trade members have registered for this that includes cocktails and lunch on Sunday, December 17. This will be followed by the main match day on Sunday, 14th January.