At the 72nd Annual General Meeting of the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Western India (HRAWI) held on 24th September 2022, Pradeep Shetty – Director, Maharaja Hotels was elected the President. Maharaja Hotels operates hotels and restaurants, among other F&B facilities in Mumbai. Prior to taking over as the President, Shetty served as its Sr. Vice President and has been an active member of the Association for over a decade. He has also served as the Jt. Hon Secretary of the Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India – the country’s apex Hospitality Association. The youngest President of the Association, Shetty is also considered one of the foremost legal minds on hospitality. He has spearheaded several legal campaigns at the behest of the hospitality industry and played a critical role in bringing together hoteliers and restaurateurs protesting the unethical business practices of OTAs and FSAs, cable TV / TRAI matters, service charges, and MRP issues faced by the members. “The pandemic dealt a big blow to the hospitality and tourism industry and although things are getting progressively better, there are several concerns that are yet to be addressed. The association’s endeavour is to do its best towards alleviating as many pain-points of its members and we will work closely with the State and Centre in policy advocacy for the growth of tourism and hospitality in the region. I thank the Executive Committee for their trust and for electing me as President of the Association,” says Shetty. The new office will have Nirav Gandhi and Chetan Mehta as the Sr. Vice President and Vice President of the Association. Jimmy Shaw will act as the Hon. Secretary, Dilip Kothari as the …

Accor continues to expand its luxury footprint in India with the signing of Fairmont Udaipur, located in the historical city of Udaipur, in the state of Rajasthan, which is set to open in 2024. The agreement was signed in partnership with Keystone Resorts, a real estate development company set on increasing their footprint in hospitality. At the signing event, Mark Willis, Chief Executive Officer India, Middle East, Africa and Turkey for Accor, said, “With the aim to provide unforgettable experiences, Fairmont’s distinctive collection of unrivalled hotels reflects our belief in giving world-class service to guests who appreciate unique locations. As we are witnessing a rising demand for luxury experiences in India, and as the leading hospitality group in the country, we aim to stay ahead of the curve. The new Fairmont Udaipur Palace will continue to showcase our commitment to offering a place for occasions and unmatched guest experiences at the most beautiful locations around the country. We couldn’t think of a better city than Udaipur for Fairmont –a city steeped in culture and has a rich heritage that offers the perfect setting for the hotel.” With a unique location along a hillside, with an exclusive access to the forest reserve, the property is spread over 16 acres of land, offering guests an unparalleled view of the city. Featuring 340 guest rooms with over 100,000 sq.ft  of banqueting and events space, a variety of outdoor venues, recreational spaces, dining facilities and Fairmont’s signature Spa, offering luxurious one-of-a-kind holistic wellness experiences. Aniruddh Kumar, VP Development, Accor India & South Asia, commented, “We are delighted to expand our presence in Udaipur by adding another property within the Fairmont brand. We will continue the legacy …

Spree Hospitality announced the signing of a new hotel in the city of lakes, Udaipur. It is located 1.3 km from Udaipur bus stand and 1.1 km from Pichola lake. This hotel comprises 30 rooms with spacious and luxurious amenities, an all-day dining restaurant, lounge and banquet hall. Commenting on the signing, Sagar Khurana, Vice President of Spree Hospitality said, “We are delighted to partner with Mr. Bilochi. This is our second property in Rajasthan. Udaipur is known for an important tourist destination and this encouraged us to sign the hotel in the city.” With the signing of this hotel, Spree Hospitality started to increase its portfolio in Rajasthan.

Speaking on the occasion of Paryatan Parv recently, Rajiv Jalota, Chairman, Mumbai Port Trust, said, “Earlier we used to be fascinated by international vessels making calls on Indian coasts, especially Mumbai. But of late, river and domestic cruising on the coastal waters and the inland waterways is growing by leaps and bounds. Three years prior to the pandemic, the growth of cruise tourism in India was at 39% annually. Today, there is a high-level taskforce in place under various ministries that has been taking some pathbreaking decisions towards developing cruise tourism in India.”

Asia Pacific is at the centre of growth in the travel industry and Sabre is seeing very rapid acceleration in the recovery, says Brett Thorstad, VP (Travel Solutions), Agency Sales, Asia Pacific, Sabre. He says, “India is the third-largest travel market in the world just behind the USA and China. We are seeing rapid growth in the India market with high single-digit GDP growth every year. This is also translating into the travel market as the demography of the Indian population is changing. India is a very important market for Sabre and that is why we are planning to make some significant investments in India in the next several years and take advantage of the travel recovery here.”

Abdullah AlAbdouli, CEO, Marjan, was recently in India to explore opportunities with investors, developers and institutional funds who would be interested in participating in the real estate development in RAK. He says, “We would like them to explore the success story of Al Marjan island in RAK with us. Al Marjan island is an iconic real estate development where we are looking for investors and developers to develop own real estate model whether it is a hotel, resort, service apartments, or F&B products.” Marjan, RAK Hospitality Holding and Wynn Resorts are working together to develop the first Wynn Resort in the Middle East

VFS Global is organising a webinar on ‘How to make the most of the Visa At Your Doorstep (VAYD) service on 11 Oct at 11am. It will elaborate how the travel trade and customers can benefit from it. Register at https://event.webinarjam.com/register/452/n7kngam6.  

The Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau (PCEB) has embarked on a preliminary promotional trip to India with the aim to reconnect and revive the tourism and business events industry in Penang and India through press conferences and networking night.  The trip is essential for demonstrating the market readiness in India. Some of the Indian local airlines have expressed interest in expanding into Penang after attending PCEB’s annual roadshow last year. Following the interest, the PCEB team together with YB Yeoh Soon Hin, the State Executive Councillor for Tourism & Creative Economy had a meeting with a few airlines to discuss direct flights opportunities to Penang from key cities in India. It is essential to maintain marketing momentum in order to keep airlines enthusiastic about the Penang-India link. “The efforts to ensure tourism is sustainable was taken well into consideration by incorporating the idea of Responsible Tourism into the travel and tourism sector post pandemic. Penang is the first state in Malaysia to launch a well-designed SOS safety APP, making Penang once again the trendsetter in Malaysia’s tourism environment. With your support, we can restore travellers’ confidence to visit Penang and ensure that it remains a top destination for people from all over the world,” said Yeoh Soon Hin, the State Executive Councillor for Tourism & Creative Economy “PCEB’s dedication has not wavered, and our team is dedicated to fostering mutually beneficial relationships and working closely with the Indian community. The establishment of a direct flight between India and Penang is one of the primary topics of conversation at the moment. We are already in discussion with airlines both in India and in Malaysia about the possibility of establishing additional direct flight …

Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, Arvind Singh while presenting the welcome address said that Indian Tourism sector has emerged as one of the key drivers of growth for Indian economy. He also shared that India plans to position itself as a major tourism destination during its presidency of G20 for 2023-2024, where it wants to position itself as a must-visit destination at the global level.

Minister of Tourism, Culture & DoNER, G. Kishan Reddy Ji said that India’s tourism sector is recovering well with strong contribution from domestic travel. He shared that the various schemes like Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD scheme initiated by PM Narendra Modi Ji has helped in holistic development of the tourism sector. He also mentioned that the National Tourism Awards have over the years emerged as a prestigious recognition of achievements in the travel, tourism and hospitality sectors, that has helped motivate the stakeholders involved here.