The Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO) has informed that the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, Government of India has extended the validity of Airport Entry Passes for tour operators till March 31, 2020. Earlier, the Bureau had extended the validity till January 31, which initially expired on December 31, 2019. “We are pleased to inform you that with our regular follow up with Ministry of Civil Aviation/Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, the Director-General- Bureau of Civil Aviation Security has extended the validity of Commercial Airport Entry Passes up to 31st March 2020. Necessary directives have been issued to All Regional Directors of Bureau of Civil Aviation Security to take necessary action accordingly,” said an IATO circular. The extension has been given only to the tour operators, till the time new mechanism for passes is finalized by the Bureau of Civil Aviation, Security.

Jean-Michel Cassé, Chief Operating Officer (COO) –India & South Asia, Accor has said that 2nd Fairmont in Mumbai with 646 rooms is in the pipeline. “Our upcoming properties for 2020 include the launch of Raffles Udaipur, Novotel Mumbai International Airport and ibis Mumbai LBS Road. We also have the Raffles Jaipur and Fairmont Mumbai Sahar, which are in the pipeline. Over the next few years, our focus is to continue to grow our regional network and introduce new brands. We have 25 hotels and approximately 5,000 keys in the pipeline and under active development.”

Pradipta Mohapatra, Asst. Vice President (Sales & Marketing), MAYFAIR Hotels & Resorts, says, “We are actively progressing in process of establishing a Golf Resort in Satapada region of Puri, Odisha wherein our group will be investing Rs 125 Crores. It will be a five star deluxe property featuring facilities like helipads. Other Projects in the pipeline include a 252-key five-star deluxe property in Kolkata- the work for which is also underway, and we plan to make it operational latest by early 2021.

The Hotels and Hospitality Overview India Report by HVS state that 106 branded hotels housing 9,316 rooms have opened in 2019 in India, while 223 hotels with 20,885 rooms have been signed during the same period. Also, according to HVS, hotel investments in India improved significantly in 2019, with the year setting a record for hotels transactions in the country.2019 witnessed transactions worth more than Rs 50 billion compared to just over Rs 5 Billion in the previous year. Transaction volumes have increased primarily on the back of opportunistic pricing of hotel assets.

Elaborating on the series of holidays,  Naveen Kundu, MD, EbixCash, Travel and Holidays says, “With these new offerings, Ebix Cash brings right to the doorstep of every Indian household, aspirational travel to destinations of their choice. Destinations like Europe, Amarica, Africa and Australia, are aspirational not affluent anymore and  we make them affordable. EbixCash, India’s largest financial exchange, is making them affordable, bringing to your doorsteps and available at easy installments. So, I invite you all to Chalo Europe, Chalo Africa, Chalo America and Chalo Australia.”  

ATOR, the Association of Russian Tour Operators, reports that the total outbound tourist flow from Russia is 7% higher than the same period in 2018.This exceeds the global average of 4% growth over the first nine months of the year, according to the UNWTO. ATOR reports that outbound, domestic and inbound have all seen a growth in sales over the period. Over 80% of Russian tourists opted for beach destinations, with Turkey remaining in prime position and seeing a 15% rise y-o-y. The Moscow International Travel and Tourism exhibition, Russia’s leading international travel trade exhibition, is the best place to gain access to the Russian travel industry. MITT attracts over 22,200 travel industry professionals – top tour operators, travel agents and other travel industry professionals.

PATA’s CEO Mario Hardy has resigned after serving the association for six years. He will leave in December when his current contract expires. He is on a fix-term contract and simply decided not to extend to another term. By the end of the year, it will be 7 years spent at PATA (1 year as COO and 6 years as CEO) for him. Founded in 1951, the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) is a not-for profit association that is internationally acclaimed for acting as a catalyst for the responsible development of travel and tourism to, from and within the Asia Pacific region.

To take it’s customer experience a level up, VFS Global has revealed that it is toying with the idea of offering its customers the option of picking up their passports without entering its visa application centre. Speaking about this is Belson Coutinho, chief marketing officer, VFS global, who said, “We are exploring a feature in Mumbai where it is like a drive-through concept where people who want to pick up their passport can drive through and collect it without entering the vac. We hope we get thhis opportunity because it largely depends upon the infrastructure and space we are able to get at the VAC but that’s a concept we want to adopt. ” He added that 2020 is going to be the year of customer experience for VFS Global. It had also recently Upgraded its VACs.

The Penang Convention & Exhibition Bureau (PCEB) has launched the Penang specialist Programme designed for the Indian market. The Programme will equip select outbound travel, M!CE, wedding and filming agencies with first-hand knowledge of Penang through a full day workshop conducted in each city concurrently with the B2B engagement session. Among the incentives that the Penang Specialists can qualify for are special incentive for group sales of 100 pax and above, family opportunities to Penang, opportunities to attend PCEB’s training and networking programme in Penang and India and much more. The Certification of the Penang Specialist Programme is valid for three years upon which qualifying members will be invited for recertification. The workshop is conducted by Katharine Chua, Managing Director, Penang Tropical Spice Garden.

Sayaji Hotel Kolhapur celebrated the commencement of its high-end luxury banquet Sky Greens.  Sky Greens, an all-new premium event space for social and corporate events on February 1, 2020. Located in the heart of the city, Sky Greens by Sayaji Hotel Kolhapur brings a rare combination of high- quality, designer banqueting experience under one roof. Sky Greens promises to provide grandeur for all customized services that will redefine the standards of celebration for everyone.  The occasion was graced by the crème de la crème of Maharashtra. Sky Greens can house up to 120 guests at a time and is spread over 3000 square feet built-up area includes and climate-controlled glass gazebo. The rooftop terrace space at Sayaji Hotel Kolhapur has been created as a premium banquet space overlooking the horizon of the city at the 8th Floor level. Sky Greens will make you fall into tranquility as you get a mesmerizing view. Richly elegant and adaptable, it will allow the experienced events team to cater for every occasion. The custom-designed food & beverages with live preparations or a 6-course sit-down service; make the culinary experience a memorable one. Every event is made unique by the dedicated team of expert Chefs & service team.