Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) is receiving warm response ahead for its 11th edition this September, with nearly 1,000 people proposing participation within the first three weeks of registration for the country’s biggest tourism event. July 31 is the last date for pre-registration of what is the country’s biggest tourism event that will bring entrepreneurs across India and abroad to the state’s products and services in the travel industry. The three-day biennial event, starting after the inauguration on September 24 evening, will be held at the Sagara and Samudrika Convention Centre of Cochin Port Trust in Willingdon Island here. As pre-registrations started on January 20, as many as 548 applications have come in from within the country, 165 from abroad. These include 47 entries from the international media and 21 from the domestic. The 2000-founded KTM Society is the biggest tourism body of Kerala. “The pre-registration rush shows that KTM continues to show the faith people have in the event,” said KTM President Baby Mathew Somatheeram. “The 2018 KTM could give Kerala’s tourism to new direction and fresh energy after the natural calamity the state faced that year. The coming edition, too, will toe that line, aiming to present innovative products and services that can rejuvenate the sector,” he added.

After experiencing a lull in Indian arrivals in 2019, the Egyptian Tourism Promotion Board is now tightening its belt and looking at aggressively promoting the destination in this market. Mohamed Medhat Aziz, Vice Director of Australia & Asia Markets Unit, Egyptian Tourism Promotion Board, who was in Mumbai recently, said, “We have increased our focus on the India market. We believe it is one of the most important markets for us. We are working on this and are planning to increase our campaigns and our advertising in this market. We know that Indians like cultural tourism, but we also have on offer diving, golfing as well as MICE. We will start to focus on these special interest groups in India. Our aim is also to tell the travel agents and tour operators here that the political situation in Egypt is now completely stable and a good indication of this is the huge amounts of investments we see coming in. We will also open our Grand Egyptian Museum later this year.” The much-anticipated Grand Egyptian Museum (GEM) is reported to cost one billion dollars and has managed to create global excitement. The massive museum is set to accommodate nearly 100,000 objects, including a large repertoire of around 5,000 belongings of King Tutankhamen – 2,000 of which are being showcased for the first time ever. Hotels around the museum, located near the Giza Pyramids, are currently undergoing a comprehensive renovation process in preparation to accommodate waves of tourists coming to the museum. The GEM will also feature several entertainment hubs including restaurants and theaters, alongside the main hall, a reception area for VIP visitors, the conferences hall, and a playground.

The Association of Domestic Tour Operators (ADTOI) has launched its Tamil Nadu Chapter at Hotel Ambassador Pallava in Chennai recently. PP Khanna, President, ADTOI, revealed that it is the 11th chapter of the association, which is aimed to bring more tourist traffic to the state. Kalaimamani VKT Balan of Madura Travel Service is the Chairman of ADTOI Tamil Nadu Chapter, while P. Ashok Kumar from Maanas Sarover Tours & Travels has been named as the Secretary. Vishnu Vasanth Kumar from Emperor Traveline is the Treasurer and R. Saraswathi is named as the Lady Entrepreneur Officer (LEO) of the Chapter. The Chief Guest at the launch was K. Pandia Rajan, Minister of Tamil Development, Culture, Archaeology, Govt. of Tamil Nadu and Guest of Honour was V. Krishnamoorthy, Deputy High Commissioner of Sri Lanka, Thiru. Saravanan Karathihayan, Consulate General of Malaysia; V Irai Anbu IAS, Addl Chief Secretary, Director – Anna Institute of Management, Government of Tamil Nadu; and Officials from Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, officials from national Associations of TAAI & TAFI, invitees from local Travel, Tourism & Hospitality fraternity including ADTOI members. ADTOI delegation of 11 Managing committee members was led by PP Khanna, President from Delhi participated in the launching ceremony.

Bengal Travel Mart (BTM) 2020 will be held from 22-24 February in Siliguri. BTM brings together the business fraternity and tourism products and services. A varied range of sellers with different tourism products of the region will participate in the mart. This B2B event has been carefully thought out and planned in such a way that sellers and potential buyers of services have the opportunity to establish partnerships within the space of a single day or 2 days. The main aim is to expand the geography of sales of the exhibition’s participants and to introduce players to new areas and services to which they previously did not have access. For registrations, please log on to www.bengaltravelmart.in.

The Globus family of brands – Globus, Cosmos, Monograms and Avalon Waterways – has launched a completely new online travel specialist programme for 2020. Titled Globus Family of Brands University, the specialist programme offers three different courses for Avalon waterways, Globus & Cosmos and Monograms. To encourage and inspire travel agents, Globus family has announced a gift voucher of Rs. 500/- to all the agents who complete the modules successfully before 29 February 2020. Upon successfully finishing the programme, travel agent partners will receive a host of benefits including a Certificate of Completion and getting showcased on the Globus & Cosmos websites as experts. “We have noticed, on average, about 30 per cent increase in sales from agents who have completed our specialist programmes. If an agent or agency is serious about increasing their revenue, specialising in selling the Globus family of brands increases their knowledge of our vacations manifold and makes them extremely profitable,” said Varesh Chopra, Globus family of brands’ Regional Director, India, South Asia & Middle East.

Inaugurating development projects worth over Rs 1,200 crore in Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that his government is giving top priority to roads, highways, waterways and railways, especially in terms of infrastructure. “Today when we talk about $5 trillion economy in India, tourism is an integral part of it. Besides nature, heritage tourism has a strong role to play in achieving the goal. Also, along with Varanasi other holy sites are being developed using new technologies,” he said. Developing major spots of faith and spirituality around the country, the government is working to make them accessible and convenient for pilgrims and tourists. For which, I have flagged off the Kashi-Mahakal Express to connect Varanasi with Onkareshwar and Mahakaleshwar,” PM Modi further said.

India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), has signed an MoU with Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Limited for development of heritage sites in the state. As part of the MoU, ITDC would provide consultancy services for innovative/ decorative lighting and illumination of important monuments and sound and light show at other important places in Gujarat. The MoU was signed by G Kamala Vardhana Rao, CMD, ITDC and Jenu Devan, Commissioner of Tourism and Managing Director, Tourism Corporation of Gujarat in the presence of Prahlad Singh Patel, Minister of State, Tourism, and Vijay Rupani, Chief Minister, Gujarat. Speaking at inaugural session, Prahlad Singh Patel said, “There is a great scope for developing tourism in Gujarat for which the state government has developed many more new focused sights to attract tourism. State Government may work in tandem with ITDC to promote and develop tourism through innovative and creative steps.”

An Indian traveller spent approximately USD 1100 on a trip to the Middle East in 2018, as per the data from Euromonitor International. An Indian business or experience-seeking traveller is likely to spend at least 15% more than the average spend per trip while a budget traveller is likely to spend up ot 15% to 20% less than the average spent per trip.

Jazeera Airways has announced a five per cent IATA commission for all the tickets that trade partners issue through its CRS partners, Amadeus and Galileo. This offer is with effect from 14 February, 2020 till 31 March, 2020. The code to avail  commission is 1A: FM05 and 1G: TMU1Z05.  

The European Union has announced new visa rules on short-stay visas, which are applicable from February 2, 2020. The new rules apply to 105 third countries whose citizens require a visa to enter the European Union. At the same time, no changes in visa policy will occur for countries that have a visa-free travel regime in the EU. The visa fee has increased for all applicants from €60 per application to €80, and for children from €35 to €40. The fee does not change for nationals of countries that have a visa-facilitation agreement with the European Union, for which the fee remains €35. Under the new rules, the application form can now be signed and submitted electronically, wherever possible. This means that applicants will also be able to sign the applications electronically, which signature should then be recognized by the competent Member State. Now, applying for visa six months in advance of a trip is possible, which was earlier only allowed as early as three months in advance. With the new code, the Schengen Member States will be present in more countries, so that travellers will no longer have to travel to a neighbouring country just to file an application. Also, frequent travellers to the Schengen Area, either for business, tourism, or other short-term purposes, will benefit most from the new rules for Schengen Visa application, as they would be granted with the benefit of getting a multiple-entry visa valid for up to five years, given that have a positive visa history, which means they meet the following conditions—They have lawfully used their previous visas; they have a good economic situation in the country of origin; and they have a …