Nepal has undertaken several projects with the support of the Asian Development Bank to attract religious tourists from various countries, including India. As part of infrastructure development by ADB, an international airport near Lumbini is expected to be operational by March next year and is expected to attract tourists from Buddha circuit in India. More than five countries, including India, have shown interest in starting airline operations from the upcoming airport.

Medical travellers can save up to 50% more in India than any western country, reveals a report by FICCI and E&Y. The report revealed that the average daily cost of travel in India is 31 dollars (about Rs. 2,232) as compared to the United States of America (about Rs. 16,056). Apart from that, even the mortality rate after 30 days of surgery is less in India (1.4 per cent), as compared to the United States of America (1.9 per cent).

The Hotel Momentum India report by JLL revealed that 15% of new hotels signed in Q3 2019, in India were conversions of old hotels. The report also highlighted that domestic hotel operators signed more properties than international hotel operators with the ratio of 67:33.

Overall cancellation rate of scheduled domestic airlines for the month of October 2019 has been 1.46%, according to Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). The least cancellations happened for IndiGo at 0.28% cancellation rate, followed by Vistara at 0.31%. GoAir recorded 0.36% of cancellations, while SpiceJet at 0.54%. Air India had a cancellation rate of 4.20% and Air Deccan recorded 45.68%.

During the month of October, 2019 total of 2,77,062 tourist arrived on e-Tourist Visa as compared to 2,22,134 during the month of October, 2018 registering a growth of 24.7%, reveals Ministry of Tourism. During January- October 2019, a total of 21,75,727 tourist arrived on e-Tourist Visa as compared to 17,99,552 during January- October 2018, registering a growth of 20.9 per cent.

37% of Indian sports fans happily admit that they would be willing to pay more for sports travel than their family vacation, revealed a report by Booking.com. The report also revealed that 42% of Indian sports fans (highest globally) say that they would cancel their honeymoon if it clashed with their team/athlete playing a big game, vs. the global average of 19%.

Some countries have updated their travel advisories for Egypt after advising tourists against travelling to the country of pyramids for longer durations. More than 2,300 people were arrested following a series of anti-government protests in September and now the government of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi is cracking down on those who would defend them. These protests are impacting Egypt’s tourism, since the Cairo International Airport is the 2nd busiest airport in Africa, servicing about 15 million tourists annually. UK’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) updated its Travel Advisory for Egypt saying they no longer advise against all but essential travel by air to/from Sharm el-Sheikh, which is an Egyptian resort town between the desert of the Sinai Peninsula and the Red Sea. In the updated Travel Advisory, the UK’s FCO continues to advise against ‘all’ travel to the Governorate of North Sinai. The US Department of State updated its Level 2 Travel Advisory as well.

With 28 per cent of Venice still flooded, Italy’s popular tourist destination, Venice is expected to receive high tides followed by heavy rainfall. Tourists have been forced to wear high boots to wade through the water to explore canals, architecture and art of the Italian city. 15 days back, over 80 per cent of the city was flooded. Now, the floods are expected to be reinforced. The Mayor of Venice has declared a state of emergency and has dispatched extra boats to serve as water ambulances to help people. The Italian government has pledged 20 Million Euro in funds to help with the clean-up operation.

A number of airlines have issued travel advisories for cities and areas in the Western Coast of the United States, as a massive snowstorm is expected to hit the on one of the busiest travel days of the year, Thanksgiving. The winter storm is expected to impact travel throughout South Dakota, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin, while a cyclone is expected to dump snow on California and Oregon. Storm alerts have been issued from the West Coast to New York, covering 26 states in total. Over 100 Million Americans are currently under alert for these two storms and airlines including American, Delta, Southwest and United have started issuing advisories and waiving change fees. Travelers are advised to check their flight statues frequently. Scattered rain showers will soak the East, while windy conditions in the Great Lakes and Northeast could cause delays at local airports. Snow is also expected to cover roadways from the Sierra Nevada to the interior West.

Owing to the Christmas and New Year holidays, a number of Indian origin travellers with the Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card are facing difficulties to board flights to India from the US. The problem is happening with a few airlines such as Air India and Qatar Airways. It has been reported that travellers, who haven’t yet updated their OCI documents after getting their passports renewed, were not granted permission to board their flights to India. Now, the Indian immigration authorities are accepting an OCI card with old passport number only for those who are over 20 years. The solution to the problem as advised by the authorities is to carry both new and old passports along until the OCI card is not renewed.