A total of four islands will be developed for tourism in Andaman & Nicobar (A&N), while five will be developed in Lakshadweep, revealed Amitabh Kant, CEO, Niti Aayog, while speaking at the pre-application conference for Eco Tourism Resorts for Andaman & Nicobar Islands. “These are some of the most pristine islands, and one of the last destinations in the world to be opened. We want to develop them as high-value destinations. They will be built around the carrying capacity of the island after detailed analysis.” Chetan B Sanghi, Chief Secretary, A&N Islands, Administration, said, “The islands are Long, Aves, Smith and Shaheed Sweep of A&N islands. We will ensure that investors get easy and early clearances. Also, initially 30 per cent and later 60 per cent of the local population will get employment.”

The Ministry of Tourism (MOT) has announced Incredible India roadshows in the cities of Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok to be organised in December 2019. In a statement, the Overseas Marketing Division of MOT said that the roadshow in Singapore will take place on December 9, while in Kuala Lumpur and Bangkok, the roadshow will take place on December 10 and December 12 respectively. The registrations for this last series of roadshows in the current calender year has already opened and notified to all the associations. The Ministry has asked the interested people to notify about their participation latest by November 15.

The Fern Hotels & Resorts has opened doors to The Fern Residency Bhopal, which is the first Fern Hotel in Madhya Pradesh and is a 58-room hotel offering contemporary accommodations. The company also manages a hotel under the Beacon brand in the state capital. With this property, the number of hotels managed by the company reaches 68 across the country as well as in Nepal and Seychelles. Suhail Kannampilly, the CEO of the company said,” The Fern brand is expanding in the country at a brisk pace.  With the opening of The Fern Residency Bhopal, we are now present in 55 cities across the country.” The Fern Residency, Bhopal offers three different categories of room viz. Winter Green, Winter Green Premium and Hazel Suite. Some of the amenities in the rooms include packaged water, eco-friendly light arrangement and bathroom conveniences, tea maker, satellite TV connections and Bedside Bluetooth connection.

G Kamala Vardhana Rao, IAS, Kerala Cadre has joined as the Chairman and Managing Director (C&MD) of India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC). Before assuming the office at ITDC, Rao was serving as the Principal Secretary, Government of Kerala. He was also the Secretary of Kerala Tourism from 2014-15. In his career spanning almost three decades, Rao has served multiple positions including Chairman of Indian Tobacco Board, Director of Fisheries Department, Director, Department of Tourism & Culture, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Managing Director of SC /ST Corporation in Andhra Pradesh, the Revenue Secretary of Kerala and the District Collector, Kollam, Kerala.

The Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) is all set to elect its new Managing Committee (MC) for the term 2019-20 on November 28, 2019 at their 68th Annual General Meeting at Hotel Sahara Star in Mumbai. According to a circular, released by TAAI, the last date for filing nominations is November 14, and the nominations can be withdrawn by November 25, 2019, after which the final nominees will be announced.

Skål International India has opened its 14th Club under the name of Skål International Mysuru in the City of Palaces. Suresh Charles has been appointed as the President, Prashanth B is the Vice President and Sunaina Manerker as Secretary of Skål International Mysuru. Skal International Mysuru has been formed with 22 members, which consists of hoteliers, airlines, travel and tour operators, hotel management institutions and government agencies from Mysuru and surrounding areas of Coorg, Bandipur and Kabini. The Charter Night was hosted by The Grand Mercure Mysuru, where the Charter Document was handed over by Vijay Mohan Raj -Director -Skål International, Sanjay Datta – President Skål Asia and Ranjini Nambiar – President Skål International India. She also delivered the Presidential Chain & the Oath to newly elected Club President Suresh Charles. Sanjay Datta – President Skål Asia, also presented a Skål Asia standee and flag to Skål Mysuru, for display at all their meetings.

Eco-Tourism programmes in Kerala, managed by the forest department of the state, have earned good profits in last one year. The department has generated an income of Rs 137.31 crore through ticket sales from eco-tourism activities conducted by various wildlife divisions in 2017-18. There are 60 such sites in Kerala. The eco-tourism spots saw a huge number of visitors with 12.68 lakh visitors in the same period. As many as 24,537 foreigners and 42,032 students visited these spots. The scenic Athirappilly waterfall, generated Rs 47.77 crore followed by Parambikulam division which generated a sum of Rs 29.41 crore.

Somon Air (SZ) is set to launch twice weekly flight from Delhi to Dushanbe in Tajikistan on December 1, 2019. Bird Travels is the GSA for Somon Air and the flights are open for sales in GDS. The nonstop flight will fly to Dushanbe ex. Delhi on every Wednesday & Sunday and will reduce travel time to only 2hrs 30 minutes from the earlier 10-12 hours through connecting flights. There is a huge Indian student community in Tajikistan studying medicine, and there are many Indian pharma companies. Apart from that, it is a great destination for leisure and MiCE groups.

Travel MiCE Show, this year, has been scheduled for December 14 & 15 at the Trident Chennai. The show will entail pan-India 30 corporate meetings on Day 1 and interactions and meetings with MiCE specialists on Day 2.  The show will also conduct over 1800 tailored meetings over two days.

VFS Global has been named an official ticket re-seller for Expo 2020 Dubai, the World’s Greatest Show, to be held in the UAE between 20 October 2020 and 10 April 2021. Customers travelling to the UAE during Expo 2020 can visit their nearest VFS Global Visa Application Centre in the GCC, India, China, Russia, UK and Germany to plan their trip, leverage VFS Global’s services and reserve their Expo 2020 tickets. Business travellers can start booking their tickets from today, from destination management companies, travel agents and educational institutions, while leisure travellers will be able to do so early next year on vfsglobal.com. VFS Global will be offering a range of packages with suggested itineraries that include single- and three-day passes to visit Expo 2020 Dubai. Customers who opt to submit their visa application through the Premium Lounge, or hold a VFS Global Privilege Program membership, can also enjoy discounts on the packages they purchase.