At the occasion of the second edition of the Tamil Nadu Travel Mart and Medical Value Travel Mart 2019, Apurva Varma, Additional Chief Secretary to Government, Tourism, Culture and Religious Endowments Dept , Government of Tamil Nadu, says, “295 sites have been identified for the development under Tamil Nadu Integrated Tourism Promotion Programme.” He also shares that the Tamil Nadu Government has kept Rs 100 crore aside for the development of tourism in the state.”

In a recent interview, Rishi Puri, Senior Vice President – Operations & Development, Lords Hotels & Resorts, says, “We are looking at ‘MICE-W’ segment for our expansion. Lords will be opening properties in Goa, Morbi, Kurnool, Rajkot and Bharuch in the same category. All these properties are expected to open by end of this year.” Lords Hotels and Resorts will be aggressively looking at ‘MICE-W’ Hotels and has chosen a few locations in the country that it would like to tap as the segment is bound to do well and the great Indian Wedding continues to be a major source of revenue for Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.

PATA Travel Mart 2019 (PTM 2019), hosted by the Ministry of Culture and Sports of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Kazakh Tourism National Company, has attracted 347 sellers from 180 organisations and 34 destinations, along with 252 buyers from 244 organisations and 48 source markets with first time buyers comprising 44% of the total. Mario Hardy, CEO, PATA, says, “This is the first time that PATA is organising an event in Central Asia, and our aim is to highlight the unexplored region of Central Asia, particularly Kazakhstan. Unexplored by many, PATA Travel Mart provides the perfect opportunity to showcase this unique destination vast landscapes and beautiful culture and heritage.”

In a grand opening ceremony, the second edition of the Tamil Nadu Travel Mart and Medical Value Travel Mart 2019 was inaugurated at the Chennai Trade Centre in Chennai. The three-day exhibition, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with Tamil Nadu Travel Mart Society will showcase the potential of Tamil Nadu’s tourism on a global platform. The inauguration was followed by an array of cultural programs and networking dinners organised for all the delegates. TTM 2019 will witness more than 300 exhibitors showcasing tourism business opportunities in the state along with 1000 domestic and international buyers from 54 countries. Apart from TTM, the Medical Value Travel Mart this year will reiterate the importance of Tamil Nadu in the medical value travel sector. Yogendra Tripathi, Secretary, Union Tourism Ministry, said the government had recognised the potential of tourism and approved 77 projects under Swadesh Darshan and 24 under Prasad in Tamil Nadu.

Speaking at the 4th Odisha Tourism Conclave, Rupinder Brar, Additional Director General , Ministry of Tourism, Govt of India, says, “Goods and Services Tax is the top most priority for us and we are hoping for a positive result. We are encouraging all stakeholders to send across their suggestions and feedback so the GST council has all the right data to take a positive decision. We are also hoping to identify an iconic site for Odisha. MOT has come out with schemes to promote tourism. With ‘Adopt a heritage’, we not only want to encourage PPP but also get the community to participate. A global marketing campaign will be started soon by MOT and Odisha will be an important part of it.”

Discussing about their rapid pace in the Indian market, Suhail Kannampilly, CEO, The Fern Hotels & Resorts, says, “We have set up a target of opening 100 properties by the year 2020. We are already on our way to achieve this. In the current year, we will open 25 properties. We have already opened 10 and by the end of this year, we will surely achieve this milestone.”

It is mandatory for Indian passport holders to travel with return ticket if they are travelling on tourist visa, according to a recent statement issued by Thai Airways. The statement advises passengers that the immigration department in many countries have deported passengers due to one-way tickets seeking entry into the country on tourist visa. Hence, Indian nationals travelling on tourist visa must have confirmed return tickets, in order to avoid any inconvenience

Jean-Michel Cassé, Chief Operating Officer (COO) – India & South Asia, Accor says, “Looking forward, the market is optimistic about H2, with no new supply coming in major markets like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore. These markets will continue to benefit from constraint demand, especially in months of November and December which will have a high demand of weddings and MICE, apart from corporate transient movement. Overall India growth should continue to see a positive growth over LY, with robust growth in the last two months of the year.”

After opening a new property in Jaisalmer — Kalyan Bhawan, WelcomHeritage is all set to open four new properties by end of 2019, reveals Sanjeev K Nayar, MIH, General Manager, WelcomHeritage. He says, “Presently, we have 34 operational properties and four new ones in the pipeline. We are also looking forward to tap the wedding segment. Tadoba Vanyavillas Resort & Spa, in the forest reserve of Tadoba near Nagpur will open in September. Inderpura Resort in Udaipurwati, the Shekhawati region of Rajasthan, and , Mount Valley, has been planned as a resort in Ranthambore in the foothills of the Aravalli range will hopefully be launched by October. The fourth property—Badi Kothi will be a heritage property in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, which will be open by end of this year.”

The award-winning JA Beach Hotel at JA The Resort, Jebel Ali Beach, Dubai, has completed its 2019 makeover and has reopened for business from September 1, 2019. The resort has completed a renovation of the entire building façade and the interiors giving their rooms a fresh new feel with glass balconies that overlook the beach. It is an all-inclusive resort where guests can book a variety of all-inclusive package meal plans. JA The Resort is also preparing to open its third hotel – JA Lake View hotel – which is in the same premises as JA The Resort. It will feature a signature Indian restaurant by Celebrity Chef Vikas Khanna of Michelin star acclaim. This property will be operational from September 22, 2019 and will have 348 rooms. Situated on a one million square metre plot of landscaped gardens, JA The Resort features a huge 800-metre private beach, a 104-berth private marina and a 9-hole, and par 35 championship standard golf course, horse-riding, swimming, etc.