The 13th edition of IT&CM China and 5th edition of CTW China kick started in Shanghai with new initiatives that will feature throughout the 3-day event from March 19-21, 2019. Aimed at enhancing delegate’s overall experience, China’s only double bill event in MiCE and corporate travel has redesigned its business, networking and education programme that continues to lead the industry in outbound, inbound and domestic demand. Setting the tone for the show, the opening keynote address, ‘Sustainability through innovation’, underscored the significance and role of innovation in the industry’s pursuit of sustainability. The address explained how organisations in China’s MiCE industry can embrace innovation to stay sustainable and relevant in the years to come.   In his welcome speech, Darren Ng, Managing Director, TTG Asia Media, organiser of the show said, “Our delegates and partners have been our constant source of inspiration in wanting to make IT&Cm China and CTW China a fulfilling annual event to set us in the right direction for the year ahead. This year’s newly introduced initiatives will enable delegates to leverage on the show’s substantive line-up to further their strategic objectives withhin the China MiCE market.”   The new elements of innovation weaved throughout various content components across the show include the Exhibition Walkabout, Meet The Corporates with speed dating format, brand showcase presentation, power innovation luncheon and MiCE Innovation hub including another new highlight, Say Hi to Everyone is making a debut to the show.  

In a recent announcement, SpiceJet has joined global airlines’ grouping, The International Air Transport Association (IATA), becoming the first Indian airline to get the membership. This new move is aimed to boost Spicejet’s aggressive expansion plans especially on international footprint through code shares and interlining.

Lords Hotels & Resorts has announced its latest property in Andhra Pradesh with Mourya Lords Inn, Kurnool. The hotel boasts of 117 guest rooms along with two F&B outlets, three banquet halls, a pool and a spa. Located in KJ complex at Bhagya Nagar, the hotel is just 1 km from Kurnool Railway Station. The nearest Airport is Rajiv Gandhi International Airport – Hyderabad which is at distance of 180 kms. Another nearest airport is Kurnool International Airport which is at a distance of 28 kms. Kurnool Airport will be operational from May 2019. Kurnool is the fifth most populous city in the state and is reckoned to be one of the gateways to Hindu Pilgrimage Sri Sailam. It is also an excellent place for history buffs since it’s full of historical monuments that offer the glimpse of fine ancient architecture. Kurnool district also has a number of oil mills, textile mills, stone polishing units, cement plants, and chemical industries.

After acquiring Arzoo.com recently, Parag Thakker, MD, Shri Mahalaxmi Vacations, has invested in JustClickKaro.com. Navjot Bhasin, Founder, JustClickKaro.com, announced that with this investment, Thakker would be a director in the company. “We are very excited to announce that Parag Thakker of Shri Mahalaxmi Vacations has made an investment of an undisclosed amount. With this, our 1.5 year long search for an investor has finally come to an end. The company has today become a one-stop shop for any B2B requirement, and with this investment we will be expanding our wings further.” Thakker added that he sees a great potential in the growth of JustClickKaro.com. “We are happy to be investing in JustClickKaro.com and we are sure that it will reach new heights very soon. We have many plans going forward for the company and you will hear many new announcements soon from our end.”

Marriott International has announced its three-year growth plan, which includes opening more than 1,700 hotels around the world, at its meeting with institutional investors and security analysts at the New York Marriott Marquis. Marriott will outline its plan to add between 275,000 and 295,000 rooms by 2021, supported by the strength of its record 478,000-room pipeline, including roughly 214,000 rooms already under construction. Marriott will disclose that its new room openings during this period could contribute $400 million in fee revenue in 2021 and $700 million annually when stabilized. The company’s three-year growth plan assumes, but does not forecast, comparable hotel revenue per available room (RevPAR) growth of 1 and 3 percent, compounded annually.

The countries that have seen the most flight bookings to India for the period around the Holi festival are the United States, the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, according to analysis conducted by Travelport. As of 14 March 2019, a total of 14,300 advanced bookings had been made2 through all global distribution systems (GDS) for flights from the United States to India, scheduled between 19 and 24 March 2019. Flight bookings from the United Arab Emirates and Kingdom of Saudi Arabia stood at 12,200 and 11,000 respectively. Out of the ten countries with the largest flight booking volumes to India for the festival period, five were from the Middle East (United Arab Emirates, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman and Qatar). Bookings from Middle Eastern countries in the top ten totaled 35,300, half (49.8%) of total bookings made in top ten countries. With both the US and Canada making the list, the Americas registered the second most flight bookings (18,700; 26.4%), followed by Europe (12,400; 17.5%) and Asia Pacific (4,500; 6.3%). Global distribution systems (GDS) are vast hi-tech reservation networks that allow travel agents, travel management companies and large corporations, among others, to search and book airline seats, hotel rooms, rental cars, and other travel related items. Globally in 2017, Travelport alone processed 1 trillion transactions through its platform. The company also delivers mobile services and apps to the travel industry as well as advanced analytics products, such as Travelport Business Intelligence. Sandeep Dwivedi, Chief Operating Officer at InterGlobe Technology Quotient, Travelport’s Operator in six countries across the Asia Pacific region including India and Sri Lanka, said: “Tourists today, more than anything, are looking for truly …

Hotel Leela Venture Limited (HLVL) has entered into a binding agreement with a Brookfield Asset Management (Brookfield) sponsored private real estate fund, to sell by way of slump sale, four owned Leela hotels located in Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi and Udaipur and the property that it owns in Agra. The transaction also includes assignment of all Hotel Management contracts currently in operation as well as all management contracts for hotels which are currently under development, along with the employees of the hotels. The total transaction value is Rs 3950 crore plus the applicable transaction costs. This is subject to approval of shareholders, lenders and other regulatory and statutory approvals. Simultaneously, the promoters who own the Leela brand would also be transferring the Leela brand to Brookfield for all hospitality businesses. JM Financial Limited acted as the exclusive financial advisor to HLVL for this transaction. Commenting on the transaction, Vivek Nair, Chairman and Managing Director, HLVL said, “The Leela is rated amongst the top hospitality brands in the world and I am confident that the brand will receive a boost and be further strengthened and continue to be known for its world-class services.” Ankur Gupta, Managing Director and Head-India Real Estate, Brookfield Asset Management remarked, “The Leela is one of the finest hospitality groups in India and over the years it has gained extraordinary recognition from some of the most prestigious authorities on travel and luxury in the world. We are excited with this opportunity and look forward to completing this transaction at the earliest, while ensuring that all operations remain unaffected.  We expect the Leela hotels to continue to be market leaders.”

Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI) has elected Captain Swadesh Kumar, Managing Director, Shikhar Travels India, as President for 2019-2021. Sanjay Basu, Managing Director, Far Horizon Tours, has been elected as the Senior Vice President; Tejbir Singh Anand, Managing Director, Holiday Moods Adventures is the Vice President; Vaibhav Kala, Founder, Aquaterra Adventures, is the Treasurer and Vinayak Koul, Director, Snow Lion Expeditions is the new Secretary. The elected Executive Committee members are Akshay Kumar, CEO, Mercury Himalayan Exploration; Ajeet Bajaj, Managing Director, Snow Leopard Adventures; Rajesh Ojha, Co-founder, Banjara Camps and Retreats; Ravi S Kalra, Managing Director, Travel Inn; Vishwas Makhija, Founder & CEO, India Insight Tours; CDR Sam Samuel, Managing Director, Kalypso Adventures and Pradeep Murthy, Founder and Director, Muddy Boots Vacations. Speaking on his re-election, Kumar says, “The focus this term as President is to bring as many adventure tour operators as possible into the fold of the Association, since there are many tour operators in the unorganised sector. There are over 15,000 adventure tour operators in India. I want them to be a part of the Association and ensure that they all function within limits of safety. The second focus is to bring adventure tourism into the limelight and mainstream, instead of being limited to as just niche experiences and keep in focus the sustainable aspects of the eco-adventure destinations.”

Q4 has been an outstanding quarter for Sarovar Hotels Chain. Vijay Jaiswal, Senior Vice President- Sales and Marketing, Sarovar Hotels and Resorts, says, “We have exceeded on our target in Occupancy, ADR and RevPar. We have seen a growth of 2% in Occupancy and ADR grew by 4% in Q4 2018 vis-à-vis Q4 2017. Amongst the cities that have performed well are all major metro cities – Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and cities like Goa, Pune, Ahmedabad, Jaipur. Cities that have not performed well for our hotels are Kerala and Mashobra(Shimla) due to heavy floods and monsoon in these regions. We are forecasting to do well in coming quarter and poised to meet our targets. This is based on our current trends for this quarter. However, the general elections in April & May can be an impeding in our performance.”

The Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India, is in a process of drafting a National Green Aviation Policy. In this regard, a White Paper on the same has been developed for wide consultation of stakeholders. This vision document sets out a strategic framework to address the major environmental challenges of the aviation industry.