In a landmark decision, the Ministry of Civil Aviation is set to introduce an air cargo policy in January 2019. In a video message to the winners at India Cargo Awards, Union Minister for Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu said, “We are currently working on a comprehensive strategy to create logistics hubs. I have already talked to several countries including the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman as well as far away countries like Russia for creating the integrated corridor for transportation along with finding out ways of exporting certain niche products. All of this is going to bring about a huge change in the way we do logistics in India.” Prabhu further said, “Logistics as a subject has been put, for the first time, in the Ministry by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and we are working on it to create an integrated strategy to make it happen. We hope to have a seamless, cost-effective and efficient cargo movement soon which will bring in more economic benefits to the country as a whole.”

The central government has launched ‘Development of Tribal Circuit: Peren-Kohima-Wokha Project’ under its Swadesh Darshan scheme to develop Nagaland as a tourist state. Neiphiu Rio, Chief Minister, Nagaland, inaugurated the project at Kisama Heritage Village in the presence of KJ Alphons, Union Minister of State (I/C), Tourism, and H Khehovi Yepthomi, Adviser, Tourism, Art & Culture, Government of Nagaland. The project was sanctioned by Ministry of Tourism in November 2015 for Rs 97.36 crores. Under the project, the Ministry has developed facilities like tribal tourist village, eco log huts, open air theatre, tribal rejuvenation centre, cafeteria, helipad, tourist interpretation centre, wayside amenities, last-mile connectivity, public conveniences, multi-purpose hall, nature trails, trekking routes, etc. In addition to the above project, the Ministry has sanctioned another project in Nagaland ‘Development of Tribal circuit: Mokokchung–Tuensang-Mon’ for Rs 99.67 crores. The implementation of the project is in progress.

IndiGo has launched two weekly direct services from Vijayawada to Singapore jointly with the Andhra Pradesh government. Ajay Jain, IAS Principal Secretary – Energy, Infrastructure & Investment Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh, said, “We feel excited to engage with IndiGo to connect state capital Vijayawada to Singapore. This will fulfil the dreams of Telugu Diaspora in Singapore and is a great convenience for our investors and business community”. Virender Singh, CEO- APADCL, said, “This is just a beginning to add more such flights to many more destinations”. William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo, said, “We feel absolutely privileged to be the first domestic airline to launch international services from Vijayawada in association with the Government of Andhra Pradesh. These twice weekly non-stop flight services between Vijayawada and Singapore will further augment our regional connectivity that we provide across domestically and internationally. At IndiGo, we will continue to provide an on-time, courteous and hassle-free service and affordable fares to our customers, as always.”

With its focus on adventure tourism by combining marketplace, meetings and networking opportunities, nearly 200 delegates took part at the first-ever ongoing ‘AdventureNEXT’ in Bhopal, also including participants from abroad. Suman Billa, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism; Swadesh Kumar, President, ATOAI and Akshay Kumar, Chairman, AdventureNEXT committee graced the event. The convention was witnessed by global buyers, international/national media representatives, sellers and office bearers of the Adventure Tour Operators Association, hotels, hospitality and tour operators who came to expand their knowledge spectrum and itinerary offerings. Speaking on the occasion, Hari Ranjan Rao (IAS), Principal Secretary — Tourism and Managing Director, Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board, said, “Madhya Pradesh is truly honoured and privileged for being the ever first host of AdventureNEXT in Asia. We thank ATTA and all the international buyers, felicitators, media and national delegates who came together to make this event a grand success. The AdventureNEXT not only brought together the networking sessions, but it also gave a unique definition to the hidden treasures of adventure tourism in India. With this, we focus to promote the adventure travel aspect with full pace in Madhya Pradesh as well”. Shannon Stowell, CEO, AdventureNEXT, Adventure Travel Trade Association, said, “We were honoured and proud to present the world AdventureNEXT’18 with MP tourism. The extraordinary variety of adventure travel Madhya Pradesh preserves is worth experiencing. AdventureNEXT captured India’s religious heritage, mythological, historical, wildlife and beautiful architectural spots clubbed with physical activities and journals for the attendees. This is just the beginning, ATTA also plans to introduce more tours which are adventure-driven panning across the unexplored exploratory destinations of India.”  

Hahn Air Systems has launched chatbot ‘Heidi’, increasing its digital servicing channels to now include passengers. It will initially be available on Facebook with plans to expand it further in the future. Developed in cooperation with Spain-based technology company Caravelo, Heidi was launched to support passengers travelling on one of over 80 Hahn Air Systems’ partner airlines. By visiting Heidi on Facebook, travellers will now able to chat privately via Facebook Messenger and receive immediate assistance with matters relating to the provider’s H1-Air solution and the respective partner carriers’ services. They can thus enquire about their booking details, baggage allowance for their flights, itineraries as well as obtain support for web check-ins. In the initial phase, Heidi will communicate with passengers in English, other languages will follow. Alexander Proschka, Head, Hahn Air Systems, said, “Although Hahn Air Systems is a purely business-to-business solutions provider, we wanted to give the growing number of travellers who travel with one of our H1-Air carriers, the possibility to access instantaneous, round-the-clock support. We will be continuously developing Heidi and expand her bank of frequently-asked questions to cater to the growing needs of passengers.”

Yatra Online been chosen as the preferred online booking partner for reservations by the Hotels and Restaurant Association (HRA) of Gujarat. In a meeting held in Ahmedabad recently, the association headed by Narendra Somani, President, HRA Gujarat, announced that Yatra.com would be their preferred online booking partner and all bookings coming through it will be honoured. The association has assured travellers that they can make their bookings through Yatra.com and continue to enjoy their stay in Gujarat. Commenting on the announcement, Dhruv Shringi, CEO & Co – Founder, Yatra.com said, “We are humbled by the HRA’s trust in us. We share a long standing business relationship with our hotel partners in Gujarat and will continue to work closely with them to help with online bookings of hotels in the state in order to ensure that no inconvenience is caused to any of the customers making hotel reservations in the state.”  

All set to be held in Paris from October 1 to 4, 2019, IFTM Top Resa will offer business opportunities, events, talks and meetings, with more high-calibre visitors attending the event. The show will feature 34,000 industry professionals, with 20 per cent of them being international; 250 different destinations in France and overseas; 10 themed villages and 1,700 brands. Besides, a total of seven key events —the Inaugural Lunch, the Travel Agents Cup, the Startup Contest, the Hackathon, the Junior Travel Agents Cup, the After TO Party and a new evening event for Business Travel professionals, organised in partnership with AFTM, will also take place. The event will also comprise over 150 talks, seminars, workshops and training sessions for travel agents.  

The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) has announced a partnership with Ola to run a campaign from December 1 to 15, 2018 across 19 cities in West and Central India for its customers to win a trip to Singapore. Ola users will have to take a minimum of three rides and enter the promocode “SINGAPORE” to participate in the contest. Three pairs of winners will be selected and will be notified via email by December 31, 2018. GB Srithar, Regional Director – South Asia, Middle East & Africa (SAMEA), STB, said, “Ola is an integral part of the Indian consumers’ everyday lives. This partnership is one of our innovative marketing efforts to engage with the Indian consumers and entice them to visit Singapore and experience our diverse offerings. India’s millennials, for instance, consider the digital space an extension of their social circle, their friends and relationships. They are increasingly defined by shared hobbies and passions, rather than physical proximity or other formal connections. Our tie-up with Ola presents an exceptional opportunity for Singapore to showcase experiences targeted at these different ‘Passion Tribes’”. Shekhar Datta, Business Head, Ola said, “We take immense pride in building great ride experiences for our customers. We are pleased to engage with the Singapore Tourism Board, offering our customers a chance to appreciate and immerse themselves in the culture, cuisine and varied offerings that Singapore brings to global travellers.”

Thai AirAsia is introducing three new routes to Gaya, Bhubaneswar and Visakhapatnam from December 3, 6 and 7, respectively. The airline will operate four direct flights a week from Bangkok to Gaya on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. From Bhubaneswar to Bangkok, direct flights will operate thrice a week on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Besides, flights from Vizag to Bangkok will operate on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. The return flights would be available on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

Rudra Marketing, along with the support of African Eden DMC, East Africa recently concluded a limited-edition Familiarisation trip to Kenya for seven nights, covering Nairobi, Amboseli, Lake Naivasha and Masai Mara. Nikita Rawtani, Founder, Rudra Marketing and Rajiv Chadha, Managing Director, African Eden, were a part of the trip, along with five agents from Mumbai, Pune, Surat and Bengaluru. The exclusive trip was targeted at travel agents who sell luxury and experiential travel with an inclination to learn and sell a destination known for adventure and wildlife. The hotels were carefully shortlisted specially, Chui Lodge, Naivasha which topped the list. It is set in the heart of a private 18,000-acre wildlife sanctuary and is nestled in an indigenous forest overlooking the Mau escarpment. Other hotel visits included Tamarind Tree, Amboseli Serena Safari Lodge, Amboseli Satao Elerai, Mara Simba Lodge, LOYK Mara Camp, and the Windsor Golf & Country Club. Highlighting the experience, Rawtani said, “Chui Lodge is Naivasha’s best-kept secret. This all-inclusive lodge has everything one can ask for and the food is a gastronomic delight. The morning and evening game drives, sun-downers, flower farm visit, bush breakfast and the boat ride arranged by Chui Lodge was an experience that will last for a lifetime. We plan to create many such enriching experiences for the travel agents by conducting subsidised Fam trips and give them hands-on-experience about the destination.” The agents also visited the Giraffe Centre and David Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage followed by an orientation and shopping tour in Nairobi. Besides, there were several game drives and hotel inspections throughout the tour.