The newly rebranded Radisson Hotel Group announced its expansion plans at Hotel Investment Conference South Asia (HICSA) 2018. The company aims to expand its portfolio to more than 200 hotels in operation and under development by 2022 in South Asia. The group has already signed Radisson Blu Resort Visakhapatnam, Radisson Panipat City Centre and Country Inn & Suites by Radisson Agra in the first quarter of 2018. Radisson Gwalior opened last month and the group is on track to open another eight more hotels in India this year. “This is the most exciting period in our company’s long history,” said Katerina Giannouka, President, Asia Pacific, Radisson Hotel Group. “With the rebranding of our company, we are positioning Radisson Hotel Group for a bright future. India has been a key market for us for many years. We look forward to working with hotel investors, owners, developers and other stakeholders across the country as we accelerate the expansion of our portfolio to India,” added Giannouka. “With a robust performance, ahead of industry average and continued investment in technology and revenue driving platforms, we are optimistic of meeting our five-year goals. I am delighted that India is leading the way in Asia Pacific with a total of seven global brand offerings,” said Raj Rana, Chief Executive Officer, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group.

Post efforts by India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB), the Ministry of Home Affairs will shortly launch an online module for submission of applications by the organisers of international conferences for seeking clearance from the Ministry. The clearance will be generated through the online system and sent to organisers. A copy of the clearance will also be endorsed to all Indian Missions/Posts. Commenting on the same, Chander Mansharamani, Vice Chairman, ICPB, said, “It’s a great news for all of us in the convention industry. We have been persistently following up with the Ministry of Tourism on the need for grant of conference visa. We are sure this will help us to bring in more number of international conferences to India in the future.” Ministry of Tourism has informed that revised instructions have been issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India vide circular number No 25022/8/2018-FCC, dated February 28, 2018, relating to the grant of Conference Visa to foreign nationals coming to India to attend international conferences/seminars/workshops.  

Singapore carrier Scoot will increase capacity of its Singapore to Gold Coast service to up to five times per week, generating a boost to the economy of up to $42.2 million. Kate Jones, Minister, Tourism Industry Development, welcomed the increase in service from April 2018. “It’s great to continue to build on this successful service through the Attracting Aviation Investment Fund in time for the pinnacle event of the year – the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games – as well as other upcoming events including the Gold Coast Marathon. We look forward to continuing to promote Queensland as a premier holiday destination in Singapore, while also opening up access from other key markets connecting through this important international hub including the UK, India and China,” she said. Marion Charlton, CEO, Gold Coast Airport, said the announcement was a welcome addition in time for the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games. She said, “The increase in services is really well timed in the lead up to the Commonwealth Games – providing more opportunity for tourists to travel to the Gold Coast for the major event. We look forward to working with Scoot to ensure continued growth of these services into the future.” Gold Coast Tourism CEO Martin Winter congratulated Scoot on adding the extra service, which would directly benefit the visitor economy of the Gold Coast.

Hahn Air is set to operate a weekly flight from Düsseldorf (DUS) to Palma de Mallorca (PMI) with one of its business jets, a Cessna Citation Sovereign starting May 2018. Flights to the new destination will be scheduled for 19:15 every Friday throughout the 2018 summer season, with the return flight at 16:45 on Sundays. “We’re proud to be adding another European destination with Palma de Mallorca and thereby, offering our passengers another attractive holiday destination,” says Daniel Rudas, General Manager & COO, Hahn Air Lines.  

Thomas Cook (India) has announced the appointment of Romil Pant as Senior Vice President for its Leisure Business, both international and domestic. Pant comes with more than two decades of experience in operations and credit management across sectors, including, telecom, financial services and travel. In his role, Pant will provide leadership and functional expertise to drive productivity and results across the company’s leisure businesses, while focussing on Thomas Cook India’s omni channel growth strategy. Pant has previously worked with MakeMyTrip.com, Capital First, HSBC, Citi Financial and Essar Cellphones. He is a Masters in Finance from University of Delhi.

The Loire Valley region will celebrate the artistic, scientific and intellectual effervescence of the Renaissance in France as the year 2019 will mark the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci at Amboise, the start of the construction of the Château of Chambord and the birth of Catherine de’ Medici in Florence. The region aims to adopt an association with major contemporary art venues such as the FRAC (regional contemporary art collection) in Orléans, the CCCOD (Olivier Debré Centre for Contemporary creation) in Tours, the Transpalette in Bourges and the Regional Domain of Chaumont-sur-Loire, an Arts and Nature Centre. The 2019 celebrations will cover major themes of the Renaissance including heritage, arts and literature, music, gardens, science and technological revolutions, architecture, craftsmanship and gastronomy. A cultural programme is currently being put together, composed of different highlights including a large travelling digital show mixing contemporary artistic and musical creation, an international architecture competition, guided tours, banquets, many exhibitions, international symposiums, etc.

Marriott International has marked an important milestone in India with the opening of its 100th hotel in the country – the Sheraton Grand Bengaluru Whitefield Hotel & Convention Center in Bengaluru. Arne Sorenson, President and CEO, Marriott International, who is on a week-long visit to the country, attended the opening ceremony of the hotel. The company is poised to further grow its profile in the country in years to come, with more than 50 signed projects in the pipeline. The Sheraton Grand Bengaluru Whitefield Hotel & Convention Center has 360 rooms with 39 suites. It also features the Sheraton brand’s signature amenities and facilities like Shine Spa for Sheraton, Sheraton Club Lounge, Sheraton Fitness and Sherato Signature Sleep Experience. “India is one of Marriott International’s most important markets in Asia with the second highest number of hotels and rooms after China. Given India’s robust economy and rising middle class, we see an incredible opportunity to continue working with owners to open hotels from across Marriott’s extensive array of brands, particularly in the upper midscale, upscale and luxury segments,” said Paul Foskey, Chief Development Officer, Marriott International.

Indian Hotels Co Ltd (IHCL) has announced that Rahul Pandit, MD and CEO, Roots Corporation, a subsidiary of IHCL that owns and manages Ginger Hotels, has resigned effective April 2, 2018 due to personal reasons. Pandit has been with the company for around three years. Puneet Chhatwal, Managing Director, IHCL and CEO, Roots Corporation, said, “The Board respects Pandit’s decision and thanks him for his leadership. During his tenure, Ginger expanded its portfolio  in line with the company’s growth strategy whilst achieving its highest customer satisfaction ratings . We wish him the very best with his endeavors. There is a stable leadership team in place at Roots Corporation and we will continue to pursue our aggressive plans for the company.” Pandit stated, “It has been an honour to lead Roots Corporation over the last few years. It was an exceptional learning experience which added value to my professional journey. I would like to thank my board members and colleagues for their support during my stint.”

SpiceJet is set to commence its New Delhi-Leh daily direct flight service from May 1, 2018. The flight service will be operated from Terminal 1D at New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport. “Leh is the 46th domestic destination to be added to SpiceJet’s pan India network,” the airline said in a statement. “To celebrate the launch, SpiceJet has announced a limited period special introductory all-inclusive one-way fare of Rs 3999 and return fare of Rs 7799 applicable for bookings made on a first-come-first-serve basis.” The airline said that it will deploy a Boeing 737-700 aircraft on the route. Source: IANS

Tourist arrivals to Kerala have registered a significant growth of 10.93 per cent during 2017, compared to figures of the previous year. According to statistics compiled by Kerala Tourism, Kerala saw as many as 15.54 lakh tourists including both domestic and foreign travellers during the year. An increase of 15 lakh new domestic tourists was recorded this year, with footfalls going up to 1,46,73,520 in 2017 as against 1,31,72,535 in 2016. As per the report, it was found that foreign tourists preferred travelling to Thiruvananthapuram and Ernakulam districts, while also opting for destinations like Alappuzha, Munnar and Wayanad. In terms of specific locations, both foreign and domestic tourists were found to have preferred Kochi as a prime destination. According to Kadakampally Surendran, Minister for Tourism, Cooperation and Devaswoms, the statistics show up encouraging trends in terms of increasing footfalls both in the international as well as domestic segments. Rani George IAS, Secretary, Department of Tourism, said, “The trend in tourist arrivals over the past five years has shown a marked change in the pattern of tourist visits to different destinations. It is exciting that more destinations are being sought after by tourists, and that shows more destinations in Kerala are gaining in prominence in travellers’ minds.”