In an effort to expand its reach further in the market, Kolkata-based ‘A Travel Duet’ has moved its head office to Mumbai. Pritish Shah, Founder, A Travel Duet, who has also moved to Mumbai, says, “We had a branch office in Mumbai while being headquartered in Kolkata. But we soon realised that if we want to expand, Mumbai is the place to be, specially with the kind of products we offer. Mumbai is also a trendsetter in many ways. We also have a huge emphasis on having Preferred Partners such as Relaix & Chateau, Four Seasons, and Luxury Lodges of New Zealand and we are keen to expand that portfolio from about 10 brands right now to 100 this year. That is also one of the reasons why we wanted to move to Mumbai.” The Mumbai office will have a staff strength of about 15-20 people and will be located in Khar West. The company offers high-end, exclusive leisure holidays to couples. Speaking more about expansion plans for this year, Shah adds, “We want to make the company the best luxury travel brand for couples in India. At a later stage, we will also open an office in Delhi which will purely have a sales and operations team.”    

Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) this February were 10.53 lakh as compared to FTAs of 9.56 lakh in February 2017 and 8.49 lakh in February 2016, according to the latest data released by the Ministry of Tourism. The growth rate in FTAs in February 2018 over February 2017 was 10.1 per cent as compared to 12.7 per cent in February 2017 over February 2016. FTAs during the period January-February 2018 were 21.19 lakh with a growth of 9.2 per cent over the same period of previous year, as compared to the FTAs of 19.40 lakh with a growth of 14.6 per cent in January-February, 2017 over January-February, 2016. The percentage share of FTAs in India during February 2018 among the top 15 source countries was highest from Bangladesh (18.28 per cent) followed by USA (12.40 per cent), UK (11.75 per cent), Canada (4.36 per cent), Russian Federation (4.20 per cent), France (3.24 per cent), Malaysia (3.14 per cent), Germany (3.04 per cent), Sri Lanka (2.89 per cent), China (2.33 per cent), Japan (2.09 per cent), Thailand (1.92 per cent), Afghanistan (1.65 per cent) and Nepal (1.41 per cent).

The Fern Hotels & Resorts has added another hotel to its portfolio with the launch of KK Beacon Hotel in Rajkot. This is the eighth hotel which is managed by the company under the Beacon Hotels brand. Suhail Kannampilly, COO, The Fern Hotels & Resorts, said, “The 34-key hotel is the second property which the group is managing in Rajkot. We already have The Fern Residency. With this launch, we have further consolidated our position in Gujarat.” The other Beacon properties are located in Ajmer, Amritsar, Bhopal, Jodhpur, Mumbai and Udaipur. Beacon Hotels (brand owned by The Fern Hotels and Resorts) is positioned as ‘smart and efficient’ hotels in the economy segment. The new hotel comprises 34 air-conditioned rooms with amenities like internet facility, cable television, direct-dial telephone, multiple computer/mobile phone charging points, mini bar, hairdryer and multiple dining options. The hotel is located 3 km from the airport and in close proximity to the railway station and bus stand.

Tourism Fiji has announced the appointment of Seema Kadam as its Country Manager for India. She will be based in Mumbai and will be responsible for Tourism Fiji’s activities across India. Kadam brings with her an abundance of knowledge of the travel industry and products as well as great interpersonal and business development skills. Having worked and excelled at other international tourism companies such as Switzerland Tourism, where she was the Area Manager, she is well qualified to lead the team in India for Tourism Fiji. Matthew Stoeckel, CEO, Tourism Fiji, said, “India is a strategically important market for us and one that has significant potential for sustainable long-term growth. This new appointment is the first of many steps we have taken to increase visitor arrivals from India and further promote Fiji within the India market. Visitor arrivals from India have grown by 24 per cent over the last three years and we hope to drive these numbers up further.”

Airbnb has signed MoUs with the North Eastern Council (NEC), North East Tourism Development Council (NETDC) along with two key livelihood initiatives, North East Rural Livelihood Project (NERLP) and North Eastern Region Community Resource Management Society (NERCRMS), with the aim of creating hospitality micro-entrepreneurs across key destinations in North East India. Under the MoU, the NEC, NETDC and Airbnb agreed to expand tourism in the North East, improve the quality of home stay facilities and properties in the region, provide and promote tourism resources in the area and cooperate to improve the regulatory environment for home sharing. Airbnb also announced MoUs for strategic partnerships with the NERLP and NERCRMS to generate technology-enabled livelihood opportunities in tourism for micro-entrepreneurs in the North East. “This MoU with Airbnb is a step towards achieving our aim of doubling tourist growth rate in the next three years, by creating more sustainable accommodation options and enhancing the hospitality service standards in the region,” said Dr Jitendra Singh, Minister of Development of North Eastern Region. “Last year, during Brian Chesky’s meeting with Prime Minister Modi, Airbnb had committed to develop a home stay ecosystem through adequate skills training and development and promote India’s high potential tourism offerings to the world; and the North East was an inevitable choice. We look forward to supporting the economic growth of the North East by drawing more tourists to the region,” added Kum Hong Siew, Regional Director, Airbnb—APAC. Source: ANI

Skål International Delhi-125 will be hosting the club’s first wellness programme on April 15 at Nehru Park, New Delhi. The members will be able to enjoy various active and wellness activities based on health and age like nature walk, yoga and meditation and cycling tour, informed Ranjit Vig, Secretary, Skål International Delhi-125. Vig further added that this year, the club has witnessed an increase of 26 per cent in membership, making it the largest club. The announcement was made at a special dinner event hosted at Le Meridien Gurgaon. The gathering was also a way to boost the morale of one its members, Ajeet Bajaj, Managing Director, Snow Leopard Adventures and his daughter Deeya Bajaj who will be undertaking an expedition to climb Mt. Everest in April. Sharing details about the activities of the club, Vig added, “For the first time, Skål Delhi has formulated an events calendar to have a clear agenda for the year. The same has been shared with all the members to allow them enough time to plan and participate wholeheartedly.” The club has also strengthened its PR and communication arm by making inroads to various social media platforms, informed Sunil Ghadiok, President, Skal Delhi. He said, “This year we will be twinning with Washington, wherein like minded members will come together to find business opportunities, network and share the best business practices. An agenda for the same is underway and will be announced soon.” It was also noted that the CSR and wellness committees of the club have taken initiatives to support child education and NGOs.

Pricol Travel Limited, a part of Pricol Group of Companies, announced its alliance with the Advantage Travel Partnership UK offering empowerment programs for holiday and leisure travel agencies in India through the Advantage Asia Travel Partnership. Advantage Asia will be the country’s first leisure travel consortium providing the necessary edge to holiday travel agencies, enabling them to offer the best blend of travel products and services to their customers which will run under a licensee arrangement. The partnership program is suitable for small to medium sized travel agencies, who aspire to grow their business in the outbound leisure segment. It will work closely with their member partners, sharing collective knowledge to deliver exceptional travel services. “Advantage Travel Partnership UK has empowered thousands of small and medium travel agents in Europe, enabling and providing them with the necessary updated product knowledge and current technology for them to be relevant at all times.” Vikram Mohan, Chairman – Pricol Travel Limited. “The program provides different services that support various aspects of an agency run business. At the advantage travel partnership, we work closely with our member partners to provide them with tools to offer their customers the most inspirational, yet affordable range of travel products said Mr. A Dharmaraj, COO, Advantage Asia Travel Partnership.

Cox & Kings Global Services (CKGS) and The Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco hosted a joint event in Delhi. The occasion was graced by His Excellency Mohamed Maliki, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Morocco, along with the senior management of Cox & Kings Ltd. The event showcased Moroccan culture and various tourist attraction in Morocco from the imperial cities to stunning beaches. “I’m honoured to co-host the travel agents event together with CKGS, which gives us opportunity to promote the Kingdom of Morocco as an Authentic and Exotic destination and showcases the numerous Tourism potential it has. Foreseeing growth and significance of the Indian tourism market to Morocco, we are also planning to open of a full-fledged Moroccan National Tourism Office in Delhi very soon.” said His Excellency, Mohamed Maliki. CKGS has recently opened Morroco Visa application centres in different cities of India including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Goa and Indore. Centres in more cities will be opened shortly. “We provide visa application services to Indians travelling to Morocco through our various offices in India. we have taken one more step further to promote Indian outbound travel to Morocco by partnering with The Embassy of the Kingdom of Morocco for this event.” said Venku Murthi, Chief Operating Officer, CKGS.

Grand Hyatt Kochi Bolgatty will be opening on April 28 with 264 rooms. Guests can start staying at the hotel from April 29. All rooms and public spaces feature dramatic views of serene backwaters, the city skylines or lush, landscaped gardens. With its bold and compelling works of art and architecture, dramatic landscapes, opulent guestrooms and suites, exquisite dining destinations, and one of the largest event spaces in South India, the hotel is set to redefine living grandly in the city. Grand Hyatt Kochi offers 3,106 sq m of event space. Adjacent to the hotel, Lulu Bolgatty International Convention Centre offers 10,464 sq m of space, ideal for large conventions and weddings. Offering three destination dining options, Colony Clubhouse and Grill, a re-imagined old world grill and rooftop bar; Malabar Cafe, where the cuisine redefines the regions age old, treasured recipes in a cafe spirit and Thai Soul, a casual vibrant poolside restaurant with cuisine inspired from the streets of Bangkok.

Hilton has announced the signing of management agreements with Embassy Group to develop two hotels in Bengaluru. Construction of the new hospitality project is among the largest in India which is expected to begin this year and the hotels will be operational by end 2021 or early 2022. The 500 room dual-branded hotel that features a Hilton Hotels & Resorts and a Hilton Garden Inn hotel in the same complex will be located within the 100-acre Embassy TechVillage Business Park near Marathalli on ORR South Bengaluru. “We are delighted to sign our third hotel project with Hilton, reflecting the powerful synergies and collaboration between both Groups. Using Embassy’s proven expertise in project development, we are focused on delivering landmark hotels that will provide an elevated service for our corporate occupiers within their work environment. As in the past five years, the mainstay of our Hospitality foray will be to build hotels and mixed-use developments as part of our business parks.”, said Jitu Virwani, Chairman & Managing Director, Embassy Group. “Hilton is committed to grow its operations in India. We are delighted to reinforce our partnership with Embassy Group and we strongly believe that this dual branded concept will immensely benefit our guests.” said Navjit Ahluwalia, Senior Vice President and Country Head, Hilton India.