IndiGo has added another flight to its Tirupati network. Tirupati will be connected by three daily non-stop flights to Hyderabad and double daily non-stop flights to Bengaluru. Minister of Civil Aviation, Ashok Gajapathi Raju along with Aditya Ghosh, President and Whole Time Director, IndiGo flagged-off the second flight from Tirupati to Hyderabad at Tirupati International Airport. Apart from this, Tirupati will also be connected to many new cities on IndiGo’s existing network of Airbus 320s and ATRs. IndiGo will connect Tirupati to Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Dubai, Singapore among other cities via Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Mangalore.

Vistara has announced the addition of Chennai to its expanding network, making it the 22nd destination on the airline’s network. Effective February 15, 2018, Vistara will operate a daily direct flight between Delhi and Chennai, and increase the frequency to twice daily from March 1, 2018. Vistara will also connect Chennai to Port Blair with a daily direct flight between the two cities, effective March 1, 2018. Bookings are now open on all channels, with one-way fares for Delhi – Chennai (economy class) starting Rs. 3,099 all-in, and Rs. 3,699 all-in for Chennai – Port Blair. As Vistara operates from the state-of-the-art Terminal 3 in Delhi, travelers will enjoy a superior experience, and those connecting to and from international flights at Delhi can seamlessly proceed to international transfers for same-terminal connections.

Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) will be reducing the prices of luxury trains, informs Sarab Jit Singh, MD, Travelite (India) who recently attended IRCTC’s 1st Tourism Interactive Session with Travel Trade Partners and Associations. Singh informs that Ashwani Lohani, Chairman, Indian Railway Board, had a meeting with the major stakeholders in the travel trade, where he revealed this news. “Mr. Lohani is looking at rationalising the rates of luxury trains, which are extremely high at the moment. They will be starting the lowering down of rates with Maharaja Express. This is the first ever meeting by anybody from Railways with the travel trade. They had taken all notes and they will be taking necessary action which will benefit both tourism industry and railway board. It’s a very positive sign and we are very hopeful with Mr. Lohani taking such initiatives,” informed Singh.

InterGlobe Hotels and AccorHotels has announced the opening of ibis Pune Hinjewadi (IPH). The launch of ibis Pune Hinjewadi marks AccorHotels’ third property in the city. Featuring 136 well-appointed rooms, the hotel offers unparalleled comfort and convenience with its range of in-room amenities and signature Sweet Bed bedding concept by ibis. To celebrate its opening, ibis Pune Hinjewadi is offering a special price of Rs. 3,699 per night, with breakfast for two from now until 31 March, 2018. Strategically located within 5 km of the Mumbai-Bangalore highway, the hotel is in close proximity to the International Biotech Park and with various multinational corporations such as Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Wipro, Accenture and IBM located nearby. The hotel is situated approximately 20km from Pune Airport and the railway station. The hotel also offers complimentary high speed Wi-Fi access to ensure that guests can enjoy a relaxing stay. For food aficionados, ibis Pune Hinjewadi features the signature ‘Spice It’ restaurant – a culinary concept tailor-made for India serving Indian, Oriental and European cuisine prepared from the freshest locally sourced ingredients. It also offers well-priced, quality home style and healthy food and beverages with both buffet and a-la-carte options – including an eight hour all-day breakfast concept starting from four in the morning until noon. J.B. Singh, President & CEO, InterGlobe Hotels said, “InterGlobe Hotels is committed to continue its rapid expansion over the next few years in key locations across the country. Specific to Maharashtra, Ibis Pune Hinjewadi is our 5th hotel to commence operations in the state. We also have 3 additional properties within Maharashtra in various stages of development which will be operational by 2021. As a destination, Pune sees a …

NITI Aayog, in its report on the debt-laden Air India, has said that it is “unviable” to provide financial support to the national carrier. Air India has a debt of Rs 51,890 crore. The Government informed the Parliament that it has initiated a process for strategic disinvestment of Air India as part of efforts to revive the national carrier. As part of a turnaround plan approved by the previous UPA dispensation, Air India was to receive a bailout package of up to Rs 30,231 crore for a period of 10 years, starting in 2012. “NITI Aayog in its report on Air India has stated that further financial support to an unviable non-priority company in a matured and competitive aviation sector would not be the best use of scarce financial resources of the government,” said Jayant Sinha, Minister of State for Civil Aviation. The total outstanding loans of Air India as on September 30 last year stood at Rs 51,890 crore as per provisional figures. Of this, the aircraft loans account for Rs 18,364 crore and the working capital loans were at Rs 33,526 crore. In 2016-17, the airline had a net loss of Rs 3,643 crore, while the operating profit rose to Rs 215 crore, the provisional figures showed. Source: PTI  

Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) in association with the Ministry of Tourism, Government of Maharashtra, is set to launch the first edition of the Mumbai Shopping Festival (MSF). India’s first-of-its-kind citywide three-week festival will be celebrated from January 12-31, 2018 across Mumbai. The festival will include immersive retail experiences clubbed with live performances across the city. In lieu of the recent notification by the Government of Maharashtra where shops and establishments can now stay open 24X7, the Ministry of Tourism and MTDC will set up Mumbai’s first-ever Night Bazaar Flea Market which will go on till 4 am on weekends only. To enhance visibility of the Mumbai Shopping Festival, MTDC has teamed up with various associations with various retail and commerce bodies. Shopping partners for the Mumbai Shopping Festival 2018 include major malls and retail chains in Mumbai. Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister of Maharashtra, said, “I am pleased to announce this festival as we launch Mumbai as a world-class shopping destination. We are delighted to see interest from our partners including retailers, brands, restaurants, who have given innumerable hours to making the Mumbai Shopping Festival a reality. We look forward to the participation of each and every Mumbaikar, and citizens of the country in joining us to celebrate this mega extravaganza.”

BirdRes Technologies, part of Bird Group and a leading provider of automated aviation and travel related software solutions, has received Level 3 status of New Distribution Capability (NDC) certification. The New Distribution Capability (NDC) certification will allow BirdRes Technologies to offer smoother communication, rich and customised content and further transparency in transactions across its product portfolio. Dr. Ankur Bhatia, Executive Director, Bird Group said, “Bird Group has constantly endeavoured to offer the latest and most innovative products. We are delighted to receive the Level 3 Offer and Order Management certification of New Distribution Capability (NDC) that will allow us to offer products that generate greater business value for our customers.” The “NDC Capable” Level 3 status certification was conferred upon to BirdRes Technologies by International Air Transport Association (IATA) on December 14, 2017. The certification recognises entire product portfolio including Birdres.com, Birdres SBT, Front Office Solution, and Consumer Internet Booking Engine support deployments using Level 3 Offer and Order management.

The Nijhawan Group has been appointed as the Tourism Representative in India for Bosnia and Herzegovina. Commenting on this partnership, Ankush Nijhawan, Managing Director, Nijhawan Group, added, “With Indian nationals looking for newer experiences and destinations, the demand for relatively new entrants like Bosnia and Herzegovina is only poised to grow. It is an exciting time for outbound tourism, and the Indian traveller will only benefit from this trend. Since Bosnia and Herzegovina is a new destination in the Indian market, we will actively work with the trade community to enhance their knowledge about the destination as well as help them in curating exciting itineraries for their clients since the country is a treasure trove of history.” Dr. Sabit Subasic, Ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina to India, said, “Bosnia and Herzegovina is predicted to be, according to World Tourism Organization, one of the fastest growing tourism destinations of the world in the period till 2025. And that prediction is getting confirmed and visible. Bosnia and Herzegovina is already known as a very attractive tourism destination and many tourists from all over the world come to this country. From India, however, we would like to welcome more tourists since we see potential in this market. Therefore, we decided to develop a strategy and promote Bosnia and Herzegovina as a tourism destination for Indian tourists.”

Strengthening its corporate travel segment, Yatra.com has launched a self-booking platform for Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) providing corporate customers with comprehensive and convenient travel solutions. Dhruv Shringi, Co-founder and CEO, Yatra.com says, “Yatra’s latest self-booking platform significantly reinforces our position in the large and growing corporate travel market in India. The platform will revolutionise the way business travellers search and book flights and hotels, ultimately saving both time and money in the process.” The newly launched, easy to use online platform includes a range of enhanced features which will empower the SMEs to automate their process to fulfill end-to-end travel business needs. SMEs shall get curated hotel options, best corporate deals and nil to economical cancellation and rescheduling charges. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) complaint system will allow the user to search through a range of flight and hotel options as per the company travel policy and follow the in-built trip approval process to seek their supervisor’s approval. They shall also have access to real time Management Information System (MIS) reports to enable them to monitor their travel expenses. Furthermore, the invoices will be instantly mailed to the registered email ID. There is also a 24×7 support helpline available for support required on visas, passports, and other offline requests. Using this platform, SMEs can manage their company and employee profiles, travel policy compliance, and approval workflow. “We believe that this technological advanced platform will empower SMEs to control their travel needs, while at the same time making it inherently easier for their employees to make bookings in an easy and convenient manner,” Shringi added.

The Park Hotels enters Jodhpur with the launch of its second hotel in Rajasthan – ‘Zone by The Park’. With 90 guest rooms, the latest Zone by The Park Jodhpur is located at the city centre in close proximity to popular tourist destinations such as Umaid Bhawan Palace and scenic Kalyana Lake. The city airport and railway station are minutes away from the hotel making it convenient for the guests. Zone Jodhpur boasts of 7,600 sq. ft. banquet hall with a spill over 14,000 sq. ft. outdoor lawn for large weddings, exhibitions, social gatherings, celebrations and conferences. The hotel has two restaurants and a discotheque. Speaking at the launch, Vijay Dewan, Managing Director, Apeejay Surrendra Park Hotels said, “We are extremely delighted to launch our second property in Rajasthan, especially in Jodhpur as it is a discerning tourist’s destination with a reflection of history. The hotel is designed to meet the requirements of the price-conscious, design-conscious urban traveller. Witnessing the success of Zone Jaipur, we are confident that this hotel will play a key role in strengthening the brand. We are certain that the hotel will appeal to customers with its design and format.” Zone Jodhpur has 90 rooms in three categories at an average tariff of Rs. 3,000 – Rs. 7,400 per night. Zone by The Park is present in Coimbatore, Jaipur, Chennai ORR, Raipur, Bengaluru with upcoming hotels in Pondicherry, Igatpuri & Goa. The brand will have 17 properties by the year 2020; this will be about 1,500 keys in the next 4 years.