In response to Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt and Bahrain breaking diplomatic ties with Qatar over alleged terror links, Qatar Airlines has suspended all flights to these nations until further notice. All customers booked on affected flights will be provided with alternative options, including the option of a full refund on any unused tickets and free rebooking to the nearest alternative Qatar Airways network destination. An official document from Qatar Airways addressed most of the concerns that travellers might be having currently. The document mentioned that in case passengers have booked tickets from Qatar on any other airline, the respective airline would rebook the tickets for these passengers. On the other hand, passengers holding confirmed and ticketed Qatar Airways tickets will be re-accommodated according to availability on other carriers at the time of re-issuance as per the IATA Regulations. However, there is not disruption in flights to Europe and US, and passengers on transit from Qatar also remain unaffected.

The Department of Tourism, Government of Kerala in association with Association of Tourism Trade Organisations (ATTOI) will host the International Conference on Tourism Technology (ICTT) in Kochi. The three-day long event that will begin on June 8 will be formally inaugurated by Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran on June 9, and it will address the challenges related with technology faced by Indian tourism and hospitality industry. The inaugural function will see a string of high-profile attendees, including Hibi Eden MLA, Dr Venu V, IAS, Principal Secretary, Department of Tourism, and P Bala Kiran, IAS, Director, Department of Tourism. Dr. Venu will launch the twitter campaign #Kerala #IndiaForBeginners and Shri Bala Kiran will launch the Facebook campaign during the inaugural ceremony. “Kerala Tourism has always been a pioneer in taking significant steps to promote state tourism and support the growth of the tourism industry. This conference on tourism technology is yet another initiative undertaken in association with ATTOI. Keeping pace with the technological advancements also helps in reaching out to international tourists by being easily accessible through social media platforms,” said Minister for Tourism, Kadakampally Surendran. “Kerala Tourism, with its new tourism policy, is preparing for a big leap in promoting responsible tourism that benefits the visitor as well as local communities. The government is confident that the progress of the state through tourism is unfinished without the idea of inclusion in terms of increased participation of the community in general,” he added.

ILTM Asia will become ILTM Asia Pacific and move to Singapore in 2018, taking place from May 21–24 at the Marina Bay Sands hotel. A new event, ILTM China will remain in Shanghai in October 2018, to be re-focused for buyers and planners of outbound luxury travel from China. The changes were announced at the ILTM Asia 2017 Opening Forum in Shanghai last night by ILTM Portfolio Director Alison Gilmore. She commented, “Research amongst our clients shows that the luxury outbound market is growing so fast that many companies are now separating their current and future business plans and marketing strategies to focus on China and Asia as two independent opportunities. ILTM has listened and is responding with two dynamic events dedicated to their own audiences.” ILTM Asia Pacific will be re-positioned to represent the whole of Asia, bringing more international buyers, similar in context to ILTM in Cannes. “We will create the show to be as international as Cannes, with the same ambiance, story and stature but set in the dynamic heart of Asia – Singapore – considered to be both the region’s gateway and its hub,” continued Gilmore.

Destination Canada has registered a growth of 33 per cent in Indian arrivals for the month of March, 2017. Destination Canada is aiming to make 2017 a roaring year for tourism. It is engaged with the trade on consistent and sustained basis through activities, workshops and networking sessions so that the travel trade stays updated about Canada and become storytellers to create required enthusiasm and excitement amongst potential travellers. Pooja Sabharwal, Account Director, Destination Canada – India, said, “This manifold rise in arrivals figures shows that all the diverse offerings of Canada are being extensively explored by Indian travellers. There has been a sharp increase in the leisure trips to Canada from India owing to the increased disposable income amongst middle and affluent class travellers. Destination Canada’s effort in showcasing the voyagers what’s hidden inside the country is a major contributor to Canada’s dynamic growth. We are hopeful that the country will be gifted with doubled visitor arrivals on its 150th birthday.”

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia, represented by Embassy of Georgia in New Delhi launched its visa facilitation centre in the capital city in collaboration with VFS Global, which will be operational from June 23. Four other centres in Bengaluru, Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai will begin operations by the end of this month. The key features of the centre include extended operating hours to enable visitors to submit applications at their time of convenience, dedicated website for easy access to information including visa categories, requirements, checklist, application fees and visa status update; premium lounges for personalised service, etc. The new centre in New Delhi was inaugurated by Giorgi Tabatadze, Director of Consular Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia and His Excellency Archil Dzuliashvili, Ambassador of Georgia to India. Dzuliashvili informed that in 2016 Georgia recorded 350,000 Indian visitors but is now looking at ways to increase the two-way traffic given the long standing history that the countries have shared. “I am happy to note that after several months of intensive consultations, we have successfully accomplished negotiation process with VFS Global and finally signed the contract which allows us to facilitate and offer more accessible services to the Indian travellers through the several VFS Visa Application Centres in India,” said Dzuliashvili. He further added that Georgia is emerging as a very popular destination amongst Indians and the country will try to reduce the turn over time for granting visas to Indian nationals for tourism, business and education. The destination is promoting tourism from Georgia to India as well. Vinay Malhotra, Chief Operation Officer-Middle East and South Asia, VFS Global commented, “We are honoured to enter into this partnership with …

From the morning of 5 June 2017, Etihad Airways has suspended all flights to and from Doha until further notice. The last flight from Abu Dhabi to Doha departed as EY399 at 02:45 (local time) on June 5. The last flight from Doha to Abu Dhabi will depart as EY390 at 04:00 (local time) on June 5. Refund is permitted free of charge whether the ticket is wholly unutilized or partially utilized as long as there are travel segments on/after 5 June, which are impacted by this cancellation. Refund on partially utilized ticket must be calculated based upon pro-rata mileage flown Guests may contact their travel agent through whom the original ticket was purchased or any Etihad office to process the refund.

South Africa Tourism (SAT) and Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) have once again entered into an agreement to offer training to travel agents across India. Learn SA in its seventh edition will hold training programs in over 17 cities in India where TAAI members are situated, starting from July 6-29, 2017. The schedule will cover Tier II and Tier III cities of India starting from Mumbai, Rajkot, Baroda, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Delhi, Chandigarh, Lucknow, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Coimbatore, Indore,  Nagpur, Pune and Goa. Mumbai and Delhi will host two sessions each. DMCs, hoteliers and other stakeholders of tourism from South Africa shall be a part of the B2B interactions and presentations made by SAT. Detailed presentations on itineraries and attractions in South Africa shall be made during each session. Hon. Secretary General of TAAI, Bettaiah Lokesh, says, “We shall be giving a ‘Certificate of Participation’ to each agent along with study materials.” Jay Bhatia, Hon. National Treasurer, TAAI, adds, “The training shall be open to all travel agents and professionals across the country who are already selling SA or have a potential to promote the destination to tourist. This shall be offered free of cost to the entire trade, so as to promote the destination and also to ensure continuous education and updates on tourism products.” This agreement was undertaken under the Preferred Partner Programme wherein destinations are promoted by TAAI to educate its members and the trade at large.

As instructed by the UAE government, Emirates will suspend its flights to and from Doha, starting from the morning of 6 June 2017, until further notice. The last flight from Dubai to Doha will depart as EK847 at 02:30am on 6 June. The last flight from Doha to Dubai will depart as EK848 at 03:50am on 6 June, according to an Emirates spokesperson. Emirates’ flights to and from Doha today (5 June), will operate as normal. Travellers bound for Doha, who are boarding their flight from airports around the Emirates network today (5 June), will be advised to make alternative arrangements. All customers booked on Emirates’ flights to and from Doha will be provided with alternative options, including full refunds on unused tickets and free rebooking to the nearest alternate Emirates destinations.

Association Of Domestic Tour Operators Of India (ADTOI) held its by-elections recently and has elected Rajesh Arya of India International Tours & Travels as its new Treasurer and Dalip Gupta of DGS Travel House as the Joint Secretary. The by-elections were held after the resignation of Kamal Gandhi  and Debashis Dey from the above posts respectively.

Visa applicants wishing to contact UK Visas and Immigration by email will be charged £5.48 (Rs. 455.31), as customer enquiries are shifted to a new commercial partner, Sitel UK. This change and others, which include the reduction of languages in which services are offered, and changes to opening hours were needed to “help the government reduce costs and ensure those who benefit directly from the UK immigration system make an appropriate contribution,” UK Visa and Immigration reportedly said in a statement earlier this week. Britain’s share of India’s outbound tourist market has halved in the past decade. “We welcome our many visitors from India to the UK but we cannot take their interest in coming here for granted,” Ufi Ibrahim, Chief Executive, British Hospitality Association, was quoted as saying. “Tourism is a highly price and time sensitive activity. If the visa application process is too cumbersome, demands too much time and the cost of the visa is perceived to be too high, potential visitors are put off and quickly turn to the completion.” Ibrahim contrasted Britain’s falling share of India’s tourism market (which has been growing at an annual rate of 10 per cent) with that of German and France. (Source-PTI)