The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has urged the Indian government to co-ordinate a countrywide response to the Supreme Court ruling, which has banned the sale of alcohol within close proximity of highways. David Scowsill, President & CEO, WTTC, said: “While we acknowledge the importance of implementing policies that address the abuse of alcohol when driving, we call on the Indian Government to reverse or amend the current ruling. I do not believe that this ban was aimed at the travel industry. It is an unbalanced approach that will have negative consequences for the country’s economy, as business and leisure customers cancel their bookings in those establishments affected. The impact of the ban on drunk driving is impossible to measure, as businesses beyond the stipulated 500 meters will still be allowed to sell alcohol. Businesses within the proposed banned distance, including many hotels, restaurants and bars that serve tourists, will lose customers and revenue. This not only means less income but also means that many people will lose their jobs as a direct result.” The unintended consequences of this ban are that it will have a significantly negative effect on hotels and restaurants in this zone, and will curtail future job creating investment in the industry. Scowsill continued: “Travel & Tourism is an extremely important income stream within the country, the sector contributed INR14.1 trillion (USD208.9 billion) or 9.6% of India’s GDP in 2016 and supported over 40.3 million jobs, which is 9.3% of total employment in the country. India’s Travel & Tourism sector is forecast to be the third fastest growing in terms of total GDP over the next decade. WTTC welcomes the commitment to this sector as …

India has moved 12 places up to 40th position from 52nd in Travel and Tourism Competitive Index (TTCI) of World Economic Forum. Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism & Culture, said, “We are pleased to announce that India’s tourism industry has moved up 12 places since 2015, and now occupies 40th rank globally while countries like Japan, China, US, and Switzerland have improved by less than five positions. The ranking is a witness to the several initiatives that have come into effect, such as the liberalisation of visa, formation of tourist helpline 1363, initiation of welcome kits, among many others. Demonetisation has not had much of an impact as we have observed a six-fold growth after it came into action.” He further elaborated that while tourism’s global growth has been 3.9 per cent in 2016, India alone recorded a 10.7 per cent growth, with a CAGR of about 8.4 per cent. The safety and security ranking has also increased by 15 points since the previous year.

Ethiopian Airlines has announced that it will launch Africa’s first Ethiopian Airbus A350 -900 XWB on the Addis Ababa-Mumbai route during the month of April 2017. Passengers on Ethiopian’s twice daily non-stop services between Mumbai to Addis Ababa, will be able to enjoy the extra features of this latest flying machine: amazing cabin interior features with the latest high-definition touch screen, personal monitors with a higher selection of movies, wider seats and windows, the lowest twin engine noise level, advanced air conditioning technology, full LED mood lighting, which  enhance comfort and reduce jet-lag after a long flight are few to mention. Tadesse Tilahun, Regional Director, Indian Sub-continent, remarked, “The A350 is a game changing fleet that has proven exceptional levels of luxury and reliability for a totally unique passenger experience. We are glad to be the first airline to serve our Indian customers with this latest aircraft from Mumbai. Currently, we are operating 28 weekly passenger flights to India’s major cities, Mumbai and Delhi. Moreover, to further strengthen the growing trade and commercial ties between the booming economies of India and Africa at large, we have started weekly freighter operation to Ahmedabad, our fifth cargo destination in India, since March 28. ” It is to be recalled that Ethiopian has been the first in Africa to own and operate the A350 in African skies. Among a total of 14 orders, Ethiopian currently has three of them in operation.

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) announced the opening of the Holiday Inn Chennai OMR IT Expressway. The 202-room hotel marks the fifth IHG Hotel in Chennai and the first Holiday Inn in the city. Strategically located in Chennai’s IT hub (also known as Old Mahabalipuram Road, OMR), and only 20 minutes from Chennai International Airport, the hotel aims to cater to corporate and MICE travellers as well as leisure travellers exploring Chennai. The hotel has 5,000 sq ft of flexible meeting space and a wide range of food and beverage outlets. The company also expressed that it is on track to having 150 hotels open or in our pipeline within the next 10-15 years. This growth will largely be driven by the Holiday Inn brand family with a distinct focus on Crowne Plaza and InterContinental Hotels and Resorts in key gateway cities. Most recently, IHG has signed three Holiday Inn Express hotels in India with existing owners. This includes the Holiday Inn Express and Suites in the Delhi & NCR area, Holiday Inn Express and Suites Gurgaon Sector 90 with Crowne PropBuild Pvt. Ltd. who currently own Crowne Plaza Rohini as well as Holiday Inn Express Kolkata Airport with DS group who currently own Crowne Plaza Jaipur Tonk Road with IHG. All the three Holiday Inn Express hotels are set to open in the next 2 to 3 years. Sudeep Jain, Vice President, Development, South West Asia, IHG said: “We are delighted to sign three new properties that expand our Holiday Inn brand family portfolio in India. Moreover, signing these properties with existing owners is indicative of IHG’s strength in building strategic partnerships and the growing recognition of the Holiday Inn …

Post the success of last year’s ‘Travel Experiential Show– Beyond Luxury,’ the next edition of the show will be held from April 8-9, 2017, at WelcomHotel Sheraton, New Delhi. Over 60 pre-vetted, high-profile travel buyers and exhibitors across the world are expected to be present under one roof owing to the Experiential Show. Its one-on-one meeting format will give the exclusive list of luxury buyers and leading global suppliers an opportunity for serious B2B meetings, unrivalled networking opportunities and the know-how to cater to existing and potential clients. The specialised event is aimed to identify and drive trends in the experiential travel sector, and in turn attract highly sought-after, difficult to reach clients. The show will be inaugurated by luxury travel specialists followed by cocktail and networking gala dinner on April 8, 2017. “We look forward to the second edition of India’s Premier Travel and Experiential Show. After the outstanding response from the previous affair in December, we are expecting it to be a fruitful amalgamation for the industry people,” said Sarika Rawal Bhambhani, General Manager, DDP Exhibitions.

Preferred Hotels & Resorts has launched a new mobile app and member rate program as major enhancements to its points-based hotel rewards program, iPrefer. “The new mobile app and member rate program are designed to better connect today’s travellers with the unique appeal of the independent hotel experience through a seamless loyalty program that delivers exclusive, on-the-go access to an attractive rate, points, and valuable on-property perks,” said Casey Ueberroth, Chief Marketing Officer, Preferred Hotels & Resorts. “These enhancements are a testament to our continuous commitment to making iPrefer the most compelling loyalty program for independent-minded travelers.” In celebration of iPrefer and the pursuit of independent travel, Preferred Hotels & Resorts is gifting 25,000 bonus points to iPrefer members who make a booking within the app by April 21, 2017. “India is one of the fastest growing travel markets globally, and innovations in technology are significantly influencing the way Indian travelers can explore unique destinations and find independent hotels around the world that offer immersive experiences. The noteworthy benefits of the iPrefer mobile app and member rate program shall further strengthen the rising popularity of the iPrefer program in India, as well as encourage discerning luxury travelers to conveniently book their holidays directly through iPrefer channels for access to competitive rates and valuable benefits upon every stay,” said Saurabh Rai, Executive Vice President, Preferred Hotels & Resorts. Through the app, which was built in collaboration with American Express, members can search and book stays at more than 600 iPrefer participating hotels worldwide, access exclusive offers such as member rates and the iPrefer Last-Minute Escapes, update their profiles, view  past/upcoming stay history and related points earnings, and immediately access and redeem …

Bird ExecuJet Airport Services, a joint venture between Bird Group and ExecuJet Aviation Group has announced a strategic partnership with Honeywell India, a global provider of engineering and aerospace solutions. Under this partnership, Bird ExecuJet Airport Services shall provide array of approved maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services, from its approved facility, including avionics, connectivity, maintenance and upgrades to business/general aviation customers in the region. Bird ExecuJet is developing a world class FBO/MRO at Indira Gandhi International Airport and currently offers maintenance services from 2 exclusive hangars. The existing facility offers excellent logistics and operational readiness for its clients within India and also supports international clients and clients from neighbouring countries This partnership will also provide customers with an option inside Delhi airport to get support on Honeywell services and components, which was not there since the new concessionaire was granted to Bird ExecuJet.

Hahn Air announced that in the first quarter of this year it has already integrated 11 new carriers into its global network of more than 300 air, rail and shuttle partners. Of the 11 new partnerships, eight are interline agreements with carriers that are now available on the HR-169 ticket under their own designator. Among them are Nile Air (NP) from Egypt, Atlantic Airways (RC) from Faroe Islands, Yamal Airlines (YC) from Russia and Plus Ultra Lineas Areas (PU) from Spain. Hahn Air also signed its first interline agreement with a rail company, the UK-based high-speed rail operator Eurostar (9F), whose services are now available to almost all travel agents worldwide* for ticketing on Hahn Air’s HR-169 document. In addition, the Hahn Air Group welcomed two new airline partners and one new ferry partner of the consolidation service Hahn Air Systems. Pacific Coastal Airlines (8P) from Canada and SkyTaxi (TE) offering selected routes in France can now be booked under the reservation code H1 (H1-Air) while the Estonian shipping company Tallink can be booked under 5W (5W-Rail&Shuttle). Respectively, they can all be issued on HR-169 tickets. “We are especially pleased that three of our new interline partners are already using our product H1-Air”, says Steve Knackstedt, Vice President of the Airline Business Group at Hahn Air. “By making use of a dual partnership with the Hahn Air Group, TAG Airlines (5U) from Guatemala, FlySafair (FA) from South Africa and the Greek airline Sky Express (GQ) are now available on the Hahn Air ticket under their own IATA codes while at the same time, they can be issued in all major GDSs under the Hahn Air Systems code H1. This is …

Cox & Kings Global Services’ Thailand Visa Application Centre (VAC) has moved to a new spacious office in Nariman Point, Mumbai. The new office was inaugurated recently by His Excellency Ekapol Poolpipat, Consul General, Royal Thai Consulate in Mumbai. The office is more spacious and offers a lot of benefits to customers including more application counters to make it quicker and easier for customers to submit their visa applications. Customers can submit their application from Monday to Friday 08:00 hours to 12:00 hours (except holidays), while timings for passport collection are- Monday to Friday 16:00 hours to 17:00 hours (except holidays). It is located at Dalamal Towers, A Wing, 4th Floor, Unit No: 410 – 412, Free Press Journal Marg, Nariman Point.

The State Bank of India (SBI) announced pilot launch of a distribution alliance with Cox & Kings Ltd for sale of travel prepaid cards in India. This partnership will help marketing of Travel prepaid card available in eight Currencies (US Dollar, GBP, Euro, Singapore Dollars, Jap Yen, Canadian Dollars, Australian Dollars & Saudi Riyal) and will currently target the corporate customers of the bank. Manju Agarwal, Deputy Managing Director,(Digital Banking and New Businesses) State Bank of India said, The Bank is excited as this has been the third  alliance SBI has entered into for travel Card business to supplement their distribution reach which is already very deep in the consumer segment. The partnership with Cox & Kings Ltd will help the bank to serve their corporate segment and travel segment, where the Bank is not very active in the product category due to service delivery challenges which can be facilitated with Cox & Kings Ltd   coming on board. The pilot will be initiated in select branches and based on the learning will be expanded across the country in near future. Anil Khandelwal, Chief Financial Officer, Cox & Kings Ltd, said, We are delighted to partner with SBI and to offer the entire gamut of forex services and the State Bank Travel card to its corporate customer base. Cox & Kings has an excellent track record in the distribution & servicing of forex travel cards and this association with SBI is a great opportunity to expand our presence and service large corporates.