Government of Jharkhand, Airports Authority of India (AAI), and Defense Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) signed a tripartite MoU for development of Deoghar Airport in Deoghar district of Jharkhand. The existing Deoghar Airport will be developed for operations of A-320 and C-130 aircraft. Signing of MoU took place in a ceremony held at the CM residence. The Govt. of Jharkhand has acquired 600.34 acres of land which will be handed over to AAI apart from the existing 53.41 acres Deoghar Airport land. DRDO, Jharkhand Govt. and AAI will provide Rs. 200 crores, Rs. 50 crores respectively to develop, operationalise and maintain the airport. The time frame given to develop and operationalise the Deoghar Airport is two years. Chief  Minister of Jharkhand Raghubar Das,  Minister of State for Civil Aviation Jayant Sinha,  Minister of Transport, Govt. of Jharkhand C.P.Singh,  MP Ram Tahal Chaudhaury and  MP Nishikant Dubey graced the occasion. Dr. Guru Prasad Mahapatra,  Chairman AAI,  Rajbala Verma, Chief Secretary, Govt. of Jharkhand, Amit Khare, Development Commissioner, Govt. of Jharkhand, Sudhir Raheja, Member Planning AAI, Sanjay Jain, RED (ER), AAI, H. S. Chaudhry, Additional Director of DRDO, Anil Vikram, Airport Director, Ranchi, senior officials of State Govt. of Jharkhand and AAI were also present on this occasion.

Indian passport holders with a valid American visa or a Green Card can avail visa on arrival in the United Arab Emirates. The entry visa will be issued upon arrival as per the decree approved by the UAE Cabinet. The decision aims at advancing the UAE-India relations in economic, politics, and trade. It contributes to achieving UAE’s vision to be the leading country in attracting global tourism. “Citizens of the Republic of India who are holders of normal passports with a six-month, or more, valid green card or visa issued by the United States of America shall be granted entry visas to the UAE from all ports for a period of 14 days, subject for a single renewal for the same period upon payment of applicable fees,” an official statement said. The number of Indian tourists coming to the UAE last year reached about 1.6 million Indian tourists, and there were about 50,000 UAE tourists who visited India in the same year. There are about 143 flights a day between the UAE and Indian cities, at a rate of 1000 flights per week. The UAE-India trade has grown to around $60 billion per annum as per the latest figures, making India the second largest trading partner of UAE. The UAE exports to India totaled $27 billion while Indian exports to UAE totaled $33 billion. India is investing about $70 billion in the UAE through 45,000 Indian companies, while the UAE is investing $10 billion in the Indian sectors of energy, metallurgical industry, services, technology and construction. A number of UAE companies invest and operate in India such as Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (ADNEC), Emaar, …

Louvre Hotels Group is all set to announce the launch of its fifth property- the 110-room Golden Tulip Suites, Gurgaon, in Delhi NCR region. Golden Tulip Suites Gurgaon is in close proximity to the main Gurgaon city and to the international airport. The location of the hotel provides easy connectivity to Faridabad, Delhi and Gurgaon. The hotel also boasts two meeting rooms well equipped with state of art technology and conference facilities for all corporate functions. Golden Tulip Suites Gurgaon offers world class facilities and services for both leisure and corporate clients, with a fitness center and a swimming pool, the property promises a premium product available at an attractive price bands. Gwalapahari as a location is away from the  hustle and bustle of the city traffic with  an easy access to the business centers of the region, Golden Tulip Suites Gurgaon will provide an array of facilities and services to take away the best spots. The hotel is right opposite TERI Golf Course and is at a walkable distance from the ASF IT SEZ in Gurgaon. The other four properties in Delhi NCR by Louvre Hotels Group are Golden Tulip Chattarpur, Golden Tulip Vasundhara, Golden Tulip Hari Nagar and Golden Tulip Galgotia’s.Louvre Hotels Group is a subsidiary of Jin Jiang International Holdings Co., Ltd. one of China’s largest tourist and travel conglomerates. Vimal Singh, Managing Director, Golden Tulip Hotels and Resorts, South Asia said, “The launch of our second property in Gurgaon is a strategic decision of the group to expand our brand presence in the  Delhi NCR region. In Gwalpahari, Gurgaon, there is a requirement of quality accommodation and our property promises to deliver the international standard of …

During its AGM held in Thiruvananthapuram, the members of the IATA Agents Association of India (IAAI) unanimously decided to withdraw their support to Emirates Airlines. Speaking about this move, Biji Eapen, National President, IAAI, says, “In case of non-adherence to regulatory requirements, we have decided not to sell or promote Emirates or any of its ancillary services  from April 1, 2017 onwards.” The association had earlier written a letter to Emirates requesting it to withhold its proposed reduction of commission from April 1, 2017 and retain the present level of commission  at three per cent gross or more till the Kerala High Court verdict. Eapen adds, “Our case WP25752/2013 and WA1136/2015 in the Hon High Court of Kerala for implementation, execution, and enforcement of DGCA Order March 5, 2010 is now scheduled for division bench hearing on May 25, 2017.”

As many as 201,333 foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) in India on Medical Visa were recorded in 2016, while there were 1,34,344 FTAs in 2015 and 75,688 FTAs in 2014. This information was given by Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State for Tourism and Culture (Independent Charge) in a written reply in Rajya Sabha. In order to simplify and speed up the procedure of obtaining Visa for tourists coming to India for medical purposes, the Government of India has extended the facility of e-Medical Visa. Other measures taken by the Government to facilitate the tourists coming through e- Medical Visa are: Extension of duration of stay for upto 6 months may be granted on case to case basis on merits of each case by the Foreigners Regional Registration Officer (FRRO)/Foreigners Registration Officer (FRO) concerned. Triple entry will be permitted as against single entry earlier. In case of emergency, if Medical Visa is recommended by an accredited hospital in India, Indian Missions/Posts abroad should decide on such request within 48 hours of getting the application.

Airbnb has officially launched its new platform Trips in New Delhi, adding 15 bookable local experiences to the thousands of homes available to stay in. Trips is a way to experience a different side of the city, immersing themselves in communities through the eyes of locals. For cities, it can help to diversify tourism away from busy city centers. It also allows local people to participate and benefit from tourism by sharing their interests and passions, while enabling them to make a little extra money. Brian Chesky, Co-Founder, CEO and Head of Community of Airbnb, said, “Trips is the most significant development in the history of Airbnb. We’re moving beyond just the home, bringing together where you stay, what you do and the people you meet all in one place.  I’m excited to launch India Trips as we’ve handpicked unique experiences, designed and led by locals, to reflect the diversity and variety of the city.” Launched in November 2016, Airbnb Trips currently has over 800 active Experiences available, with bookers from over 73 different countries giving 91 per cent of Experience bookings a 5-star rating.

Destination Canada’s year-end data highlights that there has been a remarkable growth in the number of Indian tourists who visited Canada in the year 2016. More than 215,664 Indian tourists sojourned in the country from January-December, 2016, registering a remarkable growth of 13.2 per cent as compared to 2015. SanJeet, India Representative – Destination Canada, said, “This huge rise in arrivals from India proves that Indians are exploring Canada for the kind of diversities it offers. In 2016, Canada has been promoted extensively with the travel trade as well as consumers and we are hopeful to maintain steady growth this year as well, which is a special for all of us as Canada turns 150.” Last year, Destination Canada India office conducted a series of extensive market reach programmes including agent training sessions across India, consumer activations, digital campaigns, social media campaigns, familiarisation trips, networking sessions, among other activities. If reports came from the Tourism Industry Association of Canada (TIAC) are to go by, Canada welcomed a total of 20 million visitors in 2016, a 14 year high. In 2015 the Tourism Industry Association of Canada set a 5 year industry goal to bring 20 million visitors to the country by 2020.

The Cathay Dragon website will soon be merged into the Cathay Pacific website. The merger, which will be in effect from March 29, 2017, means that customers will enjoy the convenience of being able to book flights from all departure points across the airlines’ combined network through a single website. Other functions – including booking management and online check-in services – in addition to a wealth of travel-related information, including flight timetables, flight status, baggage information and inflight entertainment options for both airlines will also be available through the enhanced website. Furthermore, four new country sites for Cathay Dragon customers in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Myanmar and Nepal will be made available through cathaypacific.com. The website merger is the latest development in Cathay Dragon’s rebranding process, which officially commenced in November 2016 in order to bring the airline closer to Cathay Pacific.

Honourable Bardish Chagger, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Minister of Small Business and Tourism in Canada, was in New Delhi on March 28, 2017 to meet the representatives from the tourism industry of India. Destination Canada along with H.E. Nadir Patel, High Commissioner for Canada to India organised a round table meeting with the minister for the travel trade dignitaries as well as the media. She discussed about the growth opportunities between the two countries as well as easing of Visa issuance for Indians travelling to Canada. “This year is Canada’s 150th birthday and we want the world and especially people from India to visit Canada, as we really see tourism as an economic driver. We have Destination Canada as our marketing agency, which is looking at markets outside Canada, including India, so that people can get to know the signature experiences that we have in Canada. It is the only country in the world where you can hear languages from around the world, see the diversity and eat food from all corners of the world.” The discussion was followed by cocktails and dinner hosted at the High Commissioner’s official residence.

Air India has led the way towards increasing agents livelihood and recognising their distribution channel. Subsequent to an in-depth interaction with the Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) and its suggestions made to the national carrier, the airline has announced a new assured incentive/PLB Scheme for the FY 2017-18. Air India will file additional commission of two per cent with BSP and the same will be deducted by agent as cut and pay as per BSP cycle. This will be apart from the normal IATA commission of one per cent. Jyoti Mayal, TAAI member Managing Committee & Chairperson (Airline Council), says, “We really appreciate Air India’s move to recognise and support each and every IATA agent. After a long time, I feel that our industry is regaining its glory. Under the leadership of CMD Ashwani Lohani, we have seen them work very closely with the travel fraternity – first by bringing in credit cards then web parity and now with a level playing field where every agent gets incentivised on selling each and every ticket on Air India. I would now urge all IATA members to support our national carrier to make it a leading carrier in Indian skies. As an Airline Council Chairperson, I would love to see our national airline regaining its glory and profitability. We at TAAI took this initiative with the airline to set standards in the industry and promote all agents.” The incentives shall be calculated on basic fare for domestic and for international it will be calculated on Basic Fare +YQ. There is no target for the scheme and will be valid for all tickets sold within the territory of India by IATA agents …