Trafalgar recently hosted its travel partners and agents from all over Asia on a familiarisation trip to Portugal for its ‘Best of Portugal’ itinerary. The group visited Lisbon, Porto, Fatima, Viseu and Evora. From India, it hosted eight agents from Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi and Pune who experienced Portugal through the eyes of a Trafalgar insider.

Kamal Hingorani, Sr. Vice President & Head of Inflight Services and Customer Experience, SpiceJet, has taken over the additional responsibility of Corporate Communications vertical at the airline. At SpiceJet, Hingorani has been associated for almost a decade now managing multiple roles such as SVP & Head Ground and Airport Services , SVP & Head Global Sales and VP Marketing & Planning. A management graduate from the prestigious Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, Hingorani did his Post-Graduation in Business Management and is a Science Honors graduate from Delhi University.

Air Asia India plans to increase its flight connectivity between Bengaluru, Pune and Goa. The low-cost carrier will now operate two flights from Bengaluru to Pune, adding to the frequency to its current one daily flight between these cities. Also, the airline will operate its fourth daily connection between Bengaluru and Goa, starting December 18. “Our flights from Bengaluru to Pune are doing extremely well, so are our three existing connections to Goa. We see immense demand in this sector. We are confident that this new connection is going to be well received by our guests,” said Amar Abrol, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director, Air Asia India. The Bengaluru-based budget carrier currently flies to 11 destinations with its two hubs in Bengaluru and New Delhi covering Chandigarh, Jaipur, Guwahati, Imphal, Pune, Goa, Vizag, Kochi and Hyderabad.

Medical tourism in India has been growing year after year with 1,76,683 medical tourists in 2016, as compared to 1,34,344 in 2015, and 76,680 in 2014 as per a report by the Ministry of Home Affairs. The newly launched e-medical visa is expected to give further boost the segment which allows a triple entry as against the previous single entry, and a six-month duration that can be extended on case-to-case basis. In emergency cases, the medical visa can be approved within 48 hours. Medical attendants will be granted an attendant visa where two attendants are allowed, excluding Pakistan and Bangladesh. Separate counters for the efficient clearance and facilitation of medical visa is also being set up.

Singapore-based Banyan Tree Holdings enters into agreement with AccorHotels. Under a long-term partnership, both parties intend to collaborate to develop and manage BanyanTree branded hotels around the world. Banyan Tree will also have access to AccorHotels’ global reservations and sales network, as well as its loyalty programme Le Club AccorHotels. AccorHotels will invest an initial SGD 24 million (c. €16 million) in Banyan Tree and both parties will then co-develop the brands owned by Banyan Tree around the world. This investment will be made through a mandatory convertible debenture that at conversion will give AccorHotels an approximately five per cent stake in Banyan Tree. AccorHotels has an option to purchase an additional approximately five per cent stake. Ho Kwon Ping, Executive Chairman of Banyan Tree, said, “This agreement is not only transformational for Banyan Tree, but is also an innovation for the global hospitality industry. With the current consolidation of mega hotel companies, smaller but also global players – many family-controlled – are also seeking strategic alliances with the global giants. Our strategic alliance with AccorHotels allows us to remain an independent company,enabling us to continue securing hotel management agreements on our own andyet accelerating Banyan Tree’s speed and scope of expansion but with AccorHotels helping us to grow our brands around the world. We believe this agreement will propel our brands rapidly to global reach and range and strengthen our ability to embrace change and innovation in the hospitality industry with a strong global partner. We are excited and committed to this partnership.” Sebastien Bazin, CEO and Chairman of AccorHotels, said, “Our collaboration with Banyan Tree is a great opportunity to complement our business proposition to owners with iconic …

According to IATA, India has topped the domestic growth chart for the 11th consecutive month with a 22.7 per cent year-on-year traffic growth in October, supported by significant growth in real consumer spending and increases in the number of airport pairs served. Asia-Pacific airlines’ traffic rose 7 per cent in October compared to the year-ago period. Capacity rose 7.1 per cent and load factor dipped 0.1 percentage point to 76.9 per cent. The strong upward trend in seasonally-adjusted traffic has slowed in recent months, although it is too soon to determine whether this is an actual weakening or just a brief pause. On the other hand, the Asia-to-Europe market, which is highly sensitive to shock events, is continuing to recover.

In an attempt to boost regional connectivity, Alliance Air, a wholly owned subsidiary of Air India will connect Delhi and Bhatinda from December 11. The flights will be operated three times a week on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. 70-seater ATR-72 aircraft would be utilised for the services. The flight will depart from Delhi at 12.15 pm and reach Bathinda at 1.45 pm. The return flight will fly out from Bathinda at 2.15 pm and reach Delhi at 3.45 pm. Alliance Air, which flies to tier-II and tier-III cities, has a fleet of eight ATR-72 and two ATR-42 aircraft. Currently, it operates flights to 33 destinations, including Allahabad, Bengaluru, Bhavnagar, Dharamshala, Gorakhpur, Shillong and Silchar.

TIRUN has announced the arrival of Celebrity Cruises’ millennium class ship, Celebrity Constellation, in Mumbai, for the first time. The Millennium-class cruise ship docked in the city yesterday as part of its existing Asia sailings. A plaque and key ceremony was conducted on-board, to welcome Constellation. Speaking on the arrival of Constellation, Ratna Chadha, Chief Executive, TIRUN said, “TIRUN is continually striving to make cruises accessible to Indian travellers. We are, therefore, delighted to introduce the marvels that Celebrity Constellation holds to our domestic cruise enthusiasts. The fact that the ship will dock in Mumbai also underlines India’s emerging position as an ideal cruise destination. Indian families can look forward to receiving celebrity treatment for the entire duration of the cruise, aboard the deluxe ship.” The 66 newly-furnished staterooms, including spa-inspired Aqua Class accommodations, have been designed to revitalize cruisers. The Celebrity Suites take indulgence to a new level with the addition of private verandas. Concierge Class guests can enjoy priority check-in services custom blended bath amenities, sparkling wine, fresh fruit and much more.

Marriott International has announced that the company will continue to grow its leadership position in luxury, doubling its portfolio of luxury hotels through the recent merger with Starwood Hotels & Resorts. Providing travelers a selection of high-end experiences in 61 countries, the Marriott International Luxury Brands group now includes the iconic St. Regis, The Luxury Collection and W Hotels brands, in addition to the company’s hospitality hallmarks The Ritz-Carlton, Ritz-Carlton Reserve, Bulgari Hotels & Resorts, EDITION and JW Marriott. Looking ahead, Marriott International is scheduled to open nearly 30 luxury hotels in 2017 and has a total of 180 luxury hotels in its development pipeline, representing 20 new countries, from Iceland and Nepal to Cuba. Tina Edmundson, Global Brand Officer, Marriott International, said, “Spanning the world from the most iconic hot spots to the ultimate undiscovered gems, the unmatched breadth and depth of our luxury portfolio uniquely positions us to cater to the increased demand of the rapidly-expanding cadre of affluent travelers. With luxury travel up nearly 50% over the past five years, we see a long runway for growth at the high-end and have a world-class, dedicated luxury structure in place to nurture and strengthen this coveted portfolio of eight diverse luxury brands.”

Zubin Karkaria, CEO – VFS Global, and CEO – Kuoni Group, was appointed ‘Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite’ (Knight of the National Order of Merit) by the President of the French Republic, François Hollande, last week. The prestigious French award was conferred on Karkaria by H.E. Alexandre Ziegler, Ambassador of France to India, on behalf of President Hollande, at a ceremony in Mumbai. Karkaria, who has been a part of the travel industry for more than 25 years, established visa processing multinational VFS Global in 2001. In 2015, he became the first Asian to head the Switzerland headquartered Kuoni Group, VFS Global’s parent company. The distinction recognises his exemplary contributions in developing France as a tourist destination through leisure travel and the management of visa services across the world. Having pioneered the concept of visa process outsourcing in 2001 with the launch of VFS Global, Karkaria has contributed to the increased inbound tourism into France. VFS Global today serves the Government of France through 52 Visa Application Centres in 19 countries around the globe. Speaking about Karkaria’s achievements, the Ambassador said, “France is proud to be the top global tourist destination, as well as a fast-growing destination for the Indian traveller. Over 5 lakh Indian visitors chose France last year and we want to welcome many more. It is an honour to confer the Ordre national du Mérite on Mr. Karkaria who played a stellar role in this success in conceiving the visa facilitation system and promoting France as a travel destination, thus contributing to developing people-to-people contacts between France and India.” Commenting on the recognition, Karkaria said, “I have always believed in the enormous potential France has as …