London to Delhi and London to Mumbai were among the top five most popular origins and destinations between Europe and APAC for Gulf carriers, according to the data analysed by Amadeus IT Group’s Travel Intelligence team. They came third and fourth, respectively. The report also said that Gulf carriers saw exponential growth of first and business class passenger volumes in 2015. Between 2014 and 2015, first class passenger volumes for Emirates, Qatar Airways and Etihad Airways on the top 10 Origins & Destinations between Europe and Asia Pacific increased 67 per cent, whilst business class traffic increased by 47 per cent. This staggering growth in premium classes was complemented by healthy overall growth, with a seven per cent increase in passenger volumes across all cabin classes for these routes. Airports in the Middle East also noticed a shift in traveller habits: passenger traffic for flights between Europe and APAC going through Doha, Abu Dhabi and Dubai increased by eight per cent. This data takes into account all bookings in the Amadeus system made via traditional and online travel agencies from across the globe. The figures come on the heels of Emirates and Etihad Airways both renewing their distribution agreements to sell their full range of fares to travellers worldwide through travel agents using Amadeus. Qatar Airways has had such an agreement in place since 2014.

Sabre Corporation has partnered with Expedia Affiliate Network (EAN) to offer 63,000 new hotel properties to its marketplace. Travel consultants and agencies will now have access to the EAN rates and availability through the Sabre GDS. “Travel agencies will have more hotel options to offer their customers. Additionally, more hotels in the Sabre travel marketplace will have the ability to merchandise their products, property attributes and personalise offerings to travelers. These are just a few ways Sabre provides hoteliers products to differentiate themselves and that is a powerful tool for travel buyers.” said Shelly Terry, Vice President-Travel Product Solutions, Sabre Travel Network. Agents can easily shop and book properties through the Sabre Red Workspace. The additional properties are a wide range of property types, including full-service hotels and resorts, bread and breakfasts and small inns, airport hotels, boutique hotels, budget hotels, and serviced apartments. While the new hotel content covers all regions, many of the properties are in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, typically where hotel property content is known for being highly fragmented. The additional rates and availability from EAN expands Sabre’s robust hotel content of more than 750,000 properties, through the combination of its travel marketplace and network of hotel aggregator partners. Agents will now be able to offer more options to travelers, increasing more business and commission opportunities. “Expedia Affiliate Network is excited to bring thousands of new properties across the globe to Sabre’s valued partner network. Expedia is continuing to grow hotel supply by thousands of hotels each month and the Sabre agent community will have the ability to deliver more solutions to their customers,” states Christian Gerron, Vice President-Sales, Expedia Affiliate Network.

The Delhi International Airport Private Limited (DIAL) has included construction of a new fourth runway parallel to the existing runway in the just concluded Master Plan 2016 of IGI Airport, New Delhi with features to handle large wide body aircrafts, navigational aids and lighting to permit operation in low visibility etc. This information was given by the Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Jayant Sinha in Rajya Sabha.

In a first-of-its-kind initiative SpiceJet announced the launch of Smart Check-in facility using BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) and NFC (Near Field Communication) technologies. This feature is available for all SpiceJet customers who have booked their tickets through the SpiceJet Mobile App. The customer does not require to carry the itinerary printouts nor has to Key-in the PNR number to initiate Check in if using this App. Ashok Gajapathi Raju, Union Minister for Civil Aviation inaugurated the Smart Check in facility at GMR Hyderabad International Airport. The service has been initially introduced at Hyderabad Airport in close coordination with GMR Hyderabad International Airport Ltd. (GHIAL) and will soon be available in all airports supporting e-boarding facility. The airline has set a new benchmark in the country by launching a slew of customer-friendly and innovative products and services using latest technology. This is set to relieve customers from standing in long queues, thus further enhancing their travel experience and offering a seamless journey. Near Field Communication enables passengers to receive their boarding pass on their smartphone when they check-in through NFC-enabled smartphones with SpiceJet’s mobile app. Customers who have booked their tickets using the mobile App will have to simply open the app and touch the mobile device on the NFC Check-in Poster available at the airport to retrieve their mobile boarding pass on their smartphones. Customers can also avail a touchless beacon based check-in to receive their boarding pass on the smartphone. Customers who have booked their tickets through the SpiceJet mobile app will receive an alert as they walk towards the SpiceJet Check-in area provided their Bluetooth and SpiceJet Mobile App are activated. Post acknowledgement of the notification, the customer …

Sikkim has added another feather to its cap with the recent addition of the Khangchendzonga National Park to the list of UNESCO World Heritage sites as India’s first ‘Mixed World Heritage Site’. The UNESCO recognition will give a further push to eco-tourism in our state, while also helping us to regulate the high influx of visitors to more popular destinations with only a minimal negative impact of tourism,” said Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling. “This is important since tourist arrivals to our state more than doubled to 38,479 in 2015 and our target is around 12 lakh visitors by 2025,” he said in a statement. The park was initially commissioned in August 1977 with a declared area of 850 Sq km and was extended to 1,784 sq.km some years later. Khangchendzonga National Park had been on the Unesco’s tentative list of World Heritage Sites since 2006, and has among the sharpest altitudinal variations for any site in the world — from a low of 1,220 metres to 8,586 metres — within a small aerial distance of 42 km.

The Ministry of Tourism (MOT) has advised State Government/Union Territory Administrations to set up Hospitality Development Boards if the same do not exist in their respective States/Union Territories. The Ministry of Tourism (MOT) has so far sanctioned 12 Institutes of Hospitality Management in the northeastern states. Out of these Central Institute of Hotel Management, Guwahati, Central Institute of Hotel Management, Shillong, State Institute of Hotel Management, Gangtok and Food Craft Institute, Nawgaon are operational. This information was given by Dr. Mahesh Sharma, Minister of State (I/C) for Culture and Tourism in a written reply in Lok Sabha. The State Government of Maharashtra has reportedly setup Hospitality Development and Promotion Board. List of Institutes in North Eastern States for which Central Financial Assistance has been granted by MOT. 1.    Central Institute of Hotel Management, Guwahati , Assam 2.    State Institute of Hotel Management, Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh 3.    State Institute of Hotel Management, Imphal, Manipur 4.    Central Institute of Hotel Management, Shillong, Meghlaya 5.    State Institute of Hotel Management, Aizawl, Mizoram 6.    State Institute of Hotel Management, Dimapur, Nagaland 7.    State Institute of Hotel Management, Gangtok, Sikkim 8.    State Institute of Hotel Management, Agartala, Tripura 9.    State Institute of Hotel Management, Jorhat, Assam 10.  Food Craft Institute, Nawgaon, Assam 11.  Food Craft Institute, Tura, Meghlaya 12.  Food Craft Institute, Namchi, Sikkim

The air passenger rights service provider, refund.me has launched a dedicated India mobile App and online widget to help air travellers secure compensation for delayed, cancelled, and overbooked flights regulated by both India and European Union (EU) passenger rights legislation. From August, air travellers will get more refund on cancellation of their tickets and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has also notified the related changes. In case travellers cancel their tickets, the airlines cannot deduct more than the base fare and fuel surcharge and the airlines will be bound to return the taxes collected from the passengers while booking the tickets and they cannot charge the processing fee for cancellation of tickets. The refund.me India App is the first to be specifically developed for air passengers travelling to, from, and within India-helping enforce the consumer rights of the more than 83 million passengers who take to the skies every year on domestic and international flights operated by India-based airlines. Featuring proprietary Advanced Business Logic (ABL) technology, the online widget and App for iOS and Android enables passengers to quickly determine eligibility and automatically file a compensation claim for disrupted flights, without having to fill in extensive forms or interact directly with an airline. If eligible, passengers can instantly submit their claim via the app, authorising refund.me to pursue compensation on their behalf through its worldwide network of consumer and aviation law experts. There is no risk to the passenger as refund.me charges a commission only when a claim is successfully concluded.

France Tourism Development Agency, Atout France has released an official statement on the security measures for tourism professionals post the July 14 attack. The release has a list of FAQs aimed at helping tourism professionals answer questions from their customers on the measures that have been taken to ensure the safety of the French population and foreign visitors. It says, “In spite of the events that occurred last year and at the Bastille Day celebrations in Nice, France remains the world’s most popular tourist destination (EVE survey1), with nearly 85 million visitors. The French authorities’ efforts to improve tourist reception and security will continue throughout the year under the state of emergency, which has been extended until January 31, 2017.” The statement also said that there are no specific measures concerning groups. Groups must nevertheless respect the general instructions given by the public authorities. It added, “There will be increased security checks and greater police powers. Police and gendarmerie reinforcements have been deployed throughout national territory. Inspections and staff levels have been increased in public transport and around sites receiving the public, including tourist attractions. All representatives of the tourism sector have announced the recruitment of additional security staff to ensure the safety of visitors.”  

The Outbound Tour Operators of India (OTOAI) conducted a presentation to educate its members on GST and its effects on their businesses. The event had in attendance Aseem Arora, Senior Manager, Tax & Regulatory Services, Ernst & Young, informing the members about GST. Speaking at the event, Guldeep Singh Sahni, President, OTOAI, said, “We wanted to introduce the GST system to members who are unaware. We knew it would be a very ugly situation for service providers, both inbound and outbound, as well as for tourism industry. It is going to impact us in a big way. Right now we are suffering from 4.5 per cent tax. And with 18 per cent of GST, which the government is thinking of implementing, the industry is going in ruins. We want to go to the government with our issues, so that they consider it before implementing it.”

The Ministry of Tourism is planning theme based events for attracting tourists in the country, revealed Vinod Zutshi, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, while addressing he members of Indian Association of Tour Operators in New Delhi. He said, “We are working on theme based events in India in the next six months. We have shortlisted three themes—medical tourism, adventure tourism and MICE tourism. We want to create a buzz about India and partner with FICCI or some other organisation and organise an international event, to attract the world’s attention to the country. However, we will focus on only one such event this year.”