Category Archives: Agents

ITA Airways’ first flight from New Delhi to Rome Fiumicino departed on Dec 4 at 03:50 am local time. The new connection marks a step forward in the expansion of the Company’s network towards the Asian market, while confirming its commitment to attracting connecting customers. The ribbon-cutting ceremony at New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport was attended by Pierfrancesco Carino, Vice President International Sales ITA Airways and Fabio Bigotti, Country Manager India ITA Airways. “We are happy to inaugurate today the ITA Airways’ Rome Fiumicino – New Delhi connections, the only direct flights between these two capitals” – said Emiliana Limosani – Chief Commercial Officer ITA Airways and CEO Volare. “With the opening of this new route for the transport of passengers and cargo between Italy and India, ITA Airways is further contributing to the cultural integration and development of the economic relationship between the two countries, which have developed a solid political and commercial collaboration in recent years, with the presence of more than 600 Italian companies in India and a bilateral interchange that in 2021 reached a record value of more than 10 billion euros. We have thus taken an important step forward in the project of expanding our intercontinental network towards a fascinating destination and a market full of opportunities. In addition, thanks to the flight departing from New Delhi to Rome, our Indian customers will be able to visit not only Italy but all of Europe thanks to convenient connections offered from our Rome Fiumicino hub” concluded the Chief Commercial Officer. This is the first time ITA Airways operates in the Indian market and, more importantly, the Company is the only airline to operate a direct …

Naveen Kundu, MD, EbixCash Travel & Holidays, has said that while they keep doing something new, they are currently consolidating themselves in India because when we acquired companies in 2018-2019, we were hit by pandemic, which was bad. “We had made huge investments in India and it’s time to relaying our foundation and now everything is growing organically, and we are very focused in what we are doing,” he said.

Indian travellers in 2023 will continue to prioritise travel but will be more mindful over how to make the most of their travel budget and what takes precedence. As per Booking.com, 69% of Indian travellers will invest in a vacation as it remains a top priority for them, but being budget conscious is key, with nearly 75% Indians continuing to spotlight travel while seeking more value for their spend.

Tourism Principal Secretary KS Srinivas said the state’s tourism and hospitality industry has already regained the pre-pandemic robustness. “This is evident from the fact that Kerala recorded a staggering 196% spike in domestic tourist arrivals during the first three quarters of the current year as compared to the corresponding period a year earlier,” he says. Kerala recorded a total of 1,33,80,000 domestic tourists in the nine months till this September, registering a 1.49 per cent increase as compared to the same period of pre-COVID 2019.

The risk with defining new-age travellers, says Abraham Alapatt, President & Group Head – Marketing, Service Quality, Value Added Services & Innovation, Thomas Cook (India) and SOTC Travel, is that it is often mistaken with the age of the traveller. “According to me, being a millennial traveller is not about age at all, it is about a mindset. They travel for local experiences that the destination has to offer, rather than to see a place. It needs to be authentic, and to that, it can be about people, culture, art, food, dance, anything. To my mind, this is a major element that separates the new-age traveller,” he says.

Europamundo Vacations collaborates with the Tourism Board of Spain to launch their products for 2023-24 season. Join their webinar on Wednesday, Nov 30, 2022 to find out more about these products and stand a chance to win Europamundo trip to Spain. For more information, write to jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or 9650196532.

J&K Pilgrim & Leisure Tour Operators Forum (PILTOF), the premier Tourism body of J&K having iconic members with more than 40 years’ experience in travel trade held the season’s first interactive session with top 140 Travel Agents of Thailand & members of Thai Travel Agents Association (TTAA). In his welcome address, the Chairman Showkat Pakhtoon while welcoming the guests emphasized the need for marketing India and Kashmir aggressively since all the travel trade fraternity has suffered due to the pandemic and it is our responsibility that PAN India destinations are to be sold in THAI market aggressively. Dharmendra Singh, First Secretary (Economic & Commerce) and Head of Chancery, Embassy of India in Thailand who was the Chief Guest assured Thai agents all support from Embassy for facilitation to visit India. The Indian Embassy Official present Bhaskar Kalra also gave a presentation on Incredible India. The TTAA was represented by its Vice Presidents Shivek Sachdev and Sittichai Odomkitthanakul, Asstt Secretary NINA, besides other Office Bearers. PILTOF was represented by Chairman, Showkat Pakhtoon, Vice Chairman, Noor Shangloo, Event Head Nasir Shah and senior members Mohammad Akram Siah, Mir Anwar and Ather Yameen.

Tourism Australia and Qantas have joined forces to extend a warm and welcoming invitation to Indian travellers as part of the recently launched Come and Say G’day campaign from the national tourism organisation. The multi-market partnership, will include a range of joint activities including a series of new co-created TVCs run on premium OTT platform Disney+Hotstar, YouTube and Meta – all designed to inspire travellers to plan and book an Australian adventure. The new co-created TVC sees Tourism Australia’s Brand Ambassador, Ruby, a souvenir kangaroo who is brought to life with CGI animation, onboard a Qantas aircraft enjoying the warm Australian hospitality offered by Qantas. Qantas Group Chief Marketing Officer Petra Perry said the partnership showcases how to plan and book trips to Australia with Qantas and encourages international visitors to discover regional centres as well as its major gateway cities. “Qantas is proud to be the airline partner for Tourism Australia’s Come and Say G’day campaign. In addition to driving inbound visitation, the campaign is building awareness that international tourists can easily travel directly to Australia and explore over 65 destinations across the country when they choose to fly with Qantas.” Tourism Australia’s South and Southeast Asia Regional General Manager, Brent Anderson, added, “Tourism Australia is proud to be partnering with Australia’s national carrier, Qantas. The partnership is designed to inspire and encourage travellers to come and say G’day and have a trip of a lifetime Down Under.” “Indian travellers have been critical to Australia’s recovery this year and with the tripling of aviation capacity on the India – Australia route, we expect continued growth in visitor numbers from India. When they travel with Qantas, they will not only receive a …

Deccan Odyssey, which was launched to promote Maharashtra tourism will start ferrying tourists again next year. The luxury train, was halted for around 2.5 years because of the pandemic. MTDC is reviving the train service and has appointed Ebix Travel to operate the train.

Farshid Rahimkhani, CEO& Co-Founder, Turpal, has said that Turpal is a B2B2C system, and big travel agencies dealing with their clients can get the app can branded and customised. “This means that you can have Turpal with your own brand. In fact, clients request us to have their own app in app store. The structure has been designed in such a way that you will be able to serve clients with their own brand,” he added.