Category Archives: Associations

The Skal Club of Hyderabad conducted its 2020 AGM at the ITC Kakatiya Hotel on 25 September, 2020, which included the elections for the board of officers that would lead the 57-member club into the new decade. NSN Mohan, CEO, Kennedy Holidays has been elected the new president for the term 2020-2022. He said, “This is not the moment to be a defeatist, but to be a champion of innovation and positivity. We will plan a robust set of strategies and activities that will help our members engage amongst themselves to develop business synergies.” Other Board of Hyderabad include SK Ravichandran, CEO, Purple Hospitality, as its Vice President; Monik Dharamshi, MD of Dream Designer Holidays as Secretary; and Patti Narasimham, CEO of Uniglobe Sri Sai Travel as Treasurer.

Travel Agents Association of Kashmir (TAAK) has elected Farooq A Kuthoo as its new President for the term 2020-22. The association held its elections recently, and the results were declared on Saturday during its 11th and 12th Annual General Meeting, attended by majority of members. Habibullah Pandow has been re-elected Vice President; Showket A Khankashi is the new Secretary General, Mohammad Shafi Jan also retained Secretary Finance post; Sajad Ahmad Kralyari has been chosen as the Joint Secretary, Irshad Ahmad Hazari is elected as Chief Organiser, while Ghulam Nabi Bhat is the Publicity Secretary. Secretary Tourism Sarmad Hafeez was the chief guest for the AGM while, Nisar Ahmad Wani, Director Tourism, Kashmir, was the guest of honour. Other deputy directors also graced the occasion.

More than nine out of 10 (92%) of consumers trust personal recommendations with regards to health and hygiene, according to a new WTTC report titled, ‘To recovery and beyond- the future of travel & tourism in the wake of COVID-19’.

Jyoti Mayal, President, TAAI, has said that they have been in discussion with Ministry of Civil Aviation for many of their issues, one of which is the acceptance of credit cards by airlines. “It has been cleared by the PAPJC and IATA, but we are still knocking every airline’s door. There should be a directive from the government for the same. There should be neutral capping of fares. Also, we are looking at remuneration in a big way. As travel consultants, we should have a right to charge our fee. Else, our services can be treated as MRP product so that we are protected. We should be allowed to charge 10% fee on it like the hotel industry is charging service fee,” she said.

World tourism day which is marked every year on September 27 is just two days away. The day is held worldwide to highlight how tourism adds huge economic value and fosters social, cultural and political integration in the world. But unfortunately this year, it just acts as a reminder of stark reality facing the tourism sector. Highlighting the woes of the IATO, today submitted a memorandum to Meenakshi Sharma, DG Ministry of tourism bringing to her notice how in the event of complete halt of operations and no financial support from the government, the industry which contributes about Rs 15 lakh crore to the economy and provides direct/ indirect employment to more than 5 crore people is on the brink of closure. The pandemic has hit all the sectors of the economy but tourism has been the worst hit with inbound tourism taking the biggest hit. Since March when the flights and visas were cancelled, the business has been absolutely zero as a result a lot of small tour operators have shut and larger ones which are still running are working with skeleton staff which is required for maintenance, creditors and supplier’s payments and payment of mandatory government dues. The closure has led to a direct economic loss of Rs 6 lakh crores and indirectly the economy has lost Rs 15 lakh Crores which is about 9 % to 10 % of the economy. In terms of employment, more than 4 crore jobs have been lost. The situation becomes alarming as the situation does not look like improving in the next six months too. IATO has represented about the woes to different wings of the government but so far no relief …

The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) has announced the winners of the PATA Gold Awards 2020. The winners were announced during the Online PATA Gold Awards Presentation as part of Virtual PATA Travel Mart 2020, taking place from September 23-27. Kerala Tourism, India received the PATA Gold Award 2020 Grand Title Winner in Marketing for Education and Training for its “Human by Nature Print Campaign”. Also, Department of Tourism, Government of Karnataka won the PATA Gold Award 2020 for its campaign, “Script Your Adventure” in the Marketing Campaign (State and city – Global) category.  The PATA Gold Awards 2020 attracted 121 entries from 62 organisations and individuals worldwide. The winners were selected by an independent judging committee of 16 personalities from various destinations.

International Tourist Arrivals drop by 56% in 2020, from that of 2019, which recorded 1.5 Billion arrivals across the world, revealed UNWTO. In Asia-Pacific, this drop was 60%, in Middle East 52%, while in Africa it was 47%. Europe saw a percentage decline of 58% in arrivals, and for US it was 47%.

Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) 2020, will be held virtually this year. To be held from 23rd-27th November, KTM Virtual 2020 will be an online buyer-seller event. The flagship inbound event of ‘God’s Own Country’ is usually held biennially in Kochi, Kerala.

Speaking at the PATA India Chapter’s webinar ‘Europe-The New Order’, Margreet van Egmond, Director Spain, Travel Marketing Concept (TMC), has said that travel agencies and associations across Spain are asking for one focal point for information on India. “In India, many regions have different protocols when people enter, and hence agencies are asking for one focal point, so that people can go to one destination, which has all the inputs, which is very important,” she revealed.

Oakwood Premier Prestige Bangalore in association with the Karnataka Tourism Forum and Indian Motorcycle Riders Group organised a Biker’s Rally from Bengaluru to Mysuru recently. The rally was flagged off from the Oakwood property in UB city. It is aimed at reviving tourism, instil confidence and showcase Indian roads as safe provided all safety measures are followed.