Category Archives: Breaking News (All Categories)

The Government of India has liberalised its visa policy for Thai nationals. It has decided to grant five-year multiple entry Tourist Visa and five-year multiple entry Business visa to Thai nationals with immediate effect with continuous stay of 90 days during each visit. It has also started Express visa service where visa will be issued by next working day. Separate Immigration counters and facilitation desks will be provided for Medical Visa. This service will initially be available at international airports like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. India has also relaxed the minimum salary limit and fixed at Rs 9.10 lakhs per anum for Employment visa to those Thai nationals who will be engaged at teaching faculty in the IITs, Central Universities, NITs etc. Foreign teaching faculty employed at South Asian University and Nalanda University will be exempted from minimum salary limit for the purpose of employment visa. Indian Embassy will grant Intern Visa to Thai nationals to pursue internship in Indian companies, educational Institutions and NGOs up to a maximum of 50 interns per year. Indian Embassy will also encourage Thai nationals to shoot feature film in excellent Indian locations and they will be provided Film Visa.

The department of Tourism, North Bengal Development Department and Eastern Himalaya Travel & Tour Operators Association (EHTTOA), the largest body of tourism industry in North East, jointly organised the second edition of three-day long Bengal Travel Mart (BTM) in Siliguri under Darjeeling district of West Bengal. It is the first event in the state where at least 144 delegates from different states along with delegates from Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka participated. It also included more than 200 stakeholders (buyers and sellers) for BTB meet and practical visits of the tourism sports in the region. The main motto behind the BTM is to enhance West Bengal tourism. The participants in the mart stakeholders said that this would boom their tourism industry as a whole.

After launching its Rajasthan chapter, ADTOI is all set to launch its Punjab and Haryana chapter in the first week of March, revealed P.P. Khanna, President, ADTOI. While more new chapters are on cards, Khanna revealed that the biggest concern for them right now is service tax and help its members sail through this crisis.

Oracle Hospitality along with Airpay Payment Services, recently conducted a closed-door workshop for CIOs and IT Heads of top hotels in Mumbai and New Delhi. About 25 in Mumbai and 37 in New Delhi attended the event. The first India Oracle Hospitality Customer Event had a compelling agenda and was designed to address questions on Oracle Hospitality and the solutions it offers for the hospitality industry. The half day event had three speakers discussing various topics such as technology trends in the hospitality industry in India and globally, and maximising guest services beyond the front desk. This was followed by an overview of its products – OPERA Cloud, Hotel Mobile and Simphony Cloud. Meanwhile Amit Kapoor, CEO & Co-Founder, Airpay, spoke about the payment services company’s association with Oracle Hospitality and how hotels can re-invent consumer engagement on their portals. The two speakers from Oracle Hospitality were Jay Sherman, Senior Manager, Sales Consulting, Hotel POS, Oracle Hospitality (Asia Pacific & Japan) and Travis Macauley, Solutions Manager – Hotels.

Govardhan Eco Village (GEV), an ISKCON project and a wellness destination which is a premium MahaBhraman status certified by Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC), announced the launch of Govardhan School of Yoga. It recently received the prestigious UNWTO (United Nations World Tourism Organization) Award for Excellence and Innovation in Tourism. Dr. K.H. Govinda Raj, IAS, Managing Director of Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation, stated, “We are delighted to be associated with Govardhan Eco Village as they are significantly contributing through innovative initiatives which are competitive and at the same time sustainable in character. Govardhan Eco Village is the only destination in Asia to be awarded by UNWTO this year. As more people embrace overall healthier lifestyles at home, we are now seeing those behaviours translate and be integrated into their travel and vacation habits. This initiative will attract tourists from all across the world.” Govardhan Eco Village highlights the importance of spiritual ecology. The 28-day residential program will enables guests to not only learn and teach yoga, but also to learn healthy eating, taking care of your body but also meditation practices. Gauranga Das, Director, Govardhan Eco Village said,” It’s our honour and privilege to receive this award on behalf of land of India and we would like to express our gratitude to UNWTO for giving this opportunity to share this message of sustainability on a larger scale especially in this year which is celebrated as the year of sustainable tourism.”

The Government of India and the Government of UAE have signed an MoU on mutual exemption of entry visa requirements to the holders of Diplomatic, special and Official Passports. The agreement allows holders of diplomatic, special and official passports visa free travel between the two countries. This was a part of several list of agreements/MOUs exchanged during the State visit of Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to India. He is the Chief Guest in the Republic Day celebrations.

The Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO) held an interactive meeting at the Ashok Hotel, New Delhi, for its members on the new legislation for service tax, where they had invited S.C. Kamra, Advocate and expert on service tax. Kamra made a presentation on the service tax on how the new notification will impact the tour operators. The session saw a full house with around 300 members in attendance. The presentation was followed by question and answers, where IATO members put forward their queries and problems regarding the new Service Tax norms.

Finnair has launched its first flights to Goa this year, as part of its expansion in long-haul network. Starting November 29, 2017, the airline will start flying to the Indian beach destination, operating two weekly flights for the winter season, ending on March 21, 2018. Services will run every Wednesday and Sunday using an Airbus A330 aircraft. Apart from that, Finnair will add one more weekly flight to Delhi, taking the total frequency to six weekly flights next winter. It will also add two additional weekly frequencies on Helsinki-Bangkok route, taking the total to 16 flights per week. The airline will also add two more weekly services to Singapore, making it a daily destination, while three more weekly frequencies will be added to Hong Kong, taking the year-round total to 10 flights per week. “With the expected arrival of four new Airbus A350 aircraft in 2017, we are pressing ahead with our growth strategy,” said Juha Järvinen, Finnair’s chief commercial officer. “These newest additions will offer even more travel options and flexibility for our customers travelling between Asia and Europe through our efficient Helsinki airport hub which guarantees a short and smooth connection,” he added.

The Etihad Aviation Group Board of Directors has announced that James Hogan will step down as President and Chief Executive Officer of the company in the second half of 2017. The Board and Hogan first initiated the transition process last year with the formation in May of the Etihad Aviation Group, a diversified global aviation and travel organisation. H.E. Mohamed Mubarak Fadhel Al Mazrouei, Chairman of the Board of the Etihad Aviation Group, said, “We are very grateful to James. In just ten years, he has overseen the growth of the company from a 22 plane regional carrier into a 120 aircraft global airline and aviation group, with seven airline equity partnerships which together serve more than 120 million guests every year. It is a business which has set new benchmarks for service and innovation. Under his leadership, the company has provided new opportunities for thousands of Emiratis and has been a critical element in the remarkable progress of Abu Dhabi and the UAE. We look forward to James’ continued association with Abu Dhabi in new ways.” Commenting on current priorities for the business, H.E. Mazrouei said, “To position the company for continued success in a challenging market, the Board and management team will continue an ongoing, company-wide strategic review. We must ensure that the airline is the right size and the right shape. We must continue to improve cost efficiency, productivity and revenue. We must progress and adjust our airline equity partnerships even as we remain committed to the strategy.” Last month, Etihad Airways unveiled plans to create a new European leisure airline group in a joint venture with TUI AG. A new codeshare agreement with Lufthansa and an …

Look To Book, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group’s global rewards program is celebrating its 25th anniversary and planning special promotions and offerings throughout the year to reward members for their efforts. Travel agents in Australia, Bangladesh, India, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand can accrue points through special Look To Book 25th anniversary programming which are redeemable for stays at hotels around the world, gift cards, airline miles etc. While Look To Book rewards agents with 10 points per 1 USD, members will have the opportunity to earn even more points as part of the silver jubilee celebration by registering and booking hotel stays during the ‘Earn Up To 25,000 Points’ promotion period of January 17 through March 31, 2017; taking the ‘25 Years of Look To Book’ quiz and earn up to 1,000 points; bookmarking the Look To Book 25th anniversary page for additional bonus points throughout 2017. “We are excited to be celebrating 25 excellent years of Look to Book. The travel agent community has played an integral role in the success of the Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group and to show our appreciation, we will be offering the special anniversary programme throughout the year which includes earning bonus points and prizes,” said Sandy Russell, Vice President-Commercial Operations, Asia Pacific, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group. “Club Carlson will also be rolling out new campaigns and engagement initiatives in the coming months as we celebrate this milestone,” added Russell.