Category Archives: Breaking News (All Categories)

Pankaj Nagpal, Managing Director, Travstarz Global Group, says, “The blasts in Brussels will definitely impact the outbound tourism sector to Europe. As Brussels is the headquarters of many airlines and international forums, the impact will be seen on the numbers travelling to Europe. However this may actually increase the inbound traffic of tourists to other regions like South East Asia. India will not be particularly affected as Jet Airways has decided to shift out its base from Brussels so apart from the damage to aircrafts, the numbers will not be affected from India.”

Guldeep Singh Sahni, President, Outbound Tour Operators Association of India (OTOAI) says, “The terror attacks are a sad incident and will impact tourism in Europe temporarily. This will not be a long term effect if precautionary measures are taken and the damage is contained timely. Travellers will continue to travel despite fear and worry regarding Europe. As this is the beginning of the season and Europe is one of the most popular destinations amongst Indians, challenges may be faced by agents in terms of FIT and group movements.”

Tourism Breaking News asked the travel industry about the effect of the Brussels terror attacks on tourism and received a mixed reaction. While some said that tourism trends will shift to other regions like South East Asia and short haul destinations, some believe that this is a short term effect and will be wiped off the traveller’s memory soon. On behalf of the international tourism community, Taleb Rifai, Secretary-General, UNWTO, condemned the terror attacks in Brussels and expressed heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of the victims and to the Belgian people.

Jet Airways has said that its passengers in Brussels have been accommodated at four locations by the local authorities and its staff has been positioned in all these locations for any help, a statement issued by the airline said. Brussels airport continues to be closed for operations but Jet Airways is co-ordinating with the Belgian authorities to make alternate travel plans for its guests and crew in Brussels. It is also working closely with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the India Embassy in Brussels to facilitate the passage of its staff and guests.

SpiceJet continues to record highest passenger load factor among Indian carriers with 92.3 per cent for the month of February 2016, according to statistics released by DGCA. SpiceJet has achieved above 90 per cent passenger load factor (PLF) for 10 successive months. The airline has also bettered its On-time Performance (OTP) for the month of February 2016 with 77.7 per cent as compared to 74.7 per cent during January 2016. OTP has been computed for its operations across the four metro airports of Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai. SpiceJet operated 293 daily flights and carried 9.76 lakh passengers during the month thereby registering a market share of 13.1 per cent. Shilpa Bhatia, Sr. VP, Commercial, SpiceJet, said, “This achievement is recognition of the faith and confidence our customers have reposed on us and at the same time reflects the commitment and persistent effort of entire SpiceJet staff.” Flight cancellations have also declined steadily over the past few months for the airline, with the cancellation rate for February 2016 being just 0.35 per cent.

Jagsons Travels has introduced ‘ibe4all’, the first of its kind B2B online booking engine which is an android mobile App for the travel agents to allow a easy booking experience. The App has been developed by Influence Technolabs and Jagson Travels is the first travel agency to launch it for agents. Harmandeep Singh Anand, Managing Director, Jagsons Travels, says, “We are probably the first company to launch an exclusive B2B application for the travel agents. Currently, the clients can book flights and check the updated flight schedules. In due course of time other services like hotel bookings, transfers, railways, buses etc. will also be made live.” The App will also be launched for iOS devices soon informed Anand. Malini Jain, Chief Commercial Officer, Influence Technolabs, informed that online booking of flights can be made using one’s Agency Wallet on the App. It works for both domestic and international sectors, including LCC Airlines. All the fare segments are available on the App and the existing B2B functions can be operated like the Booking List, Ledger Statement, Request for Credit, Request for Deposit etc. “We have also added the “Import PNR” functionality in the ibe4all app itself and any agent who is interested in doing ticketing through an IATA agency can do so, making it suitable for IATA and Non-IATA agents. The agent has the facility of sending the e-ticket to his client through the ibe4all App itself and he can also cancel the ticket if required, making him work more efficiently and effectively.” She further said that the App has also encapsulated the GDS Dashboard which includes a GDS Emulator which empowers the agency to use GDS cryptic system on the …

Reunion Island has recorded a growth of 110 per cent in Indian arrivals in 2015 as compared to 2014. Neha Johri, Head Destination Sales, Reunion Island, says, “People who have already been to Reunion Island have appreciated the destination. It’s a great destination for honeymooners and for people looking for adventure. We are looking at 200 per cent growth in 2016 as compared to 2015.” Johri also informs that they are working closely with the Indian travel agents and educating them about the destination. “Our motive is to share knowledge with our B2B trade partners then we will move to the consumers,” she adds.

Melbourne has witnessed 24 per cent increase in Indian visitor arrivals in 2015 over the previous year, according to its recent International Visitors Survey. “India has always been a key market for the state of Victoria and the surge in Indian visitors to Melbourne year-on-year is truly encouraging. Indian travellers are becoming more discerning and see the value in spending on quality travel experiences as the expenditure figures have reached an all-time high – this encourages us to continue to focus on this region,” Celia Ho, Regional Manager – South and South East Asia, Tourism Victoria said in a press statement. Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Victoria. The state of Victoria was rated the 2nd highest state visited by Indian tourists. In 2015, Australia registered 2,19,000 Indian visitor arrivals of which 1,03,600 (47.3%) visited Victoria. The Indian visitor expenditure also increased by 29.8% over the same period. Tourism Victoria has worked closely with Indian tour operators to help build significant interest within the market. Over the years, key campaigns have had a direct impact on the number of outbound visitors to Victoria, said the statement. Owing to the increase in outbound travel to the state from India, the tourism board will continue to invest in key campaigns for the Indian market Tourism authorities across the globe are vying to get the attention of Indians. India’s outbound travel is growing 15-20% every year. According to industry estimates, the number of Indians travelling overseas is set to rise to around 50 million by 2020. (Source: Economic Times)

Bali has recorded a growth of almost 87.69 per cent in Indian arrivals in January 2016 as compared to the same period last year. This was revealed by Vineet Gopal, who heads New Delhi-based Representation World LLP – the India representative of Bali Tourism Promotion Board, on the sidelines of the OTOAI Convention that concluded in Bali recently. “We expect the same growth rate to continue after this convention, which gave the Indian travel trade a chance to get familiar with the destination. We welcomed more than 150 active members at the convention of the total 240,” he said.

Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions (NBTC), in association with Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and Jet Airways branded 200 cabs in Delhi. The inauguration of the taxi branding campaign was done by H.E. Alphonsus Stielinga, Ambassador of the Netherlands to India; Jos Vranken, Managing Director, NBTC; Wilco Sweijen, Director Aviation Marketing, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol; and Gaurang Shetty, Senior VP, Commercial Wholetime Director, Jet Airways, at the Amabassador’s residence in New Delhi on March 21, 2016. The taxis will be running on Delhi roads for one and a half month. The campaign is part of showcasing Holland’s tourism products, and will be followed by strategic activities, which will focus on trade, press and consumers.