Category Archives: Breaking News (All Categories)

Kerala Tourism has launched a project to create Miyawaki-model micro forests at 22 tourism spots in 12 districts across the state. Inaugurating the project by planting a sapling at Shanghumukham Beach, State Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said that more than 30,000 saplings would be planted in about two acres of land identified for the scheme. Creation of micro forests that compare well with natural forests would make the tourist destinations in the state, especially those in urban areas, environment friendly, the Minister noted.

Hyatt Regency Delhi is currently not available for reservation on Hyatt.com, according to an official statement by the hotel. However, a Tweet by Hyatt Concierge (global) in response to the status of booking of the Delhi property on the parent website of the brand stated, ‘Hyatt Regency Delhi is no longer affiliated with Hyatt’. In fact, the search for Delhi properties on the Hyatt website only shows Andaz Delhi and the Piccadilly Hotel (to be converted to Hyatt) in Janakpuri as part of the portfolio.

AD Tourism Leh, Jigmet Namgail convened a meeting with the members of All Ladakh Tour Operator Association (ALTOA), Ladakh Mountain Guides Association (LMG) and India Mountaineering Foundation (IMF) regarding the promotion of Adventure and Winter Tourism in Leh district.

During a webinar organised by IATO and TravTalk on redesigning wellness itineraries, Rajeev Nambiar, Director, National Teachers Desk, Art of Living said that 2 week-long itinerary is ideal for visiting India for wellness tourism. He further said that the Art of Living International Center in Bengaluru offers various programs for wellness, recreation and yoga.

Tourism Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Muttamsetti Srinivasa Rao has said that the state government plans to establish 7-star and 5-star hotels at 12 locations across the state. These locations are Gandikota, Kakinada, Pichukalanka, Horsley Hills, Nagarjuna Sagar, Suryalanka beach, Orvakal, Kalingapatnam, Rushikonda, Bhavani Island, Tirupati-Perur and Polavaram. To attract investors, roadshows will also be conducted.  

IRCTC has come up with an initiative to promote domestic tourism where it is proposing to extend its base to travel agents accredited with trade associations like FAITH, IATO, ADTOI and sign agreements with select agents in every state and UT of the country. The agents then working with IRCTC will get a commission on cut and pay basis online.

IndiGo has become the first Low-Cost Carrier (LCC) to have started IATA -Billing and Settlement Plan acceptance in Overseas Point of sales using  IATA Financial Gateway (IFG) Currently, this facility is being offered in point of Sales at the United Arab Emirates, Qatar & United Kingdom and soon will be opened in 8 more overseas markets.

Prahlad Singh Patel, Minister of State (I/C), Tourism & Culture, conducted a review meeting with the officials of the Ministry of Tourism on Incredible India Portal new information features. All the senior officials of the ministry, including, Yogendra Tripathi, Secretary; Meenakshi Sharma, DG; Rupinder Brar, ADG; and Rakesh Verma, Joint Secretary, were present at the meeting.

With easing of restrictions, Thomas Cook India and its group company, SOTC Travel, have announced the first physical holiday roadshows since lockdown – Thomas Cook India’s Freedom Month Celebrations and SOTC’s Freedom Month Carnival. The series of roadshows, in association with Accor and Marriott hotels, will be held on Sunday, November 8, 2020 from 11am to 5pm across key source markets of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Pune, Kochi, Jaipur and Baroda. With a range of domestic and international destinations on offer, customers can avail of special deals/discounts and attractively priced flight-inclusive holidays starting at Rs. 10 790.00* – with a free holiday to Dubai* to be won. To ensure customer health and safety together with a personalised experience, an online pre-registration enables customers to book their preferred time slot. Rajeev Kale, President & Country Head – Holidays, MICE, Visa, Thomas Cook (India). said, “To assist our customers plan their perfect holiday and guide them through the new/updated travel protocols, we have simplified the booking process by bringing our Freedom Month Celebrations right to our customers’ doorstep! Held at Accor and Marriott hotels across India, we intended to provide Indians with a safe and smooth holiday booking experience and the assistance of our holiday experts, while availing of great offers.” He added, “Our Assured Program in partnership with Apollo Clinics ensures meticulous health & safety protocols. To further assist our customers, we have tied up with ICMR accredited labs to offer end-to-end COVID-negative certification services with contactless facilitation – across India. Our Safe Holiday Helpline is yet another meaningful consumer initiative – a free service to support customers in safe holiday planning.”

In its latest move, the Tourism Committee of PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s (PHDCCI) has been reconstituted for the year 2020-21 with Anil Parashar, President & CEO, Interglobe Technology Quotient (ITQ) as the Chairman and Rajan Sehgal, Kishore Kaya & Ankush Nijhawan getting elected as the Co-Chairman. Vinod Zutshi, Former Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, GOI, continues to be the Hony. Member and Mentor for the Tourism Committee. The tenure of the newly constituted committee will be 1 year but it can be reconstituted before as well. The committee is dedicated towards the betterment of tourism in India, one that is sustainable and develops India’s heritage tourism.