Category Archives: Breaking News (All Categories)

Inaugurating development projects worth over Rs 1,200 crore in Varanasi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that his government is giving top priority to roads, highways, waterways and railways, especially in terms of infrastructure. “Today when we talk about $5 trillion economy in India, tourism is an integral part of it. Besides nature, heritage tourism has a strong role to play in achieving the goal. Also, along with Varanasi other holy sites are being developed using new technologies,” he said. Developing major spots of faith and spirituality around the country, the government is working to make them accessible and convenient for pilgrims and tourists. For which, I have flagged off the Kashi-Mahakal Express to connect Varanasi with Onkareshwar and Mahakaleshwar,” PM Modi further said.

India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC), has signed an MoU with Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Limited for development of heritage sites in the state. As part of the MoU, ITDC would provide consultancy services for innovative/ decorative lighting and illumination of important monuments and sound and light show at other important places in Gujarat. The MoU was signed by G Kamala Vardhana Rao, CMD, ITDC and Jenu Devan, Commissioner of Tourism and Managing Director, Tourism Corporation of Gujarat in the presence of Prahlad Singh Patel, Minister of State, Tourism, and Vijay Rupani, Chief Minister, Gujarat. Speaking at inaugural session, Prahlad Singh Patel said, “There is a great scope for developing tourism in Gujarat for which the state government has developed many more new focused sights to attract tourism. State Government may work in tandem with ITDC to promote and develop tourism through innovative and creative steps.”

An Indian traveller spent approximately USD 1100 on a trip to the Middle East in 2018, as per the data from Euromonitor International. An Indian business or experience-seeking traveller is likely to spend at least 15% more than the average spend per trip while a budget traveller is likely to spend up ot 15% to 20% less than the average spent per trip.

Jazeera Airways has announced a five per cent IATA commission for all the tickets that trade partners issue through its CRS partners, Amadeus and Galileo. This offer is with effect from 14 February, 2020 till 31 March, 2020. The code to avail  commission is 1A: FM05 and 1G: TMU1Z05.  

The European Union has announced new visa rules on short-stay visas, which are applicable from February 2, 2020. The new rules apply to 105 third countries whose citizens require a visa to enter the European Union. At the same time, no changes in visa policy will occur for countries that have a visa-free travel regime in the EU. The visa fee has increased for all applicants from €60 per application to €80, and for children from €35 to €40. The fee does not change for nationals of countries that have a visa-facilitation agreement with the European Union, for which the fee remains €35. Under the new rules, the application form can now be signed and submitted electronically, wherever possible. This means that applicants will also be able to sign the applications electronically, which signature should then be recognized by the competent Member State. Now, applying for visa six months in advance of a trip is possible, which was earlier only allowed as early as three months in advance. With the new code, the Schengen Member States will be present in more countries, so that travellers will no longer have to travel to a neighbouring country just to file an application. Also, frequent travellers to the Schengen Area, either for business, tourism, or other short-term purposes, will benefit most from the new rules for Schengen Visa application, as they would be granted with the benefit of getting a multiple-entry visa valid for up to five years, given that have a positive visa history, which means they meet the following conditions—They have lawfully used their previous visas; they have a good economic situation in the country of origin; and they have a …

Switzerland Tourism invites members of India’s travel trade to participate in its exclusive webinar series. The webinar series aims to educate the trade about the most sought-after destinations, activities and attractions in Switzerland and share news and updates that are important for their clients. The webinar scheduled on Monday, 17th February, 2020 at 2:30 pm IST will highlight the Swiss Travel System and its products. Viewers get a chance to learn about one of the most efficient transportation networks in the world, as well as the popular Swiss Travel Pass, an all-in-one ticket offering travellers unlimited travel by train, bus and boat including panoramic routes. Travel partners who attend all the webinars also stand a chance of winning a trip to Switzerland. Lyandra D’Souza, Sales & Marketing Manager India – Swiss Travel System, says, “Through our webinar today, the travel trade across India will have the opportunity to learn about the Swiss Travel System products, offerings and benefits for 2020. Additionally, our goal is to give the trade the knowledge and tools to sell the Swiss Travel Pass and to inspire them to develop new package ideas centered around the public transport network in Switzerland. The Indian market is vitally important for Swiss Travel System and we are looking forward to working together with our trade partners to inspire more Indians to travel by public transport in Switzerland for the upcoming summer travel season.” Those who are interested in participating can get in touch with Jaspreet Kaur for further information either via email jaspreet.kaur@ddppl.com or call +91-9650196532.  

Senior bureaucrat Rajiv Bansal has been appointed as the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of Air India, according to a Personnel Ministry order. Bansal, a 1988-batch IAS officer of Nagaland cadre, is at present additional Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas. The post became vacant after incumbent Ashwani Lohani completed his tenure. Source: PTI  

The Association of Domestic Tour Operators Of India (ADTOI) has announced its next convention dates, 10-12 April 2020, which will take place in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh with the support of MP Tourism. The venue of the convention will be Minto Hall, Bhopal. The last ADTOI Convention was held from 16-18 August in Ahmedabad, Gujarat which concluded successfully with over 500 registrations. PP Khanna, President, ADTOI, revealed that the convention will be inaugurated by Kamal Nath, Chief Minister, Madhya Pradesh and the Guest of Honour will be Surendra Singh Baghel, Tourism Minister, MP in the presence of Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, Secretary, Tourism, MP.

Zubin Saxena, MD and VP, Operations, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group, recently has said, “Over the last 5 years, we have signed close to 70 hotels, which means we have been signing 12-15 hotels every year and are opening 8-10 hotels every year. Our pace will continue and for this year again, we are looking at solid expansion where we are targeting to open 7-8 hotels. We are opening the first Radisson Red in Asia Pacific in Mohali, which will open in the third quarter of this year.”

According to HVS’ H2O (monthly newsletter),the year-on-year analysis of the 13 markets in India reveals that Bengaluru and Chennai recorded growth in RevPAR at 12.4 per cent (standing at Rs4,184) and 6.4 per cent (standing at Rs3,699), respectively. Ahmedabad and Kolkata witnessed a drop in RevPAR numbers by 5.1 per cent (standing at Rs3,147) and 3.3 per cent (standing at Rs4,922), respectively.