Category Archives: Breaking News (All Categories)

IndiGo has commenced operations on 6 new connections including 4 RCS routes Kolkata-Prayagraj, Prayagraj-Kolkata, Raipur-Prayagraj and Prayagraj-Raipur. The new routes will be serviced by an ATR aircraft.  These new flights are designed to cater to business and leisure travellers who are constantly on the lookout for new and affordable flying options. The introduction of these flights will further bolster the airline’s connectivity in the Tier II cities with fares starting from INR 1,999. William Boulter, Chief Commercial Officer, IndiGo said, “As part of our continued focus to enhance point-to-point connectivity, we are pleased to commence operations on these six routes connecting Kolkata, Prayagraj (Allahabad), Raipur and Jabalpur. By linking regional centres of growth to metropolitan cities, we are aiming to support trade, tourism and mobility, to fulfil our larger objective of augmenting social cohesion and economic growth in the country.”   Mr. Boulter further added, “IndiGo will continue to expand its network to meet the requirements of both business and leisure travellers. It is our constant endeavour to provide more flexibility of choice to our customers along with on-time, affordable, courteous and hassle-free flying experience while building the best air transportation system in the world.”

Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAUDIA), the national flag carrier of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is the first airline in the Middle East and Africa Region to receive the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Level 4 New Distribution Capability (NDC) certification. The ‘New Distribution Capability’ is a functionality used by the travel trade for booking air travel for individual and group bookings. It enables travel professionals to access content such images of the inflight cabin; add ancillary products, such as WiFi packages, excess baggage, and more. SAUDIA has deployed the Offer and IATA One Order Certified Order Management Solution from the vendor TPConnects, along with NDC enabled distribution to Travel Agents and Online Travel Agents. TPConnects OfrMS is integrated on top of the assets (Passenger Service System, Frequent Flyer Programme etc) as part of SAUDIA’s strategy in pushing offers including air and non-air ancillaries along with flights, both bundle and a la carte. SAUDIA Vice President, Sales, Mr. Richard Nuttall commented on the recent certification: “Level 4 is the highest NDC certification that includes adoption of additional servicing messages to support reshopping and changing orders. The airline provides the ability to execute Offer and Order Management, which means that Travel Agents integrated with SAUDIA are directly able to easily access the products that are available on the airline’s website, thereby providing a consistent shopping experience for the guests from the travel trade, similarly to the way guests book on the saudia.com website. Continued Mr. Nuttall: “With the support from a number of aggregators and travel agencies, the NDC initiative at SAUDIA is on a path from the early days of experimentation to presently operating full-scale in full force. We are targeting …

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the growth of medical tourism in India is optimistic. The segment has witnessed exponential growth of 111 per cent in the last three years from 2015 to 2017. The Ministry stated that some 4.95 lakh foreign tourists visited India for medical purposes in 2017, a rise from 2.33 lakh in 2015, while in 2016, a total of 4.27 lakh foreign tourists visited the sub-continent. To boost the sector in the country, the Ministry of Tourism has also taken various steps like expanding the scope of e-visas for medical visits. The government launched e-tourist visas in 2014 to ease the visa regime in the country, following which Medical and Medical Attendant Visa was introduced for medical tourists.

Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with Tamil Nadu Travel Mart Society, supported by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India and Department of Tourism, Government of Tamil Nadu is organising the 2nd edition of CII Tamil Nadu Travel Mart to showcase the potential of Tamil Nadu’s tourism on a global platform from 19-22 September in Chennai. The registrations for the same have been opened. The three-day exhibition will witness more than 300 exhibitors showcasing tourism business opportunities in the state along with 1000 domestic and international buyers.

M. Vinod, President, Andaman Association of Tour Operators (AATO), recently met Prahlad Singh Patel, the Tourism Minister, Govt. of India at his office in Delhi and discussed various tourism related issues affecting the industry.  Some of the major grievances raised during the meeting were- Closure of swimming in a majority of the beaches since last six months along with suspension of sports like sea walk, scuba diving and snorkeling.   One of the major issues raised was also the lack of co-ordination between the stakeholders and Andaman administration where AATO says the Administration closes all the activities during peak season without any intimation affecting the industry.    

Luxurious 13 coaches with glass ceiling termed as- Vistadome coaches having panoramic view have been introduced on 8 scenic routes by Ministry of Railways. Some of the sections on which these coaches are deployed are: Kalka Shimla Railway, Kangra Valley Railway, Matheran Hill Railway, Nilgiri Mountain Railway, Dadar and Madgaon, Araku Valley, Kashmir Valley and Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. Some of these coaches will have infotainment system as well along with larger glass windows and high-class interiors. Cost of manufacture of a new Broad Gauge (BG) Vistadome coach is approximately 4 crores. The glass windows of the BG Vistadome coaches manufactured in Integral Coach Factory/Chennai have laminated glass sheets which will not shatter, Zonal Railways take necessary precautions wherever necessary during the operation of trains/coaches.  

Global Panorama Showcase kick-started its 2019 season from Hyderabad with a new format and approach. The two-day show will now start with half-day educative sessions and seminars followed by B2B meetings on both days. The show is looking to impart more knowledge and new products from this year along with more exposure and focus on quality business.  “With 170 hosted buyers, flown in to Hyderabad by our airline partner, IndiGo, we have buyers from more than 40 cities such as Vishakhapatnam, Amravati, Vijaywada, Triupati among others. A large number of buyers from Hyderabad have also turned up,” informed Harmandeep Singh Anand, Managing Director, GPS. An MoU was also signed with Meeting Means Business, to showcase the value of face-to-face meetings and conventions, managed by Nitin Sachdeva and Barun Gupta in India. GPS is also looking to strengthen and promote the MiCE movement and the growth of meetings, incentives and conventions in India.  

The tourism in Leh has seen a big decline, with numbers declining by over 50 per cent in 2019 as compared to last year, claim hospitality stakeholders in the region. The reason for the low numbers is because of Jet Airways grounding, Lok Sabha elections, safety situation in Kashmir and late opening of Leh-Manali road, according to reports. Zahoor Qari, Chairman, J&K Chapter—TAAI, however says that the situation is improving, saying, “There was a steep decline initially, but the situation is now improving and we are seeing a rise in numbers now going to Leh. Things have settled down and demand is increasing, and people are travelling to Ladakh in good numbers. We might not see a huge rise this year, but the situation is not bad.”

Air India will launch direct flights from Kolkata and Indore to Dubai next month. Praveen Bhatnagar from Corporate Communications at Air India, said: “The non-stop flights to Kolkata will be launched on July 16. They will operate on all days of the week except Sundays. We will be adding another flight to Indore from July 17.” On its website, Air India is already offering ‘attractive deals’ on the non-stop flights to Kolkata and Indore. The introductory fares, it says, are on offer till July 31, for travel between July 15 and July 31. Source: Gulf News

OYO Hotels is now managing 500,000+ rooms in China and is seeking to invest $100M in quality of infrastructure, service with continued focus on talent. Shella Ng, General Counsel, OYO China, commented, “For the year 2019, we have recognized key priorities, including a deep and wide expansion of OYO’s chain while ensuring a consistent product and service delivery, and high-quality customer experience. To that end, we are continuously working towards establishing the highest standards of quality, compliance, and integrity.”