Category Archives: Exhibitions

Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) participated at the recent PATA Travel Mart 2018 in Langkawi, Malaysia to promote the tourism prospects of Maharashtra on a global platform. Dinesh Kamble, Senior Manager, Marketing and Publicity represented MTDC at PATA Travel Mart 2018. MTDC pavilion at PATA Travel Mart 2018 was visited by Mridal Kumar, High Commissioner of India to Malaysia and Sudeshna Ramkumar, Director – India Tourism Singapore, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India along with Chris Botrill, Chairman, PATA and Mario Hardy, CEO, PATA. Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) showcased several prospects of tourism such as beach tourism, Buddhist tourism, adventure tourism, wildlife tourism and Bollywood tourism at the 41st Edition of PATA Travel Mart 2018. PATA Travel Mart 2018 offered a golden chance to aggressively market the tourism catalogues, vivacious culture, exclusive destinations and investment prospects in the state. Jaykumar Rawal, Minister of Tourism, Government of Maharashtra said, “Maharashtra is leading in terms of foreign tourist arrivals (FTA). With the 41st edition of PATA Travel Mart 2018, we were able to promote the diversity of our state which offers 360 degrees dimension and the potential to cater to the needs of global travellers.” Vijay Kumar Gautam (IAS), Principal Secretary, Tourism, Government of Maharashtra added, “The main objective of participation at 41st Edition of PATA Travel Mart 2018 is to encourage Maharashtra as a world-class tourist destination and help the and tour operators to network with international buyers, trade buyers, exhibitors, strategy makers and investors.”

Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) is set to take place as per schedule despite the recent floods in Kerala leading to huge devastation and loss. Abraham George, President, KTM Society confirmed that KTM will take place as per schedule with the inauguration on September 27 and business meetings from September 28-30, 2018 in Kochi. “The Kerala tourism industry is back for business and we will be showcasing our products and hold business meetings at KTM. Most of the destinations are not much affected by the floods; it’s only a few roads that have damaged. The government is working to fix that. Also, whatever work needs to be done at the resorts and the tourist destinations will be completed in about 10 days and we will be ready to welcome tourists,” he said.

Uttarakhand Travel Mart (UTM), a B2B buyer-seller meet and travel and tourism exhibition, is set to be held in Dehradun from October 24-26, 2018. The event will be a strong platform for exhibitors to network with buyers and invited delegates. Satpal Maharaj, Minister of Tourism, Uttarakhand, released the Uttarakhand Travel Mart (UTM) brochure in New Delhi to boost tourism and promote the mart.  

The India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB) has launched its West Bengal Chapter at the 11th edition of its Convention India Conclave (CIC) in Kolkata. Amaresh Tiwari, Honorary Secretary, ICPB, said, “We are focusing on developing MiCE across India. ICPB is growing its wings and first time in the history of ICPB we are opening the first chapter—West Bengal Chapter in Kolkata, where the government official will be the chapter head. And similarly, we will be going from state to state to build the chapter and this is going to be done with central and state partnership basis.”  

MiCE continues to be important for revenue generation at various platforms, said Chander Mansharamani, Vice Chairman, India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB) at the 11th Conventions India Conclave (CIC) underway in Kolkata. Welcoming delegates at the inaugural session, he further said, “We, at ICPB, play a major role not only in creating better awareness of the benefits of the congress and the conventions but also support congress planners, organisations, associations and other trade related bodies. According to World Travel Market, there will be 10 million international travellers by 2020 and estimated business travel will account for appoximately 14 per cent. Keeping in view the economic impact, we need to figure out what we need to do next and how ICPB can play a proactive role in this.” Some 300 participants are expected to attend the Conclave including 150 domestic and 40 international potential buyers. The focus of the event will be on India’s potential as a MiCE destination, through interactive sessions, exhibitions and B2B meetings.

After successful shows in seven cities across the country, the concluding Global Panorama Showcase (GPS) of 2018 opened at JW Marriot Hotel Pune with over 600 attendees. The first day of the event was inaugrated by GB Srithar, Regional Director – South Asia & Middle East, Singapore Tourism Board; Sunil VA, Regional Vice President – ISC, Oman Air; Sanjay Rao, Aviation Consultant; Vishal Bhatia, Country Manager – India, VisitBritain and Dev Karvat, Founder – TrawellTag & CEO, Emerging Markets, Covermore Group.  

The Global Panaroma Showcase (GPS) in Kochi opened with over 700 registrations on the inaugural day at Le Meridien, Kochi. The guest for honour for the event was Ashwin Guna Sekeran, Chief Executive Officer, Penang Convention & Exhibitons Bureau. The show was inaugrated by Anish Kumar PK, President, Association of Tourism Trade Organisations India (ATTOI); Ross Masood, Chaiman, TAAI Kerala Chapter; Balu Abraham Varughese, Manager, Central & South Kerala, Oman Air, among others. The day concluded with insightful knowledge sessions by various exhibitors.

Scheduled to be held from August 8-11, the India International Hospitality Expo 2018 will take place at India Expo Centre & Mart, Greater Noida Expressway. This mega show aims at making hospitality industry a catalyst for economic growth. With over 200 exhibitors and over 8,000 visitors, this show is the first chapter of country’s largest and most comprehensive sourcing hub for the hospitality, retail, baking, housekeeping and F&B industry. Hari Dadoo, President, IHE 2018, says, “I was trying for the last few years to create an international platform for hospitality professionals where the manufacturers can showcase whatever they have to offer to this sector. Also, people from across the world are coming to sell their products in India while the manufacturers based in India are not able to do the same in their own country. So, it was a dream for me to give an opportunity to them.” Rakesh Kumar, Chairman, IEML & Executive Director, EPCH, says, “This mega congregation caters to the powerful trio of food products, F&B equipment and décor solutions along with the key decision makers including producers, distributors, marketers, service providers, restaurant and hospitality companies, and the entire gamut, who are shaping the hospitality industry.” The event will also see the inauguration by Harsimrat Kaur Badal, Union Cabinet Minister of Food Processing Industry, interaction of Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu, Minister of Commerce and Industry and Civil Aviation with the industry and a fashion show curated by Sunil Sethi Design Alliance and food menu by Chef Manjit Gill in the Banaras Evening.  

The SIHRA Convention 2018 is scheduled to be held in Madurai from October 4-6, 2018 on the theme “Together for a better tomorrow”. Bringing together all the southern states of India and providing abundant opportunities for the growth of the hospitality industry, the convention serves as a platform to showcase the contemporary trends, cutting edge technologies and international best practices in the rapidly growing hospitality industry. SIHRA looks at connecting the all the South Indian states and brings about varied opportunities in exploring the hospitality and tourism fraternity. This convention shall bring together individuals from varied sectors and aims at interlinking the common areas of interests within the mentioned industries. The sectors concentrated upon for this year’s convention are emerging trends, culture & culinary arts, new trends in the beverage industry, women leadership in hospitality, etc. Hari Arumugam is Chairman – Convention organising committee.

Over 900 registrations were recorded on the first day of the third edition of  Global Panorama Showcase in Kolkata. The inaugural day was inaugurated by Bruce Bucknell, Deputy High Commissioner, Kolkata; Anil Prashar, CEO & President, ITQ; Natihaika Msuya, Minister Plenipotentiary (Political & Consular Affairs), Tanzania Embassy, New Delhi; Devesh Aggarwal, Chapter Chairman- Eastern Region, TAAI and Anil Punjabi, Chapter Chairman – Eastern Region, TAFI; among others. With a huge footfall on the first day of GPS Kolkata, Team GPS has high hopes for the same on the consecutive two days. Bucknell, while sharing his views on GPS, said, “GPS is a great platform as it brings the entire travel fraternity together and bridges the gap between Tier I, II and III cities. India is a market with great potential.”