Category Archives: NTO (National Tourist Offices)

Leaders of the global tourism industry praised the Philippines’ successful hosting of the 21st Global Summit of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) as it closed with high hopes for an industry battered by two years of the pandemic. “I’m not often stumped for words, but I am now. Wow! What an amazing summit. We really have rediscovered travel,” said Julia Simpson, president and CEO of the WTTC, who considered the “extraordinary Philippine welcome” as her personal highlight of the two-day summit. “That warmth, that passion, that generosity, that smile. I haven’t walked out one corridor without people saying to me ‘Good morning!’. It’s incredible. You live it. It’s not a show – it really is in your DNA,” she said after the closing ceremony. In her closing speech, Simpson said the success of the summit was “testament that the country’s tourism industry is well on its feet.” The summit, which gathered world leaders of the tourism industry, has given the Philippines the opportunity to showcase “how beautiful the country is,” Tourism Secretary Berna Romulo-Puyat said on Friday. She said the Philippines is now a top-of-mind destination for delegates, many of whom had decided to stay to savor the rest of the country where “we are setting an example of how to open safely.” “This has been a wonderful global summit and, to echo your brand campaign, we certainly had lots of fun in the Philippines. This is an experience all the delegates of the Summit can definitely attest to,” WTTC Chairman Arnold Donald  said in his closing address. Gloria Guevara, special advisor of Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Tourism and former president and CEO of WTTC, said the Philippines …

Malaysia has finally lifted sanctions on its border on 1st April 2022, marking the end of travelling restrictions into the country. Leveraging this new development, Tourism Malaysia has decided to embark on its first roadshow to six major cities in India from 18th until 30th April 2022, after more than two years of hiatus. The roadshow kicked off in Delhi, followed by Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, and Chennai. The mission is headed by Manoharan Periasamy, Senior Director of the International Promotion Division (Asia & Africa) together with Malaysia’s tourism fraternity which consists of three Malaysia-based airlines, 22 travel agents, four hoteliers, and four product owners. India remains and has been one of the top market sources for Malaysia and has contributed 735,309 arrivals (+22%) in 2019. Apart from its objective to instil confidence among Indians to feel safe to visit Malaysia once again, the roadshow aims to provide a platform for the industry community to bounce back and steer the tourism sector back to its former glory, if not better. “This is the right time to be back in India, and planning for this roadshow is very opportune. The resumption of scheduled international flights from India coincides with the reopening of Malaysia’s international borders,” said Manoharan. “We are thrilled and enthusiastic to welcome Indian travellers back on exciting, new value-driven and action-packed itineraries to witness the best and latest of what Malaysia has to offer. There is so much to explore after two years, especially with the newly opened outdoor theme park, Genting SkyWorlds, the wedding venues such as refurbished Sunway Resort in Kuala Lumpur, Desaru Coast situated on Eastern Coast of Johor, Lexis Hotels and Resorts at Port Dickson …

Tourism New Zealand has relaunched its travel trade website with the aim to deliver the best information, education, resources and support to inspire and help travel agents to sell New Zealand. The new website provides a comprehensive one-stop-shop for online training and inspirational content, as well as all sales tools and resources. The updated design and layout are more intuitive and user friendly for the agents. The website content is dedicated to informing them about New Zealand tourism product news, travel industry events and providing training opportunities to them.

Tourism Malaysia has kicked off its first roadshow to six major cities in India from 18th until 30th April 2022, after more than two years of hiatus. The roadshows are in line with Malaysia lifting sanctions on its border on 1st April 2022. Starting in Delhi, the roadshow kicks off in the city of Delhi, followed by Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, and Chennai. The mission is headed by Manoharan Periasamy, Senior Director of the International Promotion Division (Asia & Africa) together with Malaysia’s tourism fraternity which consists of three (3) Malaysia-based airlines, 22 travel agents, four (4) hoteliers, and four (4) product owners.

Tourism Australia has set a target to achieve pre-Covid levels in terms of tourists arriving from India. The tourism agency has lined up a series of campaigns to attract traveller from India and has pinned hopes on the ICC Twenty-20 World Cup scheduled to be held in Australia later this year that would further aid the tourism sector, Tourism Australia Country Manager Nishant Kashikar said.

Palladium Hotel Group the internationally renowned Spanish hotel chain represented by Global Destinations in India recently hosted exclusive cocktail dinners for their top 50 priority travel and trade partners in Mumbai and Delhi. The evenings were graced by The Consul General of Spain Fernando Heredia Noguer along with The Director of the Tourism Office of Spain in India, Elisa Robles in Mumbai, while Delhi saw the presence of Deputy Head of Mission, the Embassy of Spain, Montserrat Momán Pampillo and Incharge of Consular Section, Embassy of Spain, Helana Escorial Lopez in attendance. Sandra Polo Canudas, Asia & ME Commercial Director Palladium Hotel Group presented insights on Palladium’s hospitality and newly established regulations for hassle-free travel for Indian visitors. She touched upon Spain re-opening borders, all ready to welcome Indians back. The guests were acquainted with the gamut of brands under the Palladium Hotel Group and were informed about the upcoming projects & developments in Spain. The evenings were full of sparking conversations with the travel fraternity exchanging tête-à-têtes over cocktails. The events presented an opportunity to reconnect with travel & trade partners in India to showcase the diverse brand portfolio the hotel group has to offer. Canudas said, “After 2 years of meeting virtually it is delightful to meet our key Stakeholders in-person. India continues to be one of our focus markets for Outbound travel. We look forward, to continue increasing our footprint in India and to further our brand presence. With international travel now open, we are ready to spoil our Indian visitors with an array of experiences, fantastic cuisine, and stunning vistas!”

With Indian outbound travel market getting ready to reopen and travel around the world again, KTO New Delhi, Shinhan Bank and Utazzo Travel have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to promote a one of its kind savings cum deposit plan called “Let’s Go Korea” for Indian travellers to plan their dream holiday to South Korea. The plan allows travellers to invest for their future trip to Korea and receive exclusive offers on their Korea travel bookings from Utazzo Travel. The customers can invest in monthly instalments ranging between INR 2,000 to INR 100,000 with Shinhan Bank for a duration of up to 1 year. The Shinhan bank offers an attractive rate of interest of 5.75% * per annum that can be availed at the end of the deposit period. The buyers of this monthly saving cum recurring deposit plan are entitled for exclusive discounts and money back offers provided by Utazzo travel. As the exclusive travel agency partner, Utazzo Travel will curate multiple packages at attractive rates, valid till December 31, 2023. The buyers will be provided with a special 10% discount and 5% cash back on the South Korea package cost & a voucher worth INR 25,000 for other future bookings. Not just this the package buyers will receive an exclusive photo shoot in South Korea. The customers need to enroll for the Let’s Go Korea plan with Shinhan bank and fill a Google form to avail these exclusive offers. One lucky winner from the package Korea package buyers will also receive a free stay for two at a 5 star hotel in India. The list does not end here, Korea Tourism Organization will also be providing a special …

A new e-visa portal that went live on March 30, 2022, is set to enhance the travel to Azerbaijan. The portal was developed as a part of a cooperation agreement signed between VFS Global, the world’s largest outsourcing and technology services specialist for governments and diplomatic missions worldwide and the E-GOV Development Center (EGDC) in the State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations under the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan has been a chosen destination for a diverse segment of travellers globally. Currently travellers from 70 nationalities are eligible to travel to Azerbaijan with travel restriction likely to open for other markets. Fariz Jafarov Director of EGDC, said “We are delighted to partner with VFS Global in our endeavour to encourage seamless travel to Azerbaijan. We are confident that travellers across the globe would realise the advantages of e-visa service and leverage its benefits.” “Azerbaijan is the 64th client served by VFS Global. This mandate reiterates our proven record of nurturing trusted partnerships, excellence in business delivery and our approach on customer-centricity over the past two decades,” said Noel Swain, Business Head – Passport Services, eVisa & Tourism services, VFS Global.

A Qatar Tourism delegation was in Mumbai recently, led by Philip Dickinson, Vice President International Markets, Qatar Tourism, along with Sandeep Shevale – Tourism Marketing & Promotions and Deveekaa Nijhawan – International Public Relations & Communications. The delegation’s DMC participants covered Discover Qatar, Al Tawfeeq Travel and Travel Designer W.L.L. The team was also supported by BRANDit, India Representative of Qatar Tourism. Berthold Trenkel, Chief Operating Officer, Qatar Tourism, said “We are pleased to re-establish our presence in the India market. The objective was to highlight the various facets that Qatar offers not just in the lead up to the FIFA World Cup, but beyond as well. The aim is to leverage our tourism assets based on six demand spaces identified in line with our vision, namely Sun, Sea and Sand; Active Holidays; Relax & Rejuvenate; Cultural Enthusiasts; Luxury City Breaks and Romantic Getaways. With the launch of new hotels, theme parks, cultural hotspots, retail outlets, leisure projects and more.” To reaffirm trade partnerships, Qatar’s national carrier, Qatar Airways in association with Qatar Tourism hosted a networking dinner at The St. Regis Mumbai on 14th March 2022. The interactive evening was well-attended by travel trade partners representatives. The guests were acquainted with the destination and informed about various tourism products, developments and projects underway in Qatar. “India is and will continue to be a significant and rapidly growing market for us at Qatar Tourism. Pre-pandemic, we have witnessed a significant rise in arrivals from India and look forward to accelerate our efforts in sustaining the momentum and fully unlocking the potential of travellers across segments of leisure, MICE and weddings. It is an exciting time for the global tourism industry …

Fanatic Sports, the Joint Exclusive Sales Agent of MATCH Hospitality in India for the sale of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ Official Hospitality Programme is estimating an exponential revenue growth for the showpiece international men’s football championship, to be held in Qatar. “Indian market for official hospitality is approximately 4-5% of the global market and Fanatic Sports is expecting to contribute to more than 50% of this ever-rising market scenario in India. As Official Hospitality Programmes are becoming a key part of corporate entertainment, rising income levels, a whole new generation of young aspirants and passionate sports fans indicate that people not only have the knowledge but also want to build lifelong memories. We identified this opportunity and pioneered in curating this once in a lifetime experience,” says Raghav Gupta, Founder and CEO of Fanatic Sports. According to industry estimates, the global sports industry is more than Rs 600 billion and with India moving to the concept of experiential tourism this has resulted in redefining how Indians traditionally watched sports. This year’s FIFA World Cup will be value for money as one can enjoy complete match experience along with food, beverages and lounge access.  “Sports experiential market in India has huge potential. Despite pandemic impacting travel, we have seen a steady rise in Indian sports fans wanting to travel for such experiential travels. In 2018, the hospitality sports revenue business had generated close to Rs 80 crore but this time we are expecting India to be among the highest revenue generators for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™,” said John Parker, Director at MATCH Hospitality AG, appointed as the worldwide Exclusive Rights Holder of the Official Hospitality Programme for …