Category Archives: NTO (National Tourist Offices)

In a move to enhance destination awareness and foster market visibility, the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) has appointed VFS Global to promote Zimbabwe as a preferred tourism destination in both India and GCC region, through a collaborative relationship. As part of the agreement, VFS Global would support ZTA to build a unique identity of Zimbabwe as a potential tourist destination by educating and spreading awareness to tour operators, travel agents, MICE planners and the general traveller based in India or GCC region. Commenting on the new partnership, Karikoga Kaseke, Chief Executive of the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority, said “We have not been active in the GCC region and our absence has created room for negative perceptions to prevail. However, we are now ready for this market because Zimbabwe is now open for business. Through the appointment of VFS Global as market representatives for Zimbabwe in the GCC region we aim for increased awareness of Zimbabwe and establish destination presence and visibility. We anticipate a rise in arrivals from GCC region to 13500 by 2021 as VFS Global embarks on aggressively marketing the country. Zimbabwe has recently targeted India as a primary market due to its potential resulting from the rapid growing disposable incomes in India. Jiten Vyas, Regional Group COO, VFS Global added, “As a country bestowed with rich cultural heritage, Zimbabwe is strengthening their tourism business and entering their potential markets. We are pleased to partner with ZTA to put this country that has so much of untapped tourism potential on the world map for travellers from India and GCC who can now experience the beautiful nation of Zimbabwe.”      

Clarence Fernandes, Chairman, Rwanda Renaissance has been conferred with the “Indo Global Lifetime Achievement Award ” for his contribution towards promoting investments and tourism into Rwanda. During a function, held , at the Kohinoor Continental Hotel, Mumbai,  Aftab Anwar Shaikh, President, Indo Global Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture, commended the tremendous efforts which have been put in by Fernandes in marketing Remarkable Rwanda here in India. In his acceptance speech Fernandes remarked, “I dedicate this award to the people of Rwanda and particularly to the Survivors of the 1994 Genocide Against the Tutsi who have worked tirelessly and against all odds to bring the country from where it was immediately after the Genocide , to where it has reached today, after twenty four years.” Fernandes added that the resilience and fortitude of the Rwandan people made this possible. In conclusion, he quoted the famous words of His Excellency, President Paul Kagame ,” We cannot turn the clock back, nor can we undo the harm caused. but we have the power to determine the future and to ensure that what happened never happens again.” Rwanda Renaissance is laying great stress on promoting ” accessible tourism “. In April this year, a delegation of visually impaired boys came to Rwanda from 04 -to 09 April when they gave a series of commemorative choral performances during Kwibuka 24. The success of that mission has promoted Fernandes to now plan a Delegation of visually impaired girls who will give a series of dance performances in August this year.

Indian Tourist arrivals to Turkey saw an increase of 95 per cent in the first four months of 2018 in comparison to the same period of 2017. While 19,803 Indians visited Turkey from January to April last year, this figure rose to 38,471 in the same period this year. The first quarter of 2018 has seen a 32 per cent increase in number of international tourists visiting Turkey, as compared to the same period of 2017. The country is preparing to host 40 million international tourists by the end of 2018, which will be a record for the country. While Antalya, Istanbul, Mugla, Cappadocia and Izmir remain the top destinations in Turkey, by the end of 2018, 200000 Indian tourists are expected to visit Turkey. Indian arrivals to Turkey reached its highest in 2015, which is considered as one of the best year in tourism. Looking at the numbers, it is expected that the Indian market will leave behind 2015 figures, which will be an increase of 50 per cent.

Amid a significant increase in tourist traffic between the two countries in the last few years, Indonesia is aiming at 7 lakh tourists from India in 2018, its envoy Sidharto R Suryodipuro said. He added, “The number of Indian tourists to Indonesia last year was close to half a million people (4.85 lakh)” while the number of people travelling to India from the Southeast Asian country was about 40,000. “This year, we are targeting 7 lakh Indian tourists in Indonesia,” he said at an event titled ‘Pride and glory of Bali-Yatra’ (voyage to Bali) held in Kolkata, to celebrate the glorious maritime history of India and ancient trading links in Indonesia’s Bali. Claiming the diplomatic relationship between the two the nations at present to be “the closest in the last 70 years”, the envoy said the leaders of both the countries were looking to enhance people to people connectivity through tourism. “When Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met the Indonesian President Joko Widodo in Jakarta, they discussed about expanding air travel between the two nations. Tourism is the easiest way to establish people to people connectivity. Especially in India and Indonesia, because of the growth of middle class, more and more people are now open to travelling,” he said. However, the envoy pointed out that the connectivity between India and Indonesia was not up to the mark and pitched for direct flight connectivity to support the rising tourist traffic as no Indian carrier flies to Indonesia presently. “We need more of regional connectivity and especially direct air connectivity between the two nations. A number of carriers in Indonesia fly to India directly but none of the Indian carriers fly to …

Singapore Tourism Board invites tenderers for the appointment of a Marketing Representative agency for South India (with offices in Bengaluru and Chennai) The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) India Regional Office invites bids from professional and well-connected marketing representative agencies, with strong in-market knowledge and travel trade networks to promote Destination Singapore and help grow visitor-ship from South India to Singapore. The appointment will be for one year, commencing September/October 2018, with an option to extend for an additional year. To receive the tender documents, please email mumbai@stb.gov.sg and quote reference number: STB/MUMD/18-19/LT2. Quotations will be accepted by email only. Please read the instructions indicated in the tender documents carefully. Opening date of the tender is May 31, 2018 (Thursday). The tender closes on June 18 (Monday) at 15:00 hours (3.00 PM) India Standard Time. Any enquiries regarding the specifications are to be made by email to mumbai@stb.gov.sg or via phone at (+91-22) 6608 3200.

VisitBritain recently hosted a networking dinner in Mumbai for select travel agents to promote the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 which will be held in England and Wales. The actual trophy of the ICC Cricket world cup was also put on display for attendees at the event. Speaking at the event, Matt Hancock MP Secretary of State for digital, culture, media and sport said, “ We look forward for the competition next year in England. We want more Indians to come and watch the world cup in England and travel in England too. It is a great tourist opportunity and good reason to travel to England.” Tricia Warwick, Director-Asia Pacific, Middle East, Africa, Visit Britain commented, “We are excited to promote the cricket tournament to the India market and it is an unbeatable combination between England and India. We have had a good last year in India with 30 per cent growth with statistics till September 2017, while we await the final numbers. Our forecast for this year which we have been running from 1st of April is up by 20 per cent. Indians on average have been spending 24 nights in Britain.”

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) announced that Thailand has been named as the host country for the 19th International Indian Film Academy Awards (IIFA Awards), which is scheduled to be held in Bangkok from 22-24 June, 2018. This makes the second time the Thai capital plays host to the biggest celebration of Indian cinema, having hosted the 9th IIFA Awards on 8 June, 2008. Yuthasak Supasorn, TAT Governor, said, “India is one of Thailand’s important sources of visitor markets. Being named as the host country for the glitzy and glamorous IIFA Awards for the second time reiterates Thailand’s positioning as the preferred destination among Indian travellers.” Wizcraft International, the producers and creators of the IIFA, made the official announcement at a press conference held in New Delhi on 17 May, 2018. Making the appearances to confirm Bangkok as the host city for this June’s star-studded weekend included Bollywood bigwigs Ranbir Kapoor, Karan Johar, Dia Mirza, Shahid Kapoor and Kartik Aaryan.

Korea Tourism Organization New Delhi Office has launched its India website www.visitkorea.in as part of its marketing plan for the year 2018. The website mainly caters to the travel industry and individuals seeking tourism related information specific to the Indian outbound travelling requirements. The website was launched to provide a quick access of everything an Indian traveller would like to see and do in South Korea. Regular updates on offers and announcements will keep the visitors apprised of what’s happening. The KTO India website features highlight the mandatory travel information for India market such as visa information, currently available South Korea packages, incentive programme details, Indian food available in South Korea, main destination and attractions for Indians to enjoy, etc. According to Jong Sool Kwon, Director, Korea Tourism Organization New Delhi, “The usual practice of prospective tourists and travel agents was to find a local travel agent partner, get information from brochures or wait for the tourism board to organise training sessions for updates about South Korea from Indian traveller’s perspective. This website will be a one-stop solution for both the trade partners and travellers to gather updated information. Although the global website was available for all to access information about South Korea, however, it has been so difficult for tourists to find India-centric information about the destination.”  

Switzerland Tourism has introduced its global e-learning programme created for travel agents to sell the destination in the India market. This was launched in January this year and its India-specific programme created especially for this market was discontinued. Speaking about the decision behind this development, Claudio Zemp, Director – India, Switzerland Tourism, says, “We are very proud to introduce our new e-learning programme – the Switzerland Travel Academy – in India. This is a global programme for travel agents all over the world and is now also available for the Indian agents. We observed that the demand and the requirements from the India market as well as the knowledge about the destination were fast evolving and for that reason we have now started using the same e-learning programme for India.” The NTO recently did a series of four webinars this year that got overwhelming response with about 600 people joining each webinar. The numbers are also good, as Zemp reveals. “We had an increase of 23.4 per cent in terms of tourists generated out of India in 2017 over the previous year. The first three months of 2018 saw an increase of 16.4 per cent over the previous year during the same period, which is traditionally not a busy season for us,” he says.  

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has launched a ‘Little Chiang Mai’ guidebook in English, bringing together the city’s independent bookshops, secret restaurants and museums, as well as the province’s bicycle and running routes in a set of five bona fide designer pocketbooks for readers to use or collect. TAT Governor, Yuthasak Supasorn said Little Chiang mai’s latest English edition, would be an unique guide for international travellers looking to discover Thailand’s ‘Rose of the North’ from a new perspective. The book set combines Chiang Mai’s culture, gastronomy and art in a way that brings the city to life in a new light, targeting young active travellers looking to discover its hidden gems along running or cycling routes. He noted that it is unique both in form and content and consists of five individual sections: ‘Ride’, ‘Run’, ‘Restaurants’, ‘Gallery Museum’ and ‘Bookshops’. The initial brief from TAT was to create a map of Chiang Mai’s bookshops, restaurants and museums that bring together the city’s local establishments with bicycle and running routes in Chiang Mai being added as a bonus. What differentiates Little Chiang mai from most guidebooks is each section has a character that is relatable to its content, which is divided into five individual pocketbooks distributed within the one package.