Tag Archives: Ahmedabad

The Outbound Tour Operators’ Association of India (OTOAI) held its member’s meet in Ahmedabad for the first time on December 21, 2016 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in the city. Attended by 90 invited guests, sponsors, and office bearers of OTOAI and the agenda for the meet was to introduce OTOAI to the tourism industry in the city,  use it as a networking event with Members of OTOAI and non members, with intention to increase the membership base in the state, informed Mahendra Vakharia, Chairman – Western Chapter, OTOAI. Apart from the networking, they had also included interesting mix of destination, product presentation and presentation by a professional GST expert, on the implications of GST in the industry. Guldeep Sahni, President, OTOAI and Riaz Munshi, Vice President, OTOAI, were also present at the meet.

Singapore Airlines will increase flight frequency to Ahmedabad to four times per week, up from the current three, with effect from 26 March 2017. While Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka will be served 10 times per week with effect from July 19, 2017, up from the current seven flights per week, Bangkok flight frequency will increase to six per day from five with effect from 26 March 2017. Ho Chi Minh City will be served 19 times per week from the same day, up from the current 17 per week. The airline plans to increase flight frequency to points in Australia, Europe, Southeast Asia and West Asia in the Northern Summer operating season (26 March 2017 to 28 October 2017) to meet growing travel demand. In Australia, Melbourne will be served with 31 weekly flights, up from 28, with effect from 17 July 2017, while flight frequency to Brisbane will increase to 28 per week, up from 24, starting on 22 August 2017. From 4 June 2017, Sydney will be served 33 times per week, up from 31 times per week. To cater to peak period demand, flight frequency to Sydney will be further increased to 35 weekly flights from 18 June to 30 September 2017. In Europe, Rome will be served four times per week from July 2017, up from the current two weekly flights. As previously announced, Moscow will be served five times per week, up from four times, with effect from 30 May 2017, when services beyond Moscow to the new destination of Stockholm are introduced. The additional services are subject to regulatory approvals.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) offices in Mumbai and Delhi took its the fourth edition of its B2B event ‘Luxurious Pleasure’ to four cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad and Kolkata. First held in 2013, Thailand’s ‘Luxurious Pleasure’ roadshow series is an addition to its staple annual roadshow and focuses on high-end holidays such as holidays on private islands and helicopter rides. Explaining Thailand’s focus on luxury, Soraya Homchuen, Director, Tourism Authority of Thailand – Mumbai, said, “Our two-city initiative is now a four-city show with Bengaluru, Kolkata and Ahmedabad now in the fray. We have noticed visible changes in buying behavior. This includes a growth in the number if travellers opting for five-star hotels and villas and a good response to market promotions with prices in the range of Rs 80,000 to Rs 150,000 for a week-long holiday. Today about 25 per cent of the Indian market is checking into luxury hotels and above (villas, private islands and yachts) and this is up from barely 10 per cent when TAT first launched its campaign to target the luxury segment. It is about strategy, sustainability and streamlining the industry with quality as a focus.” Thailand welcomed 1.06 million Indian travellers in 2015 and expects to cross 1.1 million in 2016, having hit over 700,000 Indian arrivals by August already. Homchuen added that TAT wants to grow high-end’s share of the pie by another five per cent. A change in the ratio of men: women travellers is also part of the goal. “Women comprise 23 per cent of the market currently and for this year we would like to bring this up to 30-35 per cent,” she said.

Etihad Airways will launch a fourth daily flight between Abu Dhabi and Kozhikode on 26 March 2017, capitalising on the strong traffic flows between the state of Kerala and the UAE, and beyond. The airline will also double its frequency between Abu Dhabi and Ahmedabad in the western state of Gujarat, from 1 February 2017 with the launch of a new daily service. Etihad Airways announced the expansion of scheduled services between Abu Dhabi and India as strategic partner Jet Airways unveiled new routes and additional frequencies to further strengthen their partnership. From early 2017, the two airlines will expand their services between the United Arab Emirates and India by adding 28 weekly flights and three further Indian cities. Jet Airways recently announced the launch of daily flights between Tiruchirappalli (Trichy), Tamil Nadu, and Abu Dhabi on 1 February 2017, offering travellers another option from southern India. Jet Airways will also introduce daily services from Kannur, the fourth Kerala gateway to Abu Dhabi. It also plans daily services from the northern Indian city of Chandigarh to Abu Dhabi, which will benefit travellers to and from the state of Punjab. The two routes are due to begin in the second half of 2017, subject to the completion of operational readiness at these airports. From 15 January 2017, Jet Airways will introduce a second daily service between New Delhi and Abu Dhabi. With Etihad Airways already operating three flights a day between the two capital cities, the enhanced operation will give guests a wider choice of departure times. Etihad Airways currently operates 175 weekly flights between Abu Dhabi and 11 Indian cities. Together, Etihad Airways and Jet Airways offer 252 weekly flights …

Optimistic by the increasing number of tourists from India, the Department of Tourism (DOT) Philippines along with Her Excellency, Ma. Teresita C.Daza, Ambassador, Republic of Philippines to India launched 135 branded taxis in New Delhi as part of a promotional campaign. Through it, the country attempts to raise awareness of the lesser known places, as well as the popular cities. Speaking at the launch, the ambassador said, “This is one way of raising awareness about the Philippines as each taxi displays various destinations from the country. We hope to encourage more and more Indian travellers to visit the country. The Philipppines has a lot to offer and its slogan, ‘It’s more fun in the Philippines’ has been very helpful in attracting more tourists.” Additionally, 100 radio cabs were branded in Ahmedabad and Pune earlier this year in an attempt to promote the destination. 2015 recorded a growth of 22.36 per cent over the previous year with 74,824 Indians visiting the country.

Singapore Tourism Board recently organised a 10-day, six-city road show across key markets in India and Colombo in Sri Lanka. Themed “Extending Hands in Partnership”, the delegation was led by GB Srithar, Singapore Tourism Board’s (STB) newly appointed Regional Director for South Asia, Middle East and Africa (SAMEA). The initiative is envisioned as an annual platform for the region’s trade partners to get updated on the latest leisure and MICE offerings in Singapore. The Singapore delegation comprised representatives from top hotels, cruise liners, attractions, airlines and Destination Management Companies (DMCs), which travelled to the cities of Colombo in Sri Lanka and then to the Indian cities of Pune, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Lucknow and Jalandhar. The sessions saw an enthusiastic turnout from travel trade professionals with an average participation of 135 agents per city. Srithar said, “As we move into the next exciting phase of promoting Singapore to wider audiences in tier II cities, we look to fostering closer strategic and tactical partnerships with the travel trade to entrench the positioning of Singapore as one of the must-see destinations for the Indian audiences.”

Effective August 15, 2016, Air India’s existing Ahmedabad-London service will be extended across the Atlantic to Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey. With the new schedule, the national carrier’s flights from Ahmedabad to London Heathrow will continue to Newark every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The flight will depart Ahmedabad at 0530 and arrive in London at 1015 and then it will take off again at 1230 and arrive in Newark at 1500. The returning flight will leave from Newark at 2230 every Monday and Friday and land at Heathrow at 1015 the next morning and then it will again depart London at 1230 and reach back in Ahmedabad at 0200 the following morning. However, on Thursdays, the return flights will leave Newark at 0200 and arrive in Ahmedabad at 0330 the next morning, including the stop in London. The flights are now available for booking, and will be operated using Air India’s two-class Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.

Come August, TravelShop Turkey is organising workshops for the travel trade in New Delhi, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, and Bengaluru. The 6-city workshop will begin with New Delhi on August 1, then move to Ahmedabad (August 2), Mumbai (August 3), Kolkata (August 4), Chennai (August 5), and Bengaluru (August 6). The workshops will showcase Turkey’s latest programs for the Indian market. Participants will also get an oopportunity to learn how to sell Turkey as destination, meet with Culture & Tourism Counsellor, TST staff, Turkish Airlines staff, meet with Turkish hotels, and win free Fam trips all around Turkey. “As we know Indian market is very sensitive, specially for food, jain, veg and non veg. thats why it would be good for you to come and get the latest information for visa, payment methods, guides, itineraries, activities, night life and transportation,” said Murtaza Kalender, General Director, TravelShop Turkey.

Preferred Hotels & Resorts expands its partnership with Fortune Hotels (a member of ITC’s hotel group) by announcing the addition of seven new properties to its portfolio within the first quarter of 2016, bringing its partnership with the group to 9 total properties across key destinations in India, including Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Gurgaon, Navi Mumbai and Noida. The association between Preferred Hotels & Resorts and Fortune Hotels began in 2014 when My Fortune Bangalore and My Fortune Chennai joined the brand. Since January 2016, the seven Fortune Hotels additions to the Preferred Hotels & Resorts portfolio include Fortune Select Trinity, Bengaluru; Fortune Park, Ahmedabad; Fortune Select Global, Gurgaon; Fortune Inn Grazia, Noida; Fortune Select Exotica, Navi Mumbai; Fortune Select Grand, Chennai; and Fortune Select Excalibur, Gurgaon. Fortune Hotels, a wholly owned subsidiary of ITC Ltd, was set up in 1995 to cater to the mid-market to upscale market segment in business and leisure destinations. With this association, Preferred Hotels & Resorts enhances its presence in India with a total of 32 member hotels across the country. These member properties are located in key leisure and business cities and constitute some of the finest luxury hotels in India. The alliance is pivotal to Preferred Hotels & Resorts’ growth campaign in the Indian market and further cements the brand’s ties with Fortune Hotels. “Throughout its history, ITC’s hotel group has successfully established itself as one of the foremost hospitality brands in India. We are pleased to further strengthen our partnership with Fortune Hotels under the umbrella of the ITC’s hotel group. The fusion of traditional Indian hospitality and contemporary international standards, along with the brand support from ITC’s hotel group, makes Fortune …

India continues to be the number one source market for Bhutan. With the latest regional arrivals touching 1,09,052 demonstrating a growth of 57 per cent over last year, India remains as the biggest market for both regional and overall arrivals. As part of its India agenda, Tourism Council of Bhutan has focused on Gujarat as one of the key source markets to enhance its Indian footprint in the year 2016, through a road show targeted at key travel agents in Ahmedabad. This would be the first of many initiatives to tap the Gujarat market. Damcho Rinzin, Head, Marketing and Promotion Division, Tourism Council of Bhutan, says, “As a leading international tourism destination, Bhutan is seeking to diversify its source markets and attract new visitors. Countries like India are emerging more and more in the world outbound tourism sector, and Bhutan believes it could offer a special proposition to visitors from India. Further, international travelers to Bhutan are lured by the myriad of offerings that include heritage, culture, natural beauty and a range of quality world class hospitality and tourism industry which make a strong proposition for Bhutan as a destination.”