Tag Archives: CEO

WelcomHeritage is looking for expansion towards South and Northeast India with new properties. Sunil Gupta, CEO, WelcomHeritage shared, “There is a lot of potential in South and North East. WelcomHeritage is known for its best heritage properties and by further expanding to these regions, we will be bringing the values and rich hospitality of these regions on a global platform. We have already identified properties and are in discussion with the properties owners.” The next property, immediately, to be flagged will be WelcomHeritage Ashdale in Nainital, which is an old manor from the British era, owned by the Royalty of Sahaspur.  Thereafter, WelcomHeritage will be flagging two nature resorts, one in Tadoba, Maharashtra, and the other in Coorg, Karnataka. Both these properties are in the advance stages of the project, and will be launched within this financial year.

Seychelles Tourism Board is set to conduct roadshows at Kolkata, Pune and Bengaluru. The pre-fixed meetings format which was introduced last year will continue this year as well. Sherin Francis, CEO, Seychelles Tourism Board, says, “Last year’s roadshow allowed top agents to meet all partners in a quick pre-fixed meeting of 15 minutes each in a round-robin flow. This no-frills format focused on serious business generation and ensured that every agent invited could spend quality time with every partner from Seychelles.” For 2018, the tourism board plans to conduct workshops with its key B2B partners in cities of Raipur, Indore, Kochi, Coimbatore, Baroda, Surat and Rajkot. “We will also continue to meet and educate agents in main cities that will include Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Pune and Kolkata. We plan to support tour operators with incentive-based trainings to encourage bigger numbers to Seychelles,” Francis adds. Seychelles Tourism Boards recently hosted an appreciation evening in Mumbai to acknowledge high performers from the travel trade in association with Air Seychelles. India emerged as the seventh-largest source market for Seychelles with an arrival of 13,518 tourists from India in 2017 which indicated a 23 per cent growth compared to 2016. In 2018, the tourism board expects a similar percentage growth.  

Charting out expansion plans to connect more Tier-II and III cities, AirAsia India has set a target to commence flights to overseas destinations by January 2019, according to Amar Abrol, Managing Director and CEO, AirAsia India. The airline inducted its 16th aircraft and announced the addition of Nagpur and Indore to its list of destinations. “Our strategy is that once we get to 20 planes (operating in domestic operations) we will start flying international. Mostly, it will be to South East Asian countries,” Abrol shared. Stating that 27 per cent of the people who fly with AirAsia were flying for the first time ever, he said, “So, we are opening up Indian skies. And we are getting lot many more Indians to fly for the first time.” The plan is to connect more and more Tier-II and III cities in India, wherever A320 can go and also start flying international after crossing 20 aircraft, he said. Source: PTI

Nepcare Hospitality Management, Kolkata has partnered with The Haven Resort Hotel, Ipoh, Malaysia for pan India representation. According to Nirmalya Chaudhuri, CEO, Nepcare, “Ipoh is a city in northwestern Malaysia, known as a gateway to the Cameron Highlands hill station.  As a destination, Ipoh is getting popular in the Indian market.

Tirun Travel Marketing, the exclusive India representative of Royal Caribbean International, has announced cruise sailings to and from India in the pre-monsoon season, onboard its Mariner of the Seas. The cruise line will take guests across Asia including Singapore, Phuket, Muscat and Dubai as well as Goa, with six- and seven-night sailings ex Cochin. Ratna Chadha, CEO, Tirun Travel Marketing, said, “Cruise travel is becoming increasingly popular in the Indian subcontinent, especially as more and more vacationers from India are joining the flock of international cruise travellers. We are glad to share that all of our recent cruises have received an overwhelming response and we are certain that ‘Mariner of the Seas’ visit to India will further enhance the propensity of Indian holidaymakers to opt for RCI cruises.” The cruise line has segmented its 13-night sailing into two itineraries with a six-night Singapore to Cochin sailing from April 9-15 and a seven-night Cochin to Dubai sailing from April 15-22. The ‘Singapore to Cochin’ itinerary, that has an all-inclusive price of Rs 50,649 per person for the Promenade-view room, will take Indian vacationers across Phuket. Mariner of the Seas is also home to activities such as rock climbing, ice skating, arcade gaming and multi-level night clubs for travellers.  

Niraamaya Retreats, a Jupiter Capital Venture, has announced its expansion in Nagaland with its management lease of Classic Inn, a charming boutique property at Kohima in Nagaland. It has now rechristened Niraamaya Retreats Aradura. Manu Rishi Guptha, CEO, Niraamaya Retreats, says, “This expansion is the first in the series of many more that Niraamaya Retreats has envisaged for this year. In Aradura, we saw a perfect alignment to our philosophy of Niraamaya Retreats being a selection of bespoke experiences in spectacular locations that our clientele expects from us.” The property has a total of 12 accommodations with expansive views. The suites are equipped with modern amenities and are a fusion of tribal and contemporary design.

Travelport has announced a renewed long-term partnership with Travelgenio. With nearly 250 airlines signed up to use Travelport’s unique merchandising technology, Travelgenio is able to further differentiate itself by displaying and selling branded fare families and ancillary products from these airlines in the same way they do on their own websites. Having recently become the first global distribution system (GDS) to be certified by IATA as a “Level 3” Aggregator under its New Distribution Capability (NDC) initiative, Travelport will also benefit Travelgenio by creating NDC connections with airlines as they become available. Commenting on the renewed agreement, Mariano Pelizzari, CEO, Travelgenio, said, “Given all the searches that take place, it’s crucial we take advantage of the right technology to optimise our customer experience. The renewal of our agreement with Travelport demonstrates our commitment to serve the end traveller even better by continually providing the rich choice of content with the speed and accuracy that’s critical to them.” Fred Lindgren, Country Manager, Travelport Spain, commented, “To maintain its leadership in the competitive landscape of online travel, Travelgenio needs continued access to extensive global travel choices and the best booking technology to deliver a fast, differentiated and personalised booking. This agreement is testament to Travelport’s combination of innovative technology and extensive travel content.”

The Emirates Group, and its affiliated entities including flydubai, signed an MoU with the Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB), Government of Andhra Pradesh, to establish a framework for collaboration in various aviation areas to invest in the development of Andhra Pradesh’s aviation sector. The MoU was signed by His Highness Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief Executive, Emirates Airline & Group, and Krishna Kishore, CEO, APEDB. Under the terms of the MoU, the Emirates Group and the state of Andhra Pradesh will work together to support the development of Andhra Pradesh’s aviation infrastructure by sharing industry expertise and identifying development and investment opportunities. Al Maktoum said, “The Emirates Group is committed to future investment and expansion in support of India’s 2020 goal to be the world’s third largest aviation market. Through this agreement, Emirates and flydubai will work closely with APEDB to share expertise, discuss opportunities and enhance the growth of the aviation sector in Andhra Pradesh.” “We are confident that this partnership with the Emirates Group will be a major boost to APEDB’S strategic efforts to develop the aviation industry in Andhra Pradesh. It will contribute positively to AP’s economic growth as well as help us build a stronger framework for infrastructural development,” said Kishore.

Sharing plans for 2018, K. Shyam Sundar, CEO, Air India Express, said that the focus for the LCC will be Kannur, located about 90 kms north of Calicut, which is slated to get a brand new international airport this year. Sundar says, “The focus market for us for 2018-19 will be Kannur. We expect the new airport to be functional by June 2018. We have requested the Kerala Government to allow us to be the first carrier to operate international flights from the new airport. In fact, the two aircraft we are going to induct is probably going to be based or largely operated to and from Kannur. We intend to connect Kannur to about four to five destinations in the Gulf.” Kannur is an extremely important market for AIE. The new airport is a PPP project and will be larger than the one in Calicut in terms of runway length. It will be a table-top airport. Currently, passengers from Kannur have to travel to Calicut to take flights. Sundar also revealed that AIE will make its four-month old non-stop Madurai-Singapore flight to a daily in the summer schedule. It will also add some new routes in the summer which will be a direct link between Kochi, Kuwait and Bahrain. Air India Express currently flies to 15 international destinations: Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Ras Al Khaimah, Bahrain, Dammam, Doha, Kuwait, Muscat, Salalah, Singapore, KualaLumpur, Riyadh & Dhaka from 15 Indian cities – Kozhikode, Kochi, Thiruvananthpuram, Mangalore, Chennai, Tiruchirapally, Mumbai, Pune, Amritsar, Lucknow, Jaipur, Varanasi, New Delhi, Kolkata and Chandigarh. On the domestic front, it operates flights between Chennai-Thiruvananthpuram-Chennai, Kozhikode-Thiruvananthpuram-Kozhikode, Kochi-Thiruvananthpuram-Kochi and Kochi-Kozhikode.

As a result of the Indian subcontinent’s growing outbound demand, Dubai Tourism has announced the appointment of Nijhawan Group as its in-market destination representation and trade marketing management firm in India. With over 45 years of experience in India, Nijhawan Group will now be responsible for all trade communications, brand partnership conversations and building crucial trade relationships in the Indian subcontinent to strengthen Dubai’s position in the market. Meanwhile, Cruise Club has been appointed as the representative in India for Dubai Business Events, a division of Dubai Tourism. Based out of Mumbai, Cruise Club’s role is to increase Dubai’s market share from incentive groups and corporate meetings. The team has already begun delegate boosting activity and promoting upcoming events. Issam Kazim, CEO, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DCTCM) said, “India remains a top priority for us, now consistently being the largest source market for tourists to Dubai. This is a feat achieved through years of establishing and building strong trade ties in the market.” Ankush Nijhawan, Managing Director, Nijhawan Group, added, “With our appointment, we hope to capitalise on our extensive network of agents and generate greater growth into Dubai with their support.”