Tag Archives: Chennai

Another exciting roadshow was held in the South Indian city of Chennai by the Philippines Tourism, which received a positive response from the industry. The dedication of the Philippines Tourism to promote its destinations and culture was brough to the fore. Important industry professionals and stakeholders participated in detailed dialogue about the varied offerings of the Philippines.  Shahlimar Hofer Tamano, Undersecretary for Tourism, Regulation Coordination & Resource Generation, and the concurrent Director, Regional Office VII, commented, “The Philippines acknowledges Indian influence as a primary wellspring of tourists to our nation. We expect the Philippines to increase in terms of tourist footfall.” Fourteen entities from the Philippines took part in the Chennai roadshow. These included Ark Travel Express, bai Hotel Cebu, Department of Tourism Central Visayas, Dusit Hotels & Resorts, Gi Philippines, Lalaguna Villas Luxury Dive Resort and Spa, Okada Manila, Philippine Airlines, Plantation Bay Resort and Spa, Scoot, Shangrila, Shroff International Travel Care, The Farm at San Benito, and Uni Orient Travel.   Other than the Philippine entities who took part in the roadshow, as many as 60 Indian travel agents also participated in the Philippines roadshow in Chennai.   “Chennai holds a special place of mention in our hearts as a distinctive market. The latent potential that reverberates Chennai fills us with optimism, and we are assured that there would be a significant increase in the number of visitors from Chennai to the Philippines,” said SanJeet, Managing Director, Buzz Travel Marketing.   

The eighth edition of Travel M!CE & Corporate Show is scheduled from 18-19 March 2023 in Chennai. The travel show is India’s first and only corporate show focused on B2B meetings amongst suppliers and corporates. It delivers positive face-to-face events bringing corporate buyers from different regions in India to meet, network, collaborate, and do business with suppliers.

Ethiopian Airlines has started thrice weekly operations to/from Chennai from 2 July. Chennai has joined the vast Ethiopian network as a fourth destination in India after New Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. The flights to Chennai will be operated using B737-8 aircraft as per the below schedule.

The Tamil Nadu Police Museum at Egmore, Chennai, which has been curated by Steve Borgia, CMD, INDeco Hotels, has been opened to the public and was inaugurated by Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday. The museum is home to a number of artefacts, dating back to as many as 200 years. Some of the artefacts displayed in the museum have even been seized from sandalwood smuggler Veerappan, LTTE Prabhakaran. The building itself used to be the old Commissioner’s office of Chennai Police from 1856 to 2013. Now, the building was converted into a museum at the cost of Rs 6.47 crore. Steve Borgia, the curator of the state-of-the-art museum, stated that it is a commemorative way of appreciating the sacrifice by the state police force and their commendable job in maintaining law and order. “A miracle just happened. I spent my Corona Lockdown Time to fulfil my desire to create an outstanding international Standard Police Museum in Chennai and housed it in the 160-Year-old Police Commissioner’s building on Pantheon Road, Egmore, Chennai. rare Museum Objects relating to Police of Yesteryear have been loaned to this Historical Museum by INDeco Hotels Swamimalai (www.indecohotels.com),” revealed Borgia.

Sri Lanka has opened its borders to India after a long anticipated hiatus. Fully vaccinated travellers will only require a negative PCR 72 hour prior to arrival and an on-arrival PCR test at a certified hotel. They will then be allowed to roam across the country freely. Sri Lankan Airlines will operate four weekly flights to Chennai, three to Mumbai, and one to Bengaluru under its new schedule, and is expected to introduce significant frequency enhancements.

In its monthly overview of the hotels and hospitality sector, HVS ANAROCK reveals that while hotel occupancy in most cities witnessed month-on-month decline in May due to restrictions and lockdowns in various states, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Chennai observed the highest occupancy in the country (31-35%) during the month.

South India Hotels & Restaurants Association (SIHRA) organised a vaccination camp for hoteliers, which was inaugurated at GRT Convention Centre, Chennai by Shri Venkatesan, Regional Director (South), Indiatourism. The camp received good response from all Chennai hoteliers. In a tweet, Ministry of Tourism gave special thanks to Chennai Corporation Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner and all the Health Department officials for their support.

In anticipation of border reopening, Tourism Malaysia India Offices (Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai) are engaging with TAAI, TAFI as well as tour operators and other travel agents to come up with key initiatives, strategies and activities to once again woo Indian tourists to Malaysia, as well as update partners on Malaysia’s products.

VFS Global has been awarded the contract for Morocco visa services starting from 21 January 2021, and VACs have been rolled out in Delhi, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Chennai and Mumbai. The centres are currently accepting work, business, seminars/conferences, student/researcher, family reunification, journalist and investor visas. Issuance of tourist visas is currently on hold due to the ongoing pandemic and related border closures. Pranav Sinha, Head – South Asia, VFS Global, says, “We are excited about starting the new year with a new partnership, and welcoming Morocco as VFS Global’s 65th client government.” As part of precautionary measures, customers visiting our centres may be subjected to body temperature checks to assess their health conditions and required to wear face mask and gloves. Customers exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms, including fever (higher than 37.3 degrees Celsius), cough and difficulty breathing will be allowed to reschedule their application submission for another day and will be advised to seek medical attention at the nearest healthcare facility of their choice.

IndiGo has announced direct flights from Kurnool to Bengaluru, Visakhapatnam, and Chennai March 28 onwards, strategically enhancing regional connectivity in southern India. The LCC will begin these operations under the UDAN scheme.