Tag Archives: Indonesia

Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno, Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy of the Republic of Indonesia, said, “Last year, India ranked 2 in terms of tourist arrivals in Bali. This year, our global target exceeds 14 million tourists, with an aim to attract 700,000 from India alone, owing to increased direct flights.”

The island of Lombok, which is part of the magnificent Indonesian archipelago, (known for) is renowned for the pristine beauty of its untainted landscape, which draws travelers from all over the world. Away Lombok Mandalika and Amber Lombok Beach by Cross Collection have joined the company’s expanding portfolio on the back of a hotel management agreement (HMA) that Cross Hotels & Resorts and PT. Origin Resorts Lombok inked. The announcement brings the total number of Cross-branded boutique properties in Indonesia to six, following on from a twin-hotel management deal in the prominent tourist destination of Bali in April 2022. These include Away Bali Legian Camakila, Cross Bali Breakers, Tanadewa Resort and Spa Ubud by Cross Collection and Tanadewa Villas and Spa Nusa Dua by Cross Collection. A truly tropical haven, Away Lombok Mandalika attracts travellers with a league of its own accommodation options, including deluxe garden and pool suites adorned with organic elements and indigenous crafts. Away Lombok Mandalika, located close to Kuta, offers its guests the chance to “Escape Everyday Life” and check off a number of bucket-list items, including phenomenal surfing, breathtaking sunsets, and late-night partying. “We are honoured to partner with PT. Origin Resorts Lombok and I am excited about the continued expansion of our eco-friendly footprint on the beautiful island of Lombok. With these two magnificent resorts joining the Cross family, I am confident our strong international network will help bring a new genre of holidaymaker to Lombok. Cross Hotels & Resorts is committed to the focused expansion of our business in Indonesia. Our dedication and flexible execution are key as we continue to transform hospitality for all,” said Harry Thaliwal, Chief Executive Officer, Cross Hotels …

OYO currently has close to 176,000 rooms in India and another 322,000 rooms in China, according to a latest analysis by Hotelivate. It has grown considerably in China in just 12 months since January 2018, apart from its home market, India, and other new international markets. Additionally, OYO has a presence in Nepal, Indonesia, Malaysia, the UK, the UAE, and more recently, the Philippines. Totally, OYO has over 515,000 rooms across above 17,000 hotels worldwide, with a goal to be the largest and most preferred hotel chain for the budget mid-scale segment by 2023, globally. For the first time, an Indian hospitality company is growing at an indisputable scorching pace. Skeptics from the ‘traditional’ hotel industry have scoffed at the OYO model, pushing it aside with arguments such as, it is simply an aggregator of budget hotels; it has a poor quality of service; or its deliverables are not comparable with the mainstream hotel industry, as stated by the report. OYO started off as an aggregator back in 2013, but in the past five years, it has evolved into a full-scale hospitality company that operates exclusively franchised and leased assets, growing each day through its innovative model.

India has decided to offer visa on arrival to South Korean nationals, a home ministry official said. Like the Japanese nationals (who have been getting the privilege since March 2016), the facility to South Korean citizens include double entry visit for a period not exceeding 60 days for business, tourism, conference and medical purposes for entry through six designated international airports – Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. According to an estimate, around 2 lakh Indian visas are issued to South Korean nationals every year, of which 80 per cent are tourists. On an average, 600 South Korean nationals arrive in Delhi daily. Though visa-on-arrival facility was earlier offered to citizens of 12 countries — Cambodia, Finland, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Luxembourg, Myanmar, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam and South Korea — it was discontinued in November 2014 after the launch of e-Tourist Visa scheme. The e-visa facility now covers practically all the countries of the world, 166 as of now, and foreigners can arrive at any of the designated 26 airports and five seaports in India without interacting with any official before checking in at the immigration counter. Under the e-visa scheme, an applicant receives an email authorising him or her to travel to India after it has been approved. The tourist can travel with a printout of this authorisation. On arrival, the visitor has to present the authorisation to the immigration authorities who would then allow entry into the country. Source: PTI

At the first HollandCity Global Travel Trade Show in the Hanseatic City of Zwolle, Carola Muller–van Rijn, Global Travel Trade Manager, NBTC Holland Marketing, informed, “The next edition of the travel trade show will be held in The Haugue and Delft on October 8, 2019.” NBTC Holland Marketing and MarketingOost welcomed over 100 international travel organisations with a goal to put the Netherlands on the map with international travel organisations as an attractive travel destination. In addition to 105 international tour operators from India, Russia, Brazil, Japan, China, Indonesia, Italy, Germany and other countries, there were 75 organisations from the tourism sector as well, including museums, hotels, attractions, events venues and restaurants. Expressing happiness with the growth from the Indian market, Muller says, “In terms of growth, India is our second fastest growing market, after Russia. The Netherlands welcomed 165,000 visitors from India last year registering a growth of 31 per cent and we are expecting 24 per cent growth from India this year.”

President Ram Nath Kovind inaugurated the International Buddhist Conclave (IBC), 2018 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi  in the presence of KJ Alphons, Minister of State (I/C), Tourism; Rashmi Verma, Secretary, Tourism; Satyajit Rajan, Director General, Tourism; ministerial delegates from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Myanmar and Sri Lanka. Travel trade representatives from India and various other countries were also present for the conclave. Addressing the audience, Kovind said, “India is the land of Buddha and this initiative by Ministry of Tourism would attract visitors from around the world to come to India and experience the Buddhist destinations in the country.” The first day of the conclave also included presentations by the Ministry of Tourism and state governments on Buddhist tourism prospects in the country. An investor’s summit was also going on alongside the conclave to look for investment opportunities in the Buddhist tourism sector in the country. A B2B session was also conducted between foreign and Indian tour operators along with a panel discussion on ‘Role of Living Buddhist Heritage in the Contemporary Society’. The Conclave is being organised by the Ministry of Tourism in collaboration with the state governments of Maharashtra, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh from August 23-26, 2018 at New Delhi and Ajanta (Maharashtra).

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 …

In 2017, 4,85,314 Indian tourists visited Indonesia. The numbers saw a 30 per cent increase from the previous year in 2016, when 376,802 tourists visited Indonesia, said Arief Yahya, Indonesia’s Tourism Minister. He is visiting India from May 6- 9,  2018 along with a delegation from Jakarta. Upon arrival in Delhi the Minister met with top tourism operators and members of the media. In honour of Yahya’s visit, HE Sidharto Suryodipuro, Indonesia Ambassador organised a cocktail reception at the Indonesia embassy. The event was well attended by travel agents, tour operators, wedding planners and media persons. While addressing the guests,  Yahya commended the Indian tourists. He also said, the Indian market has the potential for still more significant growth.    

Air Guru Travel Solutions has been appointed as the exclusive partner in India to represent Bali’s high-end hotel properties that include Double Six Luxury Hotel, Seminyak, The Breezes Bali Resort & Spa, Seminyak Bali, The Downtown Villas, Seminyak Bali, Le Jardin Boutique Villas Semniyak, and the famous Bali Safari Marine Park & Mrar River Safari Cottages. Air Guru Travel Solutions already represent BPPD (Badung Tourism Promotion Board, Bali) in India. Dhiraj Kumar, Managing Director, Air Guru Travel Solutions, was appointed as an Honorary Representative for Badung Regency Bali by BPPD Badung Tourism Promotions Board, Bali, Indonesia in 2017. With the inclusion of the new luxury segment hotels, resorts and parks, Air Guru has now become a holistic travel solution providers in India for Bali for its B2B clients. He says, “The aggregation of vast variety of travel hot spots under one company will certainly result in more cost benefits for our B2b clients. We are honoured and delighted that Air Guru Travel Solutions is rising in capacity and services rapidly. Our vision is to offer complete travel solutions specially to Bali and Indonesia under one roof. We’ve been handpicking and partnering the most incredible portfolio of hotels, resorts and parks in Bali. Travellers are seeking enhanced ways to enriching travel experience and we believe our partnership with these luxury hotels, resorts and amusement park will meet this need.”

In an aim to tap more potentialities from the Indian tourism market, the Indonesian government held a two-day tourism promotion event at Ambience Mall, Delhi from December 9-10, in partnership with MakeMyTrip. “India is part of the ultimate tourism markets for Indonesia. Not only Bali, we would also promote other destinations across Indonesia for potential Indian tourists throughout the event,” said I Gde Pitana Pitana, Deputy Minister for International Marketing Development at the Ministry of Tourism, Indonesia. According to Pitana, the arrival figures of Indian tourists to Indonesia have grown significantly to 357,522 in the first nine months of this year, or 31.07 per cent higher than the figure in the same period of last year. The event was expected to help the Indonesian government to achieve its target of 456,000 Indian tourists this year, Pitana added. Source: Xinhua