Tag Archives: Managing Partner

Sterling Holiday Resorts is set to launch its latest resort, ‘Sterling Mysore’, thereby increasing its network to 35 resorts across the country. Sterling Mysore will be launched through a management agreement between Sterling Holiday Resorts and Tapovan Projects. The property is located in a peaceful enclave, within easy reach from Mysore city and Mysore Airport. Sterling Mysore features 16 well-appointed guestrooms, 16 one bedroom suites, 16 luxurious suites with private plunge pools and 24 two-bedroom villas with plunge pools. The resort offers amenities such as a 24/7 fitness centre, spa, holiday activity centre, swimming pool and a 200-seater best-in-class conference hall. Multicuisine dining options are available at the all-day dining restaurant, along with a poolside bar for guests to unwind. Speaking on the launch of Sterling Mysore, Ramesh Ramanathan, Managing Director, Sterling Holiday Resorts said, “In line with our strategy of establishing our presence across holiday destinations throughout the country, we are launching Sterling Mysore, shortly. Mysore is at the heart of heritage and cultural experiences and attracts tourists from different parts of the world. This resort will further bolster ‘Brand Sterling’ in providing experiential and immersive holidays to its guests.” Commenting on this partnership, K Sriram, Managing Partner, Tapovan Projects, said, “We are delighted to partner with Sterling and we believe ‘Brand Sterling’ brings immense leisure hospitality expertise, and with this launch we look forward to establishing Sterling Mysore as a premier resort in this vibrant holiday destination.”  

Mumbai-based Explora has associated itself with a luxury DMC based in Morocco called Experience Morocco. Led by Managing Partners, Karishma Kazi and Sunny Katara, Explora’s partnership will be effective September 1, 2018 which is when they will start promoting it in India. Speaking about the new development, Karishma Kazi, Managing Partner, Explora, says, “We believe that travel is all about the experience – We firmly believe that great travel experiences can be created from simple elements, and we feel privileged to have  Experience Morocco as our  client. Looking at the luxury segment growing year on year, it was about time to give India a DMC for Morocco which only caters to bespoke and beyond.” As a provider of curated travels across Morocco and with a diverse team of travel professionals who speak 16 languages, Explora has the experience and know-how to design memorable trips custom-built around the clients’ requirements. Sharing his insight on Indians as travellers, Sunny Katara, Managing Partner, Explora, adds, “Indian travellers have a unique set of motivations and needs, and understanding what drives this travel behaviour and providing a personalised experience is the key. It is really not that tough to understand an Indian luxury traveller. An important facet of the luxury travel experience is how well travellers feel that their needs and preferences are understood by their travel providers.”

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), has signed a management agreement with Hotel Marina Agra for Holiday Inn Agra MG Road. Expected to be operational in 2018, the 150-room hotel marks the company’s debut in Agra and also completes IHG’s presence in the Delhi-Jaipur-Agra Golden Triangle tourist circuit. Just 15 minutes’ drive from Agra Fort and Taj Mahal, Holiday Inn Agra MG Road offers stunning views of the Taj from the upper floors. Sudeep Jain, Vice President – Development, South West Asia, IHG said, “We are delighted to partner with Hotel Agra Marina to introduce our first hotel in Agra, under the Holiday Inn banner. With excellent location, facilities and best in class amenities, we are confident the hotel will be a great choice for varied guest profiles with diverse requirements. The Holiday Inn brand family is our growth driver in India, and this signing underscores our commitment to further strengthen our position in the midscale hotel segment.” Shashank Bhagat, Managing Partner, Hotel Marina, said, “We are delighted to partner with a strong, global player such as IHG to bring the Holiday Inn brand to Agra. We are assured that the hotel will benefit from the company’s robust distribution systems, top revenue management tools and best in class loyalty programme.” Situated on MG Road, the hotel is in close proximity to the business district and key government offices, making it an ideal choice for corporate travellers, as well.

Starting May, Pacific Travels has become the solely authorised visa submission and processing centre for an Iran business and tourist visa. The centre accepts submission of business, tourist and pilgrimage visas currently with a processing time of 3 working days. According to Nasir Zaidi, Managing Partner, “Thanks to the increased connectivity between India and Iran, the centre receives nearly 600 – 800 visa applications on a weekly basis, with corporate and tourist visas accounting for nearly 30 % of the total visa applications.” Pilgrimage visa though still accounts for the bulk of the visa application for Iran.

The Lux Hotels has tied up with Red Titanium, a social media marketing company, to offer digital auditing. Bhupesh Kumar, Director, The Lux Hotels says, “Other than social media marketing, Red Titanium also does online audit for properties and I thought why not do it for our members and see how it works. They are generous to have offered to do the audits free of cost for some of our members. The audit has been done for some of the members which will help them to understand where they stand in the social media scenario.” Amit Solomon, Managing Partner, Red Titanium says, “If we first do it free of cost that will catch people’s interest and bring down their apprehensions about going digital.”