Tag Archives: New Delhi

Preferred Hotels & Resorts recently kicked off the Asia Pacific series of its 50th anniversary celebrations at The Leela Palace New Delhi with a specially curated luncheon presentation at Le Cirque, hosted by the group’s CEO Lindsey Ueberroth and Executive Vice President Saurabh Rai. “As we commemorate the Preferred brand’s 50-year legacy of inspiring travel, we are more committed than ever to providing travellers with even more opportunities to embrace the spirit of independence and to making our pineapple logo synonymous with the ultimate hallmark in world-class hospitality,” said Ueberroth. “It is so exciting and humbling to see how far we have come as a company, and I am delighted to have the opportunity to celebrate this major milestone with our associates, partners and friends from around the world. “As the region’s largest independent hotel brand, Preferred Hotels & Resorts is entering its 16th year in India, and we are focused on continuing to build on the foundation of our company’s 50-year legacy of championing the independent hotel space. We are committed to forging ahead with more innovative and strategic consumer-focused initiatives to foster greater engagement in this market,” added Rai.

Vietjet has unveiled plans to launch direct flights between Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) and New Delhi. The airline is set to introduce four flights per week in the third quarter of 2018 to serve travel demands of the two countries and contribute to the region’s integration and trade exchange. The introduction of the new route will present Vietjet with an opportunity to not only tap into the growing tourism market but also facilitate trade integration and exchange between Vietnam and India.

As part of its mandate to further enhance India’s digital drive in the travel and tourism industry, FICCI is set to organise the third edition of Digital Travel, Hospitality & Innovation Summit from March 21-22, 2018 at Federation House, New Delhi. The Summit will witness the presence of who’s who from the travel and hospitality industry, and will cover various topics related to the future of travel and innovation. FICCI and KPMG India will also jointly unveil the knowledge paper ‘Expedition 3.0- Travel & Hospitality Gone Digital’ at the inaugural session of the event. The paper looks at unravelling the technology trends in travel and hospitality segment that will help better define the future of the industry, how digitalisation has impacted the evolution of this industry and what can be achieved by overall technology inclusion across the stakeholders in the industry ecosystem. The Summit will also offer an opportunity for travel startups through Travel Tech Launch Pad, a platform for travel start-ups to learn from experts in the field of travel, exhibit their business ideas, and display their products and services in addition to providing a unique opportunity to connect with the right set of ecosystem partners.

The who’s who of India’s travel and hospitality fraternity, diplomats and several business leaders gathered at a glitzy evening gala hosted by Cox & Kings at the Shangri-La’s Eros Hotel, New Delhi, to mark the 260th anniversary of Cox and Kings, also the world’s oldest travel company. The evening was graced by KJ Alphons, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Tourism, who lauded the company for its continuous service to the tourism industry. Alphons said, “I am very happy to be a part of Cox & Kings’ 260th year celebration and congratulate everyone who has contributed to this rich legacy by enabling holidays and spreading happiness into the world. The tourism sector in India is looking very positive this year as we have crossed the 10 million mark for foreign tourist arrivals and earned revenue of 27 billion dollars through foreign tourist arrivals. This has been possible because of companies like Cox & Kings who have been working together with the government. In the next three years, we aim to double the foreign tourists inflow and the revenue we earn from the foreign tourist arrivals and that is only possible if the industry continues to work together.” Speaking at the event, Peter Kerkar, Group CEO, Cox & Kings, said, “We are unique in the leisure space with an unrivalled tradition of 260 years of service to our customers. It is with pride that I commend our staff for making our company so successful and more particularly relevant even today. Our longevity is a testimony to their ingenuity and transformative spirit that Cox & Kings remains a world leader in the travel, education and hotel space.”

Air India will begin non-stop flight operations from New Delhi to Tel Aviv in Israel starting March 22, 2018, onwards. The carrier has confirmed flying thrice a week on Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday on Air India’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner that has 18 business class and 238 economy seats. The aircraft will depart from New Delhi at 4.50 pm and arrive in Tel Aviv at 8.25 pm. On its return leg, the plane will depart from Tel Aviv at 10.15 pm and land in Delhi the next day at 9 am. With one way duration of 7 hours and 10 minutes, Air India will be the fastest nonstop flight between India and Israel taking a straight route between the two countries. In addition to Air India, Israel’s national carrier El Al currently has four weekly nonstop flights from Mumbai to Tel Aviv and will soon increase its frequency furthermore. Arkia has also expressed interest to begin operations soon and introduce direct flights between Israel and India.The Ministry of Tourism along with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to facilitate similar introductions including relaxing visa requirements and express visa services through VFS to encourage Indian travelers to visit Israel. This announcement has come at a time when Israel Ministry of Tourism has recorded a whopping growth of 50 per cent in January and 25 per cent in February 2018, of Indian arrivals to Israel vis-à-vis the same period in 2017. Hassan Madah, Director, Israel Ministry of Tourism India & Philippines, says, “In light of the significant increase in incoming tourism from India over the past few years, the Ministry of Tourism has been in talks with Air India and other airlines …

The 2018 AccorHotels Showcase in Mumbai and New Delhi will be held on March 21 at Sofitel Mumbai BKC and March 23 at Pullman New Delhi Aerocity respectively. The event is expected to have representatives from 15 countries representing more than 35 hotels and resorts worldwide, offering travel agents, wholesalers, corporate clients, tourism partners and MICE organisers’ an insight into the group’s new developments, products and services. Entering its 15th year, the event will provide an opportunity to discover AccorHotels’ accommodation trends, news and stunning hotels and resorts from around the world. Exhibitors from destinations such as France, Spain, Netherlands, Turkey, Thailand, UAE,South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Azerbaijan, Saudi Arabia, China and Singapore, representing celebrated hotels like Raffles Dubai and Saudi Arabia, RIXOS Turkey, Fairmont Ajman, SO Sofitel Bangkok Singapore, Novotel Amsterdam City and Novotel Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, and more are set to attend the event in each city. “The signature event serves as a great platform for us to interact and share knowledge with our clients and industry partners. With increased international and domestic travel, we expect this year to be the bigger and more exciting than last year, with interesting insights given our enhanced network and leadership position in the Asia Pacific region,” said Arif Patel, Vice President—Sales, Marketing, Distribution & Loyalty, AccorHotels India. 

As a result of a sharp rise in inbound numbers from India into Russia, Ural Airlines is planning to appoint a GSA in India. Valeriya Sorokina, Head (Touristic Division), Route Network Development Department, Koltosovo (Yekaterinburg) Airport, reveals, “The Indian market is one of the largest in the world and the most rapidly growing market. So we are going to grab all kinds of passenger traffic originating from India. We are looking to appoint a GSA representative here instead of having our own airline office.” The airline plans to start flights from New Delhi and Mumbai. Sorokina adds, “However, these are only in plans as there are no traffic rights yet and no slots available. The plan is to start flights from Delhi and Mumbai to Yekaterinburg and further to all over Russia as well as other popular European points. We hope the flight starts from October 2018.” The airline is also seriously developing itself as a hub where it captures not only point-to-point traffic, but also more transit traffic.

Air India will get a one-time grant of 750,000 euros from Israel for launching direct flights between New Delhi and Tel Aviv, likely to be rolled out next month. “The conditions of the directive includes a grant of 250,000 euro per weekly flight, up to a total of three weekly flights. It is a one-time grant for an airline opening a new direct route into Tel Aviv (TLV) from a destination that has potential for incoming tourism,” said Lydia Weitzman, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Tourism. Informed sources said that the Indian flag carrier could start its direct flights into Israel from New Delhi on March 20, flying thrice a week on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Dubbed a game changer in Israel’s efforts to promote inbound tourism from India, Air India’s direct flight between New Delhi and Tel Aviv would be operating on the shortest route and is expected to bring down significantly the cost of travel between the two countries. “The number of tourists from China to Israel doubled in one year after the start of direct flight by Hainan Airlines. We expect something similar with India,” said Amir Halevi, Director General, Ministry of Tourism, Israel. SOURCE: PTI

Desaru Coast, the newly created integrated premium destination in Malaysia, met the Indian trade recently in New Delhi and held an exclusive showcase to inform about their varied offerings and developments. The new destination is located at the south-eastern region of Malaysia, spanning over 3,900 acres along an unspoiled 17 km beachfront facing the South Coast Sea, and is easily accessible via land, ferry and air. “Desaru Coast’s India tour will open doors for us to connect with buyers of all sectors within the travel-value chain commerce whilst positioning Desaru Coast as the destination of choice amongst holidaymakers and business travellers alike within the region. We look forward to sharing a preview of the destination that will appeal to international travellers with its myriad offerings,” said Muhammad Zainal Ashikin, Chief Executive Officer, Desaru Development Holdings One Sdn Bhd. He further informed that they are opening in stages currently, and will be fully open in June 2018.

The Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI) is hosting its much-awaited annual convention from March 27-29, 2018 in Srinagar. The event is being organised in association with the Ministry of Tourism, Jammu & Kashmir with a view to promote a more visible J&K and its outstanding attributes that extensively support tourism and culture. A press conference will be held on the same at The Claridges, New Delhi on January 31. The guests presiding over the event would include Tassaduq Hussain, Minister of Tourism, Jammu & Kashmir; Sarmad Hafeez, IAS, Secretary Tourism, Government of Jammu & Kashmir and Mehmood Ahmad Shah (KAS), Director Tourism, Government of Jammu & Kashmir.