Tag Archives: New Delhi

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.

Residents of India wishing to travel to Ukraine can now apply for both short and long term visas at the VFS Global Visa Application Centre in New Delhi. Ukraine was recently signed on as VFS Global’ s 57th client government worldwide, when the Ukraine Ministry of Foreign Affairs and VFS Global signed a contract to provide visa services on behalf of the Eastern European nation across eight countries in the Africa region, Lebanon in the Middle East region, India in the South Asia region and China in September 2017. The contract entails the launch of 10 visa application centres across these eight countries by January 15, 2018, with the one in New Delhi being the first step toward that goal. Vinay Malhotra, COO – Middle East and South Asia, VFS Global, remarked,  “It is with great pride that VFS Global announces its partnership with Ukraine. It is with even greater delight that we launch the first Ukraine Visa Application Centre in New Delhi, India. Ukraine is fast becoming a popular destination for Indian travellers and we look forward to offering travel enthusiasts in the region our best in class visa application services to ease their submission process.”

Skål International Delhi-125 hosted its first networking gathering at The Oberoi, New Delhi where over 100 members attended the event. The association is set to host Skål Ball on February 17 in New Delhi, informed Ranjit Vig, Secretary, Skål International Delhi-125. “The large attendance at the event is a reflection of the interest and desire of the members to be a part of this fraternity. We have a long way to go and are looking forward to be awarded as the best club of the year,” he said. Vig also pointed out that the drive to increase membership is a key agenda for 2018. The association is also planning to introduce a wellness programme for its members soon.

The Oberoi, New Delhi reopens after an extensive renovation of two years. The interiors of the hotel have been redone including the refurbishment of its soft furnishings. The hotel is open for reservations and the basic room category is available from Rs. 18,000 onward. Despite being contemporary, the hotel has managed to retain the essence of heritage within its premises.

India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) hosted Vigilance Study Circle (VSC) NCR meet at The Ashok, New Delhi to discuss various vigilance related issues. The meeting was chaired by Praveen Sinha, Additional Secretary, Central Vigilance Commission (CVC); M R Krishna, President, VSC; Vinayak Garg, Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO), ITDC. Sinha delivered a lecture on vigilance related issues in the meeting. The best practices followed by any of the organisation were also shared for implementation in other organisations. Vigilance Study Circle NCR is a group of CVOs of various organisations or PSUs in NCR, who meet on regular basis and holds meetings on vigilance.

Rashmi Verma, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, will lead PATA India Chapter as its Chairperson for the term 2017-19. This was announced during the 47th Annual General Meeting of PATA India Chapter held at The Claridges, New Delhi on December 19. While SanJeet, Director, DDP Publications, was re-elected as the association’s Vice Chairman; J.S. Taneja, MD, Travel Spirit International, will continue to hold the post of Hon. Secretary, and the post of Hon. Treasurer has been re-assigned to Vikram Madhok, MD, Abercrombie & Kent. The association also elected its Executive Committee for the term 2017-19. Under the Active Government Category, Rashmi Verma and Suman Billa, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India will hold the post, while Ravneet Kaur, CMD, ITDC and Sanjiv Garg, Additional Member T&C, Ministry of Railways will be EC members under the Associate Government Category. Pankaj Srivastava, Director-Commercial, Air India, has been elected EC member under the International Carrier category. Under the Domestic Carrier category, Ragini Chopra, VP, Jet Airways and M.P. Mall, CMD, IRCTC have been elected. The four posts for Travel Agents/Tour Operators category have been given to Vikram Madhok, J.S. Taneja, Snirmol Ghosh, Director, Indo Asia Tours and Anoop Kanuga, Director, Bathija Travels. Under the Hotels/ Associate Hotels category, the three members are: Renu Basu, VP, Indian Hotels; Arjun Sharma, MD, Select Holiday Resorts; and Rohit Arora, GM, Apeejay Surendra Park Hotel. SanJeet will be an EC member under the Sustaining Member category.

Best Western Hotels & Resorts continues its rapid expansion plan in India with the addition of two new hotels in New Delhi. They are the first international hotel brand to make inroads into Paharganj in Central Delhi.  The pre-opening activities for the newly constructed upper midscale ‘Best Western Plus Central’ have been initiated with a soft opening slated in January 2018. The midscale ‘Best Western Pearl’, which is a conversion hotel, is scheduled to open in September 2018 after renovation. Both the hotels have been designed to meet the needs of business as well as leisure travellers. Best Western Plus Central will feature 71 well-appointed rooms, including rooms with a private balcony for large families or small groups, a multi-purpose hall, health club, and three F&B outlets. Guests can cool off in the outdoor Jacuzzi, enjoy sumptuous kebabs at the terrace Barbeque that offers a pleasant view of the old city and the distant high rise buildings of Connaught Place. Best Western Pearl will have 35 rooms, one multi-cuisine restaurant connected to a terrace restaurant, fitness center, and a small conference room. A street café will be added to the facilities offered by the hotel soon. “As we continue our journey in taking the reimagined Best Western brand into the future, we are dedicated more than ever to offer the best in hospitality to our guests,” said Atul Jain, Chief Operating Officer, Best Western Hotels & Resorts – India, Bangladesh & Sri Lanka. “It gives me immense pleasure and pride to announce our partnership with one of the largest hotel companies in the world having 4,200 hotels in more than 100 countries. Our association with Best Western Hotels & Resorts …

Emphasising on the importance of sustainable tourism at CII’s Annual Tourism Summit, Alphons Kannanthanam, Minister of State (I/C) for Tourism, said that it is important for tourism to boom in India and be sustainable at the same time. Citizens need to keep their country clean, so that tourists get to explore a habitable environment, he added. The summit, held at ITC Maurya, New Delhi, focused its agenda on the year 2017 being the International Year of Sustainability. Other dignitaries present at the summit included Deep Kalra, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, MakeMy Trip; H.E., Jozef Drofenik, Ambassador, Embassy of Slovenia; Arjun Sharma, Co-Chairman, CII National Committee on Tourism & Hospitality and Managing Director, Select Group; and Mandip Singh Soin, Founder & Managing Director, Ibex Expeditions and Honorary Founding President, Ecotourism Society of India (ESOI).

The 23rd edition of Madame Tussauds opens in New Delhi at the historic Regal building in Connaught Place. The entry fee is Rs 960 for adults while children below the age of 12 will be charged Rs. 760. The museum is operational starting December 1 from 10 AM to 7 PM every day, informed Anshul Jain, General Manager and Director, Merlin Entertainments India. With a star-studded line up of Indian and international celebrities, historic personalities and sportspersons from diverse genres, this toiurist attraction features 50 incredibly life like figures. “This is a truly exhilarating and emotional feeling to finally see Madame Tussauds open in Delhi. This will be the 23rd Madame Tussauds attraction globally and following in the footsteps of our sister attractions, we here in Delhi are all set to give our guests a truly unique experience. The tickets can be bought online also and there is a discount of Rs 100. We will also offer special packages to the visitors from outside Delhi who visit Delhi through the travel agents. There will also be special price for groups and school children.”

The 47th Annual General Meeting of Pacific Asia Travel Association, India Chapter and Election to the Executive Committee PATA India Chapter, for the term 2017-19, will be held on December 19, 2017 at The Claridges, New Delhi. The primary agenda of the meeting is to elect members of the Executive Committee for the period 2017-19, besides confirming minutes of the 46th AGM of PATA India Chapter, approve and adopt the audited accounts for the year 2016-17, appoint the auditors and fix their remuneration for 2017-18.