Tag Archives: Rajasthan

Australian hotel management company, StayWell Hospitality Group has extended its international footprint with the opening of its fifth property in Rajasthan, the Leisure Inn Shrey in Jodhpur. Rohit Vig, Managing Director for StayWell Hospitality Group in India, said that the opening of the new property solidifies the brand’s presence in the region. “We have signed 12 hotels under the Park Regis and Leisure Inn Brands, which will result in the opening of properties in Hyderabad, Goa, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Gurgaon–Sohna Road and Greater Noida,” he said. The opening of Leisure Inn Shrey in partnership with Hukam Constructions & Hotels Pvt. Ltd will deliver a roof-top restaurant and conference facilities along with well-appointed rooms and international service standards that the Leisure Inn brand is famous for. Additionally, the hotel will house the famous vegetarian restaurant ‘Grand Chanakya’ which has a sister restaurant under the same name in Jaipur at the Leisure Inn Grand Chanakya. Shranik Jain, Owner of Hukam Constructions & Hotels Pvt., said that the partnership with StayWell Hospitality Group was about aligning with the best possible global partner to enter the hospitality sector for the first time. “Our partnership will deliver premium hospitality expertise and a world-class experience to not only our guests but to the region, it’s an alignment we are extremely proud of as we feel we are in the best possible position for future success,” he said.

Westin Hotels & Resorts, part of Marriott International, Inc. announced the highly-anticipated opening of The Westin Pushkar Resort & Spa in Rajasthan. India’s seventh Westin property, The Westin Pushkar Resort & Spa is surrounded by the picturesque Aravalli Hills and spread across 11 acres. The property, Pushkar’s first internationally-branded hotel, offers 98 contemporary guestrooms, of which 44 feature private pools. Owned by Paradise Properties, the newly-built resort aims to bring the Westin brand’s innovative wellness initiatives to the renowned spiritual destination. “With more travellers looking to maintain their wellness routines while on the road, The Westin Pushkar Resort & Spa is thrilled to offer guests the brand’s signature amenities and programs, designed to evoke renewal and well-being,” said Jagdeep Nambiar, General Manager, The Westin Pushkar Resort & Spa. The Westin Pushkar Resort & Spa will offer over 19,000 square feet of versatile function space, including a ballroom and meeting rooms, as well as a beautiful garden for corporate events and weddings.

Rajasthan tourism department has initiated the formulation of a new tourism policy. Nihal Chand Goel, Additional Chief Secretary-Tourism, Government of Rajasthan, informed that the department has started consultation process with various stakeholders on a range of elements to be incorporated in the new policy and the tourism department plans a huge campaign in the coming days in the conventional as well as new emerging mediums to lure tourists to the state in a big way. “Rajasthan tourism will kick-off a multi-modal and a multi-crore global marketing campaign, inspired by the Incredible India campaign, and the success of states like Kerala, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat in recent times,” he said. Besides organising music and folk festivals, new exhibitions and events for tourists will be organised to allow enable tourists to spend more time in the state. Goel further added that upgrading tourist facilities are a priority for the department which includes infrastructure like integrated plan for roads, tourist police, cleanliness drives and government-to-government partnerships. The launching of intra-state aviation connectivity between Jaipur, Udaipur and Jodhpur is also part of the initiative to save time for tourists who require speedy travel modes, added Goel.

In order to boost tourism facilities in Rajasthan, the Government of Rajasthan has signed two Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) with Singapore. “Singapore has been a close friend and partner of Rajasthan in infrastructure and tourism development. With these MoUs, we aim to deepen this association and develop the state as a world-class, global tourist destination with advanced urban infrastructure,” said Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje. The MoU seeks to aggregate Singapore’s expertise through tripartite collaboration between the government, tourism institutions and industry partners to strengthen Rajasthan’s ‘knowledge capabilities.’ Rajasthan is also seeking to utilise Singapore’s public and private sector proficiency in the development of tourism. The otheragreement focuses on enhancing Rajasthan’s international appeal and connectivity, facilitation of private sector participation in a bid to rejuvenate the state’s heritage areas and critical urban and smart solutions. The MoU will also train 100 Rajasthan tourism officials. The 36-month programme is supported by the Temasek Foundation International with a $484,000 grant, and co-funded by the Rajasthan tourism department. Singapore will also share expertise in areas like inter-modal transport integration, waste management solutions and affordable wireless connection.

The Centre of Excellence for Tourism Training (CETT) in Udaipur is scheduled to begin operations later this year and will have an annual intake of 480 students. The centre has been established by Rajasthan’s Department of Skills, Employment and Entrepreneurship in collaboration with the Institute of Technical Education, Singapore and will provide skill and vocational training in services related to travel and tourism. The institute inaugurated by Vasundhara Raje, Chief Minister, Government of Rajasthan and Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister, Government of Singapore, will offer up to six courses including retail services, hospitality operations and culinary arts. Rajat Kumar Mishra, Principal Secretary, Department of Skill, Employment and Entrepreneurship, Government of Rajasthan said, “Tourism is one of the most important sectors in Rajasthan. We want to capture the entire tourism market throughout India and also abroad. The centre’s training could also help Rajasthan workers get jobs in cruise liners and airlines.” Skills development is a key area of cooperation between Singapore and India and the Udaipur centre is one of three institutes that Singapore’s Institute of Technical Education (ITE) is helping to start in India. The first, the World Class Skill Centre in New Delhi, is running, and another is being planned in the state of Assam in the North East.

States like Gujarat, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh exchanged 86 MoUs, aggregating close to Rs 15,000 crores during the inaugural edition of Incredible India Tourism Investors Summit (IITIS) 2016. Gujarat exchanged MoUs close to Rs 9000 crores, Karnataka with Rs. 2600 crores, Rajasthan with Rs. 1000 crores, Uttarakhand with Rs. 500 crores and Chhattisgarh with Rs. 12 crores. Also, B. R. Shetty Group is keen to invest Rs. 450 crores and Costa Cruise Rs. 750 crores and Triveni Singapore close to Rs. 800 crores in the country. Vinod Zutshi, Secretary-Tourism, Government of India, informed that IITIS will be held annually to boost tourism and will be supported by World Bank. The next edition of IITIS will be organized in September 2017. “World Bank is supporting India’s Buddhist Circuit development and will provide support for sustainable tourism development including through funds,” said Cecile Fruman, Global Director, Trade and Competitiveness, World Bank. At the Summit, organized by Ministry of Tourism (MoT) in partnership with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Tourism Finance Corporation of India, Zutshi also announced various initiatives like setting up of a task force headed by Secretary-Tourism, with membership from relevant ministries, state governments, and industry associations to undertake strategic planning; setting up of an investor facilitation desk to handhold investors and facilitate projects and organising investor meets in states with the support of MoT.

SpiceJet will start its direct flight between Delhi and Jodhpur from October 30, 2016. In Rajasthan, SpiceJet is already operating daily flights to Jaipur and Udaipur. Shilpa Bhatia, Sr. VP, Commercial, SpiceJet, said, “Regional connectivity has always played an important role in strengthening our network strategy. In our endeavour to continuously reach out to underserved destinations we are excited to initiate our services to Jodhpur. The new flight will present passengers with more travel options especially during the peak season.” Jodhpur is a popular tourist destination and with introduction of this flight it will be connected with Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Mumbai and Kolkata.

Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces has launched its latest property in Rajasthan — The Gateway Resort Pushkar Bypass Ajmer. The 81-room and suite resort hotel is built in the Rajasthani royal style for leisure and business travellers in the heart of the Aravalli Mountains to the north of the city. The room rates start from Rs. 4,000 and goes on to Rs. 30,000. “Ajmer and Pushkar are two secret jewels in the beautiful state of Rajasthan; they are cities with a rich history stretching back to the Rajputs, Mughals and Marathas and which blends Hindu and Sufi tradition. The 81 rooms and suites at the resort are inspired by this heritage and offer guests the best of Rajasthan whether here for leisure, business or to celebrate special occasions in a stunning destination.” said Nagendra Hada, General Manager, The Gateway Resort Pushkar Bypass Ajmer The hotel’s architecture and design is inspired by the culture and history of Rajasthan; its regal design in typical Rajasthani pink sandstone features private balconies with sit outs and jhoolas (swings) in every room. Inside, Bani Thani art—the local style that has its origins in nearby Kishangarh—provides a window into the area’s cultural past while live performances of Langa folk singers bring Rajasthan to life for guests. From the inviting cool waters of the swimming pool, sunk into the expansive courtyard, guests can drink in the stunning views to the mountains beyond or de-stress in the calming Spa with massage therapies. In-room yoga facilities mean that guests can keep on top of their fitness regime whether on business or leisure. The Gateway Resort Pushkar Bypass Ajmer is 15km from Ajmer railway station and 140km from Jaipur airport. …

Meenakshi Sharma, a 1988 batch officer of the IA&AS, has been appointed as Additional Director General, Ministry of Tourism for a period of five years. She will replace Usha Sharma, a 1985 batch IAS officer of Rajasthan cadre.

Rajasthan has launched a multi-year, multi-modal, multi-narrative and multi-crore global campaign to galvanise tourism in the state with a view to raise the annual tourist arrivals past the 50 million mark by 2020. Unveiling the campaign, Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, said, “This campaign will herald Rajasthan Tourism 3.0. Rajasthan Tourism 1.0 of the 80s was about our landscape, the harsh terrain, and the adventures immortalized by Satyajit Ray on celluloid. The 90s saw version 2.0, with a forward looking vision which included our heritage properties. With Rajasthan Tourism 3.0 we aim to implement an integrated plan that revolves around experience, infrastructure, cleanliness, security and marketing.” The campaign will play an important role in the Government of Rajasthan’s vision of doubling the annual footfall of international tourists to from 1.5 million to 3.0 million by the year 2020. In the same period, the government also aims to increasing the domestic tourist traffic from the present 33 million to 50 million tourists annually. The evening saw the launch of a new logo and brand identity for the campaign. The campaign also includes a new website and an advertisement Print, TV and Outdoor spots which are aimed at attracting both the seasoned traveler and the youth to explore Rajasthan in a whole new way. Realizing that the tourism sector in Rajasthan has a huge potential to grow, this new campaign aims to increase the number of foreign and domestic tourists visiting the state. Shailendra Agrawal, Principal Secretary, Tourism, Art & Culture, Archeology & Museums, Government of Rajasthan said, “Global trends indicate that Asia Pacific’s share in global tourist traffic will rise from 22% to 30% in the next 10-15 years. Through our campaign, …