Tag Archives: World Tourism Day

Ahead of World Tourism Day, Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) is celebrating the forthcoming arrival of Norwegian Spirit to Australia & New Zealand waters for the first time. The ship has recently undergone the most extensive bow-to-stern modernisation in the history of the line’s innovative fleet and is designed with the adult cruiser in mind. NCL’s new Australia and New Zealand itineraries allow travellers the opportunity to experience New Zealand’s pristine vistas and Australia’s rugged coastlines from one of the best vantage points in the world – the ocean. The inaugural 2021/2022 summer sailing season sees Norwegian Spirit head Down Under, offering a collection of 8, 10 and 12 day port-intensive itineraries departing from Sydney and Auckland that will reveal breathtaking beauty to even the most well-travelled. From cruising the scenic peaks and tree-lined cliffs of Milford Sound, to exploring the historic buildings and fine food of Akaroa – New Zealand’s only French settlement – or venturing to Eden’s Ben Boyd National Park for some snorkelling in the summer sunshine, guests will be spoilt for choice when it comes to activities to explore ashore. Once onboard the all-new Norwegian Spirit, guests will experience laid-back luxury as they explore a completely enhanced ship, offering reimagined and refined adult-centric spaces, fresh staterooms and 14 new venues. Further updated elements include the second Onda by Scarpetta restaurant at sea, a doubled-in-size Mandara Spa, an expanded Pulse Fitness Center and the adult-only retreat Spice H2O. Guests can enjoy panoramic ocean views from Spinnaker Lounge, or a glass of bubbles in the Charles Rennie Mackintosh inspired Magnums Champagne & Wine Bar. Norwegian Spirit boasts 10 bars and lounges and 14 dining options – from Teppanyaki, an …

In his address on World Tourism Day, Yogendra Tripathi, Secretary – Tourism, said that this year’s global theme of rural tourism laid out by the UNWTO is in the right context and has come at the right time. “In a country as diverse as India where a significant number of people are deeply rooted to the villages, it is both an opportunity as well as a necessity that tourism develops itself and in turn develops rural communities. Rural tourism in India has significant potential, considering rich cultural and historical heritage, variety in ecology and terrains, as well as places of natural beauty spread across the country,” he said.

Representatives of the Indian tourism fraternity conducted a peaceful drive-through campaign in various cities of India on September 27, in an attempt to bring to the public’s attention the plight of the Indian tourism industry today and appeal to the government for some relief. Members held placards and posters that appealed #SaveTourism.

Prahlad Singh Patel, Minister of State, Tourism & Culture (I/C), has announced that they will be launching NIDHI- National Integrated Database of Hospitality Industry on September 27, 2020, i.e. World Tourism Day. MOT is also working on another platform, SAATHI – System for Assessment, Awareness and Training for Hospitality Industry. Both these platforms come in line with the brainstorming sessions that MOT had with industry stakeholders. In his Tweet, Patel said, “NIDHI will be a source of information for the country and the world. MOT had 1600 hotels registered with it; after the discussion with stakeholders, this figure has reached 21,000.”

Goa Tourism has been contributing immensely to the digital transformation of the country’s travel sector. Goa Tourism through Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) recently launched Goa Miles, an app-based taxi service to streamline the entire tourist transportation process within the state. GTDC has also launched an e-commerce portal and a mobile application to provide tourists a digital experience of Goa. Visitors can browse through various options ranging from holiday packages, hotel bookings to adventure trips, spice gardens and water parks, among others. Speaking on the occasion of World Tourism Day, Goa Minister for Tourism Manohar Ajgaonkar said, “At a time when tourism boards are competing hard, Goa Tourism has gone ahead to increase its reach to the world and the results are visible. From digitalising our internal processes to our tourism services, Goa Tourism has come a long way in this digital transformation. I wish our tourism partners, stakeholders and each and every visitor to Goa a pleasant experience with Goa Tourism.” Goa Tourism recently launched an aggressive social media campaign ‘Tourism by Tourists’ to promote Goa as a ‘must-visit’ destination. To achieve this, Goa Tourism partnered with over 500 amateur photographers (through crowd-sourced Instagram activity: #PickMyGoaPic), more than 100 bloggers and 30 YouTube content creators to harness their content while touring Goa. The content shared by them was amalgamated into a video promoting Goa as a ‘must-visit’ destination. The campaign bagged a Gold at the National Tourism Awards by the Tourism Ministry for ‘Best use of Social Media in promotion of a Tourism Board’ in 2017.

West Sikkim is set to host World Tourism Day 2018 on September 26 and 27 on this year’s theme of ‘Tourism and the Digital Transformation’ with a series of workshops, adventurous tourism and other activities in Pelling. The event is being organised jointly by the Tourism & Civil Aviation Department, West District Administration and West District Tourism Society (WDTS) with the support of tourism stakeholders of West Sikkim. A state-level celebration committee has been constituted headed by Sikkim Tourism Minister Ugen T Gyatso Bhutia and UDHD Minister NK Subba as the chief patron and other MLAs of West District as patrons. The committee has Sushil Tamang as Working President of WTDCC. In view of the challenges being faced by Sikkim’s tourism sector, a panel discussion on the digital transformation in tourism in the context of Sikkim is being organised. Seniormost representatives of leading online travel companies, digital news and media companies, travel writers and leading local hoteliers, travel agents and tourism stakeholders have been invited to join the panel. These include the likes of Ruchi Lahoti, Area Manager—India, Booking.com; Sandip Roy, acclaimed novelist and writer; Ugyen Choppel, a noted filmmaker and chairman of the Chumbi Group; Bjorn De Niese of Mayfair Hotels & Resorts, among others. Discussions will focus on insights and opportunities in promoting Sikkim tourism in the digital age, changing the travel landscape as well as creating digital linkages for marketing Sikkim’s homestays and Sikkim’s organic produce with tourists.

The Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) will kick-start in Kochi on September 27, 2018 with Malabar Tourism promotion as its main theme. The three-day conclave, organised by KTM Society in partnership with Kerala Tourism, will be held from September 28-30. Pre-registration of buyers will commence in January 2018. “The 10th edition of KTM will be inaugurated coinciding with World Tourism Day (September 27) in Kochi. The inauguration will be followed by three-day business to business meetings. There is huge scope for tourism growth in Malabar with the inauguration of Kannur airport next year,” he said. The minister said the Responsible Tourism Mission has already started activities to spread its objectives to more places and make it a state-wide project, instead of concentrating it in a few places. Kerala Tourism Principal Secretary Dr Venu V said, “There is more to KTM than trade exchanges. The mart will feature 400 stalls showcasing a range of products, packages and services offered by businesses and entrepreneurs.” Source: PTI

On occasion of World Tourism Day, the Ministry of Tourism organised a special sightseeing tour of the monuments and heritage places of Delhi where 35 differently abled students from of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya School for Divyang Children participated. The World Tourism Day theme was ‘Tourism for All – Promoting Universal Accessibility’ on which Dr. Mahesh Sharma said, “Accessible Tourism for all is about the creation of environments that can cater for the needs of all of us, whether we are traveling or staying at home. May that be due to a disability, even temporary, families with small children, or the ageing population, at some point in our lives, sooner or later, we all benefit of universal accessibility in tourism.” Vinod Zutshi, Secretary, Ministry of Tourism said, “On this year’s World Tourism Day help us spread the word of both the importance and immense benefits universal accessibility has and can bring to society at large.” The celebrations continued with an awards presentation acknowledging the efforts of the Ministry of Tourism offices and its organisations, where India Tourism, New Delhi held a painting competition. Finally, the minister flagged off the ‘Swacch Paryatan Run’ from Transport Bhawan to India Gate, New Delhi in an effort to promote cleanliness and the Clean India campaign.

The ninth edition of Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) will be held at Samudrika and Sagara Convention Centre, Willingdon Island from September 28 to 30 and will focus on themes ‘Responsible tourism’ and ‘Muziris and Spice Route’. It is expected to attract around 1,500 buyers from around the country and abroad. Around 265 stalls of different sizes for the exhibitors within Kerala will be featured at the venue as part of the event. Abraham George, President, Kerala Travel Mart Society, says, “KTM 2016, which will coincide with ‘World Tourism Day’, will reach out to buyers from new international markets, emphasizing focus on the new arenas of tourism, including responsible tourism, and popularize the concept among the common man. To facilitate better interaction between buyers and sellers, we have initiated the process for sellers’ registration much in advance. The buyers’ registration is open till July 29. The mart will be a platform for B2B networking.”