Category: Second Headline

Giving a much needed relief to the tourism sector, the GST Council has slashed the rates as per the demands of the industry. The GST of those hotels which has tariff rates upto Rs 7500 is reduced to 18 per cent. For hotels with the tariff rate of Rs 7500 plus, the GST will remain as 28 per cent. The council also decided that GST for hotels to be charged on the actual price that the customer pays and not on the declared tariffs. The GST Council in its 28th meeting, chaired by interim Finance Minister Piyush Goyal, has decided ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: rd.com After Ayurveda and backwater tourism, Kerala is all set to attract globetrotters to its jails. If you wish, you can also spend a day in the jail, wear the jail clothes and taste the meals served to the prisoners at the Viyyur Jail in Kerala. You don’t have to commit any crime to land up in the jails, just pay the rent and avail the facilities there. The Kerala Prisons Department have submitted a proposal to the state government in this regard. The project is proposed as part of the Jail Museum project in the central prison ... Read more

The government of Gujarat is planning to promote Ayurvedic tourism, learnt from the success story of Kerala in the sector. A campaign launched by the Tourism Ministry promoted by Bollywood super star Amitabh Bachan, in this line was very promising. The government will start 10 wellness centers this year with a cost of Rs 5 crores. The centers will offer both preventive and curative treatments to the tourists. “We will be holding meetings with the forest and tourism departments shortly and will start the project on a PPP (Public private partnership) basis. We will be targeting popular eco-tourism destinations and ... Read more

Epic views abound of the mist-cloaked mountains of the Western Ghats © Naufal MQ / Getty Images Lonely Planet has just revealed its 2018 Best in Asia list, a collection of 10 of the best destinations to visit in the continent for the year. And, Western Ghats of India, finds a place in the top 5 of the list. “Asia is such a vast and diverse continent for anyone dreaming of an escape,” said Lonely Planet’s Asia-Pacific Media Spokesperson Chris Zeiher. The panel of travel experts has named Busan, South Korea as its top pick, describing it as “eclectic” and “vibrant”. ... Read more

Union Minister of State for Tourism Alphons Kannanthanam, told the media that the Central Government is willing to build a high-security underground museum near the Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple in Thiruvananthapuram so that devotees can have ‘darshan’ of the treasure. The minister has met Travancore royal family members Pooyam Thirunal Gowri Parvathi Bayi and Avittom Thirunal Aditya Varma on Sunday and expressed his ministry’s willingness to bear the cost of the museum, which is proposed to be Rs 300 crores. “The museum will be in the typical Kerala architectural style with high security system better than that of the Reserve Bank ... Read more

Coming out from the grip of Nipah infection, Kozhikode will host the 6th edition of Malabar River Festival (MRF) in which Olympians, world champions and top athletes of the Indian kayaking community will display their dexterous paddling expertise to vie for top honours and handsome cash prizes. Billed as the largest white water kayaking in Asia, this years event, which will also have the distinction of being the first World Kayaking Championship, is to be held at Thusharagiri in Kozhikode from July 18 to 22 in which 25 teams from around the world will participate. With Rs 15 lakh as ... Read more

The draft of Tourism Regulatory Authority Bill, aimed to monitor and control the tourism industry in Kerala, is getting ready. The final bill will be enacted after considering the comments and suggestions of the industry experts. Tourism News Live has received a copy of the draft bill. The Regulatory Authority will have the power to take corrective measures on its own, or as per complaints received about any irregularities in the industry. It can take any suitable action, including imposing fines on organizations running without approval from any competent authorities. If an irregularity is found for the first time, a ... Read more

Nagaland Tourism Department has organized a one-day workshop on “Tour guide” in Kohima on June 25. Fifty-three tour guides from all over Nagaland have participated in the event. Neteno Yhoshu,Ddirectorate of Tourism stated in a press release that, the first resource person Richard Belho, architect from ‘Zynorique Initiatives ’ spoke about the career prospects in the tourism industry. Discussing the economic system, he stated that Nagas needed to work out a business ecosystem and systematic procedures for a scenario where successful businesses can be operated. Zynorique Initiatives is a registered society under the Govt. of Nagaland. The primary objective is ... Read more

The tropical archipelago off India’s west coast, Lakshadweep, is all set to attract more tourists by opening up 12 of its virgin islands. Minicoy, Bangaram, Suheli, Cherium, Tinnakara, Kalpeni, Kadmat, Agatti, Chetlat and Bitra are the islands being opened up for tourism. The move is being implemented as part of the Centre’s initiative for holistic development of islands and will give a leg up to niche tourism in Lakshadweep. Since the archipelago is an ecologically fragile area, it is with great care that the authorities are developing the islands for tourism activities. “Current effort is not only to ramp up tourism, ... Read more

The second phase of Jatayu Earth Center project will be inaugurated by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on 17th August 2017, informed Tourism Minister Kadakampalli Surendran. The project, located at Chadayamangalam in Kollam, includes the sculpture of the great mythical bird Jatayu mentioned in the Hindu epic Ramayana, cable car – fully manufactured in Switzerland, adventure park and helicopter local flying service. The sculpture at the Earth Centre is considered the largest bird sculpture in the world. This is the first time the state to have helicopter local flying service as part of a tourism project. Permission for the service has ... Read more

Royal Oman Police has simplified the tourist visa procedures to get tourist visa to Oman. “Tourist visa fees has been reduced and visa can be applied online,” said the Inspector General Hussain Bin Muhsin Al Shuraikhi.

Kerala’s backwaters and major rivers are all set for yet another season of traditional boat race – ‘vallam kali’. This year, the government is planning to commence a new concept in boat race - ‘Kerala Boat League’, following the pattern of IPL. “The first nine snake boats (chundan vallam), those display competence in the Nehru Trophy Boat Race will be participating in the KBL,”said the Finance Minister Dr. T M Thomas Issac. He was talking in the General Body Meeting prior to the 66th ‘Nehru Trophy Vallam Kali’.

There are a myriad number of organizations operating in tandem with the tourism/hospitality sector. But, very few of them do something meaningful to the tourism sector. Apart from development of tourism, at least some of them are showing profound interest in the sustainable development of the ecosystem. Thekkady Destination Promotion Council (TDPC) is such an organization striving for the development of tourism in the area, while taking considerate measures in conserving environment.

An application for yoga aspirants is in stores now - it will help them to find venues globally where yoga event is happening. The application named ‘Yogalocator’, is introduced by Central Council for Research in Yoga and Naturopathy Health and Fitness.  People hosting a Yoga event can also list the event on the App. Yogalocator also shows users the best routes to reach the venue.

Tourism programs of the state will be carried out in line with the responsible tourism policy, reiterated Tourism Minister Kadakampalli Surendran. Our responsible tourism policy is not just to promulgate in meetings or to display on carnivals, he added. He was inaugurating the training program for the tourism resource persons selected by the Responsible Tourism Mission at Thiruvananthapuram on 19th June 2018.