Category: News

The 3-day Travel and Tourism Fair (TTF) has kick started on September 7, 2018 at the Exhibition Halls at Gujarat University. “India is a rare country where there is 28 per cent tax in tourism sector. This hurts India’s competitiveness as an attractive tourist destination. Countries like the USA, Singapore, Thailand – have tax in single digits. Very few have in double digits. But no where the tax is as high as 28 per cent. Tourists will prefer destination like Vietnam, Thailand and Sri Lanka. There is also a provision of refund of GST on goods purchased, which is not ... Read more

Cox & Kings Ltd., has roped in Bollywood star Anushka Sharma as the company’s brand ambassador. The actress will be seen promoting the company’s unique travel offerings in a new TV campaign to be released soon. Talking about roping in Anushka Sharma, Karan Anand, Head, Relationships, Cox & Kings said, “Anushka is known for her versatility, experimentation and unusual personality. She perfectly represents a generation that is energetic, unapologetic and fun loving which makes her the right fit to showcase Cox & Kings’ innovative holiday offerings.” Speaking about her experience, Anushka said, “I am glad to be associated with the ... Read more

Odisha Tourism is trying crowdsourcing and is encouraging people to design its new logo which will make its brand recognizable globally. The state tourism board has announced a logo design contest to further strengthen its tourism brand. The decision to crowdsource and develop a new logo comes after Odisha tourism’s recent sports tourism campaign ‘Odisha by morning, Hockey by evening’ as it plays host partner to the Odisha hockey men’s world cup Bhubaneswar 2018 slated to be held from November 28 to December 16. The entries for the contest will need to be submitted on odishatourismlogo@gmail.com in PDF format. The entry ... Read more

Ratnagiri, Konkan Commerce and Industry Minister Suresh Prabhu has requested KJ Alphons, the Tourism Minister of State, to set up Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM) at Ratnagiri or Sindhudurg to promote the development of this region. He made his request in writing to Kannanthanam, stating that the Konkan region with its 700 km coastline has huge potential to promote the region as a tourist destination and opening a branch of IITTM will enhance tourism in the area and contribute to the economic development. “Establishment of a full-fledged institute will not only boost the tourism industry, but will ... Read more

Amaravati, Capital City of Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh, after separated from Telangana, has been depending more on the tourism sector for employment generation and to stimulate economic growth. “The state government is taking all steps to strengthen the infrastructure for tourism development,” said Himanshu Shukla, CEO of Andhra Pradesh Tourism Authority and the Managing Director of AP Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC). He was addressing the gathering at the annual convention of the Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO), which began at Visakhapatnam on Thursday, 7th September 2018. “We have no doubt it will give a great boost to the tourism ... Read more

Thomas Cook (India) Ltd has inaugurated a new office in Faridabad at SCF 51, First Floor, Sector 15, Faridabad, Haryana 121007. Romil Pant, Sr. Vice President and Jatin Sharma, Associate Vice President, Thomas Cook (India) Ltd inaugurated the office. This expansion augments Thomas Cook India’s distribution and reach in Faridabad and Delhi NCR to 16 consumer access centres: 6 owned branches and 10 Gold Circle Partner (franchise) outlets. Thomas Cook India identifies Faridabad/Delhi NCR as a high potential source market for its holiday business. Hence, in an initiative to harness this opportunity, the Company has identified Faridabad to set up ... Read more

UBM India has successfully conducted its first food and hospitality show, Food and Hotel India Expo (FHIn) at the Sahara Star in Mumbai. The inauguration of the preview expo was marked by the presence of  Param Kannampilly, Chairman and Managing Director, Concept Hospitality; Manjit Singh Gill- Corporate Chef, ITC & President IFCA; ernon Cohelo – Chef, President WICA; Thomas Schlitt, Managing Director, Messe Dusseldorf India; Paul March, Managing Director, UBM AllWorld; Yogesh Mudras, Managing Director, UBM India and Abhijit Mukherjee, Group Director, UBM India amidst an industry gathering. The show featured top-tier category of over 20 market leading food and ... Read more

The union ministry is planning to make the Sambhar Lake in Rajastan the world’s first ‘Salt Tourism’ site. Under the ‘Swadesh Darshan’ programme, the ministry prepared a number of programmed to develop the lake as a sought after tourist destination. Located 96 km southwest of the city of Jaipur and 64 km northeast of Ajmer along National Highway 8 in Rajasthan, Sambhar is the largest inland salt water lake in India. At the lake, the tourists can witness the traditional way of salt making. There will also be a heritage train for the visitors to enjoy. Another attraction at the ... Read more

Green House The 2nd Urban Agri Africa 2018 Summit will be held on September 25 – 26 at the Sunnyside Park Hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa.  With the agriculture sector at the centre of persistent discussions and debate around transformation and economic empowerment, this 2nd Urban Agri Africa 2018 Summit is not only timely, but highly relevant. Organized by Magenta Global, the two-day Conference includes a dynamic offering of engaging presentations and panel discussions.  It will bring together all agriculture stakeholders – from policy makers, trade and investment promotion agencies, farmers (both smallholders and commercial farmers), credit and agri-financiers, agri ... Read more

StayWell Holdings, part of Prince Hotels Inc of Japan, has announced signing of first Leisure Inn in Kerala. Leisure Inn VKL Kochi is scheduled to start operations in the last quarter of 2018. The hotel is located in the heart of Kochi city with a room inventory of 53 rooms. The hotel is the second property by StayWell Holdings in Kerala, after opening Park Regis Aveda in Kumarakom, Kerala, and seventh operational property in India for the Group. “We are looking forward to widening our reach in the Southern market. Kochi is a metropolitan hub of Kerala and the hotel ... Read more

“Local community participation to be sought in the development of tourism destinations, to have sustainable tourism development,” said Rashmi Verma, Tourism Secretary, Union Ministry. She was speaking at a session on “Mission: 20 million tourists – possibilities and challenges,” organised as part of the 34th annual convention of Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO), taking place in Visakhpatnam. “Involvement of the local communities in promotion would not only help in popularizing the new destinations, but also contribute to the local economy. We need such responsible tourism. We must learn from Kerala where the local people have become the stakeholders, by ... Read more

Happy news for people of Trivandrum!. Budget airlines, AirAsia and GoAir to start operations from Trivandrum. The airlines have expressed interest in starting domestic service from Trivandrum International Airport. Air Asia will start services to Bengaluru, while Go Air will have daily flights to Mumbai. Currently, Air Asia do not have service from Trivandrum. However, they had operated from Trivandrum during the floods, when Kochi International Airport was temporary closed. Go Air is the 5th largest airline operating in India. Meanwhile, joint venture of Singapore Airline and Tata Sons, Vistara Airlines, has also expressed interest to have flights to Chennai ... Read more

Tourism Australia has launched a new tourism promotion campaign in India and South East Asia, targeting high value travellers in India, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia. The latest chapter in Tourism Australia’s evolving There’s Nothing Like Australia campaign, UnDiscover Australia, challenges perceptions and stereotypes of what Australia offers as a tourism destination by showcasing unusual, unfamiliar and unexpected attractions and experiences. The campaign is being backed by Australia’s state and territory tourism organisations, airlines, and a range of other key distribution partners. India is currently Australia’s fastest growing market for arrivals and spend, achieving a fourth consecutive year of double-digit growth. ... Read more

If you are travelling to UAE this summer, you don’t need to pay visa fees for dependents aged 18 years or below. The fee exemption will be applicable between July 15 and September 15 every year , the UAE Cabinet announced recently. The new decision is expected to boost tourist footfall during the off peak season. UAE has earlier exempted transit tourists from visa fees for the first 48 hours. A 14-day express tourist visa costs Dh497 per head and a 30-day multi-entry tourist visa costs Dh917 if the traveller purchases it online. However, according to tour operators, the most popular tourist ... Read more

China is going to build a ‘luxury city’named ‘Tourism Vacation Town’ in Cambodia with a cost of USD 1.2 Billion. With this project, China is said to be extending its influence in the south-east Asian countries. Chinese developer Tianjin Union Development Group (UDG) says Tourism Vacation Town will feature high-end hotels, offices and theme parks on 1,200 hectares of land in Cambodia’s south-western Koh Kong province. Meanwhile, UDG has already started work for resort in the same province, named Dara Sakor with a project cost of USD 3.8 billion. The land was given to USG for a 99 year lease ... Read more