Author: Tourism News live

State registers the highest growth rate since 1996 Kerala has shown yet again why it’s God’s Own Country when it comes to tourism. Despite being stung hard by the nipah virus and the incessant floods last year, the state has recorded the highest growth rate in domestic and total tourist arrivals in 24 years. Kerala attracted around 1.96 crore domestic and foreign visitors in 2019, registering a healthy growth of 17.2 per cent as compared to the figures in the previous year. The total earnings from tourism stood at Rs 45,010.69 crore, notching a robust 24.14 per cent increase. The ... Read more

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has issued guidelines to the hotel industry, detailing the procedure to be followed wherever persons with potential exposure to COVID-19 are housed. The hotel staff at the reception should be well versed in hand and respiratory hygiene and follow due protocol if a guest develop symptoms, the ministry has advised. All guests should be asked about their travel history and information has to be gathered if they have been to any of the affected area in the past 14 days. The hotels should provide alcohol based hand-rubs containing 70% alcohol to guests in ... Read more

GIS mapping of disease hotspots to check spread of the virus The Central government has decided to enhance the level of preparedness to tackle the outbreak of the corona virus, by stepping up emergency measures. At an inter-ministerial meeting on Wednesday, the government said it would look to introduce universal screening at all international airports and seaports through use of thermal imagery equipment. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has been asked to work closely with state governments, including relevant district administration officials, to ensure compliance with screening protocols at integrated check-posts on India’s land borders. National Informatics Centre would ... Read more

The Singapore Tourism Board (STB) has clarified that the Singapore Ministry of Health has not issued any health advisory that requires travelers from India to have yellow fever vaccinations. STB in a press note on Wednesday said that a circular dated February 27, purportedly from Air India, has been making the rounds stating “yellow fever vaccination requirement for travelers to Singapore”. The circular further claims that it is a directive from the Singapore Ministry of Health. STB’s regional director GB Srithar said, “I am in touch with the senior management of Air India to verify the authenticity of the circular ... Read more

Travel Planners CEO feels domestic tourism may receive a boost The global travel industry is all set to get hit by $46 billion a month due to the outbreak of the corona virus, according to the Global Business Travel Association, a Washington based trade body. While that figure may eventually turn out to be bit of a stretch, there is no denying that American and European companies have curtailed their business travel to a great extent. GTA carried out a survey on 401 companies, with 65% admitting that they have cancelled meeting or events, keeping in mind the spread of ... Read more

This year the tournament spreads its wings to Kochi, apart from usual venue Thiruvananthapuram It’s time to put on the pads again and go out to bat. The Association of Professionals in Tourism (APT) has announced the dates and format of its annual cricketing event to be held in Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi. The tournament, designed for the Kerala tourism and hospitality fraternity, promises to be exciting this year too with great participation from all the stakeholders. The south zone and central zone matches will be held at Thiruvananthapuram (from March 25-28) and Kochi (from April 1-4) respectively. The semi-finals and ... Read more

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has issued a fresh set of guidelines in view of the emerging global scenario regarding the COVID19, in super-session of all earlier advisories. The updated advisory states that all regular (sticker) visas/e-visas (including VoA for Japan and South Korea) granted to nationals of Italy, Iran, South Korea and Japan, issued on or before 03.03.2020 and who have not yet entered India, stand suspended with immediate effect. Those requiring to travel to India due to compelling reasons, may seek fresh visas from the nearest Indian embassy/consulate. Indian citizens are advised to refrain from travel ... Read more

New Incredible India website to offer visitors a personalised digital experience In a bid to provide in-depth and nuanced information about India’s plethora of tourist destinations, the Ministry of Tourism has decided to launch a multilingual website in New Delhi on Tuesday. The website which will be launched under the Incredible India platform, will be inaugurated by the Minister of State for Tourism & Culture Prahlad Singh Patel. The website which is currently hosted in English and Hindi will now be available in Chinese, Arabic and Spanish. The event will witness participation by key stake holders of the tourism industry, ... Read more

Schools to engage only authorised tour operators The Kerala government has provided fresh directions for schools while undertaking study tours and industry visits, keeping in mind some of the undesirable practices that have crept into the system. The state education department has said that all schools including the CBSE and ICSE institutions have to ensure that only recognised tour operators are used for the purpose. In a press release, the department has said that the responsibility of such trips will be have to be met by the heads of  the respective schools. The arrangements of such visits will have to ... Read more

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Tinder, the world’s most popular app for meeting new people, announces the launch of a new unique in-app user experience, Festival Mode, in India. Users can add a badge to their profile highlighting their planned festival destination. From there, they have the ability to match and chat with other users attending the same event before they arrive. Festival Mode will begin rolling out on Tinder starting November 19th and users will have access to event-specific badges. After festivals including EDC Las Vegas, Bonnaroo, British Summer Time and EDC, Orlando, Festival Mode will have its debut in India with Bacardi NH7 ... Read more

Renowned for its wildlife-driven holidays and adventure capabilities, South Africa received yet another vote of confidence as the Best Family Destination (International) from Indian readers of one of the most prominent travel magazines in the world. “Family dynamics in India are similar to those in South Africa; hence we recognize and understand the value of vacations that offer opportunities to rejuvenate while strengthening relationships. At South African Tourism, we have done away with cookie-cutter holidays, and one-size-fits-all itineraries as every family seeks unique and distinctive experiences. Utmost emphasis is placed on the quality and quantity of experiences we can offer ... Read more

In an aggressive bid to make deeper inroads in Europe, Kerala Tourism conducted a string of high-energy road shows by participating in World Travel Market (WTM) London 2019 in November and showcasing its formidable eyeball-grabbing products in the emerging markets of Scandinavian countries Denmark and Finland. Kerala Tourism Director P Bala Kiran led a high-profile official delegation, comprising prominent trade partners like hoteliers, resort owners, tour operators and service providers from the state, to WTM London and roadshows in Copenhagen (Denmark) and Helsinki (Finland). At WTM London, Kerala Tourism set up a spectacular pavilion over 120 sq.mt area with the ... Read more

With the monsoons on their way out and the slight nip on winter setting in, it’s time to begin planning your winter breaks! City life can be busy and may prevent you from organizing long haul vacations, but we’ve got here the top 6 places that would make for the perfect short winter break. Within comfortable driving distances of Mumbai and Pune, these are too tempting to pass! Maharashtra has the perfect winter weather, with the Sahyadris providing the cold without the chills. The range is dotted with several gems that make for amazing hideaways from the city crowds. Here ... Read more

Al Qana, the new social culinary and entertainment destination developed by Al Barakah International Investment (BII) in Abu Dhabi, today revealed “The Bridge Wellness Hub”, one of its seven destinations. “The Bridge” is an integrated lifestyle wellness hub that has been carefully designed to be a disruptive space within its industry. The construction of the concept has commenced already and will open its doors for the first time in Q4 2020 to coincide with the grand opening of Al Qana. The uniqueness of “The Bridge” concept comes from a combination of two ideas. One space that bridges all aspects of ... Read more