Category Archives: Round Up

Delhi govt announces big relief for hotels and bars

delhi india gate

The Delhi government has allowed resto-bars, hotels and clubs to sell their stock of beer expiring this month to liquor shops, in a bid to minimise their financial losses. There are around 950 hotels, clubs and resto-bars in Delhi which have an excise license, however, they have not been allowed to open since March 25, […]

India to allow entry of certain category of foreigners, including OCI holders

Ministry of Home Affairs

The Indian government has decided to allow certain categories of foreigners, including Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholders, to enter India amid restrictions on the entry of people from abroad due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Among those allowed entry into India are married couples one of whom is an OCI cardholder and another Indian national, […]

Balmer Lawrie signs MoU with KTDC, to provide accommodation for all its customers

Balmer and Lawrie

Balmer Lawrie,a miniratna public sector unit (PSU) under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoPNG) and a market leader in corporate travel management, has signed a memorandum of understanding with Kerala Tourism Development Corporation (KTDC). In a press release, the company said that Balmer Lawrie Travel & Vacations (T&V) through this agreement will now […]

Will Sri Lanka be India’s IPL 2020 choice?

sri lanka people

Cricket is a huge tourism attraction in India, with thousands of fans travelling to the country to get a glimpse of the stars. The Indian Premier League (IPL) is the biggest annual tournament in the country that draws enormous crowds both from within and overseas. But with the tournament unlikely to be held in India […]

Chartered flights from Gulf countries to carry only non-Covid passengers from June 20

flights

The Kerala government has made it mandatory for those boarding chartered flights to produce a certificate stating they have tested negative for Covid-19. Over one lakh expatriates are expected to reach Kerala from West Asian countries on chartered flights in coming weeks. The state has so far given sanction for 750 chartered flights. The direction by […]

Maharashtra allots land to Taj Hotels to develop tourism centre

Vengurla beach maharastra

The Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government has decided to allot land, measuring 54.40 hectares in Sindhudurg to Indian Hotels Company Limited, which runs the Taj Hotels, to construct a  five-star tourism centre. The project has been stuck for over 25 years. The land has been given at a 90-year lease for the construction of cottages in […]

Air India to start bookings for New York, San Francisco, Chicago flights

Air India

Air India on Friday stated that 10 additional flights will be operated to and from the USA under the third phase of the Vande Bharat Mission. These flights will be operated between June 20 and July 3 to bring back Indians stranded in America. Bookings for the same will open on June 13 from 6 […]

Hycinth Hotels issues guidelines for safety of guests

hycinth hotels trivandrum

Hycinth Hotels has taken a series of steps to ensure safety and security of its guests, in wake of the coronavirus transmission. Hygiene is the name of the game now, the hotel’s manager Santosh Kumar Sinha has said. “A super-hygiene culture needs to be set in place.” “We have got the ball rolling with apt […]

TUI UK cancels all beach holidays, customers to receive refund credit

TUI UK

TUI UK has cancelled all beach holidays up to and including July 10 due to ongoing travel restrictions.  The company had previously planned to restart trips on July 1. Holidays with TUI Ireland are on hold till July 20. All customers whose bookings are affected by the change will receive a refund credit – they can also request a cash […]

Hands off porotta

kerala porotta

On Friday afternoon, Kerala Tourism tweeted what seemed like an innocuous comment. The tweet read, “The loyal fans of the Malabar cuisine simply cannot keep their #handsoffporotta, lockdown or not. Share your favourite porotta recipes with us.” But soon, it became apparent that it had reference to a news report that frozen porotta attracts 18% Goods […]

Rs 20,000 for a chartered flight seat on this route

flights

hartered flights from UAE to Kerala have become cheaper, with voluntary organisations like Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre (KMCC) securing nod to operate 70 of them. With this, around 1.25 lakh people from Gulf countries are likely to reach the state shortly. A total of 407 chartered flights are waiting for permission to fly to Kerala […]

International flyers coming into Kerala can directly go for 14 days of home quarantine

flights

International passengers flying into Kerala can directly observe 14 days of home quarantine, without having to spend a week in institutional quarantine. Passengers who wish to stay separately can avail the government’s paid quarantine facilities, which will be arranged in a hotel or tourist home.  Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that those who are […]

Rajasthan to restrict inter-state travel

jal Mahal jaipur india

The Rajasthan government has announced that interstate movement will be regulated in view of an “unprecedented surge” in Covid-19 cases in the state. Under the new guidelines issued by the Home department, all persons going out of the state will need to obtain a pass for travel from the district collector and Superintendent of Police. […]

Airbnb says Indians are looking for staycations within 300km of their location, reveals key data points about future of domestic travel

AirBnB

Home sharing platform Airbnb India has said it will focus on domestic tourism and local experiences to revive business. The company said that Indian hosts earned over ₹190 crore in 2018 using its platform and it will continue to focus on providing them support during these tough times. Amanpreet Bajaj, country manager, Airbnb India, said that […]

Hidden treasures of Chhattisgarh

sirpur Chhattisgarh

The Ministry of Tourism’s Dekho Apna Desh webinar series showcased Chhattisgarh, in an effort to highlight India’s rich diversity. The 30th session of the Dekho Apna Desh webinar series held on June 9, was moderated by Rupinder Brar, Additional Director General , Ministry of Tourism.  P. Anbalagan, Secretary (Tourism & Culture), Government of Chhattisgarh, set […]