Category: Round Up

Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE), an agency of Dubai Tourism, has announced that this year’s Dubai Shopping Festival (DSF) will be extended by an extra week, now running from 26 December 2018 until 2 February 2019. Back for the 24th edition, this year’s shopping extravaganza will be the longest in its successful history, bringing shoppers even more exciting events, promotions and opportunities to enjoy rewarding shopping experiences across the city. Bargain-hunters will enjoy additional retail sales, deals and discounts from a diverse range of top global brands, along with mega raffles and more chances to win life-changing prizes from ... Read more

Yogendra Tripathi IAS In a reshuffle by the Government of India, Yogendra Tripathi has been appointed as the Secretary, Ministry of Tourism. Tripathi will replace Rashmi Verma. A 1985 Karnataka Cadre IAS, Tripathy has been Chairman & Managing Director of Food Corporation of India prior to his new appointment as Secretary Tourism. Prior to his position in the FCI, he has served as the Joint Secretary in the Department of School Education. He has also served at various levels of the government at the State, Karnataka, and in the Central departments during his more than three decade long career.

Rigzin Samphel, Tourism Secretary, along with other dignitaries on the inaugural function of ITM Jammu. Jammu’s Biggest Travel & Tourism Exhibition, Indian Travel Mart (ITM) Jammu kick started  at Hotel Ramada on 16th November. The event was inaugurated by Rigzin Samphel, Tourism Secretary, Government of Jammu & Kashmir. OP Bhagat, Director Tourism, Showkat Malik, Joint Director Tourism, S K Atri, Deputy Director Publicity, Rupali Mahajan, Assistant Director Tourism and other senior dignitaries from the Government department, delegates, exhibitors, travel agents, tour organizers and hoteliers were present on the occasion. Jammu & Kashmir Tourism, Gujarat Tourism, Jharkhand Tourism, West Bengal Tourism, Goa Tourism, ... Read more

Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers of the Indian Army has undertaken a unique Ultra Cycling Expedition as part of its Platinum Jubilee celebrations. The Expedition was flagged off on 15 Aug 2018 from Secunderabad and will cover a distance of 25,000 kilometres across the country passing through all states, attempting at creating the Guinness World Record of most extended distance cycling through the country. The expedition has covered 18,350 kilometres till date. The team started its next phase by aiming to cycle around the ‘Golden Quadrilateral’- a total distance of 5,918 kilometres. The Expedition was flagged off on August ... Read more

Rwanda showcased its products in China International Import Expo (CIIE) for the first time, as it intensifies efforts to diversify its exports. The country is one the 172 nations participating at the exhibition, which ends today, 10th November 2018. The exhibition attracted more than 3,600 enterprises. Rwanda was represented by the National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB), Utexrwa, C&H Garments, and Urumuri handcrafts. Rwandan Coffee This came just days after the Rwandan government launched a partnership with China’s Alibaba Group to market its tourism opportunities as well as sell its products on the company’s trading platform. “The expo was a ... Read more

Apple Iconsiam opens today in Bangkok on the shores of the Chao Phraya, welcoming both locals and visitors to experience the best of Apple in Thailand for the first time. The store features Apple’s full line of products including iPhone XS, iPhone XR and Apple Watch Series 4, and is inviting visitors to pursue their creative passions with free Today at Apple sessions. “Bangkok is a cultural and economic destination for the entire region and home to millions of passionate Apple customers,” said Angela Ahrendts, Apple’s senior vice president of Retail. “We are thrilled to introduce our Thai customers to ... Read more

Jammu and Kashmir Hotel and Restaurant Association (JKHARA) urges Governor Satya Pal Malik and Chief Secretary BVR Subrahmanyam for appointing a full-fledged Director for Tourism Kashmir in view of the need of promotion of tourism sector. Showkat M Chowdhary , President of  JKHARA said In a statement  that tourism sector is one of the important sectors, which needs vivacious head of the department who could help in attracting tourists from within and outside the country. “Tourism department cannot be headless when there is a great need of the promotion of this sector during lean season. Tourism sector needs promotion day ... Read more

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has officially opened the first phase of the new Istanbul Airport on 29 October – Turkish National Day. The aircraft of Turk Hava Yolları company operating the first flight from the new Istanbul airport has landed at the Heydar Aliyev International Airport. The airport which spans around 823 million square feet in size, is poised to become the world’s largest airport when completed in 2028. Having departed from Istanbul at 09:30, the aircraft landed in Baku at 13:25. Starting from November 8, one flight from Istanbul Airport to Baku will be carried out daily. The Ataturk Airport in ... Read more

The special administrative regions of Macau and Hong Kong experience the highest international visitor spending, according to highlights of a report by the World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) annual City Travel & Tourism Impact Report on Monday. The report noted that Macau has the highest foreign tourists spending making up 97.3 per cent of tourism gross domestic product (GDP) at USD 35.6 billion. Tourists from the China mainland are also considered as foreign tourists in this report. In 2017, a total USD 14.3 billion of tourism GDP was generated in Macau, placing it among the top 20 in terms ... Read more

Zimbabwe launches its first tourism application, Accoleisure, with an aim to bring the country’s sought after destinations to the digital age. “Through the app, tech savvy domestic and international tourists have been offered a platform to search for accommodation, interact with tourism operators and service providers as well,” said Elisha Chitate, product development manager at Accoleisure. “This is a first of its kind in Zimbabwe because Accoleisure does not require data and connects all key stakeholders in the tourism industry at a single platform. Essentially the App is a step in the right direction in promoting our tourism destinations in the digital arena. Accoleisure is ... Read more

Taiwans’s representative in New Delhi, Tien Chung-kwang, speaking on the inauguration function Taiwan opened its first official tourism information center for India in the country’s financial capital, Mumbai on Friday, 12th October 2018 Taiwan is considering India as one of the focus countries for its new Southbound Policy targeting South and Southeast Asia, and earlier this week announced it would spend more than USD 1 million to attract tourists from India. “We are trying to double the number of Indian travellers arriving in Taiwan by next year,” said Trust Lin, the Tourism Bureau’s representative in Singapore, who is also responsible ... Read more

The central ministry is all set to lay the foundation stone of a museum for all Prime Ministers of the country on the premises of the Teen Murti today. Minister of state for culture Mahesh Sharma and minister of housing and urban affairs Hardeep Singh Puri will lay the foundation stone for the museum at Teen Murti Estate, the official residence of India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The new museum will incorporate the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (NMML) at the Teen Murti estate, the official residence of India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The work on the new museum is ... Read more

Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) plans to host an event to give budding tourism entrepreneurs an opportunity to strengthen their business idea and gather investment support. ‘The Tourism Udhyami Seed Camp’ will be held in Nepal’s tourism capital, Pokhara, from 30th October to 4th November 2018. Interested people can submit their applications until October 15. 20 finalists will be selected from among the applicants, on the basis of the criteria prescribed along with the distinctiveness and feasibility of the proposed idea. From Udhyami Seed Camp – 2017 The participating teams of two to four members in each team will be provided ... Read more

German carrier Lufthansa said that it has plans to begin service from Austin to Frankfurt in May 2019. The nonstop service will be available on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The first Austin-Frankfurt Lufthansa flight is scheduled for May 3, 2019. Tickets are already on sale at lufthansa.com. “We are thrilled to announce the launch of nonstop service between Austin, Texas, and our Frankfurt hub in May of next year, which will offer Austin area residents a world of travel opportunities to more than 200 destinations in 100 countries from our European base. Those living in Texas’ state capital will ... Read more

The Odisha government on Tuesday ordered the closure of all schools, colleges and Anganwadi centres till October 10-11 in four districts of the state as a precautionary measure against Cyclone Titli. Cyclone Titli is very likely to intensify further into a severe cyclonic storm during the next 24 hours. Titli has intensified into a severe cyclonic storm, triggering rainfall in several parts of Odisha. It is also expected to make landfall between Odisha and Andhra Pradesh coasts tomorrow morning.  It is very likely to intensify further into a very severe cyclonic storm during the next 18 hours. The Met department has warned ... Read more