Category: Top Stories

Malshej Ghat Expecting a heavy tourist inflow during the monsoon season, the Maharashtra Tourism Department has issued strict advisories to district collectors to identify a list of “vulnerable” spots and take precautionary measures to avoid unfortunate incidents. Joint Managing Director, Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC), Ashutosh Rathod,  told the media that state Tourism Minister Jaykumar Rawal had instructed district collectors to enhance security measures after identifying the spots at risk. Matheran Waterfalls Bookings are almost full at several destinations including Malshej, Bhandardhara, Matheran, Karla and other MTDC resorts and most of the tourists are interested in wildlife sanctuaries or climbing ... Read more

Chinese online payment form Alipay and Singapore Tourism Board (STB), have launched a series of joint marketing initiatives aimed at raising destination awareness of Singapore and driving tourist spending among Chinese visitors. Alipay and STB signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in September 2017 to enhance Chinese tourists’ overall experience in Singapore. Under the MoU, both parties agreed, among other things, to explore co-investing in joint-marketing initiatives to encourage Chinese tourists to spend with Alipay while in Singapore. Since signing the MOU, Alipay has experienced double-digit growth in user spending. China has also become Singapore’s top market in 2017 for ... Read more

Italy's capital, Rome, is well known for its rich cultural and historical sites, including the Colosseum and the Pantheon. It boasts top restaurants specializing in the world's most popular cuisines. It has a vibrant nightlife, and picturesque piazzas. However, Rome has got just 16th rank in the world’s most visited city as per the Mastercard Global Destinations Cities Index. According to the report, Rome attracts 7.1 million tourists every year, less than other 15 countries. Bangkok is the top-ranked destination with 21.5 million tourists, which is three times more than the tourists who travel to Rome every year. Dubai, in ... Read more

The two companies, leading the quest of space tourism revealed that they are just months away from their first space travel, carrying tourists; the date is yet to be confirmed. Virgin Galactic Spacecraft Virgin Galactic, founded by British billionaire Richard Branson, and Blue Origin, by Amazon creator Jeff Bezos – are striving to be the first to finish their tests. However, both the companies are using fundamentally different technology. Space tourism by both the companies does not mean to carry the passengers along the orbit of earth. Their weightless experience will last just minutes. The experience will be different from ... Read more

With an aim to attract the leisure travellers out of India, Vistara plans to connect Sri Lanka and Maldives from Delhi and Thailand from Delhi and Kolkata before October this year. Vistara has applied to the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) for permissions to launch flights to connect these destinations. The airline plans to connect destinations in Bangladesh, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to Delhi and Singapore to Pune in the next phase. The new services will be through an Airbus 320 family aircraft. Vistara has announced firm orders for 13 Airbus A-320 Neo family and 6 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft worth ... Read more

Oman Air, the national carrier of the Sultanate, is reviewing its route network with a view to further expanding its destinations in Africa. The airline already flies to Cairo in Egypt, Nairobi in Kenya, Zanzibar, and Dar Es Salaam in Tanzania. Recently it has launched a four times weekly service to Casablanca in Morocco. The Network and Planning team is working hard to assess the viability of other new routes. Khartoum in Sudan is considered to be a potential addition. Considering the large number of Sudan migrants in Oman, Khartoum is a strong favourite to be amongst the new additions ... Read more

Around 387,000 tourists visited Red Sea in June this year, in which 300,000 were foreign tourists, according to the Red Sea governorate’s statistics. German tourists recorded the highest number among other nationalities with 110,655 tourists. Egyptians came second with 82,640. Czech tourists came third with 27,852 visitors, while the British came fourth with 22,527 and the Polish ranks fifth with 20,238 tourists. As per records, tourists from the Arab countries show a downward trend. Only 1506 tourists from Arab countries visited Read Sea during this period. Domestic tourism in Hurghada hotels recorded an occupancy rate of 100 per cent, despite ... Read more

Following the announcement of National Water Ways by the Union Ministry, the West Bengal government has initiated a project to enhance its river transport and tourism potential with a $151 million (Rs 1,021 crore) World Bank assistance. Rs 5,369 crore worth Ganga Jal Marg project of the Union Ministry will facilitate cargo movement along the National Waterway-I from Varanasi to Haldia. Accordingly, the state government aims at optimizing the potential of river transport both for cargo and human movements. Ro-Ro service (Roll-on/roll-off) is one of the popular means of transport in Kolkota for shipping wheeled cargo, such as cars, trucks, ... Read more

The tourism department of Dehradun has decided to hold a mini conclave on tourism and wellness industry in Tehri on August 7, ahead of its investors meet. The two-day Investor Summit will be held in October. It was decided that four mini conclaves would be organised by the State Government in Tehri, Udham Singh Nagar, Nainital and Haridwar. In Tehri – Wellness and Tourism Conclave; in Udham Singh Nagar – Food Processing and Auto Conclave; in Nainital – Film Shooting and Tourism Conclave and in Haridwar – Ayurveda, Herbal, Aromatic and AYUSH Conclave would be organised. The department has also ... Read more

Sikkim Tourism has bagged an award for “Best Eco-Tourism Destination” from the North-East together with the Tourism Department of Meghalaya at the recently concluded Travel & Tourism Fair (TTF). The three days long TTF, India’s largest travel trade show, took place in Netaji Indoor Stadium, Kolkata (West Bengal). The award was received by the Special Secretary, Namrata Thapa and Joint Director, M K Pradhan from the hands of the Chairman-cum-CEO, Fairfest Media Pvt. Ltd., Sanjiv Agarwal, Director for Tourism, Government of Bangladesh and Director of Nepal Tourism Board. Renowned music composer A R Rahman has been appointed as the Brand Ambassador of the ... Read more

Sahara Center – Sharjah Armed with a rich trading history, Sharjah now teems with shops and markets. ‘Souks’ have been restored and modernised to suit the needs of tourists, as well as the locals. Along with these developments, the emirate also offers many modern malls with a range of top brands and entertainment options such as multiplexes, amusement rides and play centres. To suit every taste and budget, Sharjah offers everything from traditional markets to state-of-the-art malls. Let’s have a look at the shopping experiences it offers… Sahara Center, situated at Al Nahda street, is the biggest mall in Sharjah. Besides ... Read more

Hyatt hotels announced its plan to eliminate single-use plastic straws and drink picks. After Sept. 1, 2018, straws and picks will be available on request only, and eco-friendly alternatives will be provided where available. “At Hyatt, we care for people so they can be their best, and this care extends to our communities and to preserving resources for future generations. Eliminating plastic straws and drink picks builds on the environmental sustainability programs we have in place and further drives our global efforts to reduce environmental impact. This is a meaningful step, and our commitment doesn’t stop with straws and drink ... Read more

Qatar Airways said its award-winning Business Class experience, Qsuite, is now available on flights to and from Mumbai and Bengaluru. Patented by Qatar Airways, Qsuite features the industry’s first-ever double bed available in Business Class, as well as private cabins for up to four people with privacy panels. The privacy panels can stow away thereby allowing passengers in adjoining seats to create their own private room, a first of its kind in the industry. Adjustable panels and movable TV monitors on the centre four seats allow colleagues, friends or families travelling together to transform their space into a private suite, allowing them ... Read more

Marriott International has announced that they would be introducing facial recognition at the check-in desk, which is a first in the industry. Marriott has partnered with Chinese e-commerce group Alibaba to trial the technology at two two China properties – the Marriott Hangzhou and the Marriott Sanya. “We are excited to partner with the joint venture yet again to offer an innovative and convenient check-in alternative for Chinese travellers. Marriott International has a track record of embracing cutting-edge technology to create memorable experiences for guests. With technology, our hotel associates can work more efficiently to do what they do best ... Read more

Rock Fort Temple, Tiruchi The tourism development of Rock Fort temple and 5 other spots in Tiruchi under the Smart City proposals has got clearance by the high power committee. The committee, headed by Finance Secretary K Shanmugam, met in Chennai accepted the proposal drafted by the Tiruchirappalli Smart City Limited. A sum of Rs 45.23 crore will be spent for the tourism development plan in the city. Main Guard Gate, Rock Fort temple, Rock Fort temple tank (Teppakulam), War Memorial, Purathana Park, and Municipal Chathiram are the other tourist spots, which have been selected for providing facelift under the Smart City ... Read more