Category: Top Stories

Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) has launched “Enjoy my Japan” global campaign in New York.  As part of the launch, JNTO unveiled a special video series to kick-off the campaign. “By starting this new Global Campaign, JNTO will accelerate promotional activities and improve on a travel-friendly environment in Japan leading-up to the year 2020,” said JNTO president Ryoichi Matsuyama. With the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic games approaching, JNTO’s main mission is to introduce under-the-radar attractions and points-of-interest to Americans and international travelers. In this sense, culture is a good motivator for travelers visiting Japan and helps break barriers. 22-Time Grammy-Winning Jazz legend, ... Read more

Emirates is providing an immersive cinematic experience in its lounges in Dubai International Airport by providing Skylights theatre headsets to customers. The headsets are being trialled in the Business Class lounge in Concourse B for the month of April and in the First Class lounge in concourse B in May. Offering a fixed-screen with a wide-angle field of view for 3D and 2D content, each Skylight theatre headset weighs only 120g and offers a Full HD viewing experience. Its in-built sound and video allow customers to fully immerse themselves in what they are watching. A mix of content will be ... Read more

South Africa’s Department of Home Affairs (DHA) said that the first phase of the electronic visa system will be piloted by the end of March 2019. This will make it easier for tourists to enter the country thanks to the online visa and permit application process and capturing of applicants’ biometrics both locally and abroad. The rollout of the first phase of the e-visa system is expected to take place at a foreign mission, embassy or local DHA office. The pilot will initially cover temporary residence visas, adjudication of temporary residence visas, applications for waivers, applicant notifications and biometric details. ... Read more

Dubai gets its first 24/7 bookshop at Sports City, which doesn’t employ any staff and is not by any robots. Book Hero, which has more than 20,000 novels in store, relies on a payment drop box called the Trust Box, making it the region’s first unmanned bookshop. The customers have to just drop their money in the box and be on their way. Montserrat Martin, owner of the store, partnered up with Mohammad Al Qubaisi to come up with the idea, believing in customer trust. “We don’t employ staff simply because we trust our customers. I visit the place once a day ... Read more

The German Embassy in Armenia said it will no longer accept applications for Schengen visa starting from April 3, 2018. The embassy has informed that from April 3 onwards, VisaMetric center will accept the applications for Schengen visa for Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria, and Sweden. “There has been an increase in number of applications, and the waiting time took at least 6 weeks. Now the applicant will be able to apply to VisaMetric within 48 hours,” he said, adding that there were no other changes related to applications for national visas and other consular issues. In addition, the clients ... Read more

Hospitality major Hilton, which has around 17 hotels in the country across five of its brands, plans to double it in the next three or four years. The company is planning to open a hotel and a resort in Goa and a hotel in Ahmedabad in 2019 and has strengthened its partnership with the Bengaluru-based Embassy Group. “When compared to other countries we are under represented in India as we have just 17 hotels in the country and there is a lot of scope to expand further. We plan to have 16 more hotels in the country in the near ... Read more

The German National Tourism Board said it accepts cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin for its services. GNTB also intends to implement blockchain technologies in its finances. “We want to be a global innovation driver in the tourism industry. Services offered by the German National Tourism Board (GNTB) can now be paid in cryptocurrency. The organization which promotes Germany as a travel destination accepts bitcoin payments from March this year, according to a press release. It also announced “medium-term” plans to test blockchain technologies in the processing of its international financial transactions. “Within our digitization strategy, we are constantly examining the latest technologies ... Read more

Air New Zealand announced it will begin new nonstop service between Auckland and Chicago, beginning Nov. 30, 2018. The new service announcement deepens the joint venture relationship between Air New Zealand and United Airlines. In addition to the new route announcement, United announced it will extend its seasonal service between San Francisco and Auckland to year-round beginning April 2019. “We expect the addition of Chicago to our network to be an attractive option for Americans keen to explore New Zealand and Kiwis wanting to visit Chicago or head on to other North American destinations. As well as being great for ... Read more

Apple on a vision to spread the technology among students launched their latest I pad (9.7). The new updated 9.7-inch unibody enclosure is packed with educational softwares, particularly aimed at school students and teachers. Apple’s new launch was held as a special event at a public school in Chicago. “The new 9.7 inch iPad takes everything people love about our most popular iPad and make it even better,” said Greg Joswiak, an Apple marketing executive. The device is powered by an A10 fusion chip on a 64-bit architecture. Apple also states that the new chip has better speed in terms ... Read more

The 53-year-old actor has urged fans to help him in the fight against water scarcity through a Facebook live. The actor went Live via his Facebook page and revealed that the reason his popular show Satyamev Jayate didn’t return for a fourth season is that its entire team, including him, has been working in the drought-stricken villages of Maharashtra for the last three years. The actor informed that they have started an NGO named Paani Foundation in 2016 and decided to tackle the challenges of droughts. “A lot of people have been asking me about my show ‘Satyamev Jayate’ for ... Read more

Aeroflot, Russia’s flag carrier, allegedly forced five Asian-American passengers to fly to Delhi instead of New York because of their skin colour. Aeroflot staff warned the US citizens, all of south Asian descent, that they would be “deported” to India if they refused to deplane, according to a racial discrimination complaint. The Americans were travelling from Delhi to the US on 7 January but were stranded during a stopover in Moscow when their connecting flight to JFK International Airport was cancelled due to heavy snow in New York, reported The Independent. The passengers were then told that there were no available seats on ... Read more

If you are in anyway planning to fly from Dubai to Philippines, better book the tickets either today or tomorrow as Cebu Pacific is giving unbelievable discounts. The Philippines’ leading carrier Cebu Pacific launched an exclusive seat sale on March 27 and 28 for Dubai to Manila flights, with ticket prices dropping to as low as Dh1. The travel period is from January 1, 2019 to March 30, 2019. “The weather in the Philippines tends to be cooler and less humid from January to March-perfect for tourists and expats to take in the sights and enjoy the country’s breath-taking island ... Read more

Goa Tourism department is organising ‘The Spirit of Goa Festival’ 2018 from 6th April. The three-day event is all about showcasing Goa’s ethnic products, music, culture and history. The event also highlights live demonstration on cashew distilling and brewing Feni. During the fest, tourists are welcomed by Hop on Hop off (HOHO) buses for sightseeing. The event also focuses on exhibiting exciting programmes that include entertainment, workshops and competitions. On 6th April the event would feature Lulu Fortes from Rhythm and Blues belting out some good old Latin and Konkani hits On 7th April Goa’s all-time favourite Goenchim Noketram will bring out ... Read more

Travel Tours, one of the world’s leading leisure travel brand of FCTG (Flight Centre Travel Group) Australia, has stated their second retail and first franchise store at Salt Lake City in Kolkata. The new venture was inaugurated by Mr Shravan Gupta, Executive Director, Leisure Business FCM Travel Solutions and Mr Sitaram Sharma, President of Bharat Chambers and Commerce. The new branch of Travel Tours caters all kinds of needs associated with travel and tourism namely- family tours, business travellings, honeymoon packages, domestic and international flights, customised group holidays, hotels, car transfers, visa, cruise vacations and adventure holidays. According to the statistics ... Read more

Photo Courtesy: KUNA Kuwait’s National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters (NCCAL) has discovered tens of cemeteries and engraved items belonged to the Bronze Age from a popular eastern resort on the shores of the Arabian Gulf. The new discoveries are reminiscent of a Bronze Age culture, known as ‘Um Al Nar’, that existed around 2500 BC in the area of modern-day United Arab Emirates and northern Oman. The area was once a vibrant trade zone that linked vast civilisations across eastern Saudi Arabia, said he director of NCCAL’s department of antiquities and museums, Sultan Al Duweish. “The rare findings are ... Read more