Category: Top Stories

As part of its domestic marketing strategy, Kerala Tourism is planning to participate in domestic trade fairs, as per the tentative schedule shown below in March 2021. Name of Trade Fair Date State Tentative No. of Table Space TTF Ahmedabad 4-6 March 2021 Gujarat 14 OTM Mumbai 19-21 March 2021 Maharashtra 14 SATTE Delhi 24-26 March 2021 Delhi 24 Department of tourism will be setting up Kerala Pavilion in the above trade fairs in an appropriate manner and a tablespace will be provided to each participant depending on the space availed by Kerala Tourism in each fair in accordance with ... Read more

The competition, which was supported by the United Nations Innovation Network, attracted some 10,000 initial proposals. From these, the jury chose 25 winners from 18 countries, highlighting the array of tourism talent in every global region and its widespread ability to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Shortlisted finalists were judged according to criteria which included the potential of the startups to contribute to a specific Goal, their ability to be scaled-up and the maturity of both the product and the team behind it. The 25 winning startups, selected by a jury made up of leaders from across the tourism ... Read more

Accor hospitality group has announced it is collaborating with Microsoft to launch All Connect, a new hybrid meetings concept supported by Microsoft Teams. This new concept will enable guests around the world to adapt to the new ways of working that are expected to be an enduring legacy of the Covid-19 pandemic. Today, 55% of Accor hotels with meeting rooms are already providing hybrid meetings solutions to their clients. Launching in April 2021, the new All Connect concept will ensure Accor hotels can provide an enriched full experience, which resets the bar on the hybrid meeting experience. Accor’s ambitious target ... Read more

The baguette – a mix of wheat flour, water, yeast, salt and a pinch of savoir-faire and as much a symbol of France as the Eiffel Tower – may soon join UNESCO’s listing of cultural treasures. Bakers say the traditional craft loaf, whose purchase from the local bakery has for decades been a ritual in French daily life, is being pushed off shop shelves, even in France, by frozen bread sticks made on giant assembly lines. “There’s not one single secret to making a good traditional baguette,” said Mickael Reydellet, owner of eight bakeries. “It requires time, a savoir-faire, the ... Read more

The highly-anticipated World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) 20th Global Summit, will now take place in April – one month later than the originally planned date. The event will convene public and private sector leaders and provide the platform for the sector’s global recovery The Global Summit is being organised in partnership with the Government of Quintana Roo in Mexico and will be held in Cancun, Mexico on 25-27 April. WTTC, which represents the global Travel & Tourism private sector, has taken the decision to move its Global Summit from March into April to coincide with the expected relaxation of ... Read more

Tourism Australia recently hosted an exclusive Australian Native Ingredients Masterclass in India with 2018 Australian MasterChef winner, Sashi Cheliah. Participants included Traveller Made advisors, Premier Aussie Specialist agents and a select group of Indian food influencers and bloggers. An experience box featuring a selection of 14 Australian Native spices and fruit powders curated by Foodie Trails was sent to participants to inspire them on their culinary journey. Rob Hyatt of Koorie Heritage Trust shared insights on Australia’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture and spoke passionately about the diversity of unique experiences across the country. As food is an intrinsic component of our everyday ... Read more

ITM, India Tourism Mart, a buyer-seller meet which this time is taking place on a virtual format from 18th – 20th Feb 2021. Mr Subhash Goyal, Chairman – ITM 2021 and Secretary, FAITH in his inaugural address, emphasised how the year gone by was the darkest in the history of mankind and tourism was the worst hit. Goyal urged the industry to come together and consolidate their efforts for the revival of tourism in India. “For us to revive the tourism industry and save millions of jobs, we look forward three key actions from our policymakers – re-starting of e-tourist ... Read more

Go off the beaten path and discover India’s lesser known destinations that offer guests intimate, exclusive and authentic experiences, away from the crowds. Travel to these hidden jewels with Indian Hotels Company (IHCL) hotels, ideal for a getaway or for bonding with family and friends. Explore quaint locations spread across the length and breadth of the country, each completely distinct from the other. From imbibing the peaceful and relaxing environment of Madurai to discovering the hidden coffee trails of Chikmagalur, enjoy nature at its best. Located at the top of the Pasumalai hill, the hotel in Madurai is a perfect vantage point to enjoy the picturesque views ... Read more

The brutal cold snap that has frozen Texas hasn’t only numbed unprepared people to the bone – thousands of turtles have been caught off-guard too. Thousands of sea turtles unused to the plunge in temperatures have been washing up on the beaches of South Padre Island, off the southern coast of Texas. Volunteers have brought some 4,700 of them to a convention centre, where they are being kept in tubs and enclosures before they can be released when the water is warmer. “It’s an unprecedented event,” said Wendy Knight, executive director of research and conservation centre Sea Turtle Inc, which ... Read more

SpiceJet, the country’s favourite airline and the largest regional player, today announced the launch of 24 new domestic flights. SpiceJet will be the first and only airline to connect Ajmer with Mumbai and Ahmedabad with Amritsar reiterating the airline’s commitment to enhance connectivity between metro and non-metro cities. The new flights also include four new seasonal flights connecting Jaisalmer, the ‘Golden City’ of India, with Delhi and Ahmedabad. The airline will also launch daily flights on the Ahmedabad – Bengaluru – Ahmedabad, Kolkata – Guwahati and Guwahati – Delhi routes. Flights between Ahmedabad-Bagdogra-Ahmedabad and Chennai -Kolkata -Chennai will operate three ... Read more

As arctic temperatures frozen rivers and lakes in northern Germany, workers at houseboat charter companies were already gearing up for what they expect to be a busy summer season. Cross-border travel restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic last summer prompted a run on domestic tourism, including on floating accommodation. Many expect that 2021 will be no different. “I think that big trips abroad and flying will still not be the dominant type of vacation for people this summer,” Dagmar Kuhnle, said a spokeswoman at the Kuhnle Tour houseboat charter company in the northeastern Mecklenburg lake district. Family-run Kuhnle expanded its ... Read more

Katara Hospitality, a leading global hotel owner, developer and operator based in Qatar, has announced a new partnership with Accor, a world-leading hospitality group with the two-fold signing of Raffles and Fairmont hotels in Qatar. The management agreement was signed by His Excellency Sheikh Nawaf Bin Jassim Bin Jabor Al-Thani, Chairman of Katara Hospitality and Mr. Sébastien Bazin, Chairman & CEO of Accor. The agreement consolidates the long-standing partnership between Accor and Katara Hospitality, whom already own several landmark hotels managed by Accor, with the property set to open in 2022. Once completed, the Fairmont Hotel and Raffles Hotel & ... Read more

Staff at Hotel Sky in Johannesburg’s wealthy Sandton district adhere to strict COVID-19 protocols, wearing masks and physically distancing from guests as much as possible; all, that is, except Lexi, Micah and Ariel. For the three concierges couldn’t breathe germs on you even if they wanted to: they’re robots. Robot hospitality is not new – Japanese hotels have been deploying them for years and in 2015 Tokyo’s Henn’na, or ‘Strange’, hotel became the first to be fully staffed by machines. Several robot-staffed Tokyo hotels are now using them to serve guests with mild COVID-19 symptoms. But Hotel Sky, which launched ... Read more

Alan Faena and Len Blavatnik of Faena Group, together with Sébastien Bazin, Chairman and CEO of Accor have announced the launch of a global strategic partnership focused on expanding the Faena brand around the globe. Faena, one of the world’s most impactful brands in the luxury lifestyle and hospitality industry, and Accor, a world-leading hospitality group with an unparalleled brand portfolio and more than 5,000 properties across 110 countries, have partnered to expand the Faena brand to strategic destinations worldwide. Alan Faena will work in partnership with Accor to break new ground, developing Faena Districts in select global destinations.  This ... Read more

In a boost for Virgin Atlantic’s Flying Club, members in the UK can sign up to Virgin Red, Virgin’s new rewards club. Through the Virgin Red app and website, which celebrates its members for living a life more Virgin, Flying Club members will unlock a wealth of new earning and spending options overnight, across a wide range of products and services from the Virgin family and beyond. New and existing Flying Club members in the UK can now enroll in Virgin Red and seamlessly link their Flying Club account, creating a shared Virgin Points balance that they can use across ... Read more