Category: Top Three Stories

Under the Swadesh Darshan Scheme, the central Tourism Ministry has sanctioned 73 projects with Central Financial Assistance for Rs 5873.26 crores covering 30 States/UT Administrations till date. “The sanctioning of new projects under Swadesh Darshan scheme is a continuous process. Projects for development under the scheme are identified in consultations with the State Governments/UT Administrations and are sanctioned subject to availability of funds, submission of suitable detailed project reports, adherence to scheme guidelines and utilization of funds released earlier. All the projects sanctioned under the circuits are at various stages of implementation,” said K J Alphons, Union Minister of State (I/C) ... Read more

The water department of Maharashtra is all set to lease out 146 of its guest houses, with some 2,000 rooms near dams. The state government will float tenders in about a week regarding the same. It is proposing to lease out the guest houses for 10 years, with an annual hike of 10 per cent in rent. The guest houses were so far available only to senior government officials and political leaders. The most sought after dam and reservoir locations are Panshet near Pune, Pench near Nagpur, Bhatsa on the Mumbai-Nashik highway, Bhandardara near Nashik, Ujani in Solapur, Jaikwadi in ... Read more

Cupping Health tourism featuring Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is getting greater acceptance in recent years, as stated by experts who has been attending the International Health Tourism Forum held in Beijing recently. “Cross-border health tourism is in fashion now,” said Li Jiangbin, an official with the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine. The World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies announced the establishment of a special committee to promote TCM health tourism worldwide. Acupuncture TCM health tourism provides tourists with an array of options, allowing them to experience traditional Chinese methods of healthcare such as acupuncture and cupping therapy, and learn ... Read more

Kochi is going to be one of the coveted tourism destinations of the state, as District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC) is planning to implement a CIAL model Special Service Vehicle (SPV) for 14 islands of Kadamakkudy panchayath to convert them to a village tourism hub. It was revealed in a meeting of DTPC along with other stakeholders, including district administration and Kadamakkudy grama panchayath. As per the programme, the islands will be connected through ferries. Walkways also will be made connecting the islands. Tourists will have the opportunity to enjoy the activities arranged in each islands, like experiencing the village ... Read more

Aitken Spence Travels has won the Best Inbound Tour Operator award under the Travel and Tourism Operator – Large category at the National Tourism Awards 2018 conducted by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority. Aitkens had won this prestigious award for three consecutive years previously. This year the winners were selected by a panel of eminent industry experts and corporate professionals. The competition entailed a written application and presentation to the judging panel and site visits. The criteria covered audited Financial performance, Corporate Social Responsibility, commitment to the environment, Business and marketing plans, Customer care, HR and Sustainability. “Over the years, ... Read more

The governments of India, Nepal and Bhutan are actively considering having a joint task force for allowing free movement of wildlife across political boundaries and checking smuggling of wildlife across the Kanchenjunga Landscape, a trans-boundary region spread across Nepal, India and Bhutan. The developments comes up after forest officials and representatives of non-government organisation of the three countries visited parts of the landscape and later held a meeting at Siliguri in north Bengal earlier this month. Participants from India and Bhutan who attended the meeting said that setting up of a joint task force was a key requirement in the ... Read more

Three Indian Coast Guard Vessel today brought back 308 tourists, including 83 foreign nationals from Havelock Island to Port Blair. The tourists had been stranded for the last two days due to the inclement weather following formation of Cyclone Phethai. According to Met office sources, a deep depression that developed to the west of Andamans on Friday had made it difficult for ships to sail, leaving thousands of tourists marooned on the two islands, which are about 30-40 nautical miles away from the capital city. On Saturday, nearly 1,100 tourists were ferried safely to Port Blair from Havelock. Also, 135 ... Read more

SpiceJet has announced the launch of six new direct flights connecting Chennai with key pilgrim centres like Varanasi and Shirdi and tourist spots like Port Blair and Bagdogra. All the flights are scheduled to commence from January 10, 2019, except the one on Chennai-Bagdogra route which will start operations from February 11, 2019. The daily direct flights introduced by the airline will operate on the Chennai-Varanasi, Chennai-Shirdi and Chennai-Bagdogra routes. The airline has also introduced an additional frequency on the Chennai-Port Blair-Chennai route which will be operational from January 10 to February 10, 2019. SpiceJet is offering an introductory promotional fare starting ... Read more

The West Bengal government is considering the prospects of tea tourism in the state. The government has allocated over Rs 1,000 crore for the welfare of tea garden workers in the state since 2011, said the state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Banerjee, in a Twitter post on International Tea Day, said her government has also been providing 35 kg of rice at Rs 2 per kg to the tea garden workers. “Today is International Tea Day. In #Bangla, we have allocated more than Rs 1,000 crore for the welfare of tea garden workers since 2011. We give 35 kg rice at ... Read more

A Global Food Policy Advocacy Initiative, ‘Tasting India’ has commenced  in Delhi from 14th and will conclude on 16th December 2018 in Delhi. ‘Eat Right’ is the the theme of this years’ programme. The event is supported by NITI Aayog, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India, Incredible India, The Nordics (Nordic Council of Ministers), Nordic Food Policy Lab, SDG2 Advocacy Hub, India International Center, Sweden Foodtech and Basque Culinary Center. For the first time in the country, one platform will bring together experts from around the world to discuss ways to actualize the United Nations Sustainability Goals using the ... Read more

It was in March 2018 that the Banaswadi-Hosur train services were started much to the relief of IT professionals and other employees travelling to and fro on the stretch. But, the services were suspended after a month, in May, for track renewal work. To the relief of the passengers, the twitter account of DRM Bengaluru stated that the Banaswadi-Hosur suburban train will restart its services from December 17. “TRNO-06571-06572-06573-06574 BAND-HSRA-BAND DEMU has permitted to resume the services with effect from 17.12.2018,” read the tweet. The commuters on the stretch have requested the authorities to tweak the timings to match with ... Read more

In celebration of National Ugly Holiday Sweater Day, Alaska Airlines guests who wear their festive holiday sweaters to the airport on Friday, December 21 can board their flight early. The one-day promotion will be celebrated by flyers and employees alike across Alaska’s 116-city network and includes all Alaska and Horizon Air flights. Festive holiday-themed boarding music and free holiday movies will play all month to help get guests into the holiday spirit. “This time of year, we consider ourselves the ‘merrier carrier,’ so we love going above and beyond to help our guests embrace the fun, festive side of flying ... Read more

United Airlines has introduced a daily nonstop seasonal service between Indira Gandhi International Airport and its hub at San Francisco International Airport starting December 7, 2019 – subject to government approval. United’s new route to San Francisco will be the airline’s third daily nonstop service from India in addition to the existing daily, year-round services from Mumbai and New Delhi to New York/Newark. “This new flight strengthens our international route network and provides our customers from India with even greater travel choice, with connections from San Francisco to other destinations across the U S and Canada. Connecting the Indian capital ... Read more

Richard Branson’s space-tourism venture, Virgin Galactic LLC, reached the edge of space in a test flight Thursday, four years after a fatal accident set back the project, in a feat expected to accelerate commercial efforts to send tourists and small satellites aloft using low-cost rockets. The space plane called SpaceShip Two, with its two pilots, was launched from a carrier aircraft flying high above Southern California’s Mojave Desert. For around USD 250,000 a seat, Virgin Galactic seeks to offer thrill rides featuring majestic views of the earth capped by a few minutes of weightlessness. After the flight, the closely held ... Read more

WOW air has launched three weekly flights from New Delhi to Iceland. The airline will operate three weekly flights from New Delhi, connecting passengers to North America and Europe through its hub in Iceland. Post the announcement of WOW air in India in May earlier this year, the airline also began its fully functional booking office in New Delhi and recruited Indian crew, a first for any international airline operating out of India. “Our ultra-low fares reflect the need for affordable travel from India to transatlantic destinations. It also gives an opportunity for Iceland to open up to the world ... Read more